Can i still get Windows 7 RC after DL date?

[computernewbie]

can i still somehow get windows 7 RC after the dl date? Which is like august 17th i do believe.

Oh, and if i do buy, lets say vista 64 bit ultimate, it includes a coupon for windows 7, does that mean ill get windows 7 ultimate or just home version

 

[computernewbie]

Oh, and i buy, lets say vista 64 bit ultimate version, it includes windows 7 coupon, does that mean ill be able to get windows 7 ultimate for free or will it be home version?

sorry about the double post...

 

[cjl]

You can't download it after the download date, but you can still install it and get new product keys. As for the upgrade, it should be to an equivalent version. If you get 32 bit Vista Home Premium, the upgrade will be to 32 bit 7 home. If you get x64 Vista Ultimate, the upgrade should be to 7 Ultimate x64.

 

[randomizer]

You can always torrent a copy of the RC after the official download ending date. Just make sure you get a "clean" copy. As cjl said, they will still be giving out the keys.

 

[computernewbie]

thank you cjl

@randomizer, how can i torrent it? you mean like burning it to a CD so then i could DL it later on my new computer? Can i also use that on post for a new OS? o.o

 

[cjl]

Just download it right now and keep the .iso file. It won't stop working - you can install it all the way up to next year (I forget the date it stops working - it's quite a while though).

 

[computernewbie]

yes but the computer im using to talk to everyone is my mothers laptop, im gonna build a new computer in a week or so and i wanted to use windows 7 RC as my OS so i could try and save some money until the complete version of windows 7 comes out, and i thought that i could dl it to a disk and then use that at first boot up, im asking if that'll work, because i dunno if thats possible because the computer would have to automatically take out the folders out of CD's

 

[cjl]

You can't just boot of the file you download. You have to burn the iso to a DVD (using burning software that recognizes ISO files).

 

[LePhuronn]

The ISO file you download is a data image of a disc so this isn't something you just download and run. You need to burn it to a DVD using your burning software's "Burn Image" or "Burn ISO" option.

Do NOT just drag the ISO file onto the disc and burn that as that's not how it works. You can check the burn is successful because the DVD will then show all the installation files - if you see anything else you've done it wrong.

Now you have your installation disc ready for when you build the computers. So go and download everything you can right now (i.e. both 32 and 64-bit versions and XP Mode for the crack of it) and burn your discs ready.

They don't expire until March next year.

I don't mean to be rude though, but if you're not familiar with something as commonplace as disc images and torrents, should you really be installing and using an unfinished operating system on your computer?

 

[computernewbie]

The ISO file you download is a data image of a disc so this isn't something you just download and run. You need to burn it to a DVD using your burning software's "Burn Image" or "Burn ISO" option.

Do NOT just drag the ISO file onto the disc and burn that as that's not how it works. You can check the burn is successful because the DVD will then show all the installation files - if you see anything else you've done it wrong.

Now you have your installation disc ready for when you build the computers. So go and download everything you can right now (i.e. both 32 and 64-bit versions and XP Mode for the crack of it) and burn your discs ready.

They don't expire until March next year.

I don't mean to be rude though, but if you're not familiar with something as commonplace as disc images and torrents, should you really be installing and using an unfinished operating system on your computer?

Good point ;D ill have to think about it!

 

[Bolbi]

Even though the Win7 RC is officially unfinished, it really is quite polished already. I'm using the 32-bit version on my laptop right now, and there's only been one bug that seriously affects my system. It only happens when I try to run certain resource-intensive apps. (Might be the laptop; 1.5 ghz Pentium M, 1 GB DDR 333 RAM. Pitiful, I know, but all I had for a test machine!) As long as you actually burn the .iso to the DVD correctly, there should be no problem. Since this is a new system, it's not like you could accidentally erase important data from your hard disk (right?). I say go for it! I'm going to do the same thing.

P.S. To burn the .iso to the DVD, CDBurnerXP (works on other MS operating systems, too) is a malware-free program with an easy-to-use interface and an online help file that will tell you exactly what to do.

 

[computernewbie]

thank you bolbi, ill burn the .iso to a DVD and see how everything turns out, oh, and what type of DVD do i have to use? Oh, and once windows 7 RC shuts down, how do i uninstall windows 7 RC and install windows 7? What happens when you switch OS's? Do you loose all of your information?

 

[cjl]

A standard DVD will work fine. The main thing is to make sure that you burn the ISO properly - don't burn the .iso file onto the disk directly. The burning software should have an option to "burn disk image" or something like that. Once you've selected that, it will ask for the .iso file. Once the disk is burned, the disk should contain several folders and files, not just a single .iso file. If you look at the disk and it has several folders and files after it is burned, you burned it correctly. As for switching OS? You can just install a copy of Win7 (release version) over the prior installation and it will work fine. You'll probably lose all of your info, so you'll need to reinstall programs and keep a backup of all important files.

 

[Devastator_uk]

Whenever you re-install, or "swicth" an OS you should assume that you'll lose everying so take a backup (you may not need that backup but better to be safe).

 

[computernewbie]

thanks, bolbi showed me a program, CDBurnerXP for burning the .iso image, i already dl'ed windows 7 RC and was surprised it was only 3 GB's, now all i need is the DVD to burn onto it and ill have my OS. A hot-swappable HD makes a good backup?

 

[JonathanDeane]

A hot-swappable HD makes a good backup?

You bet in fact I believe one of the best back up solutions you can get

I use a USB HD Enclusure but the concept is simular.