Microsoft Leaks Windows 7 RC Date — Before May 5

CWmike writes "Microsoft will deliver a release candidate of Windows 7 in about two weeks, the company's Web site revealed Saturday. According to a page posted on Microsoft's partner program site, Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) may be available to paying subscribers to Microsoft's developer and IT services before May 5. Partners will be allowed to download the release candidate on that date, the first Tuesday of the month. 'Partners: If you have a subscription to MSDN or TechNet, you can download Windows 7 RC now,' the page read Saturday afternoon. 'Otherwise, you can download Windows 7 RC starting May 5, 2009.' The link to the download, however, shunted users to the TechNet download page, which did not list Windows 7 RC as one of the available files. This is the second time in just over three weeks that Microsoft's Web site has leaked information about Windows 7 RC. Accidental, or buzz-builder?"

How do you reconcile a May 5th RC date with a 2010

[CatOne]

ship date? I don't really understand this... if it's 7 1/2 months from RC to ship, how close to an *actual* release candidate is this release candidate? Perhaps it should be called a beta? ::shrug::

I can understand a couple months for mastering and to ship/distribute/market, etc., but still that leaves 4-5 months to resolve testing on this RC "candiate." I guess the Borg just move really slowly on testing :-/

Re:buzz builder?

[Creepy Crawler]

Well, next time, we're going to try their OS in a nice VM where we can test such behavior... while using Ubuntu or other choice Linux distro.

Re:Windows 7 synopsis

[Anpheus]

* Ubuntu 9.04 is a lot like Ubuntu 8.10
* New theme is kind of cool but still not default.
* Default panels installed are still largely useless, taskbar fills up way too easily.
* Font size still wrong when I install it, Canonical and I have a game we play called "figure out where the DPI settings are hidden." It gets less fun every year. (In Windows 7, I type "DPI" into the start menu search.)

I don't really have a counterpoint to #5, except to say that every OS'es file manager and the related abstractions are, uh... "locked in." I don't know what you expect. There's nothing stopping you from looking at all the files in a library and performing regular actions on them. And soon, hopefully, many applications will support the library abstraction as a folder path. I.e.: in Songbird, make my music library refer to the OS'es Music Library. That way I can put the music I have on my server, my laptop, etc, all referenced in one place.

I don't know how more "open" you can get with Libraries though, what's your suggestion?

Re:buzz builder?

[gringofrijolero]

No, buzz builder is the part Slashdot is playing.

Any word on free legal upgrade for Vista owners?

[The Lynxpro]

I thought I'd chime in and ask the undying question of whether Microsoft had come to their senses and finally decided to give free upgrades to Windows Se7en for all legit consumer Vista users.

They could really win some good will back from their users if they did this...kinda like the free Zune* firmware updates for the original players...

*No, I am not a Microsoft apologist, Vista user, or Zune owner. I am typing this from my MacBook while taking a break from my PS3. I just think it would be a good idea for MS to do this for its users. It certainly would be more pro-active than their lame laptop commercials.

Re:Windows 7 synopsis

[clang_jangle]

Yes, but 9.04 is the latest twice-yearly release update. Comparing 9.04 to 8.10 as a way of justifying a comparison between Vista and Seven is extremely disingenuous. After all, Seven is supposed to be the all-new, best-ever, heaven-sent OS that is worth buying a new machine for. Even though any fool can see MS is just marketing Vista SE as "Seven", apparently in an attempt to bury Vista's public image problems. It gives them the happy side effect of being able to charge for what amounts to bugfixes, too. I'd expect that even MS' customer base has enough self-respect to be angry about this, but apparently not. We still see the fanbois out in force, rationalizing all over the tech sites. Idiots.

Temper the virtiol & the hope

[AnalPerfume]

They know people hate Vista. They know many saw it as the last straw with Windows and switched away from Windows. They know that a lot more are clinging onto XP as if it's their only life raft in a storm. They know that each day that Vista is the current Windows is another day XP users will be tempted to switch away. By holding out the new "Windows which will deliver on all your hopes" just a little longer, that they can stay those hands from making the switch.

The same happened with the Sega Saturm / Sony Playstation. Sega got their console onto the shelves about 1 month before Sony, and console fans were split on whether to wait that little bit longer for the Playstation or buy the Saturn now. Even if the Playstation was delayed a little bit, or out of stock, the carrot was always there, dangling just out of reach but within distance.

By dangling the release in "leaks" which may change later, and making it available to a few, it appears to be very exclusive, which sends another PR message that it's "special". By holding the download window open for a short time, it forces people who want it to act within that window, meaning that it's on their minds during that time. It will translate into a flurry of astorturfing blogs which will no doubt be dugg by fellow astroturfers flaming the fires. All of which sends the message to consumers to just hold on, the cavalry is just around the corner and is on it's way to save you from Vista. All of which conveniently forgets to mention that Vista is just a different regiment under the same flag as the cavalry.

Leaked?

[QuietLagoon]

That is so funny. The Windows 7 release blitz has been completely planned.

.
Look at it this way. Vista has been a disaster for Microsoft. Windows 7 is the hopeful salvation. If Microsoft cannot make Windows 7 work and grab marketshare to the level of Windows XP, Microsoft is in deep doo.

So what is a monopolistic comapny to do? Well, one thing is to try to build what the marketeers call a buzz [buzzmarketing.com]. Will Microsoft succeed? Or have the computing masses tasted the freedom of OS-X and Linux?

Re:Windows 7 synopsis

[im_thatoneguy]

Why are people still using the Control Panel?

If I want to uninstall a program I hit the start button and type "uninstall" And there it is on my start menu "Control Panel -> Uninstall a Program"

If I want to view network connections I type in "Network Connections" and I get "View Network Connections"

Is the control panel easy to navigate? Not with the names I remember from XP but in some cases the new names actually do make more sense even if I can't find them. "Add/Remove Programs" has become "Programs\Uninstall" or using hte list mode "Programs and Features".

Windows 7's Control panel much easier to navigate than XP's and much much easier to navigate than Vista's.

Re:Temper the virtiol & the hope

[timmarhy]

"many" people switched from windows? what crack pipe are you smoking, because everyone i've seen with a new pc has vista. sure maybe mac's market share went up from 5% to 6%, but your deluding yourself if you think MS doesn't have an iron grip on the desktop.

Re:buzz builder?

[Jurily]

Well, next time, we're going to try their OS in a nice VM where we can test such behavior... while using Ubuntu or other choice Linux distro.

Amen. Next time I'm installing Windows is the next release that doesn't overwrite GRUB without asking.

Re:Any word on free legal upgrade for Vista owners

[Anonymous Coward]

Windows 7 should have been Vista SP2. Microsoft simply needed a completely new name because Vista's image has been tarnished beyond repair.

Smell the desperation

[dangitman]

Wow, Microsoft is really trying to run away from Vista as quickly as possible. Could they rush this this to market any more quickly? How long has Vista been out, and has there been a major new version of Windows ever released in such a short time frame?

I think in their desperate rush, they are likely to make the same mistakes again. Will MS ever take the effort to rebuild the system properly?

Re:Any word on free legal upgrade for Vista owners

[Anonymous Coward]

The difference is that Apple upgrades usually include new features that are worth paying for... Windows 7 is basically Vista without some of the bloat.

Re:buzz builder?

[Anonymous Coward]

What's insightful about this? If I make stuff up that I can't prove, does that make me insightful?

Re:Any word on free legal upgrade for Vista owners

[aztracker1]

Probably a few days after Apple gives away a *point release* of it's OS...

Re:Windows 7 synopsis

[Anonymous Coward]

If they release it under a free software license, then they don't make any money, and it's that simple.

Linux works because people have committed themselves to the idea of the communal OS, and that's GREAT. And I sincerely believe that projects like Linux will, or should be, the future.

And without taking time to understand why Windows is so omnipresent, you will never understand why no Linux distro is capable of filling Windows' shoes. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch.

Re:Windows 7 synopsis

[cbhacking]

Oh, please. Do you have *ANY* idea what he's talking about? The search box at the bottom of the Vista and Win7 Start menu
is not a command prompt
has no syntax you need to remember
allows searching by simple names/descriptions, not esoteric executable filenames
filters options as you type - there's no reason to type all of "network connections"
makes it easy to find the tool you want
doesn't actually run anything unless you choose it from the results
requires no special knowledge or complex explanation
remembers what you run most often and places it first in the list of results

Aside from the fact that you use a keyboard, how is this in ANY way like a command line? Don't get me wrong, I use bash, and grep, and sed, and ssh all the time. I prefer CLI subversion to TortoiseSVN, for an example of graphical vs. CLI preference. However, for sheer convenience and dead-easy usability, the Start search is fantastic.

Re:Counter this

[Computershack]

Ubuntu 8.10 = $0

Ubuntu 9.04 = $0

Only if your time is free.

Oh, and don't forget to include the price of office, anti-virus and countless utils that are free under linux and come on the CD/Iso.

The ones that are piss poor (AV), not compatible with the business world (office) and stuff you're unlikely to ever use (countless shite) or are piss poor rip-offs of decent stuff or of a graphical quality that Windows had in the 1990's(games). Perhaps you'd like to tell me where all the drivers are for the countless stuff I have which doesn't work? Hell, I can't even upgrade to Ubuntu 9.04 because they've fucked up support for Intel graphics.