Aug 9, 2011 13:30 GMT  ·  By

Neither the upcoming Windows 8 nor the aging Windows XP will stop Windows 7 from climbing to grab the no.1 OS stop worldwide by the end of 2011. Windows XP is currently still king of the operating system market, but its domination is being eroded, with Windows 7 cannibalizing it.

Microsoft has repeatedly boasted about Windows 7’s strong growth, and it appears that even as the software giant will dive deeper into Windows 8, Windows Vista’s successor will continue to enjoy its current momentum.

According to market analysis firm Gartner, Windows 7 is right on track to becoming the world’s no. 1 platform by the end of 2011.

Before year’s end, In excess of 42% of the world’s computers will be running Windows 7. Gartner attributes Windows 7’s explosion on the OS market to the fact that in 2011 alone, 94% of all PCs shipped with this operating system preinstalled.

"Steady improvements in IT budgets in 2010 and 2011 are helping to accelerate the deployment of Windows 7 in enterprise markets in the U.S. and Asia/Pacific, where Windows 7 migrations started in large volume from 4Q10," revealed Annette Jump, research director at Gartner.

"However, the economic uncertainties in Western Europe, political instability in selected Middle East and Africa (MEA) countries and the economic slowdown in Japan after the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 will likely lead to slightly late and slow deployment for Windows 7 across those regions."

Back in May, I wrote an article in which I estimated that the number of Windows 7 sold licenses could climb as high as 650 million by the end of 2011.

It seems that Gartner agrees, although their forecast is 15 million smaller than mine, and will probably turn out to be right. Let’s not forget that over 400 million Windows copies have already been sold.

And when I say sold I mean sold, since this is what Microsoft confirmed to me, and not shipped into the channel.

"By the end of 2011, nearly 635 million new PCs worldwide are expected to be shipped with Windows 7. Many enterprises have been planning their deployment of Windows 7 for the last 12 to 18 months, and are now moving rapidly to Windows 7," Jump added.