Windows 7 works, or looking to get more out of the operating system? You've come to the right place. We're big fans of Microsoft's latest OS, but we're also big fans of making Windows better. In this article, we've rounded up the best Windows 7 downloads. They'll let you customize it in any way possible, give it features that Microsoft removed or neglected to include, and more. So get ready to download - you're about to take Windows 7 to a new level. Network Activity Indicator for Windows 7 When Microsoft released Windows 7, the company inexplicably did away with a small, nifty utility called the Network Activity Indicator. Now you can have it back. The Network Activity Indicator for Windows 7 does what the Vista utility does, and then some. Like the Vista version, this tool puts a small icon (depicting two monitors) in the system tray to indicate when you're connected to a network or the Internet, and the icon blinks to show you when your machine is sending or receiving data; it also provides useful information, such as the network to which you're connected. On top of that, however, this utility offers a lot more detail. For example, if you hover your mouse over its icon, you'll see transmission data about the number of packets you've sent and received. Right-click the icon, and you'll find yourself in network techie heaven, with gobs of statistics such as your active open connections, the number of errors you've received, your minimum timeout settings, and the like. 7Smoker Pro Want more customization power than you can get from free Windows 7 utilities? Try the for-pay 7Smoker Pro. It gives you enormous control over countless aspects of Windows 7's appearance and functionality in four categories: Tweaks, Maintenance, Security, and Passwords. Each of those categories has subcategories, and each subcategory offers multiple tweaks - which means that you can customize hundreds of individual Windows 7 settings. If you don't have the patience to make that many tweaks, the program also has a one-click automatic tuner that peers into your system and adjusts it to make it run more effectively. You'll also find other nice tools, such as one that looks for the folders consuming the most space on your hard disk so that you can trim them down. Although some of the tweaks are straightforward and easy to understand, many others are more technical in nature. This application lets you do highly technical things, but it doesn't tell you what they mean, or what effect the settings have on your PC. As a result, 7Smoker Pro is best suited for more-experienced Windows fans. Windows 7 Manager A great way to bend Windows 7 to your will is to use Windows 7 Manager. With this utility, you have the power to customize and improve just about every aspect of Windows 7. Want to optimize and clean your system? Need to control what programs run on Windows startup, or to adjust the Task Scheduler to turn off unnecessary system tasks? No problem. This application also does far more, including improving security and cleaning your hard disk. The amount of control that Windows 7 Manager gives you is extraordinary. For example, you can change the mouse hover time before a pop-up displays, repair hardware and software problems, or optimize your broadband connection. The neatly laid-out interface puts everything within reach. Click what you want to improve, and you'll see a screen full of options, often accompanied by simple-to-follow wizards. In other instances, you'll need to have a bit of technical background. But no matter what, in this program you'll find easy ways to make Windows 7 work just as you want it to. Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor After you download the tool, make sure that you've connected all of your peripherals to your PC and turned them all on so that the app can give you an accurate report. It checks your processor, graphics subsystem, hard disk, and peripherals. It also examines the software you're running; if you have older programs, it tells you if upgrades are available to make those apps compatible with Windows 7. Windows Live Mail A free, downloadable e-mail client optimized for Windows 7 - this is surprisingly powerful. It can access multiple e-mail accounts, and it works with Hotmail, too. Additional features include a photo e-mail capability, which lets you embed pictures inside a message and then add borders and captions - it's almost like sending a photo album. The program handles RSS feeds as well, and it offers spam filtering, the ability to create rules, and solid ways to organize your mail. Windows Live Photo Gallery The program makes it easy to browse through and view all your photos, as well as to share them online and via e-mail. It sports a nice set of photo-editing tools for handling tasks such as eliminating red-eye, cropping, and correcting colors; or, if you prefer, you can use the Auto Adjust feature to make photo fixes with a single click. Also nifty is the app's ability to stitch together multiple photos to make a single panoramic view. Among other extras are functions that burn a CD full of photos or help you post a photo to your blog. EnhanceMySe7en This is quite substantial. This combination system customizer, diagnostics tool, and maintenance utility gathers an enormous amount of detail about your PC, including data about your processor, RAM, display adapter, and hard disk. It also allows you to customize your Start menu, as well as to tweak the desktop, taskbar, Windows Media Player, and Windows Explorer. These aren't superficial tweaks, either - the program digs down into the guts of your system, permitting you to remove all toolbars from the taskbar, for instance, or to hide the Log Off button on the Start menu. Additionally, you'll find a good Registry cleaner, a disk cleaner, and a way to stop certain programs from running on startup. Ultimate Windows Tweaker This is actually far more powerful than Tweak UI was. Here you'll discover well over 100 settings for Windows 7, covering Windows Explorer, the Start menu, the taskbar, User Account Control, system performance, security settings, and more. Want to hide your entire network from Network Neighborhood? How about disabling Aero Shake, using small icons on the Start menu, or disabling the Control Panel? You can do all that. Note, too, that Ultimate Windows Tweaker runs on Vista as well as on Windows 7; it detects the operating system on which you've installed it, and shows you only the relevant tweaks.
