Common Windows 7 Problems and How to Fix Them

CommanderFrank

CommanderFrank

Cat Can't Scratch It
Joined
May 9, 2000
Messages
75,399
So you refuse to give up your beloved Windows 7 for the newfangled Windows 8.1, but after all of the updates and fixes over the years, you still experience exasperating problems that you would love to fix. Check out several quick fixes for recurring problems that still haunt Windows 7.

For the most part, at least; the OS has to work with an incredible variety of apps and hardware, so problems do crop up. Here are some of the most common, and how to fix them.
Click to expand...
 
Or you could just upgrade to Windows 8. Add shutdown, restart, and control panel shortcuts to you metro. 90% of windows 8 complaints solved.
 
Stick your first DOS diskette into the A:\ drive, boot from it and reinstall a fresh copy. Add Windows 3.11 if you want to use your mouse to navigate the hard drive's directory. Don't forget to run MEMMAKER and properly configure your autoexec.bat and config.sys files. :D
 
I'm still holding onto Windows 7 because I am an average user. All I do with this pc is media related (gaming/movies). I can't justify the cost. After consulting google, I went through and shut down whatever it is windows does that I think it didn't need to do. I don't even mind the BSODS anymore (because I can't stop dicking around with clockspeeds).
 
Anyone have an issue with command prompt shrinking if you open it in one user account and then log in to another one and open it there?
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
Stick your first DOS diskette into the A:\ drive, boot from it and reinstall a fresh copy. Add Windows 3.11 if you want to use your mouse to navigate the hard drive's directory. Don't forget to run MEMMAKER and properly configure your autoexec.bat and config.sys files. :D
Click to expand...
Is your floppy a 8", 5.25" or 3.5"?

I still remember loading raid drivers off that shit.
 
Wrecked Em said:
Or you could just never seem to have these problems.
Click to expand...

Lucky you :rolleyes:. I'm pretty good on most fronts, but the wake timer setting was one I had overlooked, and I've never found anybody who got the HomeGroup system up and running. Of course, XBMC with a little time and effort is a far superior option IMO.
 
+1 on xbmc
I always had to hold back when someone bought one of those horrible media center pos.
 
I'll stick with windows 7 till it no longer has update support, then moving to Linux unless MS gives us the PROPER start menu back and gets rid of that metro junk.

I was in the beta of windows 8 and I CAN'T STAND that damn interface, if I wanted to use a tablet I would pick up my 10" tablet and use it. For the desktop I want a REAL desktop interface with proper multitasking. You know.. MORE THAN ONE WINDOW AT A TIME. MS took a good thing (Windows 7) and ruined it with 8
 
qb4ever said:
I'll stick with windows 7 till it no longer has update support, then moving to Linux unless MS gives us the PROPER start menu back and gets rid of that metro junk.

I was in the beta of windows 8 and I CAN'T STAND that damn interface, if I wanted to use a tablet I would pick up my 10" tablet and use it. For the desktop I want a REAL desktop interface with proper multitasking. You know.. MORE THAN ONE WINDOW AT A TIME. MS took a good thing (Windows 7) and ruined it with 8
Click to expand...

You are so ignorant its scary. Amazingly, people like you dominate the headlines. Your filth spreads like a virus.
 
Never had any of these issue. And I consider my self a heavy user...
My Win7 is all up to date, might be the reason for some of those bugs....
 
qb4ever said:
For the desktop I want a REAL desktop interface with proper multitasking. You know.. MORE THAN ONE WINDOW AT A TIME. MS took a good thing (Windows 7) and ruined it with 8
Click to expand...

When I read posts like this it's hard to conclude the person has ever used Windows 8.
 
skiboysteve said:
You are so ignorant its scary. Amazingly, people like you dominate the headlines. Your filth spreads like a virus.
Click to expand...

I worry a lot about someone else I don't know having a negative opinion about a company's products. Like if someone doesn't like Gucci...oh my gawd that's worth forum rage and name calling for reallys.
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
I worry a lot about someone else I don't know having a negative opinion about a company's products. Like if someone doesn't like Gucci...oh my gawd that's worth forum rage and name calling for reallys.
Click to expand...

Its not that. I don't care about the product. Its just that he says he tried it and then states with vigor how awful it is with a statement that is totally false. So he clearly never used it. Then people pick up on it... Restate it... Headlines are written.. People tell their friends. Its a virus.

What if I said "I tried the latest Linux beta but without command line access its just so hard to use. Way to kill the power users Linus! I'm really disappointed with the direction they are taking and I can't wait to switch."

People would laugh at me and call me out. When you do the same for Windows 8 people don't flinch at all. More than one window at a time? Give me a break.
 
I recently upgraded from windows 8 to windows 7. Had all kinds of nightmare issues in windows 8 that were never addressed. I could care less about the debate about the metro interface if the system was solid. But when none of my computers would sleep on their own, Programs no longer working like Soundforge that I had purchased and was no longer supported in 8.1...., and a whole host of other stability problems I had. Read tons and tons of forums and finally went back to Windows 7 and have not had a problem since. Also was nice to not have to download media center seperatly, it's nice that windows 7 includes it and doesn't make you purchase it. Anyways Windows 8 is a nightmare and talking to my friends, they're having the same issues I had.
 
heatlesssun said:
When I read posts like this it's hard to conclude the person has ever used Windows 8.
Click to expand...

I've used it enough to know I don't like it. Bought in it at release and tried to live with it for a while, the workflow is horrible. Just couldn't deal with it.


skiboysteve said:
You are so ignorant its scary. Amazingly, people like you dominate the headlines. Your filth spreads like a virus.
Click to expand...

Really buddy? I'm "filth" for having a different opinion? Who the fuck are you to say any different?
 
ICOM said:
I've concluded that W8 is an insignificant and inferior desktop operating system in comparison to W7.
Click to expand...

And if that's your conclusion then that's your conclusion. But since desktop apps have the same windowing capability in 8 as 7 I don't know how one can say that 8 doesn't support multitasking. Even multiple modern apps can run side-by-side along with the desktop.
 
6 months ago when I built a new Haswell system I went with 7 ultimate 64 and I started to have some odd and end crashes which pissed me off because I always figured 7 was touted as durable.
Bluescreenview was pretty cryptic on most of them, some never generated a dump even though I have 7 to do so.

Oddly ever since I fixed the Marvell [bad factory flash HDD light issue] on my board everything has been smooth, no crashes.
 
ep0x73 said:
6 months ago when I built a new Haswell system I went with 7 ultimate 64 and I started to have some odd and end crashes which pissed me off because I always figured 7 was touted as durable.
Bluescreenview was pretty cryptic on most of them, some never generated a dump even though I have 7 to do so.

Oddly ever since I fixed the Marvell [bad factory flash HDD light issue] on my board everything has been smooth, no crashes.
Click to expand...

with vista and 7 if you are noticing BSOD normally it will be a hardware issue. Even with all the bitching about vista, it is stable as long as you have the correct drivers. Which that really was its issue, companies didn't want to be bothered to make new drivers for anything when Vista was first released. by the time they started Microsoft made them make drivers work for windows 7 to be vista certified. So that means that once 7 finally got released it had usable drivers so gave the illusion of being far more reliable.
 
All drivers were fresh off Gigabytes site and as for the Marvell controller it's using the same drivers.
I can only conclude the bad flash was screwing with the drivers.
I can't remember what the other crashes were about, maybe java or something but hardware wise it's bare bones.
No sound card or video card, just using onboard for now.
 
I have no desire to install Windows 8. Ever. 7 never gives me any problems. And since I use my desktop less and less in favor of mobile; MS can keep 8.
 
I saw that Fischer Price BS on someone's desktop one time...just laughed

yeah...I'll stick with 7 thanks, probably migrate the farm to linux after that
 
Can't believe they had activation as a problem with 7.
Its nowhere as near as bad as it was with xp, I argued with a ms tech for 40 minutes because I upgraded and added in new GPU and Raid 0 array on my gaming rig. Apparently back then they tried to say an OEM license was only good for original parts.
I found a way around that while still having a legal copy on each computer.
 
jojo69 said:
I saw that Fischer Price BS on someone's desktop one time...just laughed

yeah...I'll stick with 7 thanks, probably migrate the farm to linux after that
Click to expand...

You saw XP on a computer and laughed?

Windows 8 hate is still rather hilarious. You can always tell the stubborn ones that simply resist change and run with the herd mentality. So many bullshit made up reasons to hate 8. :rolleyes:
 
Disposed said:
You saw XP on a computer and laughed?

Windows 8 hate is still rather hilarious. You can always tell the stubborn ones that simply resist change and run with the herd mentality. So many bullshit made up reasons to hate 8. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Some people aren't lemming enough to pay for interface changes that add nothing to a touchless setup. I'm not buying a 23" touch screen to replace my 23" monitor so I'm more inclined to buy a windows phone. Sorry no.

I'll take the Windows 7 Service Packs without the pointless interface and inflated cost.
 
jpm100 said:
Some people aren't lemming enough to pay for interface changes that add nothing to a touchless setup. I'm not buying a 23" touch screen to replace my 23" monitor so I'm more inclined to buy a windows phone. Sorry no.

I'll take the Windows 7 Service Packs without the pointless interface and inflated cost.
Click to expand...

Like this guy. Calls others "lemming" and thinks all 8 brings is a ui change.

And what "inflated" cost did I incurr as a lemming? I paid $15 per license.

Keep running with that herd because actually figuring shit out for yourself is hard.
 
Disposed said:
Like this guy. Calls others "lemming" and thinks all 8 brings is a ui change.
Click to expand...
Yeah, how's that App Store working for you? Otherwise I guess you misunderstood my Service Pack dig. Basically Windows 7 is missing the traditional round of Service Packs which I believe were hijacked into the underhood changes in Windows 8 instead.

And what "inflated" cost did I incurr as a lemming? I paid $15 per license.
Click to expand...
The introductory dumping of Windows 8 because no one was really motivated to upgrade otherwise is long gone. How does that help anyone else now?

Keep running with that herd because actually figuring shit out for yourself is hard.
Click to expand...
Why should I pay to figure out something new that does the same thing what I have now does? I'm not a bored IT person.
 
WhiteRice said:
Or you could just upgrade to Windows 8. Add shutdown, restart, and control panel shortcuts to you metro. 90% of windows 8 complaints solved.
Click to expand...

Then just delete the MS based Metro apps from the Start Screen so you get no desktop/Start switching and that's 99% solved.
 
They forgot the best one -

Stop/pause Windows 7 looking for network drives before it's even connected to the network.

That's a classic.
 
I have machines with Win 7 and Win 8 and I prefer the Win 7 Machine. My Win 7 machine took far less configuring to operate the way I liked, to look the way I liked and feel the way I liked. So in my world Win 7 > Win 8

I did not purchase Win 8 as it came bundled with a bunch of parts so I installed on a couple work units. After using Win 8 and taking the time to tweak it I would not purchase it.
 
when you have W8 doing what you like it is somewhere between fine and annoying. Getting there can be much too aggravating.
W8 is not supported for my HP Compaq CQ60-220US laptop by HP, no sound divers, and lost DVD playback.
 
wtourist said:
W8 is not supported for my HP Compaq CQ60-220US laptop by HP, no sound divers, and lost DVD playback.
Click to expand...

So you might want to write to HP as to why they haven't come up with support for a Vista era laptop to run Windows 8.

Not really Microsoft's fault.
 
Hi All

Read the article & as someone who uses Windows 7 Professional I haven't experienced any of the problems listed there. For me, Windows 7 has been very stable with no problems.

What I find troubling though is the fact that some folk have forgotten what "Personal Computer" stands for. The operative word here being "Personal". To me that says what I as a individual choose to put in it is up to me the individual. To suggest that ones personal preference to a specific operating system somehow makes them inferior is at best suspect to be examined. Again, it's personal choice, nothing more.
 
One thing that I hate about 7 - warning message pop-up when I'm gaming that I need to switch off aero because my system is performing poorly.
 
Disposed said:
Like this guy. Calls others "lemming" and thinks all 8 brings is a ui change.
Click to expand...

That's not what he said and you know it.

Here's what was said.

jpm100 said:
Some people aren't lemming enough to pay for interface changes that add nothing to a touchless setup.
Click to expand...

Nowhere did he say Win8 brought nothing else to the table.

And what "inflated" cost did I incurr as a lemming? I paid $15 per license.
Click to expand...

Buying newer versions of software that are Win8 compatible (as some programs that worked fine with Win7 didn't like the change). Time and productivity lost (as both are money). As possible hardware changes necessary to actually make use of the touch interface in a semi-sane manner.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top