Usefulwindows's Blog

Some of you know that I set up Windows Vista Home Premium on this Netbook earlier and you can read that here.  I was glad to say goodbye to  XP and see Vista running on this little machine.  Well the day after Thanksgiving I was able to get the family pack of Windows 7 Home Premium for $150.  It was time to upgrade the Mini, I knew my fiance would love the new features and I wanted to see how much better it would run on there.  So again I went to work.

Here is some background, I got this Netbook because it is light and portable, not to just check e-mail and look cool.  This thing is very light.  I would suggest any of the HP Netbooks if you are interested in them.  This one is an HP Mini 1000 the true model number is the 1030NR.  I have read that the best thing you can do to these computers that run Intel Atom processors is to upgrade the ram and I did just that, I upgraded it to 2Gb.  Other than that this thing is still stock.

The upgrade was much simpler than putting Vista on this and I would say that anyone could do this very easily.  I had purchased an external DVD drive when I got the Mini so I attached it to it and booted off of the Windows 7 install disc.  The Mini will only support 32bit versions of Windows. I booted off of the 32bit disc and formated the hard drive and installed Windows,  it was simple.  Afterward I ran Windows Updates and installed Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate.  Total Windows, Office and a few programs fills up the 16Gb Solid State hard drive.  Just a few gigs free when it is all said and done.  I again disabled System Restore and set to a manual page file size instead of letting the OS manage it.

Windows 7 on HP Mini 1030NR

This was an easy install, the Device Manager was clear from the end of installation.  However a basic mouse driver was installed.  If you want the scroll function, download the Vista mouse driver from another HP laptop that used a Synaptics driver.  Also just a note the built-in webcam in the Mini works just fine in Windows 7, did not have to load any drivers for it the Windows Setup did it automatically.

All in all this Mini seems faster with 7 installed than with Vista.  The numbers are interesting, below is the Scores from Windows 7, check out my other blog here for windows Vista’s numbers on the same machine. Remember in Vista the highest score was a 5.9, in Windows 7 the highest score is a 7.9

Again I ran the Passmark Performance Test and Vista got a 172, while Windows 7 gets a 178.8, not a big jump but it is still a performance increase and you notice it on the Mini, the system is much more responsive.

So if you bought that Netbook on Black Friday or have an older one  I would suggest a Windows 7 upgrade.  If you do not have an external DVD drive you can look into local computer service shops to do an upgrade for you.  Windows 7 takes everything good about Vista and makes it better, as well as taking the bad and making it great. This upgrade is simple and recommended.

Well here is an interesting look at five free downloads for Windows 7, Vista, and some for XP.  If you want to add fun and functionality to your operating system than this is for you.  So lets take a look. 

1.  Windows live Mail, I use this everyday.  This is not the old Outlook Express you remember from older Windows versions.  This is more like a mini Outlook.  Not only does it do mail but it is a contact manager and has your calendar.  All of this can sync with your e-mail as well.  The e-mail function works with pop3 connections and with internet based e-mail like Hotmail, and Gmail.  This program is worth a look and allows a great place to manage your every day life.  It is part of the Windows Live Essentials pack and you can download this for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 from http://download.live.com/wlmail

Windows Live Mail in Windows 7

2. Windows Live Photo Gallery, if you want something to manage your pictures and do basic editing that is easy to use, is not slow, and you can add raw image support to then this is for you.  I prefer this to Google Picasa!  It is much more nimble and I prefer the auto correct in Windows Live Photo Gallery.  All in all it is just great software.  This is again part of the Windows Live Essentials pack and is available for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 from http://download.live.com/photogallery

Windows Live Photo Gallery in Windows 7

3. Windows Live Movie Maker, this program has changed for the better, it picks up the office tab and ribbon interface and is much easier to use.  I like the output options for YouTube, HD, or DVD.  It is just easier to use than the earlier versions.  If you want free video editing and is easy to use than this is it.  I actually enjoy using this and will start using it for the first time in a while,  I never liked the older versions.  It is again part of the Windows Live Essentials pack however it is only available for Window Vista and 7 and you can get it at http://download.live.com/moviemaker

Windows Live Movie Maker in Windows 7

4. Microsoft Security Essentials, is pretty cool. This is based on of the highly acclaimed Microsoft One Care and also draws from Microsoft Forefront.  This is free antivirus software for the home user.  So far independent tests show it to perform very well at protecting systems from viruses and spyware.  Better than most other solutions.  I have been using it on my Windows 7 installations and it has been great.  It does not constantly notify you with things.  It also replaces Windows Defender.  One program to do two things.  It is light and does not bog the system down at all.  If you don’t have money I suggest downloading this over AVG but AVG is also a good Free one.   With Security Essentials however so far so good.  It is available for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 from http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/support.aspx?mkt=en-us#mainNav

Microsoft Security Essentials in Windows 7

5. Microsoft Carioca Rummy, this is a fun game.  It is a form of Contract Rummy popular in Argentina and Chile.  Once you get the hang of it, it will become addicting.  You can use it in Spanish or English.  I love playing this game and it adds another great game to any system.  You can download it for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=9F295184-A788-49D6-8C7A-966B72C014F7&displaylang=en

Microsoft Carioca Rummy in Windows 7

These programs will add fun and functionality to any system.  It will even breath life into the aging Windows XP so take a look at them and have some fun.

Most of you don’t know that I am engaged, not too long ago my girlfriend’s laptop was stolen and it was time to get her a new one and she only had one request, that it be light.  She has back problems and did not like lugging her laptop around to class.  So I looked into Netbooks and found a HP Mini 1030NR at Best Buy for a good price.  I did not have much money so the $299 price was in my range and a friend told me he would help me out.  I chose the Mini because of its screen, the solid state hard drive, the 1.6 GHz Intel Atom, and I liked the keyboard better than the other ones I had tried, it was much easier to type on.  Now if you know me you know I can’t leave any computer stock so I maxed out the ram at 2Gb.  And then I did some research.  I found that the Mini has an integrated Intel graphics chipset that supports Windows Aero Glass.  Also the Intel Atom processor only supports 32bit versions of Windows.  The Mini comes with Windows XP, but I figured that the Mini might support Windows Vista but it would take some doing , and so I went to work.

HP Mini 1000 Netbook running Windows Vista Home Premium

Now the Mini does not have a DVD rom drive so I bought an external one for it.  I then booted up and formated the hardrive with Vista Home Premium.  The Mini has a 16Gb solid state drive in it and I knew that would be a problem later on.  Vista installed without any problems, once the desktop was loaded I went to the Device Manager, and it was a mess.  HP’s website does not have much Vista drivers for the Mini so I had to go to the manufactures of the different components.  I was able to get graphic, network, wireless, chipset, and the quick play buttons all installed but I noticed something.  A generic mouse driver was installed and it did not support the scroll function of the touch pad.  Some might say this is not an important feature but I love it.  I found that the same mouse pad was used on other HP laptops and downloaded the Vista driver from another model

Clean Device Manager on Netbook with Vista installed

Now I had a clean Device Manager (pictured above), next was to update Windows.  This was a chore since I had also installed Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate and her antivirus software.  I got Service Pack 1 for Vista installed but there was no room for Service Pack 2.  So I ran the service pack cleanup tool which removes the backed up files and then ran SP2 and ran the tool again after that.  All the other updates installed fine for Vista, but then Service Pack 2 for Office would not install.  In the long run I figured that System Restore was going to have to be disabled.  I also set a limit to the Page File as well so it would not get out of hand.  That did it I was able to install all updates I wanted and after removing the temporary files with Crap Cleaner I had over 2Gb of free space.

I will say Vista actually runs well on this little Netbook, it is not as fast as my laptop but it works and it is light and gives my girlfriend all the functionality she needs, while staying protected with Vista’s advanced security features.  It took some doing but I am glad I did it and I can’t wait to get Windows 7 installed on there next.  That little Netbook runs Aero Glass just fine.  Now it’s not the fastest computer as you can see by the Windows Experience  Index below.  In Vista the highest score you can get is a 5.9, so it holds its own. I ran PassMark Preformance Test on it and on my low end Compaq Presario C700 (C712NR)  which also runs Windows Vista Home Premium, and the Mini gets a 172 overall score while the Compaq only gets a 393.3  The Mini keeps up in 3D graphics and keeps up with 2D, but  the Compaq does better with the processor and memory.   The weak point is the Intel Atom processor.  While the Intel Atom N270 runs at 1.6 GHz it is still not as fast as Intel’s mobile chips in laptops.  As the Atom evolves these Netbooks will become much better machines further blurring that line between Netbook and Laptop.

Windows Experience Index on HP Mini in Vista

I am a computer technician and I like performance.  I love using her Netbook, Vista runs fine on there.  I don’t understand why the Netbooks with traditional hard drives in them don’t have Vista running on them by default.  I can understand why XP is on the ones with small solid state hard drives because of the space restrictions.  I would suggest to anyone that has the ability to do it to install Vista on their Netbook and try it for themselves.  Also since Windows Vista runs on here, then Windows 7 will as well.  I have since updated to Windows 7 which you can read here.