I've been working on my laptop for several hours tonight -- one of Windows 7's advantages over Windows Vista is lower power consumption, helping you go longer on a single charge.
But Windows 7 does more than that -- it includes a battery monitor at the bottom right corner of the Taskbar. It looks (duh!) like a battery. If, like me tonight, you're unplugged, the monitor offers a simple, easy way to squeeze more juice out of your battery.
Left-click the battery icon; you'll see in the popup window that there are two battery settings: Balanced and Power Saver. It's set to Balanced by default, which gives a compromise between power and battery life. But if you switch to Power saver, as I've done here, you'll get 50 percent or more battery life (your mileage will vary, based on what you're doing).
I wouldn't recommend this if you're playing Prince of Persia or some other game that gobbles a lot of power. If, however, you're on a plane, or otherwise need your computer to last longer, switch to Power saver mode.
I just read your latest article(About.cOS for networks(as compared to XP)..om)about needing Win 7/..very good article..it did not have all the subtle(I hate MS)in-between the lines/..I’ve just added Vista Home Basic to my Laptop(D600)and have Vista Home Prem/on a Desktop while still useing XP on 2-other Desktops..Vista is the OS for networks/as compared to XP/anything NEW might be better User Friendly-Home Computing..I have read that XP is here until 2013–support will end–last night while installing SP-2 Update to this version of Vista Home Basic(SP1)I read the Support Bulletin and it stated that in 2010..SP2..will not be available(even removed)..??..well thats new to me/I don’t mind the Vista Pop-Ups(UAC)..I have built 2-of my Desktops..and use a wired router,,I find Vista very Network-Friendly.