Windows 7 flying out retailers' doors

Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 7, is close to becoming more widely used than its predecessor, Vista, although it still lags far behind Vista's ageing but popular predecessor, XP.

Microsoft says Windows 7, which it released late last year to replace the widely disliked Vista, has become the fastest-selling operating system ever with over 100 million licences sold globally in the past six months.

In New Zealand, Microsoft says the rise of Windows 7 is tending to mirror global trends, with statistics from the country's most visited website, Trade Me, showing almost 10 per cent of local users had the new operating system installed on their machines in March.

IS IT WORTH UPGRADING?

The latest version of the world's dominant software for personal computers and laptops is a vast improvement on its two predecessors, XP and Vista.

It offers a much more stable experience than the much-maligned Vista and a vastly more sophisticated experience than the nine-year-old XP operating system.

Buyers of new PCs and laptops will probably not need to worry about whether to upgrade. Almost all computers targeted at the consumer market (except Apple's range of Macs) are now sold with Windows 7 installed.

But it is also possible to buy a Windows-free PC. Some retailers sell machines running open-source - and therefore cheaper - Linux-based operating systems.

For those considering whether to upgrade a current PC to 7, the decision will probably come down to how satisfied - or dissatisfied - you are with your present operating system.

If your PC is primarily used for surfing the web and checking email, and you are happy with its ability to perform those tasks, an upgrade will probably not be of value.

On the other hand, if you use your PC for a wide range of tasks and find its performance frustrating, but are not considering trading up to new hardware, 7 is likely to be a good investment.

IS WINDOWS 7 MORE SECURE?

Security attacks are an increasing problem for computer users as incidents of fraud and data theft grow.

Windows 7 was intended to be more immune to attacks than its predecessors, and Microsoft has delivered on that, although like any system, risks do remain.

The improved security, however, appears not to have been sufficient for staff at Google. The Financial Times reported this week that the search engine giant was phasing out Windows in its organisation because of security concerns.

This year some Google PCs were infiltrated by hackers in China in an incident which resulted in a diplomatic storm and a decision by Google to pull its services out of the Chinese market.

More than simply implied criticism of the quality of Windows' security may be involved in Google's ditching of the operating system.

Google is close to releasing its own operating system, Chrome OS, which will compete against Microsoft'sproduct.HOW DO I GET WINDOWS 7? As well as shipping with most new laptops and pcs, Windows 7 can be bought as an upgrade to an earlier version of the Microsoft operating system.

Some retailers and computer manufacturers provided free upgrade vouchers with machines sold last year, so check your documentation.

Windows 7 comes in different versions with varying functionality. Dick Smith sells an upgrade to the Home Premium edition for $249.

WHY IS XP STILL SO POPULAR?

Despite being nine years old - effectively decrepit in terms of software age - Windows XP is still found in almost two-thirds of PCs and has been so popular Microsoft has struggled to convince users to upgrade to its subsequent operating systems.

In part that is because with web-based software becoming more of a force in the past few years, users spend more time interacting through their web browsers so the power of the computer's on-board operating system has become less significant for many.

The unpopularity of Vista - which was seen as sluggish and initially incompatible with a lot of software users were used to - also discouraged many from upgrading.

As older PCs reach the end of their life and are replaced by new ones, XP will eventually fade away. But Vista taught Microsoft a hard lesson: that a replacement product needs to be significantly better than the previous version if you want people to buy it.

WHO USES WHAT

Operating system use in May:
* Windows XP - 63 per cent.
* Windows Vista - 15 per cent.
* Windows 7 - 13 per cent.
* Mac - 4 per cent.
* Linux - 1 per cent.
* Other - 4 per cent.

Source: NetMarketShare.com (Figures have been rounded.)