Windows 7 - 從M3到Beta

Win7之家（ afsion.com.cn）：Windows 7 - 從M3到Beta

 有關(guān)Windows 7到底是一個大版本還是小版本的問題一直在繼續(xù)。與多年前的Windows 98相比，很多人都認為Windows 7只是Vista的改進版本，并不是一款革命性的產(chǎn)品。而且Windows 7主要是在修復，優(yōu)化Vista中的一些東西，從視覺界面到底層技術(shù)。這些事實表明Windows 7只是一次小更新。

但微軟并不這么認為。而他們的理由主要集中在Windows 7中一系列的新特性上。功能，視覺效果上的改進使得Windows 7成為了一次大更新。這樣說來，Windows 7之于Vista，就相當于XP之于Windows 2000。共享底層代碼但后出的在功能和界面上改進更大。

因此Windows 7更像Windows 98還是XP？這個問題一直在討論中，至今也沒有答案。但我認為Windows 7對2大類人群來說都是值得更新的系統(tǒng)：
1.成千上萬的Vista用戶
2.更多的堅守XP的用戶
這使得Windows 7注定就是一款重要的產(chǎn)品，尤其是對于微軟而言。

有關(guān)Windows 7的另一大討論的熱點就是微軟會在何時發(fā)布Windows 7。對此微軟并非透露任何口風。但從我們已經(jīng)看到的眾多M3版本看來，微軟似乎很快就會發(fā)布這款產(chǎn)品。就我個人而言，微軟將會在2009年4月發(fā)布Vista SP2的同時發(fā)布Windows 7。而最早將會在2009年6月左右正式投放市場。

而近日，Windows 7 Beta已經(jīng)泄露并可以從網(wǎng)上下載。如今，也是時候期待Windows 7正式版了。

附部分原文;

The debate over whether Windows 7 is a major or minor release continues. It's now clear that Windows 7 is a step up from Windows Vista and not a major evolutionary leap, something I compare to the Windows 98 release of a decade ago. It's also equally clear that much of the design imperative behind Windows 7 is aimed at fixing, or at least tweaking, virtually everything in Windows Vista, from the visual fluff to the technical underpinnings. These facts suggest that Windows 7 should be viewed as a minor upgrade. A pleasant one, but not a big deal.

Microsoft disagrees. And its basic premise seems to be that the vast addition of new features in Windows 7 makes this a major release. It is the functionality, the visual changes, that make this a big deal. In that sense, Windows 7 is to Vista as Windows XP was to Windows 2000: They share architectural underpinnings but the latter products, respectively, offer important visual and functional differences.

So is Windows 7 more like Windows 98 or XP? That's a debate I and others will engage in for some time to come. But I will say that Windows 7 is a nice enough upgrade that it will appeal to two big audiences: The hundreds of millions of people who have already adopted Windows Vista, and the several hundred million people who have opted to stick with XP. That alone makes Windows 7 a hugely important product, especially for Microsoft.
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