We got our first peek at a pre-beta version of the desktop operating system at a Microsoft developer event back in October. Since then, a more fleshed-out version of Windows 7 -- believed by many to be a leaked version of Beta 1 -- has been making the rounds on BitTorrent.
Ballmer will likely show off the key features of the new OS while on stage Wednesday night, emphasizing the many enhancements and improvements that set Windows 7 apart from its predecessor, Windows Vista.
Vista, which is two years old this month, received a famously cold reaction from consumers and business users alike, and Microsoft is eager to distance itself from the whole mess. The result is a slimmed-down, much improved version of Windows that emphasizes performance, makes home networking easier and addresses the growing popularity of web applications.
Windows 7, expected to ship within the year, contains scores of interface tweaks and new animated desktop behaviors. There are home networking enhancements that simplify the sharing of music and movies between PCs, and improvements to the way the computer interacts with phones, media players and various devices. Also, in a bold attempt to drop weight, Microsoft is encouraging users to switch to web-based clients for things like e-mail, photo management and document sharing.
Also, based on demonstrations of both official pre-release builds and the recently leaked code, Windows 7 boasts a substantial performance boost over Vista. Back in October, Microsoft senior VP Steve Sinofsky delivered his live on-stage walk-through of the new OS using a netbook with a 1-GHz processor and 1GB of RAM.
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