It’s official. Since Tuesday, 5 May 2009, Windows 7 Release Candidate is available for download for free. At first only MSDN and Technet subscribers were able to download their copy, but now everyone can get the most recent version of Windows 7 and use it for testing. It is the latest test version of the new Windows system and pretty close to the final version which will be released later this year or early next year.

After reading some early reviews of the Windows 7 Beta version earlier this year, I can say it looks like a promising system. Microsoft has introduced many quality and compatibility improvements, designed to replace its inferior predecessor, Windows Vista. Many PC users complained about problems with Windows Vista and it was to expect that this time, Microsoft would produce a much better system. That system is Windows 7.

Windows 7 enjoys early industry support, as over 10 000 companies have signed up for tools and resources needed to prepare their products for Windows 7; for example, Asus already makes motherboards that support Windows 7.  The reviews are pretty good so far and expectations are high. I think this could be the best Windows yet!

Some new features include:

• Remote Media Streaming
• Windows XP Mode
• Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor
• Refined Navigation
• Internet Explorer 8
• Windows Touch

System Requirements for Windows 7:

• 1Ghz or faster CPU x32 or x64
• 1GB Ram / 2GB Ram for x64 processor
• 16GB disk space / 20 GB for x64 processor
• Directx 9 graphics driver model 1.0 or higher

So go ahead and download it here. It’s free and it will work until June 2010 – then you’ll have to purchase a license or uninstall it.