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Windows 7 is certainly getting a lot of attention recently as Windows users try to forget about the mistakes of Vista and focus on the next OS.  It seems every major release of the OS has appeared on torrent sites before ever appearing out in public.  There’s always a lot of speculation as to when it will be released and how quickly the newness might wear off.  But, since it’s not here yet, we still have room to hope, even more so in recent announcements.

Microsoft has finally come clean with the release of Windows 7 RC1, which will in fact be released on May 5th as we’ve expected.  But, they also made an important announcement.  Turns out those who go all out for the Professional and Ultimate versions of 7 will be able to download a new “XP Mode.” 

XP Mode will allow for users to run programs in a XP environment, which will apparently run just the same as Windows XP does now.  The programs will even look like they are running in XP, complete with the familiar XP title bar.  It should be useful to those who use abandoned software that only runs in XP, or for companies who use software that is only available for Windows XP at least until it gets upgraded.

The new XP mode could potentially sway a lot of people to buy the Ultimate edition if Windows markets it correctly, especially if it works well.  What should be interesting however, would be if a 64-bit version of 7 can emulate a 32-bit version of XP in XP Mode.  There are some programs now that will work well on XP and Vista, but not on 64-bit Vista, which leaves those users out in the cold.  This XP Mode could potentially serve as an easy solution to those issues.

Read [Electronista]