Windows 7 has a new updated disk defragmenter when compared to Windows Vista. The disk defragmenter utility in Vista was rightly criticised for not giving enough user feedback, this has been fixed slightly in that now the user can see how fragmented the individual disks on the computer are.

Mapping a network drive in Windows 7 is similar to Windows Vista, firstly you need to navigate to the Computer window in Windows Explorer, this should display a list of your hard disks and removable drives in a similar style than below. You then need to click on the ‘Map network drive’ button to start the wizard.

Here you then select the drive you want it to appear as and the folder to share it as, you can also configure options regarding reconnecting to the drive at logon and/or to connect using different network credentials. Completing the wizard will add the drive in your Computer window in Windows Explorer.

Windows 7 has many built in backwards compatibility features but a new one is the Program Compatibility troubleshooter. To run the troubleshooter follow the following steps:

• Open the Program Compatibility troubleshooter by clicking the Start button and then clicking Control Panel. In the search box, type troubleshooter, and then click Troubleshooting. Under Programs, click Run programs made for previous versions of Windows.

• Follow the instructions in the troubleshooter.

If you cannot install a program, insert the installation disc for the program and, using the troubleshooter, browse to the program’s setup file, usually called Setup.exe, Install.exe, or something similar. The troubleshooter is not designed to work on programs that have an .msi file name extension.

You can also open the Program Compatibility troubleshooter by right-clicking a program’s icon or shortcut and then clicking Troubleshoot compatibility.

One of the first things I noticed when I installed Windows 7 was the missing Quick Launch toolbar, this is mainly because the functionality has now been integrated into the main taskbar but if you desperately need it back you can follow the steps below:

• Right-click the taskbar and select Toolbars > New Toolbar
• In the folder selection dialog, enter the following string and click Select Folder:

  %userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

The quick launch toolbar has now been setup, to make it look like the old version you can remove the title and text associated with the icons by first unlocking the taskbar and then right-clicking the quick launch toolbar and deselecting ‘Show text’ and ‘Show title’. Whilst the taskbar is unlocked you can also rearrange to put it in your preferred place on the taskbar.

Thanks to a new feature in Windows 7 you can now arrange two windows side-by-side which can be helpful when comparing documents or moving files from one folder to another.

1. Drag the title bar of a window to the left or right side of the screen until an outline of the window appears.
2. Release the mouse to move the window to that side of the screen.
3. Repeat the steps 1 and 2 for the other window but with the opposite side of the screen.

A new feature in Windows 7 is the ability to burn ISO images directly from Windows without the need for any third party software, its as simple as double clicking on the ISO file which will bring up the Windows Disc Image Burner application. Then it’s as simple as selecting the drive to burn to and clicking ‘Burn’.