Chapter 7. Mobile Computing in Windows Vista

IN THIS CHAPTER

• The Mobile PC Control Panel

• The Windows Mobility Center

• Power Management in Vista

• Presentation Settings

• Windows SideShow

• New Vista Tablet PC Features

Notebook computers used to occupy very specific and unalterable niches in the computing ecology. Sales professionals didn't leave home without them, executives on business trips routinely packed their portables, and corporate employees without a personal machine lugged a laptop home to do some extra work. In each case, though, the notebook computerwith its cramped keyboard, hard-to-read LCD display, and minuscule hard diskwas always considered a poor substitute for a desktop machine.

For many years, it seemed that notebooks were doomed to remain among the lower castes in the social hierarchy of personal computers. But recent developments have caused notebooks to shed their inferiority complex. Today's luggables have impressive 1024x768 (or better) displays, tens of gigabytes of hard disk real estate, and built-in wireless capabilities. Add a couple of PC card slots, connectors for full-size keyboards and monitors, and maybe even a docking station, and suddenly your desktop system doesn't look so superior.

The notebook community's bid for respectability wasn't lost on the designers of Windows Vista. They've incorporated many new notebook PC features into the operating system, including improved power management, the Mobility Center, Presentation Settings, and Windows SideShow. Vista supports Tablet PCs in a big way with many more options and settings, a revamped Input Panel, new gestures, and extensive tools for improving handwriting recognition. This chapter takes you through all of these new features.