The last days I have been counting down to October 22nd, the big day for Microsoft that the retail version of the Microsoft Windows 7 operating system is available in stores accross the globe.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will officially unveil Windows 7 live from New York City  (8 a.m. PDT/11:00 a.m. EDT). You can follow the keynote live from the launch event, which I will do myself as well!

First copy of Windows 7 sold in Australia

Gerard Verbrugge, MVPLead for Microsoft covering the Benelux and Scandinavian countries, shared a cool reference to the article “First copy of Windows 7 sold in Australia” as a starting point of the global Windows 7 launch “domino” !

Remarkable in this article is a “slideshow” with the history of Windows from Windows 1.0 in 1985 to Windows 7 in 2009. Here you can see the true evolution from the Windows operating system.

It has been almost a month ago  since I published the article:  “Windows 7 RC reviewed on HP Mini 1000“, and while this was a release candidate, I was already very impressed with the improved productivity and efficiency improvements as well as the stability.

Paul Miller, Editor on Engadget.com, has written an extensive- and highly recommended review with lots of visual material about the Windows 7 release to manufacturing (RTM) version. This should give you a well balanced impression of the possibilities and new improvements of Windows 7.

Which edition of Windows 7 should I get ?

Johan van Mierlo, Windows Mobile MVP has provided a schematic overview of the different Windows 7 editions in the article: “Microsoft announces different versions of Windows 7” and in addition you can find a comparison chart on the Windows 7 website as well.

However I must compliment Microsoft for an even more pro-active role, as outlined in the article on the Windows 7 blog: “Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor and Windows 7 Compatibility Center now available” from Mark Relph.

“The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor scans your PC to see if it’s ready for Windows 7.”

While the upgrade advisor checks the Windows 7 capability to run Windows 7, the compatibility center provides information about the devices and accessoiries you connect to your Windows 7 machine.

“The Windows 7 Compatibility Center helps you easily check the compatibility of thousands of devices and software programs for 32-bit or 64-bit versions of Windows 7.”

Concluding thoughts on Windows 7

Without any doubt Windows 7 is the best and fastest Windows operating system I’ve used, and it consists of many efficiency and productivity releated improvements. Microsoft has listened very well to the community feedback and transofrmed this into a fantastic Windows 7 “end-product” !

There is no excuse anymore not to upgrade to Windows 7, since all the information and  tools (Upgrade Advisor and Compatiblity Center) are available to make a well though-through decision. In addition a wide range of Windows 7 reviews is aggregated on the Microsoft PressPass website.

Furthermore on the Windows 7 website you can find the section “7 days of Windows 7 savings” where you can get some great discounts on a daily basis and share in the cellebrations of Microsoft and its partners on the Windows 7 global launch.

Finally certainly don’t forget to tune in on the Steve Ballmer keynote covering the Windows 7 launch in New York City later today !!