Lately, Microsoft has started to open up about the company's plans for Vista's successor, Windows 7. Microsoft should do more -- and must do more -- if the company hopes to keep the Windows franchise vital. Here are four things that would be a good start.

Make Windows 7 betas widely available. The glimpse of Windows 7 that Microsoft has provided already seems to show that they won't repeat the mistakes they made in Vista. Users and businesses need to see more of what Windows 7 will have to offer so they can feel comfortable using it soon after it's released. Microsoft offered betas of Vista, but ignored the warning feedback they generated; had the company listened to beta testers, they would have thought twice about shipping when they did.

Have Windows 7 appeal to upgraders. Vista failed to deliver much upgrade revenue for Microsoft; XP users stayed put after seeing the Vista pioneers return from the frontier filled with arrows. This is Microsoft's golden opportunity. Windows XP is getting long in the tooth, but many XP systems have lots of life in them. Windows 7 should be able to run on those systems, even if it can't deliver all the high-end features. Microsoft should have aggressive upgrade pricing to entice XP users into the newer and more secure environment.

Forget the past, focus on the future. Users and companies that haven't switched to Vista aren't going there now that Windows 7 is visible on the horizon. Don't waste time and money trying to deliver the impression that a switch to Vista makes sense at this point. Go all-in on Windows 7 and show people how great it's going to be. Software companies generally don't do that because it can hurt sales of the existing version, but that effect is unlikely to apply to Vista.

Ship before the 2009 holiday season. The old "we'll ship it when it's ready" mantra ignores the fact that the holidays generate a significant chunk of revenue for the PC industry. If Microsoft can't finalize Windows 7 by October 2009, they might as well just wait until mid-2010. That would be a lost opportunity.