Windows 7 family pack and Google’s shiney chrome OS news. Plus, we discuss mail programs.

Sponsored by:

I saw on windows7news.com today an article that brings a bit more clarity to the upgrade path for Windows 7:

Although Microsoft is not revealing that many information about its Windows 7 upgrade plans some information have come to light. Probably the most important is that both Windows XP and Windows Vista users will be entitled to upgrade to Windows 7. This means that both Windows XP and Windows Vista users will be able to purchase an upgrade to Windows 7 at a discount. Microsoft has not revealed a pricing structure yet and there is still a strong rumor that Windows Vista users who purchase the operating system shortly before the release of Windows 7 will receive a free upgrade.

What’s already known is that Windows XP users will get a discount when purchasing Windows 7. They will however not be able to update Windows XP to Windows 7 directly. Windows 7 can only be installed independently which also means that Windows XP users have to find a way to transfer the data from the old operating system to the new one. This could be in the form of installing Windows 7 on a second partition or extensive backups of the data. Microsoft will probably release some guidelines to aid users in the process.

The upgrade structure for Windows Vista looks like the following:

• Windows Vista Home Premium to Windows 7 Home Premium
• Windows Vista Business to Windows 7 Professional
• Windows Vista Ultimate to Windows 7 Ultimate

For even more info check out the article from Windows7news.com

Get a FREE 30 day of GoToMyPC

Save Money with GoDaddy:
For 10% off ALL hosting use: pod108
For 10% off ALL products use: blu108
For $5 off all orders over $30 use: podsave108
For new domain names for only $7.49 use: podname108

windows7news.com reports that the first release candidate for Windows 7 may be released by April.  They are also reporting that it may be the only release candidate that will be offered:

The first and only release candidate of Windows 7 is expected to be released in April 2009 according to a news post on wzor.net which are citing Microsoft sources. The OEM of Windows 7 is aiming for an autumn release while the final retail release is expected to be available at the beginning of the Christmas season.

The latest known official builds of windows 7 are build 7015 and 7016 that have been created on 4.1.2009 and 12.1.2009. Build strings for those releases are 7015.fbl_multimedia_media.090104-1750 and 7016.0.090105-1500.”

So, does this mean that we may see an earlier release of Windows 7?  We welcome your thoughts.

windows7news.com is reporting that the new Windows 7 will have considerably toned down UAC.

“Another major change is the rewriting of the prompts that come up with UAC.  Let’s face it, most of us never read the messages and just automatically click on ‘continue’ because the messages are usually gobbledygook.  With more user friendly messages in Windows 7 that actually mean something, users will no longer automatically dismiss UAC prompts that are put in place to ‘protect them’.”

Wow, there really is hope in Redmond…:)

Whole article here.

Posted by Cal

Saw this on 9to5 mac this morning and I just had to post this.  Is it me, or are the ads surrounding Microsoft getting a bit better.  This one is quite funny.  Enjoy!

Better go see these before they get taken down.

windows7news.com has, what they say, are leaked screenshots of the new windows 7.  Other news on this front includes the idea that a public beta should be released by the end of this year.  Go get em.  Tell us what you think.

Gee anyone surprised by this?

ZDNet Ausrailia reports:

“Microsoft has informed some of its partners that it has had to delay Windows Mobile 7, a much anticipated update to its handset operating system”

“Although Microsoft has not publicly said when to expect Windows Mobile 7, partners who had expected to have a final release in their hands by early next year have been told now that it won’t be ready until the second half of next year, sources told our sister site CNET News.

The delay is a significant blow for the software maker, which has been counting on the next version of Windows Mobile to enable devices that better rival Apple’s iPhone.”

Read more here

Posted by Cal