Windows 7 Debuts To The Press At D6

Microsoft has been keeping a tight lid on details about its successor to Windows Vista, that is until they decided to give the press a little sneak peek at the D Conference in Carlsbad, Calif.

Microsoft's VP for Windows Experience Program Management, Julie Larson-Green , briefly demoed Windows 7, which showed off Microsoft's attempt at bringing multitouch capabilities to the masses. Using a current generation Dell Latitude XT Julie demonstrated the multitouch capabilities which accepts multiple finger inputs, hence the "multi" part of the "multi-touch" technology title.

The new multi-touch technology will deploy on "all sizes and shapes of computers" according to Julie, but you would need the appropriate digitizer hardware. Touching is "not complete replacement of the mouse", rather it’s a way to further your experience, she says.

While details about the rest of the new operating system are still scarce Microsoft officials have already confirmed that they will not be using a new OS kernel for Windows 7. They've also been confirming that they will have Windows 7 ready in time to ship in 2009.