Windows 7 Is Still Useful

[cc333]

Hi!  It's been awhile since I posted here!

I'm mainly using Mac OS nowadays, but I still maintain a Windows 7 VM, and I have a Dell OptiPlex 7050 running Windows 7 Professional that I use for playlist automation (I run a small, unlicensed AM radio station;  the neat part is that it's not illegal:  look up Title 47, CFR Part 15, Subsection C, § 15.219 of the FCC rules).

So, despite it being over 16 years old now and EOS since 2020, it's still perfectly usable and secure enough to at least get done what I'm trying to do, as you can see here:

I had an earlier version of this running on XP, but unfortunately, it got too old to run the versions of the above apps I wanted (clockwise from top left: Butt, PlayIt! Live, Stereo Tool).  7 is still in that sweet spot where current versions of these things are still supported, so I'm going to use it while I still can (that said, I'm planning for an eventual upgrade to (ugh!) Windows 10 because, unfortunately, the fun doesn't last forever, and there's no Mac or Linux version of PlayIt! Live).

Here's to keeping Windows 7 alive, one PC at a time!

c

[NotHereToPlayGames]

26 minutes ago, cc333 said:

I'm planning for an eventual upgrade to (ugh!) Windows 10

It's not that bad, IF you tweak the CRAP out of it!

I strongly (strongly!) suggest learning how / teaching yourself how to create installation media that removes the CRAP *BEFORE* the install!

Do not (do not!) install FIRST then remove the crap LATER.  You GOTTA remove the crap FIRST.

There are some very good "scripts" (PowerShell) that make "decent" attempts at removing AFTER-THE-FACT (install first, remove later), but you really are BETTER-SERVED in not allowing the bloat to be installed in the first place.

Install first then remove later method always (always!) leaves a "tangled mess" of a Windows Registry behind.

 

For your radio station needs, I suspect that Win10 *1511* is really all that you need.

I currently stick with *1607* and *21H2* the best I can (hardware-dependent).

 

Good Luck!  Don't "fear" Win10.  Fear the BLOAT of "standard user, default installs", but don't fear The De-Bloated Advanced-User.

Oh, last but not least, do not (do not!) save yourself legwork by using anything called "tiny" or "lite" or the names creatively change more than the underlying "debloatifying".  Just trust me, you will NOT be satisfied unless YOU do the legwork.

But do be warned, there *IS* a "learning curve".  But I have no doubt whatsoever that you are smart enough to take on the task.

Edited yesterday at 09:08 AM by NotHereToPlayGames

[NotHereToPlayGames]

2 hours ago, cc333 said:

look up Title 47, CFR Part 15, Subsection C, § 15.219 of the FCC rules

I have an FM Transmitter that I've modified to "jam" any radio within 50 feet.  Overrides a local FM radio station and plays DEAD SILENCE instead.

Not sure if I'm breaking any FCC rules or not.  BUT it is a GODSEND for my SANITY!

Why?  Because I do not (and will not!) listen to COUNTRY MUSIC !!!    :)

[Tripredacus]

I'm down to one active computer using Windows 7, the one I am posting from. I do all of my daily driving with it and every site I need to use still works. My old Win7 is still connected but it stays off most of the time. That computer was the one that used to be my daily up until the end of June and was the one that I had posted about in the Uptime and HD Reliability threads. 

[NotHereToPlayGames]

Not sure on Win7, but never trust an Uptime claim on Win10.

Why?  Because you can "hibernate" and then leave the computer in the attic for DECADES.  Then launch it DECADES later and the "uptime" will SAY it has been "up" for that ENTIRE time.

[cc333]

18 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

It's not that bad, IF you tweak the CRAP out of it!

I strongly (strongly!) suggest learning how / teaching yourself how to create installation media that removes the CRAP *BEFORE* the install!

Ah, yes.  I know how to use NTLite.  I also remember using it's older cousin, nlite, to slim down XP and 2000 installs (one time I think I got an XP install down to, I think, 200 MB or less, and a 2000 install under 100 MB).

Is it possible to somehow pre-activate Windows 10 after I've slimmed it down?  I vaguely recall being able to do that with XP.

 

18 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

For your radio station needs, I suspect that Win10 *1511* is really all that you need.

I currently stick with *1607* and *21H2* the best I can (hardware-dependent).

Yeah, you're probably right.

I will likely go with whatever the last version is, though, because it's easier.  Of course, I have the problem of finding a license key that will work.  I could've sworn I had one I got free as a perk from a CS class I took at the local Community College, but I can't seem to find it anywhere.

I do have it in a VM, which I painstakingly upgraded – one release at a time – from 1809 to whatever the current is (22H2?).  I also was able to update (a copy) of that VM further to the current release of 11, which actually isn't as awful as I thought – once I got rid of that ridiculously useless thing they call a "task bar."  It feels more or less like a version of 10, to be honest.  Why did they bother upping the version number?  Microsoft's logic has escaped me in recent years (the naming scheme they used from the earliest Windows NT releases up to 7 made perfect sense to me).

 

15 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

I have an FM Transmitter that I've modified to "jam" any radio within 50 feet.  Overrides a local FM radio station and plays DEAD SILENCE instead.

Not sure if I'm breaking any FCC rules or not.  BUT it is a GODSEND for my SANITY!

Why?  Because I do not (and will not!) listen to COUNTRY MUSIC !!!   

Ha!  That's a bit extreme, yes?

And if your range was much more than 50 feet, you most certainly would be violating lots of rules with your "jammer."

I'm going by the rules and broadcasting on one frequency – 1610 AM.

 

12 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

Not sure on Win7, but never trust an Uptime claim on Win10.

Why?  Because you can "hibernate" and then leave the computer in the attic for DECADES.  Then launch it DECADES later and the "uptime" will SAY it has been "up" for that ENTIRE time.

Interesting.  Another instance of stock Windows 10 being dishonest and deceptive.  An all to common theme in the industry nowadays.

c

Edited 18 hours ago by cc333