This morning saw the release of the Windows 7 Beta to MSDN and TechNet subscribers. It will be available for limited (2.5 million) download to the public on the Windows 7 web site on the 9th.

So is there no point in installing Windows Vista?

I don’t agree with this point of view and putting aside the fact that Windows XP will be over 10 years old by the time Windows 7 is released here are my main reasons.

Windows 7 features updates to the UI for example the Office ‘ribbon’ will now be on Paint and other built in applications. The taskbar and other menus will be reorganised and I expect that there will be other features added but at the core.

• Drivers and software which work on Vista are going to work just the same on Windows 7.
• Memory management, service hardening, the networking experience and the other core features in Windows Vista will be present in Windows 7 including user Account Control.

In short, Windows 7 is be the same as Windows Vista in every way which matters.

Those choosing to wait (perhaps 18 months or more) for Windows 7 to become available on CAMPUS will only find themselves in exactly the same position but without having taken of the massive benefits that Vista as to offer and facing an even bigger jump in terms of functionality.

I’ll be posting some of these benefits later today.

Finally I’ll leave you with a screenshot of the new Windows 7 Start menu. Look familiar?