In a move which marks Microsoft’s attempts to reboot its flagship Windows operating system for a computing era dominated by mobile devices, the company Thursday announced the roll out of an almost-complete version of its forthcoming Windows 8 software for public testing.

The launch of the Windows 8 Release Preview – which can now be downloaded on the Microsoft site - implies that Microsoft has nearly finalized the form and the features of its Windows 8 OS; thereby indicating the completion of a vital step for the software giant as well as for the several PC makers and independent software developers in its orbit.

About the roll out of the Release Preview – which comes after the launch of early test versions of Windows 8 for software developers and for consumers, over the last few months -, Steven Sinofsky, president of Microsoft's Windows division, said on Thursday: "We're thrilled to be at this milestone with the Windows 8 Release Preview.”

In the opinion of the analysts, the timing of Microsoft’s earlier than expected roll out of the Windows 8 Release Preview underscores the hint that the broad launch of the company’s newest OS is possibly scheduled for September or October.

In fact, with Microsoft having apparently come to a near-completion stage of its next-generation operating system, the focus will now shift to the company’s hardware partners – like Dell, Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard - to prepare new PCs which run the latest Microsoft software.