Windows 7: Operating system guidance for PC buyers

With a new version of Microsoft Windows on the horizon, technology correspondent Jon Wilcox investigates the options for PC buyers.

Love or hate it, Microsoft Windows continues to dominate the business computing market, with installed systems split between the derided Windows Vista and the more stable Windows XP. On the horizon however, is a third OS from the Redmond Corporation, Windows 7, which began a limited public beta back in January. Expected to enter the final stages of assessment within the next month according to online reports from NeoWin, the operating system is Microsoft's attempt to offer a 'true' successor to XP, which has already had its lifespan expanded thanks to the less-than-stellar reception of Vista.