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Microsoft: Vista service pack coming in '08
August 29, 2007 -
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November 13, 2006 -
Microsoft: Fast start for Vista in businesses
September 29, 2006 - Related Blogs
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Vista SP1: Small things come in big packages
August 29, 2007 -
Microsoft quietly patches Windows Vista
August 8, 2007
Microsoft initially downplayed the importance of service packs in an era where patches are easily available online. Also, the company urged businesses not to wait for a service pack to start testing and rolling out Vista.
Nonetheless, in announcing its plans to release Service Pack 1 early next year, Microsoft is noting that the milestone remains an important signal for some businesses that the operating system has reached a level of maturity.
Many analysts have consistently advised companies to hold off on Vista deployments until the first service pack's arrival.
"There's always a portion of the market that has that M.O. (modus operandi)," said Shanen Boettcher, a general manager in the Windows unit.
By talking about SP1, Microsoft hopes to sway some businesses that have yet to move forward in any fashion to start at least testing the OS.
"I would expect that we will see a little bit of an increase," Boettcher said.
Microsoft has said it expects businesses to move to Vista at twice the rate that they did with XP over its first 12 months. However, Al Gillen, an analyst at IDC, said that businesses seem to be moving at generally the same pace as with previous releases. "From what we can see, the adoption curve is running much like past releases," he said.
In part, that's because so much goes into upgrading the OS, Gillen said. Companies have to test it against their custom and packaged software, do security reviews, make sure they have enough machines capable of running the new operating system, and then budget for the hardware, software training and support costs.
"Customers drag their feet," Gillen said.
A few exceptions
While most businesses have yet to start deploying Vista in significant numbers, Microsoft is touting a few large companies that have started putting the operating system onto a sizable number of desktops. Infosys, for example, has 4,000 PCs running Vista now, with plans for 20,000 by year's end. Citigroup, Charter Communications and Continental Airlines all have more than 2,000 machines on Vista and plan to have 10,000 machines running the operating system by year's end.
"Yeah, there are some early adopters and Microsoft always parades them forward," Gillen said. "They are really the exception and not the norm."
Boettcher said that the adoption rate so far among businesses "is about how we expected it to be."
As for the company's goal of doubling adoption, he said, "It's still early to declare victory...All the signs are we are doing well versus our goal."
Gillen said that the timing of the service pack probably hasn't made a huge impact on when businesses move to Vista.
"If they had brought SP1 out in the first three to six months after the release, I don't think that would have dramatically changed the adoption," he said.
What's unclear is whether Service Pack 1 will help to dispel the notion that the operating system still has too many glitches and hitches to justify the effort of migration. Even some who were initially bullish on the OS, have lately criticized its trouble spots.
Microsoft says it now has better driver support and compatibility with existing software than it did at Vista's launch, which could help businesses justify making the move.
The company openly admits that the stars didn't align for a big-bang Vista launch--reminiscent of Windows 95's debut--that it clearly hoped for. "Frankly, the world wasn't 100 percent ready for Windows Vista," Corporate Vice President Mike Sievert said in an interview at Microsoft's recent partner conference in Denver. "That has changed in a very material way in the past six months."
Gillen said it was good to see Microsoft also commit to a timetable for Windows XP Service Pack 3, which is due out in the first half of next year. "It's a nice indication that they are not trying to subtly coerce customers to move forward onto Windows Vista."
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Do you guys never tire of debating the same thing over and over again, I've been reading this site for over two years now and 90% of OS related stories end up in a OS X vs Windows vs Linux fight one way or another!
Vista started the conversation about operating systems and my boss, who would still be running Win 98 if he could is asking me about this Ubuntu thing and what is this Leopard thing the guy in the blue jeans keeps talking about. Suddenly mainstream has figured out that even phones have OS in them. So please as much as you may hate it Vista has to be successful in telling the OS story because the game has changed and they have a fight on their hand.
I have been using Vista since Beta2, and although it had some problems in the beginning, Microsoft fixed them, and I had no problems using it at home. Try getting that support with Linux, you will face problems beyond your worst nightmares. People don't realize that most problems are not within Vista but 3rd party apps and drivers, and home routers. Just like what happened in the past, SP1 will fix all the remaining glitches.
I guess all the third party games don't play well because they are all made wrong.......all of them!
You don't know crap.
Posted on: August 30, 2007, 6:36 AM PDT
Story: Will update drive Vista use?
Linux/Ubuntu is rock solid. The only problem I see with linux is exactly that, 3rd party drivers. If we had those there will be no reason to use MS. That is the only advantage they have. When a manufacturer releases drivers for a printer or a wireless card , it is usually only windows compatible. Then some programmer has to do some reverse engineering to make it work on Linux. Please dont be so stupid as to compare those two. I will bet Linux 100/1 against Windows anyday.
Day to day work will be really easy if manufacturer just release linux drivers.
It is funny that you talk about windows that way. I just stay until 2am because I had a Windows Metldown. You know , when everything stop working because you did not reintall the OS once a year??
I hate windows.
Knock Knock Jason, you don't actually own Vista.
SP1 will fix all the remaining glitches.
SP2 will fix all the remaining glitches.
SP3 will fix all the remaining glitches.
SP4 will fix all the remaining glitches.
Oh yeah and I use XP, I'm planning on doing a Multiboot Configuration with XP and Ubuntu {or something or other} and begin migrating to linux {can't be more difficult then using "the ribbon"}.
Compiz Fusion is super cool!
worst nightmares? what: bad third party wireless support and and bad third party graphics drivers?
oh and no games {but you shouldn't be playing games at the office anyways}
People don't realize that most problems are not within Linux but 3rd party apps and drivers, and home routers.
Vista is pretty, but it sucks.
Linux may have no support, but MS support has not been any better than what I'd have with Linux.
Maybe SP2 but I think for a great deal or corporations they are going to stick with XP and skip Vista to see what their Software Assurance will get them for a new OS in Microsoft's promised 3 year interval.
Ok that was a joke, Microsoft can't release an OS in three years as promised under Software Assurance unless it is something like Vista ME.
Software Assurance has become the biggest joke in the industry.
BOTTOM LINE: SKIP VISTA
Day to day work will be really easy if manufacturer just release linux drivers.
It is funny that you talk about windows that way. I just stay until 2am because I had a Windows Metldown. You know , when everything stop working because you did not reintall the OS once a year??
I hate windows.
Most businesses I've been in contact with are NOT in any hurry to switch to vista. They currently run 2000 or XP and see no reason what so ever to switch to an os that offers nothing for them but bling.
and try to keep up..
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7223440296638629363
". . . is scheduled to discontinue support of its Campus Edition version in December 2006 leaving only the Vista edition of the course management system available and supported." (At that point, NMSU estimates that its annual licensing and running charges will rise from $40,000 to, in the first year of Vista operation, $650,800 US.) The estimated first year cost for a perpetual Vista license at New Mexico State University is $290,400. Additional costs would include an Oracle license, system hardware, and setup time. The annual maintenance cost of the perpetual license will be approximately $48,400. Estimated total first year costs associated with the implementation of a WebCT Vista course management system at NMSU is $602,400." This is not chump change for small institutions. No subtle coercion indeed - some people might call it simple extortion.
Acer will buy them, at a 50% premium for 1.90 a share when that time comes. That is if HP doesn't do it first.
So is it a Vista Issue or an Nvidia issue?
Now I did have trouble hooking up my 8 year old scanner to Vista. I don't use it often I bought it in 1999. Then I was thinking, what is the likely hood that when XP came out that I could take my 8 year scanner and make it work under XP? Eventualy maybe, but for the most part no.
SO there I was with my $490 scanner from 1999 that would not work. So I went online found a better scanner brand new for $90.
The desision to not support vista by some of these companies on there old hard ware is not a "MS" decision, but a direct marketing decision by 3rd party vendors who want you to buy new.
Basically I'm skipping Vista altogether. All of my Windows needs are met by VMware Fusion on OS X.
If/when Microsoft learns from ME-Second Edition (aka Vista), I'll adopt it's successor. I hope they get it right by then.
1) Microsoft can't release a new OS that is both secure and bug free. They try to improve security and hackers beat them. They make claims about bug free and there are still issues.
2)New Microsoft O/S are always designed with forcing consumers into buying new equipment every 5 or so years in order to have the latest and greatest O/S. Many consumers fall for this and spend a few thousand dollars every 5 or so years just to keep up. I call these consumers Microsheep.
3)Drivers. Vista has been out for about 15% of its life cycle, and still is not compatible with lots of common system add on's. Is this Microsoft's way of specifying what equipment customers can buy for their computers, or is it simply that Microsoft wants to dictate the market to manufacturers.
4)WGA. Microsoft wants me to repeatedly prove that I am running a legitimate copy of Vista.
Now, I don't mind an initial registration, but being accused of theft (no matter how Microsoft prefers to massage WGA's function) after plunking down a thousand or so dollars for a new machine is not an appealing market strategy.
Microsoft's BIG Brother program requires re verification every time I change, replace, or upgradev hardware. Why does Microsoft care or even need to know if I upgrade to a new DVD drive, change a hard drive etc?
We have all read about the outage this past weekend that impacted what Microsoft called 'a small number of users' and the press claims somewhere in the area of 12,000 users. If you were one of those 12,000, it was no small number to you, but it is a clear indictaion of your value to Microsoft as a customer.
In the future, what to stop Microsoft from using an end of life cycle that includes turning off these same servers and render every Vista OS obsolete?
Enough about Vista, and enough about WGA, it will be the program that drives many to make the jump conversion from Microsoft to Apple or Linux systems as I have decided to do.
When I need to upgrade, it will be with a company that wants and values me as a customer, not one that takes my money and then accuses me of theft.
1. Piracy: i.e. 99% of all software in china is pirated and the china government doesn't care.
2. Microsoft just wanted to P1$$ me off.
I can guess it's because of piracy. I don't like the DRM/activation/WGA, but I know why it's there. Can you suggest another way to stop the piracy?
First is the current lack of working drivers for Vista, and the apparent lack of concern on the part of Microsoft.
Second, they might be delaying a Media Center for Vista so that they have something 'new' to offer in a few years when they release the next version of windows.
Third, by eliminating a Media Center for this release, they are biding their time to see which next generation DVD format wins the format war...apparently they have no direction on this and are waiting for the market to determine which format comes out on top.
- Windows Vista
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by bigpain2007
August 30, 2007 10:27 AM PDT
- Windows Vista is openly trying to expand, it looks a hell of a lot smoother than it used to. I really like the preview of their dream scene, which allows you to make a 30 second loop of a movie and put it on your desktop, I must say, that's what won me over.
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- The cover doesn't make the package
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by Meerkat71
August 30, 2007 12:25 PM PDT
- Crap dipped in chocolate is still essentially crap, chocolate just make it easier to swallow. ;)
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