Posted 11/04/2009 at 11:00:00am

As a part of Google's quest to be the undisputed overlords of the Internet, they've made a lot of quality services available for free. Gmail, Google maps and Google Docs are all famous examples, but one of the search giant's coolest free offerings, Sketchup, flies under a lot of peoples' radars.

Sketchup is a free 3D modelling tool developed based on the philosophy that by giving people a small set of powerful, intuitive tools, you can lower the barrier of entry to 3D modelling, so that almost anyone can make quality 3D models with just a couple of sessions of practice. 

Still not conviced to give Sketchup a try? We've compiled a list of 7 awesome things you can do with Sketchup that you probably didn't know were possible. Did you know, for instance, that you can create a Left 4 Dead map in Sketchup? How about that you can design your own papercraft models?

Read on to find out more! 

Posted 10/26/2009 at 10:30:00am

For a lot of Maximum PC readers, the fuss over Windows 7 launch week might seem a little unwarranted—after all, many of you have been happily running Windows 7 for months now, so what’s so exciting about a retail launch? In fact, if you’re in that boat, the launch poses more of a hassle than anything else, since your free RC version of Windows 7 is closer than ever to shutting down. And when it does, you can't even do an upgrade install of Windows 7, you have to either re-install Windows Vista first, or buy a standalone version of Windows 7.

Or do you? Even though Microsoft’s official stance is that you can’t upgrade from the Release Candidate to the RTM/Retail version of Windows 7, it’s actually possible to do so using a quick, easy hack. This means that you can use the cheaper upgrade version of Windows 7, and do a "Custom Upgrade" to get a clean install. Or, if you don't mind the risk of additional headaches down the line, you can do an in-place upgrade from Windows 7 RC to RTM.

Read on to find out how to do it in 7 simple steps.

Posted 10/22/2009 at 03:42:37pm

Earlier today, we asked you, our loyal readers, to share your early experiences with Windows 7. We like the responses we've gotten so far, so we'd like to hear from you again.

We've posted several articles sharing our favorite Windows 7 tips and tricks, but we know that there's no way to cover every single awesome Windows tip in just a couple articles, so we're hoping you can tell us what we've missed.

So give us your two cents: What are your favorite Windows 7 tips or timesaver? Hit the jump and let us know!

Posted 10/22/2009 at 12:48:30pm

Today’s the day: the official launch of Windows 7, and the culmination of Windows 7 Week. By now you’ve heard a lot from us about Windows 7. You’ve heard what we think of the OS, and you’ve read about how to make the install process go smoothly and how to get the most out of it once it’s installed.

But now we want to hear from you! If you bought Windows 7, or if you’ve been using the beta or RC for the last couple months, we want to know what you think. Is it a big improvement over Vista? XP? Was the install process easy? How do you like the new taskbar?

Posted 10/22/2009 at 10:00:00am

Got your hands on Windows 7? Excellent. It's time to install this bad boy. But you want to make sure you're installing it right. Our no-nonsense install guide shows you the right way to install Windows 7 and tells you exactly what you should do the moment your install completes. 

Read on for the essential install guide!

Posted 10/19/2009 at 06:30:00pm

The Windows 7 launch is finally upon us, which means that a lot of people who skipped the beta and RC launches will be getting their first taste of Microsoft’s new operating system. This also means that a lot of people are going to have to make some decisions soon, like which version of Windows to buy, and whether to go with the 32- or 64-bit version of the operating system.

What’s that you say? “Shouldn’t everyone with a 64-bit capable CPU upgrade to 64-bit Windows?” Well, not quite. There are some major advantages to a 64-bit OS, but there are drawbacks to consider as well. In this article, we’ll describe the pros and cons of 64-bit Windows, so when the time comes to upgrade you’ll know which version is right for you.