Temporarily free of its court wrangle with Microsoft, Lindows this week released a second preview version of its operating system.

Just days after Microsoft's claim that Linows infringes on its Windows trademark was thrown out of court, the late 2002 release date for the Linux-based OS is one step closer to reality.

LindowsOS is designed to provide a Linux base for running Windows applications, the ultimate aim of which is to include such products as Microsoft Office.

Two new features included in the second preview are 'Click-N-Run', which remotely accesses a central database and downloads and installs software on your Lindows machine at the click of a button; and a file viewer which allows you to open such office documents as Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

AOL is one of the first to get in on the act, signing up for the Lindows Warehouse and allowing beta testers to download and use AOL to access the web. No other big-name vendors seem to have contributed to the Lindows warehouse yet.

But Michael Robertson, the chief executive of Lindows, warned that even though this is the second preview release, "not all programs will run flawlessly."

"What has not improved in LindowsOS Sneak Preview 2 is the ability to run Microsoft Windows software titles as well as installing LindowsOS on more obscure hardware configurations," he said. "You'll see marked improvements in those areas with the next version."

The first official, fully functional release is pegged for launch later this year, although an exact date has yet to be confirmed.