After six years of development, Microsoft will finally launch Vista, its new operating system to home users tomorrow.
Bill Gates, CEO of the hi-tech giant, promised that the flagship operating system would "transform the way people work and play" in the "most amazing version" of Windows yet.
Three-dimensional desktops and translucent windows are among the new features to make their debut on Vista, along with improved security and child-monitoring tools for parents.
The system is one of the most tested ever, with programmers claiming to have secured it as much as possible against the threat of viruses.
However, users will need high-powered PCs of at least one gigahertz and a gigabyte of memory to run Vista.
Microsoft has also come in for criticism for its pricing in the UK market. British consumers will have to pay between £100 and £249 for the operating system, the same as US customers will pay in dollars.
With sterling now worth almost two dollars, Brits will find themselves paying twice the price paid by their American counterparts.
By the end of the year, a million people across the world are expected to have installed Vista.
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