Version differences during the Windows operating system release

alpha version: internal beta. α is the first of the Greek letters, indicating the earliest version, the general user should not download this version, this version is generally used as a technical preview, it may contain a lot of bugs, functions are not complete, mainly for developers and testers to test And looking for a BUG.

pre version: This and alpha are both preview versions, but this public will also be very easy to get, generally divided into M1, M2 and so on. Windows7 I think a lot of people are starting to pay attention to M3.

beta: Public beta. β is the second of the Greek alphabet, as the name suggests, this version is released later than the alpha version, this version of the software is actually very mature, big BUG generally does not appear, for public testing, that is, "public beta" And this stage version of the software may also add some new features to the new application.

rc version: Release Candidate (candidate version), Candidate is the candidate's meaning, used in software is the candidate version. Release.Candidate. is the release candidate version. The biggest difference with the Beta is that the Beta will always add new features, but by the time of the RC, almost no new features will be added, and the main focus is on debugging! This version goes further than the beta.

Stable version: stable version. This version is not available in this general commercial software and is said to be available in open source software. This is the final release of open source software, users can use it with confidence.

RTM version: Fully called Release to Manufacture. Factory version. The revision process has been fixed, and the factory packaging, CD-printing, etc. work.

OEM version: Manufacturer's customized version. We bought the brand machine pre-installed is the oem version, huh, my Dell is the vista oem version installed, automatically activated. Now there is a lot of oem version in the forum.

EVAL version: Evaluation version. It is a version with a lifespan of 30 or 60 days.

RTL version: Retail. (retail version), this version is the real release version, with beautiful packaging, CD, manuals and other things and high prices. When Windows 7 goes on the market, the price will not be cheap.

MSDN Edition: This is not a version code in the software development cycle, it is unique to Microsoft software, because the full name of msdn is "Microsoft Developer Network". In the forum, we usually say that the msdn version is more representative of the meaning of the "original" & rdquo; & rdquo; unmodified version & ldquo;.

About windows7 RC:

What does Windows 7 RC mean? [& quoquo; RC appeared, Microsoft's next-generation desktop system Windows
7] & ldquo; RC appeared, indicating that the development of Microsoft's next-generation desktop system Windows
7 has entered the final stage, During the period between Beta and RC, Microsoft has fixed some bugs that were previously proposed by testers. In the period between RC and the official release, in fact, Microsoft will not make major changes to the system. All the code is basically frozen, and only minor modifications will be made. The main task during this time is to work with the partners to help them prepare for the arrival of Windows
7. ”