Huge List of Windows 7 Tips & Tricks

Where “top lists” are concerned, there’s no shortage, but sadly, the really good ones are a little more rare. Like the one I posted about earlier, one posted last week at Tech Radar is one of the better ones, with a staggering 50 tips and tricks for Windows 7 users. Even if you think you know Windows (and most of you probably do), you’ll no doubt learn something new from this article.

Of these tips, many refer to features I didn’t even know existed in Windows 7, including one I’d expect to get a lot of respect called “Problem Steps Recorder”. One of the biggest cause of frustration is trying to help someone with their computer over the phone or Internet, and not really knowing what the issue is since the person can’t explain things properly.

PSR is designed to follow the users steps, by capturing keystrokes, screenshots, etc, and then bundle them all together in an archive for someone else to review. So rather than trying to picture what problem the user is experiencing, you’ll be able to review the hard evidence. This is a great addition to the OS, and one I’m sure is going to come in handy for many people.

Other notable features include the ability to burn ISOs using built-in tools (finally!), improved family control, an RSS-based wallpaper, the ability to customize how System Restore functions and much, much more. The best part? These tips are bases just off of the beta. By the time the RTM version hits, we’re bound to see such lists become even more robust.

The Windows 7 Media Centre now comes with an option to play your “favourite music”, which by default creates a changing list of songs based on your ratings, how often you play them, and when they were added (it’s assumed you’ll prefer songs you’ve added in the last 30 days). If this doesn’t work then you can tweak how Media Centre decides what a “favourite” tune is- click Tasks > Settings > Music > Favourite Music and configure the program to suit your needs.