Published: Friday 1st May, 2009 | Author: Parm Mann
Products: Windows 7
Companies: Microsoft (All Microsoft content)
External reviews: Microsoft Windows 7
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email to a friendTechNet and MSDN subscribers who're already using the Release Candidate of Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system have confirmed that the software won't expire until June 1st 2010, some 392 days after its scheduled public launch on May 5th.
Despite merely confirming the expiry date listed on last month's leaked Microsoft TechNet article, the decision to allow the software to run free of charge for such an extended period of time will come as a surprise to many.
Microsoft is yet to comment on the unusually long Release Candidate period, but it effectively provides an unlimited number of users with a free copy of the penultimate pre-release code. Peculiar, we feel, particularly when considering that a retail launch could take place as soon as October 23rd.
In contrast, the final Release Candidate for Windows Vista - RC2 - launched in October 2006 and expired just seven months later. Upon expiry, it automatically rebooted every two hours in an effort to encourage users to purchase a final retail version.
Will you be downloading the Windows 7 RC next week? And, if so, will you be tempted not to purchase a retail release until the RC expires in June 2010? Let us know in the HEXUS.community forums.
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Giving it free for 1yr is a cracking idea, I imagine the uptake when it expires will be pretty decent. I'll go back to XP unless it's cheap though ;-)Quote
Bit more eye candy but I'm not blown away by how amazingly - 2million % better than Vista it is like some people seem to think :)Quote
Just had another email come through confirming the expiry date. More interestingly, it mentions the "*Starts shutting down every two hours*" date for this Release Candidate; *1st March 2010*. To me that pretty much makes the 1st June date irrelevant - I couldn't put up with an enforced reboot every couple of hours.
It's not to keep people using the software, it's so that those who are using it aren't suddenly without a PC while they do something about getting the final release (and remember, many of those might be getting a laptop or something with W7 pre-installed, so it's not as simple as just buying a license and installing it again - there might be financial or time restraints).
It's not really aimed at the tech savvy, who know what's going to happen, it's aimed at those who have had W7 installed for them as a temp/cheap measure, and gives them time to do something about the problem while still being able to do the essentials.
Damn considerate if you ask me.Quote
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