The buzz surrounding Windows 7 has begun to amp up, and I'm already assuming that this product will be little more than Windows Vista with a few added gewgaws that are relatively unimportant. While nothing on my wish list will be implemented, I figured I'd complain in advance anyway.
1. Build a new file system based on database technologies—Yes, this is the same thing Microsoft promised with Vista and never delivered. Despite the fact that Microsoft employs over 20,000 programmers, apparently nobody can do what is essentially a clone of the PickOS from the 1970s. (Actually the first implementation was in 1965!)
You want this sort of OS so you can actually find things on the computer without the agony of time-consuming linear string searches. It would be so nice to find a document on the computer by typing "Find document dog not cat near feeding near rover" or some such series of commands. And then when you hit the return key the documents come up instantly. BANG.
More important, applications can use an advanced file system to better perform their chores.
Right now the entire computer data storage system is like that big cigar box everyone keeps filled with miscellaneous receipts, and it's kind of pathetic. We've been using these machines for over 30 years and this is the best we can do? And Microsoft, despite promises, cannot redo something accomplished in 1965 on a clunker? Bring back Nathan Myhrvold at least!
2. Code in some performance improvements—Microsoft's coding theory since its inception was to write flabby, modular code with no concern for performance. The idea – and Gates himself expressed this in very early interviews – is that processors will pick up the performance slack over time. Bloatware wasn't something software companies should have to worry about. And then, once something is running fine and stable, Microsoft tends to walk away from the code and just leave it even if it could be later improved. This is a stark contrast to the Macintosh. Apple constantly upgrades the OS in much the same was as Microsoft does, but it commonly upgrades old code to improve performance too. As someone who often uses a Mac, I am always impressed by the overall improvements to the system when an Apple software update is performed. The machine runs better!
3. Get rid of the miserable registry—Exactly why can't Microsoft fix the problem with the registry? The solution is simple: Get rid of it. The registry is the number one hindrance to upgrades. Without an inordinate amount of work, including numerous re-installations (many of which require re-authorization), it is almost impossible to upgrade to a new machine. Only the data files easily transfer. And for that matter, they transfer just as easily to a Macintosh or a Linux box. Also, the registry deteriorates over time and needs repairing and compressing every so often. This is always a risk because if the registry gets corrupted, then your whole machine is rendered useless.
4. Fix the media player so it actually is a universal player—The media player should function as a universal player and actually play everything from MOV files from my camera to old AVI files. Windows Media Player wants everything to be a WMV file, and half of those don't always work. It plays some MP4 files and not others; it's spotty as can be. I just hate when I get some message or other saying that I do not have the right codec or whatever. What's the point of having a media player embedded in the system that doesn't work as well as VLC media player, a free player actively given away by VideoLAN.org? How is it that this VLC product, coded by a few guys in their spare time, can do a job 20,000 Microsoft coders cannot make Media Player do? I'd seriously like to know. Does this make any sense to anyone?
5. How about an embedded e-mail program that's not a piece of crap?—I don't know why I even bother suggesting this. Microsoft can't do this chore either.
6. Get off the cloud!—There is nothing more annoying than Microsoft and this cloud computing crapola. It has its place in certain situations, but too often I've been doing something on my laptop on an airplane and suddenly the machine wants to contact the Internet for some reason or other. It's ridiculous.
These are just six of the many wishes and suggestions I have for the folks at Microsoft, who seem to be rushing Windows 7 as fast as they can. In the end it will just be another incomplete product.
Do you have any wishes for the list? Stop by the forums and vent your complaints.
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