New OS, What do?

So I was trying to install Fedora 12 last night and all seemed to be going good until I accidentally selected the wrong drive to use as my boot drive. Long story short, I formatted my C drive and had to reinstall Windows 7.

After finishing the installation this morning, I started to download software and applications that I typically use and just a few things to get my machine rolling, you know?

But after an hour or so of downloading and restarting, I've come to a point where I don't know what else I need to/should do. I just feel like I'm missing something.


Aside from the things I do when I start fresh on a new OS,
What are the things you do?
What are some things I should consider?
What are some programs or applications that you think I should have?

I just wanna hear your opinions

 

I disable the Aero effects in Windows 7, such as if you move a window close to the edge of the screen, it'll automatically turn that window into half the screen and the other effects. I disable the Boot GUI for a faster boot time, really, who wants to watch that Windows 7 logo? Also, if you don't care about the look of Windows 7, I would turn the task bar into small icons for more viewing space like Vista and XP, and turn the Windows style into Classic as it uses less resources.

That's about all I can really think of right now, I might give more details on what I do on a fresh install of Windows.

-LeetNeo.

 

I disabled the boot GUI before i posted this and I prefer this view over classic windows, even though it would be faster.

now, will disabling the Aero effects give me slightly better performance? I don't use it often and it doesn't seem like it would take up many resources or make much of a difference if it was disabled.

 

It might, try it and tell me how it goes. If it doesn't show much of a difference, then I guess you can turn it back on. It's really up to you, but this is just what I do, personal preference, you know?

-LeetNeo.

 

yes, i appreciate your help