In my opinion, and I'm not a programmer, just another computer/networking guy that has yet to have the privilege to use Win7 , but as far as I'm concerned Windows 7 is still running the same kernel as Vista. It's just a "fixed" version of vista with a new name.
Of course they may have changed the code around a little bit, but I highly doubt it's much different.
I'm not a programmer, either, but quite many people would agree with you. As I have already written somewhere, basically, Vista is Windows NT 6.0 while Windows 7 is Windows NT 6.1. So, it's minor version up. However, what's wrong with it when the usability is improved? In fact, Windows XP, the most popular OS at the moment, is Windows NT 5.1, which is another minor version up from Windows NT 5.0, or, Windows 2000. I even think it is rather wise to get minor version-up OS rather than major version-up one.
From information I have gathered,
basically, there is not so much technical improvement from Vista in Windows 7 but Windows 7 seems to be more stable with higher usability. So, there is no wonder in some people calling it what Vista should have been.
Since I haven't gotten Windows 7 or even Vista, please correct me if I'm mistaken...more detailed information from the users would be welcome.
BTW, er...privilege? Now, you should be able to buy it anytime.
I guess I'll read Bob's link after I post to see if I'm correct or not.
Bob's "info" is from MS, based on information gathered through yet another of their product Microsoft Security Essentials anti-malware. So, it's hard to separate it from their campaign for Windows 7, since there are clear incentive for MS, IMHO.