From the BBC: > A release candidate of Windows 7, the next major release of the > world's most popular operating system, goes public in trial form in > the next week. > > Microsoft is hoping it can avoid the negative press that surrounded > the launch of Vista, the last major Windows release, almost three > years ago. > > Windows 7 has been designed to be compatible with Vista so users do > not have to invest in new hardware. > > A commercial release of Windows 7 is expected in the next nine months. > > A test version of Windows 7 will be available to developers from > Thursday, while the public can try it out from 5 May. Read the rest at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8026736.stm