http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/233022/revea...ows-7.html
Having a look at the new features, there doesn't seem to be a terrible lot. Some minor interface tweaks, and networking/device handling improvements are about it at this stage.
But wee'll have to see how things develop in later versions :P
in beta? im wondering for a x64 vista sp2 or w7 beta now...
ewww @ square taskbar ...
but that snap-to function is interesting :D
I thought pre-beta was commonly referred to as alpha
i hate the look of that new taskbar
Prototype > Pre-Alpha > Alpha > Pre-Beta > Beta > Release Candidate [RC] > Release To Manufacturer [RTM] > Final. Usually most of those are skipped, but development of mega software like Windows 7 probably has even more software development cycles!
You guys got to remember that Windows 7 is a major release, whereas Windows Vista and 2008 are actually Windows 6. Windows XP is 5.1. They are really jumping versions here arn't they! My point was though that all versions of Windows 7 right now are actually not even Windows 7, they still use the Windows 6 kernel. Not sure about this latest one though It doesn't say?
Anyway, I can assure you al that the greatest is yet to come :D Still on my 17" CRT, no point getting an LCD now that Windows 7 will be designed for the new generation of touch screens hehe!
From what I've read, MS wants to keep the kernel of Windows 7 to be similar to Vista, to save people the driver nightmares...
This is actually something that makes me excited. First off, the taskbar: If I read correctly, the interface is actually totally customizable, so you can choose an older taskbar style if you want, plus all the colors can be tweaked.
Second, the drivers: All drivers are now "sandboxed", meaning one bad driver won't fuck up any other ones.
Third, optimization: According to Gizmodo, all the processes have been streamed and optimized, meaning that the requirements will be lower than Vista's, and it will run faster and cooler than Vista
I've heard similar things to that too metalgear08.
You may not know this, but Windows versions swap between labs in an alternating way. The team that designed the Windows 6 platform [Vista] was the same guys that made Windows ME and Windows XP. That in itself explains the f***up - Windows ME was an 'upgrade' for Windows 98 [the last version of Windows 4] and Windows XP was an 'upgrade' from Windows 2000 [the next version of Windows 5]. But here, the house has gone and released the FIRST version of Windows 6 - the first time they produced a major version and not an 'enhancement' of an existing major version.
And that Microsoft guy [chief software engineer or something] actually admitted that Vista was a "stop-gap" release and wasn't expected to completely replace XP, but rather provide an easier transition to the REAL new OS, Windows 7 [rumors: 1) Windows XP users cannot upgrade to Windows 7 and 2) Windows 7 is 64-bit only]
I think the two offices I'm talking about are like Microsoft San Diego and Microsoft California or something. I can't remember.
But Windows 7 is apparently the first major collaboration of the Microsoft labs since Windows 95. That's just a rumor. But Microsoft are seriously trying to "re-invent the OS" with Windows 7 its been said by many all over the interwebs. I really hope that Microsoft succeed in paving the way for the next generation of computing!
P.S. Windows Vista/2008 STILL have poo poo left over from Windows 2000 in there [old graphics and string tables, etc]. Another rumor is that Windows 7 is a COMPLETE 100% rewrite, and that Vista was nothing more than an experiment and that upgrades to Windows 7 from Vista will be a LOT cheaper than the upgrades they've had in the past....
I'm crapping on. Soz. It's just so exciting! d'o_Ob
EDIT: Another rumor is that all these "leaks" and "pre betas" of Windows 7 is just another trick from Microsoft to sway pirates and get some free alpha testing/feedback from experimental proposals of the GUI and such... I for one find it highly suspicious that Windows 7 is still only Windows 6, and that they MUST have something so much cooler in the labs...