Windows ReadyBoost is a great feature, allowing more of your data to be juggled at a time and speeding things up no end. Its one downfall is its high expectations when it comes to speed – the majority of you, like me, will have gone for the cheapest USB stick...

Now that Windows Vista is finished, let the PowerToys roll. There's an interesting post by Brandon Paddock over on the Shell:revealed blog that reveals the first one - a sidebar gadget that tells you how much of your hard drive has been indexed by the...

I am very late with this - the inestimable James Senior flagged it up in November, or "last year" as I suppose we now have to call it - but it's still useful so I'm chucking up here as well. It's a list of USB sticks that work with Windows Vista's new...

Unsure whether you have enough memory to run Windows Vista? Crucial Technology has released an online system scanner tool that determines whether your computer has enough memory to run Windows Vista, and gives you the opportunity to purchase more if...

After upgrading from Windows Vista RC1 to the RTM version recently (which was a breeze), my home computer lost all its sound. The sound card is a Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS, and I tried to remedy the problem by installing a specific...

Not necessarily the most useful tool we've shown up till now, but quite nifty none the less. Shortcut Overlay Remover 1.0, developed by Rich Crusco at www.frameworkx.com , allows you to remove, or indeed add, the shortcut mark that...

If, like us, you always thought that trying to select and save an image directly from your desktop screen using the age-old method of 'Print Screen' was a bit clumsy, then you'll be in for a pleasant surprise with the 'Snip' feature in...

Just a quick one to address a comment on our forum : by default, the power button on the Windows Vista start menu puts your PC to sleep, rather than shutting it down. It's a greatly improved sleep state and I actually prefer it - the PC goes silent and...

There has been a lot of grumbling from the Apple crowd about features in Windows Vista that are very similar to OS X, so we thought we'd add another to the pile: Expose. If you're not familiar with Apple's latest, this is a keyboard shortcut that shows you all...

Microsoft call this Advanced Query Syntax; I call it a really great way to supplant my increasingly terrible memory. In the Windows Vista Start Menu search box, type "date:" and you can narrow searches to particular days. The great bit about this is that it...

Today’s Windows Vista highlights are chosen by Mike Haigh, Windows Client Marketing Manager, Microsoft UK.

1. Instant Search
Windows Vista Search means that I don’t spend nearly as much time trying to find documents as I did before Windows Vista. Just by typing in a few keywords (that I know are contained in the filename or even in the main body of the document), I can instantly find the document I am looking for. Search does not only apply to documents, though: it can be found all over the operating system. I love the fact that I can use search to narrow down options presented in the control panel. The really great thing is that a number of keywords can be used to get to the same place, so now I can type in multiple words for the same outcome (great if you cannot remember the specific term for the control panel option). I can now find the correct control panel option by typing one of many keywords, for example “battery”, “power”, “life” or “performance”. All these keywords give immediate access to “power options” in the Windows Vista control panel - this a great time saving feature.

2. Windows ReadyBoost
The ReadyBoost feature in Windows Vista is really smart. The analogy I use is that ReadyBoost is just like when you buy a new car, drive it for three months then find (by chance), a feature that delights and surprises you (in my old car it was a glove box light that I discovered I can also use as a torch; in my current car it is the fact that if you leave it unlocked for a while, it locks itself). ReadyBoost is the surprising car feature that, in Windows Vista, you don’t find until you use a USB memory stick with a reasonable amount of available memory, as Windows Vista detects the presence of the additional USB memory and lets you speed up your PC by using it as additional RAM.

3. Mobility Center
Windows Mobility Center is a one-stop location where you can quickly access your PC’s mobile settings. Imagine arriving at a hotel and needing to get on the network to start working straight away - Windows Mobility Center lets you quickly check the status of your wireless network connection, sync wireless devices and change power options, as well as providing presentation options such as connecting to external displays or wireless projectors - great for anyone that needs to work out of the office.

In our ongoing series where Microsoft employees name their top three Windows Vista features, today we hear from James Walker, Desktop Deployment Specialist, Microsoft UK:

1. Speech recognition
Speech recognition allows you to control functions of your PC just by talking into an attached microphone. The obvious benefits such as being able to dictate an email or write a document without touching the keyboard make this feature one of my favourites. I love being able to sit on the couch and yell at my PC and have it do what I want!

2. Windows Mobility Centre
The Mobility Centre acts as a central location for all those niggly little settings that you can never find when you need them, such as volume controls, battery management, mobile synchronization and much more, all at the click of a button. For a mobile user this feature can save time and frustration when you’re on the move.

3. Windows System Recovery
This feature is based on Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) and allows you to boot into a recovery operating system that you can then use to diagnose and fix problems in the main OS. Whilst it would be nice to not ever need this function it sure comes in handy when I’ve tweaked one too many registry keys or installed a dodgy application that doesn’t appreciate my anti-virus software or firewall!

The good folks over at IEXbeta have prepared a list of the software that works - or, more importantly, doesn't work - with Windows Vista RC1. If you're still pondering whether to take the plunge and install it, you can see how your software will fare by checking the list - and if you've already installed it and have your own tales of compatibility woe to share, you can add them to it using the awesome power of wiki.
Incidentally, if you haven't downloaded post-RC1 build yet, you should get a move on - there's only a fixed number of downloads available and they're starting to run out.

Our fourth instalment of top Windows Vista features as selected by people involved with its launch comes from Dave Herman, Partner Technology Lead – Platforms, Microsoft UK:

1. Windows Firewall
The new Windows Firewall supports fire walling for both incoming and outgoing traffic. For example, a network administrator can configure the new Windows Firewall with a set of rules to block all traffic sent to specific ports, such as the well-known ports used by virus software, or to specific addresses containing either sensitive or undesirable content.

2. ReadyBoost
If you have a computer that is a bit short of RAM for optimal speed, you can just plug in a spare USB memory stick and use it to increase the available memory for Windows Vista. Insert a new USB (or SD or CF) memory device into computer, and, if it has sufficient space and speed, Windows will prompt you to use the device to increase system performance.

3. Internet Explorer 7
With Internet Explorer 7 on Windows Vista, you can browse the web more easily and securely. Right-click a link and chose "Open in New Tab" to experience the new tabbed browsing. Press Ctrl+Q to open the Quick Tabs (thumbnail view) of all your open tabs. Even printing is improved - select “Shrink to Fit” printing and the sides of your web pages won't be cut off. You can use the built-in RSS reader to subscribe to feeds to get the latest information.

Hot on the heels of yesterday’s top three Windows Vista features from Microsoft employees, Richard T Mannion, Windows Vista TSP,  Enterprise and Partner Group, Microsoft UK, sends us his three favourite features:

1. Controlling Device Usage
Group Policy options have gone from ~1800 configurable items to over 3200 in Windows Vista, which means businesses can be more granular in their control of how Windows Vista and its features can be used. A good example of the new granular control is the ability to control removable device usage in Windows Vista – if I want to stop people writing to USB memory sticks I can, if I want to allow only certain devices to be used I can.

2. BitLocker
This new feature (in Ultimate and Enterprise versions) is really great for mobile users like me that store confidential information on my laptop hard disk. BitLocker helps secure these by encrypting my system volume and therefore protecting my data.

3. Parental Controls
Parental Controls is really great for use at home, for controlling exactly what applications my younger sibling can view, what they have been using the web for, and more importantly, the ability to control which hours of the day they can use the applications before. No more staying up past midnight on Live Messenger when he should be tucked up in bed.