Susan G. from
Mid-City asks:
"When will you be able to buy a PC with Windows 7 already installed?"
ANSWERED
September 30: The official launch date for Windows 7 is
Thursday, October 22nd, both in retail stores and as a pre-installed operating system in new computers. There are ways to get your hands on Windows 7 early, however. One is to host an official Microsoft-sanctioned
Windows 7 House Party, whereupon Windows 7 will be in your hands by
October 10th. Microsoft, however, is reportedly no longer accepting applications for launch parties, so scratch that idea. Another option is to locate a system builder who possesses a "special understanding" with Microsoft. Computer builder
Puget Systems' website claims it has permission from Microsoft to ship computers with Windows 7, beginning
October 13th. And, on a related note, if you missed the opportunity to pre-order Windows 7 for $50 that I mentioned
back in June, you might be interested to know that online vendor
NewEgg.com is selling the
OEM version of Windows 7 Home Premium for $99.99, which is about half the cost of the full retail version. Bear in mind, however, that OEM copies of Windows 7 are intended for system builders, not consumers, and come with restrictions. They cannot, for example, be transferred from PC to PC and do not include Microsoft support.
Andrea M. from
Metairie asks "I own the original Apple iPhone. How can I get the
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) update that came out last Friday?"
ANSWERED
September 30: Text messaging, accompanied by images, video or audio, is only available on the
Apple iPhone 3G and
iPhone 3GS. Sources say you must be running
iPhone OS 3.1, but all you have to do is connect your iPhone to your PC and click “Check for Update” in iTunes. Once the update is completed, restart your iPhone, and you're all set. For more information about enabling
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) on your iPhone, visit Apple’s
support site. Original iPhone owners can view MMS messages by using the
ViewMyMessages.com web interface.
