Windows 7

[Kailuaboy]

Gates: Next Windows ‘sometime’ in next year
Comments suggest Vista successor might be released sooner than expected

By Michael Christie
updated 9:26 a.m. HT, Fri., April. 4, 2008


MIAMI - Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates said on Friday he expected the new version of Windows operating software, code-named Windows 7, to be released "sometime in the next year or so."

The software giant has been aiming to issue more regular updates of the operating system software that powers the majority of the world's personal computers. Nevertheless, Gates' comments suggested that a successor to the Vista program might be released sooner than was generally expected.

(Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal).

Microsoft has said it expected to release a new version of Windows approximately three years after the introduction of Vista in January 2007. A company spokeswoman said Gates' comments are in line with a development cycle that usually releases a test version of the software before its official introduction.

"I'm superenthused about what it will do in lots of ways," Gates said in a seminar on corporate philanthropy held during an annual meeting in Miami of the Inter-American Development Bank.

"That'll be sometime in the next year or so that we'll have a new version," Gates said in response to a question from the audience.

Gates, who is due to leave his day-to-day functions at Microsoft and dedicate himself to the philanthropic efforts of the Gates Foundation in June, said the company aimed through its $6 billion annual research and development budget to take the products running on its software to "the next level."

He said new versions of Windows would help revolutionize mobile phones and run the desk of the future, which would have a touch surface display allowing users to call up items using their hands.

Copyright 2008 Reuters.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23958862/

[TheWitness23]

anyone else getting tired of microsoft? how can they come out with a new OS when the one they have right now is severely broken.

[Kailuaboy]

If Bill Gates is serious about releasing a new OS as early as next year, then there really is no reason for Win XP users to make the switch to Vista. Last year I had planned to upgrade to Vista by this summer, but now there's no way I'm gonna switch to Vista only to see a new OS potentially released next year.

[xer 21]

anyone else getting tired of microsoft? how can they come out with a new OS when the one they have right now is severely broken.

first off, how is it broken? i havent had a problem with it at all.

second, "the next year or so?" wow, way to be specific there, gates. might as well have said it'll be released "in the future, sometime".

[Kailuaboy]

Prediction: Windows Vista successor coming sooner rather than later

12:56 PM Fri, Apr 25, 2008
Victor Godinez


While Microsoft is officially repudiating Steve Ballmer's ruminations on giving Windows XP a stay of execution, the writing is clearly on the wall for Vista.

Let me say upfront that I think Vista is a perfectly serviceable, visually attractive and reasonably secure operating system.

Anyone out shopping for a new computer with decent hardware should feel comfortable about buying a PC with Vista pre-installed.

But that doesn't matter.

Vista has been so poorly received, for reasons real and manufactured, that Microsoft simply has no choice but to get its next OS on the market as soon as possible.

If corporate customers aren't upgrading from XP to Vista, then Microsoft's fabled incoming river of cash slows to a trickle, and shareholders will not be pleased.

So before Vista mutates into an outright debacle, Microsoft will certainly get its successor on the market by 2010 at the latest.

That allows Vista to retreat from the battlefield with some semblance of honor, while Windows 7 can be billed as the revolutionary OS you've been waiting for: sleeker, leaner, faster, re-built from the ground up and unburdened by ancient legacy code.

Windows Vista is nowhere near the technological flop that was Windows Me. But it's rapidly garnering the same reputation and, with Google breathing down Microsoft's back, there's no way Microsoft can afford to let a negative public perception turn into a financial catastrophe.

So bank on Windows 7 by Spring 2010 at the latest.


http://techblog.dallasnews.com/archives ... succe.html

[Poopsnorkeler]

first off, how is it broken? i havent had a problem with it at all.

it's not the home users that are having the majority of the problems, it's the corporate users. too many problems finding drivers for older chipsets and peripherals. lots of software incompatiblities, you know the ones written in-house. not to mention the huge performance hit that they'll feel when they migrate to vista and i'm not talking that old of a pc but even 1st generation p4s that did fine running xp struggle mightedly trying to run vista and thats with plain jane vista business or vista enterprise. even the 1st dual-cores i had installed vista on stunk performance-wise.

i think if the os is going to cripple the corporate user they can't expect much support from them.

and i'm not too sure if releasing another windows is the best move. the next os is going to be eyed with even greater scrutiny and if it isn't the holy grail that it needs to be to resolve microsoft of this mess it could be an even bigger disaster.

worst part is we'll have to live with more of those stupid mac guy / pc guy commercials! yeah i think vista is a bit broken, but so is leopard!

[Irse]

I posted that the next Microsoft OS would be due to be released next year about a month ago in the Windows vista thread. No reason to go to Vista now unless the newer OS is worse.

[xer 21]

I posted that the next Microsoft OS would be due to be released next year about a month ago in the Windows vista thread. No reason to go to Vista now unless the newer OS is worse.

im only using it to get my Dx10 games going.

[Waryor]

anyone else getting tired of microsoft? how can they come out with a new OS when the one they have right now is severely broken.

well, xp was/is a great operating system.

so good in fact, that i see no need to upgrade yet to vista. in fact, i'll probably skip vista and wait for the next os.

but i agree with you that i am tired of microsoft.. for their blood sucking greed.

windows vista is way too expensive. i have 4 computers, it would cost me 800-1000 to upgrade all pcs. apple has a family license... something like 5 licenses for $250. if vista was that reasonable, i would have upgraded.

[Poopsnorkeler]

thats another good point. vista is plain expensive, even their oem products. another problem is i feel there are too many versions of vista out and that makes it confusing to the end user who is looking to upgrade.

i think the new problem now is microsoft stating that they'll release the new windows sometime next year. that means to me that they have no confidence in vista, and if they don't have confidence in it why should we? basically i feel they're in damage control mode and are giving up on vista.

so yeah, i think skipping vista and waiting for the new os is the right move and hopefully they don't lay another egg.

also, i wonder about directx10. if so many xp users could persuade microsoft to continue its support of xp, releasing sp3, continuing updates and extending its end of life, i wonder if the same could be done to drum up support of dx10 support for xp especially seeing that vista may not be the os of choice.

[TheWitness23]

well, xp was/is a great operating system.

so good in fact, that i see no need to upgrade yet to vista. in fact, i'll probably skip vista and wait for the next os.

but i agree with you that i am tired of microsoft.. for their blood sucking greed.

windows vista is way too expensive. i have 4 computers, it would cost me 800-1000 to upgrade all pcs. apple has a family license... something like 5 licenses for $250. if vista was that reasonable, i would have upgraded.

xp was great it did everything u want an OS. The eyecandy which is all the vista is; was an unneccessary upgrade. It should have been like a $50 or $100 upgrade or a free upgrade/beta for this next OS. The only thing vista has done is forced early adopters like myself to purchase an expensive computer that i dont really need because i dont game on it. i tired with microsoft both on the pc and xbox side only thing im happy with is the zune. next computer i'll buy will be a mac.

[couz808]

will vista turn out to be like windows ME?? Oh well windows 95/98 were good OS but XP is by far the best.

[Irse]

well, xp was/is a great operating system.

so good in fact, that i see no need to upgrade yet to vista. in fact, i'll probably skip vista and wait for the next os.

but i agree with you that i am tired of microsoft.. for their blood sucking greed.

windows vista is way too expensive. i have 4 computers, it would cost me 800-1000 to upgrade all pcs. apple has a family license... something like 5 licenses for $250. if vista was that reasonable, i would have upgraded.

xp was great it did everything u want an OS. The eyecandy which is all the vista is; was an unneccessary upgrade. It should have been like a $50 or $100 upgrade or a free upgrade/beta for this next OS. The only thing vista has done is forced early adopters like myself to purchase an expensive computer that i dont really need because i dont game on it. i tired with microsoft both on the pc and xbox side only thing im happy with is the zune. next computer i'll buy will be a mac.

Macs are proprietary so be prepared to pay big bucks for accessories that you could have gotten cheap for a Pha

[Kailuaboy]

Microsoft struggles with Vista's perceptions

May 1, 2008 12:00 PM PDT
Posted by Ina Fried


In the 15 months since Windows Vista had its mainstream launch, Microsoft says it's made progress on a number of key metrics: things like application compatibility, availability of drivers, performance, reliability, and battery life.

But there is one area where the company has struggled to gain ground: how Vista is perceived.

"There's certainly a perceptual gap there," Mike Nash, a Microsoft corporate vice president, said in an interview Thursday. He pointed to Microsoft research that shows that 86 percent of those actually using Vista would recommend it to a friend.

"The perception of Vista is a lot better for the people that have used Windows Vista than (for) the ones who haven't," Nash said. "At some level, a little seeing is believing."


Microsoft has been trying different ways to promote Windows Vista, including a special pink edition in Japan that combines Vista Home Premium with Windows Live OneCare.
(Credit: Amazon.com)

In terms of absolute sales, Vista has done well. More than 140 million computers have been sold with the operating system. But looking at that figure alone ignores the continued lackluster response that Vista gets from media and analysts, as well as the continued demand from businesses for the operating system's predecessor, Windows XP.

Microsoft is going on the PR offensive this week, with Nash trying to make the case to the press that Vista is getting a bad rap.

Top executives have conceded that compatibility was not where it needed to be at Vista's launch. But Nash says things have really changed in the ensuing months.

The company tries to track what the odds are that an XP user will find that all the hardware and software they use today will work with Vista.

Currently, it's above 90 percent, Nash said, excluding truly old devices like TWAIN scanners and devices that connect to outdated ports. He notes that 99 of the 100 top-selling applications work with Vista.

That number, though, can be deceiving. Although the latest versions of most programs work with Vista, many consumers and small businesses use older versions of programs. That adds to the cost of switching to Vista.

Nash resists the notion that the answer is providing another extension for computer makers to keep selling Windows XP. Microsoft already extended the deadline for large computer makers once, allowing sales through June 30, as opposed to ending them this past January. The software maker also granted a more narrow extension, allowing XP to be used on ultralow-cost computers through 2010.


Microsoft says XP plan "is the right plan"

Nash maintains that the users who really still need XP--businesses--have ways to get the operating system, while it's time for the rest of the ecosystem to move forward.

While some would argue that the fact that computer makers are "pre-downgrading" Vista machines to Windows XP should prompt Microsoft to grant another extension, Nash said the downgrade option is sufficient to address what Microsoft sees in the marketplace.

"We feel that our plan is the right plan," Nash said. Enterprises with volume license contracts can continue putting XP on machines, while small businesses can buy Vista Business or Ultimate, and have either their computer maker or service provider downgrade them to XP, until they are ready to move to Vista.

"I don't think it's a convoluted process," Nash said. "We want to make sure that customers can get what they need."

As for business adoption, Nash said things with Vista are fairly similar to what has been seen with past releases, as large enterprises take time to make sure that their applications are compatible.

"I don't think this is a different phenomenon than what we have seen in the past," Nash said, adding that it is the case that enterprises are more complex than they were when XP debuted in 2001.

Tom Norton, who works in Hewlett-Packard's consulting unit, said it remains the early days for businesses, when it comes to Vista.

Companies moving to Vista are typically doing so as part of a coordinated plan to reduce the annual cost of supporting their desktop PCs. Vista alone is often not enough to drive the cost savings, but businesses are finding that by combining Vista with better management tools, they can shave $80 or even $120 off the $300 or so they spend per year to support each PC.

At the same time, Norton said some challenges are limiting adoption, including the view that upgrading to Vista is more work, as well as the actual hardware costs that many businesses face in trying to move to the more demanding operating system.

With, XP, Norton said companies felt that they had less upfront work to do to make the transition and less anxiety about whether line-of-business applications would work smoothly.

"In some cases, we are finding that it is just an anxiety, as opposed to a reality," he said.


http://www.news.com/8301-13860_3-993355 ... ag=nl.e729

[Kailuaboy]

from: http://www.tweakguides.com/

Windows 7
28 May 2008

Amid great speculation, Microsoft has revealed more details about the next version of Windows, codenamed Windows 7. It has been confirmed for example that Windows 7 will not have a new kernel; instead it will be based on a refined version of the existing Vista kernel. Furthermore, Windows 7 is currently on schedule to be released in 2010 as planned.