Windows Vista and Office 2007 are being released today. Windows Vista is the name of the latest release of Microsoft Windows, a line of graphical operating systems used on personal computers, including home and business desktops, notebook computers, and media centers. Prior to its announcement on July 22, 2005, Vista was known byits codename Longhorn. On November 8, 2006, Windows Vista development was completed and is now in the release to manufacturing stage; Microsoft has stated that the scheduled release dates are currently November 30, 2006 for volume license customers and worldwide availability on January 30, 2007. Windows Vista English Edition was released to MSDN subscribers on November 16, 2006. These release dates come more than five years after the release of Windows XP, Microsoft's current consumer and business operating system, making it the longest time span between major releases of Windows.
Only early adopters will upgrade to Vista straight away - for example passionate gamers who want to play flashy games that make use of Microsoft's new Vista-only DirectX 10 standard.
Most consumers will adopt Vista gradually, as they replace their old computers. From 30 January 2007 nearly every new Windows computer on every shelf will come either preloaded with Vista, or the promise of a free upgrade to the new operating system.
Traditionally this so-called OEM business (where the operating system is pre-installed on the computer) accounts for about 80% of Microsoft's Windows revenues.
And as Vista is much better than Microsoft's current offering, there is little reason to assume that customers will defect en masse to rivals like Apple or Linux. After all, they failed to do so when Windows XP was riddled with security holes.
It's not much different for large companies, who tend to be firmly wedded in the Microsoft universe.
Most corporate IT managers plan their computer replacement cycles around Windows upgrades.
It helps that Vista can adapt to the hardware capabilities of the computer it runs on.
Companies will take about 18 months to sort out compatibility problems. In 2008 Microsoft is hoping to see massive numbers of upgrades.
The office software will follow a similar pattern, or be even more successful as it can run on both Windows Vista and XP.
Only early adopters will upgrade to Vista straight away - for example passionate gamers who want to play flashy games that make use of Microsoft's new Vista-only DirectX 10 standard.
Most consumers will adopt Vista gradually, as they replace their old computers. From 30 January 2007 nearly every new Windows computer on every shelf will come either preloaded with Vista, or the promise of a free upgrade to the new operating system.
Traditionally this so-called OEM business (where the operating system is pre-installed on the computer) accounts for about 80% of Microsoft's Windows revenues.
And as Vista is much better than Microsoft's current offering, there is little reason to assume that customers will defect en masse to rivals like Apple or Linux. After all, they failed to do so when Windows XP was riddled with security holes.
It's not much different for large companies, who tend to be firmly wedded in the Microsoft universe.
Most corporate IT managers plan their computer replacement cycles around Windows upgrades.
It helps that Vista can adapt to the hardware capabilities of the computer it runs on.
Companies will take about 18 months to sort out compatibility problems. In 2008 Microsoft is hoping to see massive numbers of upgrades.
The office software will follow a similar pattern, or be even more successful as it can run on both Windows Vista and XP.
Comments