The hot netbook phenomenon has brought to light for consumers a problem that enthusiasts have been wrestling with for years. How do you upgrade the OS on computers that don’t have optical drives? Like I said, this is nothing new for those of us who have been working without optical drives, but as the Windows 7 release draws near, those who have picked up a Windows XP-equipped netbook are wondering how they can easily upgrade to Win 7 when it’s released.
Hobbyists have long been performing OS upgrades using USB sticks. It’s not a difficult process but does require a certain amount of technical savvy. The most difficult part of the process is getting the OS upgrade, normally distributed via DVD/ CD, onto the USB memory stick in a format that can be used to boot the netbook for the upgrade procedure.
Word is starting to appear that Microsoft is aware of the difficulty consumers face when it comes to upgrading netbooks and may be considering distributing Windows 7 on USB sticks. This would be a first for the Redmond folks, but it makes sense given the high sales numbers for netbooks. The best way to move OS upgrades for netbooks would definitely be on USB sticks. Microsoft would love nothing better than to get all of those netbooks running Windows XP upgraded to Windows 7.
{"source":"https:\/\/gigaom.com\/2009\/06\/26\/windows-7-on-flash-drives-maybe\/wijax\/49e8740702c6da9341d50357217fb629","varname":"wijax_32b1713d2653660b98c251a59462c5a0","title_element":"header","title_class":"widget-title","title_before":"%3Cheader%20class%3D%22widget-title%22%3E","title_after":"%3C%2Fheader%3E"}