On the Engineering Windows 7 blog this week, Microsoft again noted that it was planning to give the public a Release Candidate of Windows 7 before the final version is ready. In other words, there is not going to be a "Beta 2," and the public would only see one public beta build: Windows 7 build 7000. However, a timeline for these versions is not disclosed: "This post is in no way an announcement of a ship date, change in plans, or change in our previously described process, but rather it provides additional detail and a forward looking view of the path to RTM and General Availability."

The fact that Microsoft is not planning a second beta, that the first beta is the most stable Microsoft has ever given out, and that getting Windows 7 ready in time for the holidays is advantageous has all led to speculation that Microsoft wants Vista's successor out this year. Officially, Microsoft has always said "three years after the general availability of Windows Vista," which was released on January 30, 2007, and that the release date was also dependent on quality. As with any product in beta, enthusiasts have been making predictions all over the place, most in the timeframe of late 2009 to early 2010. Microsoft employees have been making their own predictions, but the average of their guesses is much earlier in 2009: October 3.

I asked Michael Bohlin, product, here are some dates more or less nailed.

February 26, TechNet and TrueSec med with Microsoft Windows 7 Summit. Microsoft Windows 7 Summit.

17-18 March, Tech Days in V�ster�s, our largest Windows 7 event in the spring.

May 31 Microsoft itself installed.

Early in April, after CeBIT, the RC.

June, July, August, Summer Koll with many presentations.

RTM and launch company as it stands right now Q3 2009. The cut of all internal guesses here at the office right now is October 3 at 11.10.

February 2010 the board of trade.

The above quote is a translated version (� la Google) of a Microsoft Sweden partner blog post that Neowin found. It should also be noted that the timeline points to an RC being released in April. Dates like those above are always subject to change, but it's quite obvious that Microsoft is at least currently aiming to get Windows 7 ready for prime time by Q3 2009. We'll just have to wait and see if they can pull it off.