So, check out this wikipedia chart on Windows 7 editions. Confusing as it is for consumers, some will never have to make a choice. Their new PC will come bundled with a version of Windows, and they'll go on their merry way unaware of what they're missing. But for those unlucky souls who still think netbooks are a good idea, be prepared to scale a massive wall of frustration and anger and gooey stuff that makes you slide back down after you've already climbed half-way up, as chances are they'll be getting a bundled copy of Windows 7 Starter Edition.
Microsoft named it "starter" for a reason. They took it behind their headquarters in Redmond and beat it with an obsolescence stick until it couldn't do amazing modern things like "change desktop backgrounds" or "support more than 2gb ram".
So, while Windows 7 has gotten some warm reviews (using fresh installs on new hardware with no bundled crapware), you're gonna have to be prepared to shell out some cash to get the full experience. Fortunately, Windows is allowing you to upgrade from cheaper versions of 7 to some of the more fully-featured with the Windows Anytime Upgrade program, anywhere from $80 to $140 big ones. Did I mention that the one version of Snow Leopard costs $29? With the Anytime Upgrades, the regular upgrade versions and the full versions of 7, and different versions for 32 and 64-bit, there are well over a dozen different versions of Windows 7 floating around, all with different features and ways to upgrade.
If you make a well-reviewed product, and you want people to actually use it without feeling like a masochist, why make it so inaccessible? Why only let a few people have the full experience, when you extend those features to everyone and maybe have people who enjoy using windows?
Didn't I start off talking about netbooks? Oh yeah, you guys are screwed. If you wanna be able to change your desktop background, why not think (way) different?
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