When reinstalling W7 (after all, it is Christmas) I was advised that my product key was not valid. Me... Use an invalid product key... Never! And besides, this is a retail upgrade pack.
So what's wrong?
Turns out this is a known issue where under a normal reinstall, your product key will be rejected. At issue is the fact that his is an upgrade disk rather than a "full version". It assumes you have an existing OS. The good news is there is a Microsoft work around.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Windows-7-activation-error-invalid-product-key
To save you the effort of reading their propaganda:
1. Select Custom Install.
2. Highlight the target disk.
3. Click Advanced.
4. Click Format.
After the second install completes, you will be able to use your product key.
Showing posts with label windows7. Show all posts
Showing posts with label windows7. Show all posts
Friday, December 25, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Got My Windows 7: First Impressions
Of course, this was built in a virtual machine, so I didn't bother with sound on the first install. I'm more interested in the desktop. Further, this is Home Premium, so many features are missing.
Screen Resolution: Yes! We are one click away from the change resolution screen. Wonderful. Even better than XP.
Taskbar: Still have the stupid clock, but at least they've included the date. Whoa! You can turnoff the clock! Fianlly... after a more than a decade.
The name of minimized windows is hidden; only the icon shows on the taskbar. Its configurable.
We can not change the "Stop" function. In Vista, a laptop could only suspend directly from the desktop (even though it indicated it was an "OFF" feature.) Now we can customize it.
Control Panel: Where's my classic view? Gone. Sad.
Of course everything has moved, so it will take a year to figure out how to change anything.
Networking: What's a homegroup? Or a library?
Six clicks to get to the screen o set a static IP: Its eight in Vista.
Gadgets: Gadgets can GoGo anywhere on the desktop. Better, but they still suck.
Accessories: Dramatically improved Paint.
Better WordPad-- very Office-ish, but no spell check. :(
Windows PowerShell (finally, ls works. How very Unix of them.)
All in all, I have to say... Very good.
Screen Resolution: Yes! We are one click away from the change resolution screen. Wonderful. Even better than XP.
Taskbar: Still have the stupid clock, but at least they've included the date. Whoa! You can turnoff the clock! Fianlly... after a more than a decade.
The name of minimized windows is hidden; only the icon shows on the taskbar. Its configurable.
We can not change the "Stop" function. In Vista, a laptop could only suspend directly from the desktop (even though it indicated it was an "OFF" feature.) Now we can customize it.
Control Panel: Where's my classic view? Gone. Sad.
Of course everything has moved, so it will take a year to figure out how to change anything.
Networking: What's a homegroup? Or a library?
Six clicks to get to the screen o set a static IP: Its eight in Vista.
Gadgets: Gadgets can GoGo anywhere on the desktop. Better, but they still suck.
Accessories: Dramatically improved Paint.
Better WordPad-- very Office-ish, but no spell check. :(
Windows PowerShell (finally, ls works. How very Unix of them.)
All in all, I have to say... Very good.
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