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Be first. Save half.
Please come back tomorrow (6/26) to pre-order Windows 7. You'll get it for at least half off and be one of the first to get it. Hurry, quantities are limited.*
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no thanks: I will be getting Windows 7 for free, which it should be in the first place. AARRR mateys!

Just pre-ordered my copy and got cashback through Bing. Kind of ironic.

Right at midnight I went to amazon's page and pre-ordered home premium. I was really convinced I would probably pirate 7 being that it should have been a free upgrade for anyone who bought Vista anyway but oh well.

No love for Aus?

Vista wasn't that bad, I used it from day 1 and it worked fine. A little quirky with UAC and file transfer speeds on a network, but other than that it was a perfectly good OS. Certainly wasn't bad enough to steal it.

Should be in the first place? Why would they waste the money developing it if they were going to give it away.

ever heard of Ubuntu?

I wonder how much OEM will cost?

Aside from OEM, what will be the cost to upgrade from Windows 7 Home Premium to Professional (or Ultimate), and how would that be accomplished? Will the other versions of Windows 7 be on the installation disk to be enabled by the activation key?

Yeah. I hear it's perfect for Microsoft Office, Crysis, Fallout 3, Half-Life 2, Active Directory administration, and 99% of the available software on the market.
oh wait.

Correction: 99% of retail software. Most of the Windows users I know have stripped their systems of MS/OEM bloatware and have it loaded with 3rd party freeware alternatives anyway. Not everybody has the ability to buy, or the need for a $10,000 PC. Which is about how much a system with all the industry-leading retail software titles (Photoshop, Office, CAD, games, etc), Windows, and the hardware will run you. Besides, I have 6 PCs and MS is out of their f@#$%'in minds if they think I'm going to drop $1,500-$2,000 on something as basic as operating systems. Taken on quality alone, Windows 7 is far better than Vista. However, the price is still completely insane. They're not going to stop any of the "mean" ads from Cupertino, Apple will just start hitting them on price and continue their digs on service. That, and it's really only a matter of time before malware is again an issue.

But yeah, gaming is not too hot (to say the least) on Linux (or Mac for that matter), but consoles have become much more cost-effective than PC gaming, unfortunately.

I fully understand the various Linux options and I do quite like Ubuntu, but hardware compatability is the last thing I want to worry about when I go to install an OS on one of the 5 PC's in my home.

I'm not knocking Linux, but it will never be mainstream because it requires too much effort to install and maintain compared even to Windows. Why do you think so many people are jumping on the ever lame Apple train... because "it just works." /sarcasm

Seriously though, people don't want to come home and work on their computer, they want to enjoy it. I'm an IT guy and while what I consider enjoyment is work to most, it only pertains to my newest PC. The rest of the clunkers around the house I'd rather install and forget.

Can anyone comment on the differences between the Retail and the Upgrade versions. I read on Microsoft's website that the Upgrade version can do a clean install on a PC with no operating system. Which confuses me why I'd need the retail version (to swtich from linux or the like). Do they ask for your old key when you buy it, or does the upgrade version come without a key and you need to reuse your previous XP/Vista key?
Thanks-

chripuck:

I'm not advocating that you don't go out and buy, use, and enjoy Windows on your brand spanking new gaming rig. ANY other Os on that type of system is nothing short of absurd. And I totally agree with your desire to keep the "rest of the old clunkers" installed and forgotten. But your reason for wanting Windows on them is the same as my reason for wanting Linux!
Linux, especially Ubuntu, will have no compatibility issues on older hardware and will probably run better than with Windows. Also, 2 of my 6 PCs are used by other members of the household, one of whom is not good with computers and happy with the fast boot time and no "scanning" for anything. The internet works just fine, that's all she cares about, so she's happy. The other is constantly trying to install random gaming software from anywhere a game is advertised, and doesn't run anti-anything suites. So, he got Ubuntu as well, to save my time. Don't worry, the hardware on his system could never play any new games anyway, and he got an XBox

It's probably going to ask or your old key to verify that you have a previous version of Windows. I'm pretty sure that the 7 installation will have it's own key, to verify which edition you paid for. If you're coming from Linux (or others), you'll need the full.

This may seem stupid, but will mircosoft offer an upgrade or discount price of win7 for users currently using the RC version of win7???

Don't think so. You'll need a copy of either XP or Vista to upgrade.

want a win 7 ultimate discount path with reduce price!!!
pay too mcuh for ultimate and all I needed was the remote desktop
server function. the rest are junk.

I called Microsoft and asked about upgrading from the RC because I am running Win7 RC, and don't have my old key. They said it will be able to do a clean install, or upgrade from Win 7 RC. It will include a 32 bit, and 64 bit OS.

What's all this hype about Windows 7 on Tom's???
Every two or three article is about win 7. Do they got paid from M$?