Windows 7® has been touted as the easy-to-use upgrade to Vista®. But IT professionals say that assisting users in becoming comfortable with the new program may be the biggest problem for businesses making the shift. Citrix Online recently gathered a handful of IT experts to hear their advice for managing the transition.
“The industry has looked on Windows 7 as the ‘un-Vista’ in terms of usability,” said Justin Madison, VP of Engineering and Operations for Citrix Online. “But especially for companies jumping from XP to Windows 7, the biggest headache may still be user support.”
“If more than half of small business IT professionals plan to migrate to Windows 7 in 2010, that translates to potentially 13-15 million small businesses making the migration in one year alone,” said Gene Marks, noted author and SMB technology expert. “That is ever more reason for remote-support technologies like GoToAssist to support these people in the migration.”
Citrix Online recently hosted an online roundtable featuring a handful of IT experts who offered guidance on successfully migrating to Windows 7. Their pointers included:
- Offer training: Not everyone is comfortable with clicking and finding things on their own, so it’s important to provide comprehensive user training – in advance – on these new technologies. (Microsoft offers a range of training videos here.)
- Back up hard drives before proceeding: This may sound obvious, but horror stories abound of IT pros neglecting to back up critical data before changing software – and losing everything;
- Have the right tools available to assist users: The ability to access remote and at-home users to provide tech support improves the end-user experience and reduces productivity loss.
Other suggestions for managing the transition can be learned from the recording of the Webinar posted here (flash video player required).
“When it comes to supporting Windows 7 users, the ability to quickly and systematically sort out everything – from printer drivers to the new look and feel of Windows 7 – is key to survival for the ever-challenging role of the IT support guru,” said Madison. He added that the remote-support solution GoToAssist “makes it fast and easy to address software upgrade and tech support issues – especially for remote workers.”
On Twitter, follow @GoToAssist or join in the Windows 7 support discussion via the hashtag #Win7Assist.
Tags: IT, remote support, win7, Windows 7
