Windows 7 sp1 question

[mito]

I've been downloading all Windows 7 updates religiously for the past year or so.

Do I need SP1?

I have this idea that SP1 is for those new users who just installed Windows in their machines.

 

[Babel-17]

That's my impression also but for a few people there's this:

Two new features in Windows Server SP1, Dynamic Memory and RemoteFX, enable sophisticated desktop virtualization capabilities. These features build on the comprehensive virtualization functionality already included in the Windows Server operating system.
Dynamic Memory takes Windows Server's Hyper-V feature to a whole new level by allowing the increase of virtual machine density with the resources you already have--without sacrificing performance or scalability. In Microsoft's lab testing, with Windows 7 SP1 as the guest operating system in a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) scenario, they have seen a 40% increase in density from Windows Server 2008 R2 RTM to SP1, simply by enabling Dynamic Memory.
The second new feature, RemoteFX, is a first-to-market technology that lets you virtualize the Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) on the server side and deliver next-generation rich media and 3D user experiences for VDI. RemoteFX is also enabling new low cost ultra-thin client devices to enter the market. Together, these technologies will drive down the end-point cost and reduce endpoint power consumption to as little as a few watts.

http://www.echannelline.com/usa/brief.cfm?item=18041

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

I've been downloading all Windows 7 updates religiously for the past year or so.

Do I need SP1?

I have this idea that SP1 is for those new users who just installed Windows in their machines.

You should install SP1 when it arrives officially in a couple of weeks. While it rolls up all the individual updates, it will also include code changes and other bug fixes that were never publicly released in the form of a KB update ie, the ones you had to contact MS for.

Really the number of holes in MS operating systems (how often have you seen "remote attacker may be able to take over your machine" fixes?), you should make sure everything is up to date.

 

[Otto Dafe]

Only feature of note that I saw was something to do with the folder restore feature, otherwise it just looks like a big security roll-up. Still, can't hurt, especially since they've been testing the RTM build for what, 6 months now? I would however take care to have a good set of drivers for your hardware if you do a fresh install off a slip-streamed disk. I was just testing recently, and the drivers windows update offers for my NIC are still broken, which is odd, because the drivers included in 7600 work fine.

 

[Blazkowicz]

RemoteFX is one awesome feature, though only in the "Server 2008R2" edition of windows 7.
this will allow distributed gaming and 3D applications, seamlessly usable in front of a thin client ; game is rendered on the server, output is captured, compressed and stream over the network, built-in hardware acceleration in thin clients will decompress it.

first-to-market is a bit misleading, there's an opensource equivalent for Unix-likes (virtualgl) and a Quadro specific solution, though here's probably a nice out-of-the-box solution.

 

[Davros]

How do i edit the games in the game explorer ?

 

[Otto Dafe]

RemoteFX is one awesome feature, though only in the "Server 2008R2" edition of windows 7.
this will allow distributed gaming and 3D applications, seamlessly usable in front of a thin client ; game is rendered on the server, output is captured, compressed and stream over the network, built-in hardware acceleration in thin clients will decompress it.

first-to-market is a bit misleading, there's an opensource equivalent for Unix-likes (virtualgl) and a Quadro specific solution, though here's probably a nice out-of-the-box solution.

That does sound pretty cool, The R2 server enhancements sound nice, Win7 client improvements sound uninteresting. So I don't understand, the server renders frames, compresses them and sends them to clients? So what's to stop me from starting my own OnLive service? What's the resolution and codec? are those discretionary, e.g. can I use my own h264/AAC codec and have at it? That seems awfully open for MS.

 

[Blazkowicz]

it's a proprietary codec, wavelet transform they say so similar in concept to JPEG 2000.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff635792(v=PROT.10).aspx
as you could expect it's transferring blocks of still images, this is what VNC also does.

what stops you? licensing does. I found out it was enforced when using warez Server 2003. the OS was fully usable as a secure and lightweight XP but you can only toy with Terminal Services in a limited way. you need a special client license (on top of CAL) whose prices are not publicly listed. (over 100€ for small installations)

 

[Otto Dafe]

it's a proprietary codec, wavelet transform they say so similar in concept to JPEG 2000.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff635792(v=PROT.10).aspx
as you could expect it's transferring blocks of still images, this is what VNC also does.

what stops you? licensing does. I found out it was enforced when using warez Server 2003. the OS was fully usable as a secure and lightweight XP but you can only toy with Terminal Services in a limited way. you need a special client license (on top of CAL) whose prices are not publicly listed. (over 100€ for small installations)

Hmm... So who is this useful for? It seems good if you want to send high-res screens from server to client. Maybe I'm wrong, but if I were a sys admin I'd want to get screens from the users, not the other way around. So this is for, like, beaming your awesome ppt presentations around the office ultra-fast? I was imagining a quick mpeg4 encoder / lightweight decoder for thin clients. Oh well.

 

[Blazkowicz]

it's for thin clients, or "dumb terminal". the server is not so much a server, rather a true multi-user desktop. the clients only relay keypresses and mouse event, and display the server's host.

so that instead of a workstation on every desk, you can buid a single über machine and have tiny, dependable, silent and low watts boxes for the users, small enough to be screwed behind a LCD panel. or you can use an old computer, diskless, even if severely obsolete.

this gives you a huge reduction in costs, repair and administration, data access is local rather than big files served through the networks. now with real 3D support many more uses can be satisfied, and more high end ones

oh, maybe you asked about why such a codec..
mpeg4 may be better but there's quite an issue with the keyframes and motion compensation stuff. if you want to do such an encoding, you need to compress one frame then generate the data for transition to frame n+1, n+2 etc.
so given a instantly fast mpeg4 encoder, you've just introduced say 12 frames of latency.

 

[corduroygt]

Any chance MS added the ability to pin folders to the taskbar?

 

[Blazkowicz]

I gave it the "quicklaunch and taskbar" treatment you can find on many tutorials, and also classic start menu (trimmed down) with "Classic Shell".
so I can start the file manager (multiple instances of it) on a single click, it instantly comes up, then I use the favorites to get to the folders - this matches my lxde desktop . how funny, microsoft pretty made another clone of the gnome file manager.

caveats :
- favorites in the start menu don't work, I used it for a decade to access folders.
- there's quite some vertical mouse travel to reach my folders, they have those junk folders under them

goodies :
I've switched from classic to Aero while keeping almost all effect disabled. went from the uglyiest microsoft OS ever to pretty . no fade-in, i.e. needless latency, no ugly window shadows, just a shadow under mouse pointer and show content while dragging.

so and I'm a late newcomer, it's more than fine but requires some silly work to be decent.

 

[Babel-17]

I can pin folders to Explorer, which is on the taskbar. If I pin one there I just have to right click on the Windows Explorer icon to show it.

Are you saying you want to bypass that and add them directly?

You can sort of do that by adding them as a toolbar.

 

[Blazkowicz]

duh I found out you can launch multiple instances of a pinned program thanks to that right-click menu, as well.
was going to ask an agry question about that.
this lack discoverability - there's the icon and program title in the list but I assumed that was only a label.

 

[corduroygt]

I can pin folders to Explorer, which is on the taskbar. If I pin one there I just have to right click on the Windows Explorer icon to show it.

Are you saying you want to bypass that and add them directly?

You can sort of do that by adding them as a toolbar.

That's exactly the kind of workaround I wanted to avoid. Pinning folders to the Explorer isn't that useful because it requires an extra selection from a menu.
Just copy the feature from OSX, can't be that hard. It's the biggest UI messup Win7 did, I don't want stupid libraries and turned them off right away, Just let me pin individual folders as their own separate icons.

 

[Babel-17]

That's exactly the kind of workaround I wanted to avoid. Pinning folders to the Explorer isn't that useful because it requires an extra selection from a menu.
Just copy the feature from OSX, can't be that hard. It's the biggest UI messup Win7 did, I don't want stupid libraries and turned them off right away, Just let me pin individual folders as their own separate icons.

Not disagreeing but have you tried adding the folder as a toolbar?

As a demonstration I added a backup of my Fallout: New Vegas folder from My Documents as a toolbar. Here's what it looks like in action.

http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp231/littleoldmoi/Stuff/capture_12022011_164656.jpg (30.1 KB)

Same thing but with the Saves sub-folder expanded. 160 KB

http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp231/littleoldmoi/Stuff/capture_12022011_164700.jpg

 

[corduroygt]

Not disagreeing but have you tried adding the folder as a toolbar?

As a demonstration I added a backup of my Fallout: New Vegas folder from My Documents as a toolbar. Here's what it looks like in action.

http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp231/littleoldmoi/Stuff/capture_12022011_164656.jpg (30.1 KB)

Same thing but with the Saves sub-folder expanded. 160 KB

http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp231/littleoldmoi/Stuff/capture_12022011_164700.jpg

Don't like either example. I just want to click on a folder icon and have windows explorer open up the folder I clicked. I prefer using right-click if I want a list to pop up. You can't really do that in Windows 7 without some hacking around.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Don't like either example. I just want to click on a folder icon and have windows explorer open up the folder I clicked. I prefer using right-click if I want a list to pop up. You can't really do that in Windows 7 without some hacking around.

It's really easy to do but doesn't operate in exactly the same way as OSX or other pinned items on the taskbar.

Here I'll post an existing link rather than typing out the steps myself.

http://www.7tutorials.com/how-pin-any-folder-windows-7-taskbar

You can change the icon to whatever you want and while it shows the "shortcut arrow" in explorer, it won't show the arrow when pinned to your task bar.

The only problem is that when you open the folder it creates an explorer window that is grouped with other explorer windows rather than using the existing icon on the taskbar.

For myself, I just use the quicklaunch toolbar along with applications pinned to my start menu.

Regards,
SB

 

[corduroygt]

It's really easy to do but doesn't operate in exactly the same way as OSX or other pinned items on the taskbar.

Here I'll post an existing link rather than typing out the steps myself.

http://www.7tutorials.com/how-pin-any-folder-windows-7-taskbar

Thanks, that was a few steps shorter than the method I found, but still, how hard is it to enable just dragging a folder to the taskbar to create a one-click shortcut? Why should a simple OS function like this need a tutorial?

 

[Otto Dafe]

it's for thin clients, or "dumb terminal". the server is not so much a server, rather a true multi-user desktop. the clients only relay keypresses and mouse event, and display the server's host.

so that instead of a workstation on every desk, you can buid a single über machine and have tiny, dependable, silent and low watts boxes for the users, small enough to be screwed behind a LCD panel. or you can use an old computer, diskless, even if severely obsolete.

this gives you a huge reduction in costs, repair and administration, data access is local rather than big files served through the networks. now with real 3D support many more uses can be satisfied, and more high end ones

oh, maybe you asked about why such a codec..
mpeg4 may be better but there's quite an issue with the keyframes and motion compensation stuff. if you want to do such an encoding, you need to compress one frame then generate the data for transition to frame n+1, n+2 etc.
so given a instantly fast mpeg4 encoder, you've just introduced say 12 frames of latency.

I see, I didn't realize b-frames were that far apart, but you wouldn't want blocks and blur in this case anyway. What is the thin-client though? Do you get a number of seats with an R2 license? Or do you write your own?