eWEEK Labs Walk-Through: Vista Build 5536

As in previous test builds of Vista, we were welcomed upon first log-in by Vistas thoughtfully composed Welcome screen–now with links to various Windows Live services.

It wouldnt be Windows without an initial warning that your brand-new machine needs an antivirus add-on. We took Vista Build 5536 up on its offer to suggest an AV option, and we were surprised not to find OneCare among our options.

Vistas Program Compatibility Wizard offered us the chance to run our outlander applications in a mode emulating an earlier Windows version. We didnt run into any problems that required this step, however.

Vistas Windows Update is little changed from whats available in Windows XP. Wed love to see Microsoft offer access to this framework to third-party vendors.

Vistas help system is coming along nicely—we encountered much less placeholder text and much more helpful bits, such those answering questions about Windows Update.

Internet Explorer plays rather nice when it comes to making way for rival search providers.

This may be the first time weve seen a new Windows installation in which IE actually defaults to its default security level, rather than to custom.

In another instance of Vistas maturing help system, there was a rather good description of Vistas new User Account Controls.

We fired up cmd and found what looks to be a more command-line-friendly directory structure in Vista–fewer multi-word folder names and a common-sense home directory structure.

We tried out the Windows Live tool bar but found that it cluttered up IE 7s otherwise clean-looking interface. We feel the same way about the Google tool bar, on which the Live bar seems modeled.

We liked Vistas simple-to-use backup tool, and were interested in seeing whether it integrates with Microsofts OneCare online backup service.

Our favorite new Vista vista so far? The systems sharp-looking new Task Manager, which resembles the previous Windows Task Manager but offers much more information.

We applaud Microsoft for bringing important (and previously too well-hidden) information about system services to the fore in the new Task Manager.

Without admin approval, the Task Manager will display the processes of the current user.

The Task Managers performance tab offers the data were accustomed to seeing in previous Windows versions, but sports a new button that triggers a deeper view for admins.

The network activity drilldown in Vistas Resource Monitor tool offers administrators much more information about what Windows is up to than previous Windows versions.

In Vista, an optional-download Windows Messenger means one less annoyance on newly installed systems.

The Time Machine feature set to ship with Mac OS X Tiger may have a prettier interface, but it looks as though Vista will manage to deliver this feature first–in the form of the Previous Versions dialog.