Microsoft gives users Windows 7 free for 13 months

orang_awam · Post time 2-5-2009 04:18 PM

source: http://www.computerworld.com/act ... rticleBasic&articleId=9132397

Company confirms June 1, 2010 expiration date for Windows 7 RC

By Gregg Keizer

April 30, 2009 (Computerworld) Microsoft Corp. will let users run Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) for more than a year, giving them free use of the new operating system for a significantly longer time than it did Vista's previews.

Windows 7 RC, slated for download by MSDN and TechNet subscribers today and by the general public on May 5, doesn't expire until June 1, 2010, 13 months from tomorrow, Microsoft confirmed today.

When asked why the company is giving users such a long free pass for the software, a spokeswoman declined to comment.

The date had been leaked more than a month ago, when a Microsoft site temporarily posted a page that revealed other details of the upcoming RC, including a May delivery and no limit on the number of downloads. 

"You don't need to rush to get Windows 7 RC," the leaked page read in late March. "The RC release will be available at least through June 2009, and we're not limiting the number of product keys, so you have plenty of time."

The 13-month life span of Windows 7 RC is substantially longer than the time limit Microsoft put on Vista's release candidates. In September and October 2006, Microsoft issued Vista RC1 and Vista RC2, respectively; both expired June 1, 2007. Users of Vista RC2 then were able to run the operating system free of charge for nearly eight months.

Starting June 1, 2007, PCs powered by Vista previews, including the two release candidates, began rebooting every two hours, part of Microsoft's preplanned scheme to remind users to move to a paying copy.

Although Microsoft continues to be coy about a final release date for Windows 7 -- according to calculations by Todd Bishop, who writes the TechFlash blog, the company is behind schedule for such an announcement -- it has said that today's RC will be the only release candidate for the operating system.

The next milestone will be what Microsoft calls "release to manufacturing," or RTM, a stage that means developers have signed off on the code and the company has moved the product into duplication and begun handing it to its hardware partners for installation on new PCs.

Microsoft was having trouble serving up Windows 7 RC to MSDN and TechNet subscribers today, as the download sites for both services were overloaded early Thursday. As of 1 p.m. Eastern time, the MSDN and TechNet download pages for Windows 7 RC remained offline.

Pancing baik punya...
Mungkin lesson learnt dari Vista

budingyun · Post time 2-5-2009 10:15 PM

skang aku pakai win 7 build 7100..

expiration date :

orang_awam · Post time 3-5-2009 01:03 AM

yg RC version punya expires June 2010.

yg tak tau RC ni support windows update atau tak.

budingyun · Post time 3-5-2009 03:06 AM

selama ni aku pakai boleh jer windows update..

aku update sbb nk driver..

kalo yg build 7077 expired hari ni..

[ Last edited by budingyun at 3-5-2009 03:07 ]

adie82 · Post time 3-5-2009 11:20 AM

7077 EXPIRED ARI NI??
AKU PUNYA OK JER... KAT EXPIRED DATE TU TAKDER APA2 PUN!
AKU TAKDER PLAK PATCH KAT MANA2 CUMA ACTIVATE GUNA KEY YG AKU DAPAT TU LA...!

budingyun · Post time 3-5-2009 01:23 PM

mana aku tau..dia tulis expired tp xde pape kot..

cuba ko taip winver kat cmd..

orang_awam · Post time 3-5-2009 11:55 PM

tunggu je lah download RC version 5hb ni. tapi server mesti high load punya hari tu

budingyun · Post time 4-5-2009 02:44 AM

aku rasa aku punya ni RC..tp leak..

adie82 · Post time 6-5-2009 02:29 AM

aku tgh donlod RC1 nih! ntah bila la nak siap... 6kbps...

budingyun · Post time 6-5-2009 01:39 PM

aku ngah donload gak...tp sama jek ngan aku punya...

orang_awam · Post time 6-5-2009 11:14 PM

Welcome to Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) testing. We're on our way to Windows 7, and if you like trying out pre-release software, now’s your chance. You get to see what's coming, and we get to see if our changes and fixes from the Beta testing are working correctly.

How do you test the software? You put it on your PC, and then do what you'd normally do. Your PC will automatically and anonymously send our engineers the information they need to verify the fixes and changes they made based on the Windows 7 Beta tests.

Here's what you need to know:
This is pre-release software, so please read the following to get an idea of the risks and key things you need to know before you try the RC.

You don't need to rush to get the RC. The RC will be available at least through July 2009 and we're not limiting the number of product keys, so you have plenty of time.

Watch the calendar. The RC will expire on June 1, 2010. Starting on March 1, 2010, your PC will begin shutting down every two hours. Windows will notify you two weeks before the bi-hourly shutdowns start. To avoid interruption, you’ll need to install a non-expired version of Windows before March 1, 2010. You’ll also need to install the programs and data that you want to use. (Learn more about installing Windows.)

Protect your PC and data. Be sure to back up your data and please don't test the RC on your primary home or business PC.

Tech details/updates: Before installing the RC, please read the Release Notes and Things to Know for important information about the release.

Keep up with the news. You can keep up with general technical information and news by following the team blog. And, you can get non-technical news, tips, and offers by subscribing to the monthly Exploring Windows newsletter.

Keep your PC updated: Be sure to turn on automatic updates in Windows Update in case we publish updates for the RC.

Installation: You can install the Windows 7 RC on a PC running Windows Vista without backing up the PC—but we encourage you to make a backup for safe keeping. If you’re running Windows XP or the Windows 7 Beta, you’ll need to backup your data, then do a clean installation of the RC, then reinstall your applications and restore your data. If you need to do a backup, please see How to back up your PC for more details and a suggestion for how to backup a PC running Windows 7 Beta or Windows Vista.

To install and use the RC, you'll need to know how to:

Troubleshoot problems. You're pretty much flying solo, so you'll need to handle your own tech support, and rely on other RC testers for their know-how

Burn an ISO file to make an installation DVD

Install Windows

Backup and restore your PC

Set up a network

Create and use a system recovery disk

To learn more about the Windows 7 RC, see Frequently asked questions.

Here's what you need to have:
Internet access (to download Windows 7 RC and get updates)

A PC with these system requirements:

1 GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor

1 GB RAM (32-bit) / 2 GB RAM (64-bit)

16 GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20 GB (64-bit)

DirectX 9 graphics processor with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
Please note these specifications could change. And, some product features of Windows 7, such as the ability to watch and record live TV or navigation through the use of "touch," may require advanced or additional hardware.

Get the download
The 32- and 64-bit versions of Windows 7 RC are available in five languages: English, German, Japanese, French, and Spanish. Just choose the version that fits the system you'll be using, pick your language, and click go to register for and download the RC.

Downloading the Windows 7 RC could take a few hours. The exact time will depend on your internet provider, bandwidth, and traffic. The good news is that once you start the download, you won't have to answer any more questions – you can walk away while it finishes. If it gets interrupted, it'll restart where it left off. See this FAQ for details.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/download.aspx