Windows 7 was expected to be a better performer than Vista right out of the gate, and if you paid attention to Microsoft's timeline you'd understand why. Here's the quick-and-dirty rundown: Windows XP was codenamed "Whistler", for the BC ski mountain, and essentially represented what was meant to be the ultimate development of the NT kernel. The next version was codenamed "Blackcomb" (for another ski mountain neighboring Whistler), and was intended to be a radical shift in the codebase to rely more on the .NET platform. The shift would be huge, and disruptive, since it would require a whole new driver model and would use new technologies for communications and presentation. It would, in fact, be such a disruptive shift that Microsoft elected to create an "interim" version that would maintain compatibility for the most part. The inside joke here is that the code name for this interim version was taken from a bar located right in between Whistler and Blackcomb, namely the "Longhorn". The trouble with "Longhorn" (which we all know and love now as Windows Vista) was that the attempt to maintain compatibility--AND improve security--led to some significant performance issues. Windows 7 resolves these issues, and it was always intended to. As it happens, netbooks have come on the scene, and they'll clearly have an impact for years to come. In many ways, these really are truly "personal" computers, and the technology has finally matured to the point that such machines can be both cheap and genuinely useful. It's just a happy coincidence that MS has been finalizing a leaner, better-performing OS to run on them

...but I'm definitely frustrated to have not one but TWO Barracuda 7200.11 drives fail. The first was DOA, and the RMA'd replacement just failed after only a few weeks. I've heard rumors that Seagate is returning different drives to customers. Like, larger ones. I'll wait and see.

You know, this technology could be used to distribute porn, too... ;)