9. Windows: Now with less Vista!

After hyping Windows Vista so long and hard that it was a huge disappointment the moment it shipped, Microsoft is taking a vastly more low-key approach to the rollout of next year’s Windows 7. It finally released a preview version to developers and the press in October–one that’s pretty much a refresh of Windows Vista, except with fewer annoying features and a name that doesn’t include the word “Vista.” Depending on how you look at things, that’s either a letdown or good news (I tend towards the latter take).