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Windows 7 is upon us, ushering in the latest era of Microsoft’s Windows Operating System. Faster and more functional, with less bloat than previous iterations, Windows 7 has been introduced to a surprisingly receptive audience.

But all fanfare aside, the question of its compatibility with your system is of paramount concern. As has been the case with each version of Windows, successfully installing the package is contingent upon the present composition of your system.

To shed light on what requirements your system meets, Microsoft has released a helpful program that aids in highlighting what you’ll need before attempting to upgrade to Windows 7.

Called the Upgrade Advisor, this utility assesses your system, providing an analysis that will leave you with a clearer picture of your computer’s compatibility.

After launching the Upgrade Advisor, you’re met with a welcome screen that prompts you to begin.

Depending on the specifications of your system, the duration of the analysis varies, but it usually lasts just a few minutes.

Upon conclusion of the analysis, Upgrade Advisor produces a report that lists those areas which must be addressed before proceeding with the upgrade.

Without running the Upgrade Advisor, you should know that the minimum requirements for Windows 7 are:

• 1 Ghz CPU
• 1 GB of RAM
• 16 GB HDD

Seeing how well it’s been received, it’s understandable that you could be leaning towards upgrading to Windows 7. Before doing so, you might want to run the Upgrade Advisor.

Download it here.

As any veteran of Microsoft’s Windows Operating System knows, the ALT-TAB function is a convenient way to immediately switch from one application to another, underscoring Windows’ multi-tasking properties.

Like many features within Windows, while extremely functional, it doesn’t exactly lend itself to the overall appearance of the Windows platform. More important, the function can lead to frustration, with many people unsure of what “window” they’re switching to.

However, for users of the latest versions of Windows (XP, Vista, and the recently unveiled Windows 7), a helpful and considerably more attractive utility would seem to supplant that rather basic command we’ve grown accustomed to using. Offering the same functionality, this tool takes the core feature of ALT-TAB and augments it to an impressive degree.

Instead of giving you a mere row comprised of the applications to select from, VistaSwitcher provides a sizable window, granting you a beautifully realized preview of what’s available. Use it just as you would “ALT-TAB,” by pressing those very two keys to bring up the preview area.

VistaSwitcher also enables the following:

• By using the “S” key after you’ve pressed “ALT-TAB,” you can option more than one window for previewing, giving you a number of hot keys with which to manipulate their grouping – C for cascade, V for Vertical, and H for Horizontal.

• When pressing “CTRL-ALT-TAB,” you’ll be able to alternate between open windows within a single application. For instance, as someone who works on multiple writing projects at a time, hopping from one document to the next can quickly become tedious. With this utility, assuming all my documents are worked upon in one application (i.e., Microsoft Word), I’m granted the ability to easily switch from one window to the next in much the same way I would between multiple applications.

If you’d rather go with familiarity, you can always stay with the standard “ALT-TAB” function. But for those of you looking to wring just a bit more from this oft-used function, VistaSwitcher is a great way to spruce up your use of Windows.

You can download VistaSwitcher here.