Tuesday was the day when for the first time the long awaited Windows 7 operating system was revealed at the Professional Developers Conference. Microsoft has announced that Windows 7 will not be making the same mistakes as Windows Vista which endured some pretty harsh criticism from the time it was released.

Interestingly it has been announced that Windows 7 will be available in beta version in early 2009 and based on what feedback it receives Microsoft will be releasing the following test versions. Microsoft announced that 2009 will be mostly a year of testing the new operating system as it still is, officially, due for commercialization 3 years after the release of Windows Vista. This means that Windows users should expect to see the new product on the market starting with late 2009 or early 2010.

Microsoft has recognized some of the mistakes Vista has been, and still is, criticized for including the compatibility issues with certain programs and devices, the fact that after 5 years in the making upon its release there were no drivers to make some components run the operating system. On the other hand, Microsoft said that Vista successfully made things safer, especially on the Internet and in different networks.

There has also been a brief demonstration of what is new in Windows 7 and among the innovations, Microsoft presented Libraries, which is a feature that will allow the user to search files and folders more efficiently. Another interesting new thing Windows 7 brings is the option to use your computer with the touch of your fingers. This touchscreen feature was definitely eye catching and if put to good use it may attract many customers.

Microsoft said the new operating system was designed to function like a tighter version of Vista, which launched in 2006 but was widely derided as a "system hog" that slowed down computers with features that most users never accessed.

Windows 7 will also feature faster boot up times, an updated task bar, a new look and a set of features optimized for laptops.

The new software will ditch some prominent features included in Vista including Calendar, Windows Mail, Movie Maker, Contacts and Photo Gallery, which will now be available for free download from the Microsoft website.
Microsoft has been hit by the growing success of Apple's Mac computers and by the long term switch of many computing functions to mobile phones and the internet.