Windows 7 is coming out soon, and it looks like it will be what a lot of people have been calling it for a while: finally, a good OS to upgrade from. 7 will finally put Microsoft’s Vista debacle behind it. Many have called 7 “Vista Service Pack 3,” in reference to the fact that 7 is what Vista should have been. It is quite likely that Microsoft indeed simply released an OS that was far too unfinished because it was panicked about Apple grabbing its market share (Apple rose from less than 3% to 10 or even 12% over the past six years in the U.S.) and needed to put something out there. As a result, however, Vista simply accomplished what Apple was trying to do: prove that the Windows OS was inferior. Windows 7, almost a decade after the last acceptable OS, is incredibly late in coming, but finally will be something that a Windows user can be proud of.

Walter Mossberg, noted WSJ tech columnist, says that 7 is finally up to matching Mac OS X–but not quite. He still gives OS X the edge, but claims that 7 makes it almost a tie:

In recent years, I, like many other reviewers, have argued that Apple’s Mac OS X operating system is much better than Windows. That’s no longer true. I still give the Mac OS a slight edge because it has a much easier and cheaper upgrade path; more built-in software programs; and far less vulnerability to viruses and other malicious software, which are overwhelmingly built to run on Windows.

Now, however, it’s much more of a toss-up between the two rivals. Windows 7 beats the Mac OS in some areas, such as better previews and navigation right from the taskbar, easier organization of open windows on the desktop and touch-screen capabilities. So Apple will have to scramble now that the gift of a flawed Vista has been replaced with a reliable, elegant version of Windows.

He forgot about superior language switching and several other key advantages, but hey. He does, however, make the case for how this will suck big-time for XP users:

The system for upgrading is complicated, but Vista owners can upgrade to the exactly comparable edition of Windows 7 while keeping all files, settings and programs in place.

Unfortunately, XP owners, the biggest body of Windows users, won’t be able to do that. They’ll have to wipe out their hard disks after backing up their files elsewhere, then install Windows 7, then restore their personal files, then re-install all their programs from the original CDs or downloaded installer files. Then, they have to install all the patches and upgrades to those programs from over the years.

Microsoft includes an Easy Transfer wizard to help with this, but it moves only personal files, not programs. This painful XP upgrade process is one of the worst things about Windows 7 and will likely drive many XP owners to either stick with what they’ve got or wait and buy a new one.

Me, I will reserve judgment until I actually use the end product. Of course, you can count on my Mac bias (not to mention my Apple stock ownership) to color my own judgment here. I very much doubt I’ll become a reverse-switcher. But at least I’ll be able to tell my school (alas, ardently insisting on sticking with Windows because “everyone uses it”) that they can finally upgrade the OS on school machines.