Microsoft isn't going to show Windows 7 to attendees of the Professional
Developers Conference (PDC) in Los Angeles until Tuesday, October 28. But new
info about what's part of the pre-beta build that will be provided to show-goers
is beginning to trickle out.
ZDNet's
Mary-Jo Foley has used her sources to get some early details about what the
build might include. According to her report, the Windows 7 pre-beta will
introduce Device Stage, Action Center, a new framework for user-interface
animations, and StreamOn. Device Stage will work as a "central location for
customers to more easily interact with devices," while Action Center will help
users troubleshoot problems, and StreamOn will have something to do with audio
and video contentFoley says she doesn't know the specifics yet. Microsoft's
PowerShell scripted command-line interface will make it into the pre-beta, too,
as will the multi-touch functionality we wrote about in May. Foley claims the
first public beta of Windows 7 will come out in the middle of December, with the
final release to follow "by next year." Evidence of a 2009 launch schedule for
Windows 7 has been piling up for a while now, so that's not surprising.