A bunch of questions

First, I apologize if I asked these questions in the wrong forum section, don't really know where to best post this thread since I have a bunch of questions about different things. Also apologize if my questions sound silly, I don't really know that much about computers.

Ok... here are my questions:

Partition
I'm getting a DELL XPS 17 real soon. It comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit pre-installed and 1TB (2 500GB drives @7200rpm) of storage space. I heard from a friend that it's best to partition my computer (never done so before). He also told me to install ONLY the Win 7 OS on 1 of the drives and install everything else (even antivirus software) on other drives. So I'm planning to do 4 partitions. 1 for the OS; 1 for other softwares such as antivirus, spyware, media player etc; 1 for games (both MMORPG and PC ones); last one for storage such as pictures, songs, etc.

My first question is: when I receive the laptop, would it be one big 1TB drive or would it automatically show up as 2 separate drives?

Next question is: how much space should I keep for the drive with the OS? The minimum requirement I read is 20GB for Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, so I was wondering if 50GB would be enough?

As to the actual partition, am I right in thinking that I can partition drives with the setup menu when I first boot up the laptop? Do I need to format the drive(s) first before any partitioning, or do the formatting after the partition? Also, can I just partition extra drives off of what I have to keep the OS, or do I have to reinstall the OS with a clean formatted drive?

Clean Installation of the OS
I also read somewhere that some people recommend doing a clean install first thing after acquiring a new laptop. Is that really necessary, or is it enough to just uninstall whatever programs I don't need from the control panel? What is the benefit of a clean installation as opposed to just remove the unneeded software? I ordered my laptop with a recovery disc, is the disc enough to do the clean install?

Upgrading the OS
I am thinking of upgrading the Home Premium to an Ultimate version. The reason I didn't purchase that with the laptop is because I can find cheaper deals elsewhere.

My question is: is it worth it to upgrade to Ultimate with Windows 8 in the horizon? The reason why I want to upgrade to an Ultimate is because I plan to install some software and games that are only offered in Chinese (simplified). I've often discovered incompatibility when I install those software in English system, and the Ultimate can switch operating system to run in Chinese, which I hope will solve the issue. If it won't help with the problem, there is no use for me to upgrade the OS at all.

Antivirus, Anti-spyware and Firewall
I've been using AVG Antivirus Free version for quite a while now. However, I just discovered it's no longer recommended.

I run this Security Wizard, it recommends me to get Avira AntiVir, Malware Byte's Anti-Malware and Comodo Firewall.

I planned to get Microsoft Security Essential to replace the AVG free version, so my question is: how does Avira AntiVir compare with MSE?

In the past I've only used the Windows firewall. I learned today that it does not provide outbound protection. The cons of using Comodo is I'll have pop-up windows asking for permissions and such. My question is: would Comodo be hard to use for someone who has no idea what firewalls do, ie me? Is there going to be a pop-up window every time I run a program, like the Vista asking for permission every time I opened something?

If I do regular antivirus and anti-spyware scans, like every week, would you still recommend me to install Comodo instead of using Windows' own firewall?

Side question, for anyone who is Chinese and/or have used the program. I use Tencent QQ to stay in touch with friends/families back in China, and I've also installed the QQ PC Manager (QQ电脑管家 that is recommended. The PC Manager has antivirus and firewall features built in. Is this program any good compared to Avira or MSE (I live in the states) or should I disable the features in the PC Manager and use Avira or MSE instead?

Display
I was doing some random browsing through the forum today and discovered the wonders of Rainmeter. I'm planning to have lots of fun with it as soon as I get my laptop. But there are a few questions I'd like to ask first.

One of my friend once told me that having lots of icons on the desktop/quick launch/taskbars will slow down the computer. I noticed some people's desktop have quite a few icons around. My question is: how big an impact is it going to be on boot time and performance? My laptop comes with i7-2670 with 6GB DDR3 if I remember it correctly.

Battery Management
Some people recommend taking out the battery if the laptop is using AC adapter. I'm not going to do that since I live in a pretty dusty environment and I don't want more than necessary dust to get into the laptop. So I'm wondering if there is some sort of software out there that will monitor battery charges. I would love it if there is a software which allows me to charge my battery automatically when it drops below a certain %, but stop charging as soon as it reaches certain % that I set up. Or maybe the battery management software that comes with the laptop is sufficient?

Also, is there some sort of charge cycle explanation for dummies? Say, if I have a 100% charged battery. On day 1 I used up 80% (20% left), then I charged it to 100%. On day 2 I used 20% (80% left) then charged it to 100%. On day 3 I used 60% (40% left) and charged it again to 100%. On day 4 I used 80% again and then charge it. From day 1 - 3 is this considered the 1st cycle, and day 4 the 2nd cycle?

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Above are all the questions I have (for now).

Thank you for taking the time to read through my post, and offering any sort of help.

Have a wonderful day.

 

The reason why my friend recommended me to install OS on a separate partition is because if anything bad happens (like malware), it won't affect the rest of my computer that's on a different partition.

As for the partition for games only, that's just my habit. I play PC games that I download off the internet often, as well as MMORPG. I just like to keep all that chunk in a nice partition, easier for me to find.

Both this link and this link no longer recommend AVG, or put it in another word, AVG no longer is the best antivirus software out there. The reason why I decided not to use it anymore is because both sites mention low detection rate.

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Thank you for your response, certainly helped clear up a few misconceptions I have.

 

Well, it certainly makes me happy to hear that. Now I don't have to change install destination every time I'm going to install a new program. Or more importantly, I won't go crazy when I remember I accidentally forgot to change destination drive during installation process.

 

I wouldn't worry about the dust issue. Most laptops I have used recently are sealed around the battery compartment. No dust would be able to get into the laptop if the battery wasn't installed. But, check you laptop when you get it.

I run BatteryBar on all my laptops for monitoring. It does a great job of showing the current status and is generally more accurate with its battery runtime estimates than the default method. For cycle monitoring, have a look at BatteryCare. It will count the cycles and recommend when a calibration should be done.

As to the charge level control, firstly, what you describe is how it works. You charge the battery to 100%. Then the charging turns off. When the charge level drops below a certain point (normally 95%) either because the laptop ran on battery or through self-discharge, the charging turns on and the battery is recharged. But, this is not really under software control. The battery charging is controlled by a circuit in the battery as it needs happens whether the laptop is turned on or not. Windows has no control over it and purely reports what the battery tells it. But, there are some laptops that allow the maximum charge level to be set. The laptops I have seen this on have a BIOS option (or BIOS set via a utility) and can set it to something like 80%. Personally, I have never used it as I want the full capacity of the battery available to me when I unplug.

Partial cycles for Li-Ion batteries are cumulative. So, five 20% discharge and recharge cycles are about one full cycle. For you example, you have 80%, 20%, 60% and 80%. Adding those up gives 240%. So, that is about 2.4 cycles.

 

Thanks for the 2 links. It's still a bit confusing for me to figure out the charge cycles, so I'll be using the software you linked to manage that for me.

As to the charge threshold and such questions, I think I'm going to do what you did: just let the battery charge to full capacity.

Thanks again for answering my questions on battery.