In a candid interview, Steven Sinofsky revealed that Windows 7 will be an evolutionary improvement over Windows Vista. In short, drivers and software that work with Windows Vista will continue to do so under Windows 7. As previously indicated by Microsoft, Windows 7 will be available in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors.
As to the reason why Microsoft has been seemingly "quiet" about Windows 7 compared to say Windows Vista, it is clear Microsoft felt it was burned by revealing too much about "Longhorn" too early in its development.
Bad press aside, Sinofsky noted that the shifting plans resulted in developers deciding to wait until Vista shipped before examining it seriously.
For the complete transcript:
- check out this CNET News.com article [1]
Links:
[1] http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-9951638-56.html