Background on computer specs: core i 7 920, MSI X58M MB, 3 GB DDR3 1333 Mhz Ram, 3 tb hdd.
Questions:
1. I think unlike xp, windows 7 does not require separate installation of Motherboard CD (in my case MSI). Basically no separate realtek network, audio, or Nvidia graphic card. Is this true. In that case, can I format and remove XP, and clean install Win 7. The other alternative is first installing xp, mother board drivers, not activating xp. Then when this is complete, load win 7, which will then put xp files in a folder called windows. old. I have gone thru windows.old route because I am not sure whether windows 7 automatically installs motherboard drivers (network, etc). In fact, in my 3-4 installations over the past week, I installed win 7 on a clean (no prior OS) hdd. Subsequently, when I installed my MB drivers, the dvd-ram went missing!!! from my computer.
2. Second, given my present DVD of win 7, has anyone seen this problem of desktop icons and start bar not loading on startup. This happens 20-25% of time, and is a minor irritant in the sense that I have to reboot, wait for 1 min, and hope for desktop icons ready for me to go. No desktop icons/taskbar means OS cannot be used. Is this a problem with my graphic card (Nvidia ge force 7300 256mb) or my dvd iso image (whatever it implies). Do honest people encounter this problem. I get this problem some 20-25% of the time.
3. Bottomline: having seen and used Win 7, not willing at all to consider going back to xp for the time being, and perhaps not at all.