Rumours say the Windows 7 beta could be announced next month, as millions of bloggers sharpen their claws.
If the rumours are true Microsoft could soon be in a better position to start winning over the hearts and minds of bloggers and Windows watchers.
Reports say a Windows 7 beta could be officially announced next month, providing a long-awaited look inside the hotly anticipated Vista-replacement.
At this stage the news is entirely rumour, with reports citing this story on InternetNews.com as the source. The site claims the Windows 7 beta announcement will take place at the Microsoft Professional Developer's Conference (PDC) on October 27.
Microsoft has already hinted at new Windows 7 information appearing soon, with Steven Sinofsky pointing to the PDC and WinHEC events as the dates this will happen.
Ideas for Windows 7 have been flowing thick and fast since Microsoft opened the door on their blog to discussion.
We're wondering exactly what technical details could turn-around negative publicity surrounding Vista. Among the more radical suggestions we've seen include a cut-down Kernel built for speed, moving to 64-bit exclusively, and ripping out the GUI entirely.
Microsoft hasn't revealed much in the way of concrete features yet, but there are a few things we've gleaned from the MS 7 blog:
Startup performance is important - boot performance is getting some disussion on the Windows 7 blog. Microsoft says it regards under 15 seconds as a "very good boot time". Microsoft says it is working on stopping slow device drivers from slowing system boot times.
Building on the Vista Kernel - Reports say Windows 7 will use the same kernel as Vista. This has generally been seen as an effort to reduce any repeat of the driver debacle that plagued the launch of Vista.
Install only the bits you want - Microsoft says Windows 7 will have a longer list of features that can be removed from the system. "...what we want to do is make sure that the “core OS” portion of this is the absolute minimum required to get to the fun of using your PC."
Join the Windows 7 discussion here.
Also see: What is Windows 7?