Maybe you are skeptical of any ship date announcement for a Microsoft product, but according to NetworkWorld, a Microsoft VP confirmed a January 2010 ship date for Windows 7. The confirmation came in the form of a letter to be posted on the Microsoft website.

The letter from Bill Veghte also contains an important statement regarding compatibility:

"... our approach with Windows 7 is to build off the same core architecture as Windows Vista so the investments you and our partners have made in Windows Vista will continue to pay off with Windows 7. Our goal is to ensure the migration process from Windows Vista to Windows 7 is straightforward."

The news was quickly linked to by Slashdot - asking "Who would install Vista now?" and the comments are ratcheting up. Most seem to miss undertsand the importance of the news regarding compatibility. Instead, they are focusing on XP. Personally, I prefer Vista over XP.

Update

The letter is online. Here is the Windows 7 portion:

Beyond Windows Vista

Some of you may have heard about "Windows 7", which is the working name for the next release of Microsoft Windows. We have learned a great deal through the feedback you have shared with us about Windows Vista and that feedback is playing an important role in our work on Windows 7. You have told us you want a more regular, predictable Windows release schedule. To this end, our plan is to deliver Windows 7 approximately 3 years after the January 2007 general availability launch date of Windows Vista.

You've also let us know you don't want to face the kinds of incompatibility challenges with the next version of Windows you might have experienced early with Windows Vista. As a result, our approach with Windows 7 is to build off the same core architecture as Windows Vista so the investments you and our partners have made in Windows Vista will continue to pay off with Windows 7. Our goal is to ensure the migration process from Windows Vista to Windows 7 is straightforward.