Vista launch date approaches

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Microsoft has announced the launch dates for Office 2007 and the new Vista operating system.

On November 30 the two new products will be released to business clients, mainly those who have bulk licensing arrangements with Microsoft.

Vista and Office 2007 will not appear in stores until the official launch date of 30 January, a date that will no doubt be preceded by a major Microsoft marketing campaign. Pre-release versions of Office 2007 and Vista have been available from the Microsoft web site for several weeks and can still be downloaded or ordered directly from Microsoft.

There will be five versions of Vista, four of which will be widely available.

  • Home Basic: Home Basic is intended for users with basic computing requirements or those with hardware limitations. It will be suitable for burning CDs, word processing, email and Internet usage and will have basic workgroup-based networking functionality. It will not have the multimedia capabilities of Home Premium, but will have improved search capabilities and Parental controls.

  • Home Premium: Home Premium equates to the current Windows XP Media Center Edition. It includes all the features of Home Basic together with the new Aero interface, the full suite of multimedia tools and Tablet PC compatibility. It is intended for home and small office users who:

  • have more advanced computing requirements;
  • want to synchronise their desktop and portable PCs: and
  • wish to use their PC as an integrated entertainment centre to play music, manage photo collections and watch TV and DVDs.

  • Home Premium will have basic workgroup-based network functionality. It will not be suitable for domain- or Active Directory-based networks.

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  • Business: The Business version will support domain and Active Directory based networks. It will include the Aero graphical effects but will not have the media centre functionality. It will include improved searching tools, better document management and Tablet PC technology to assist with synchronising desktop and laptop PCs.

  • Enterprise: Enterprise is intended for large corporations and others that have complex IT infrastructures. It will only be available to organisations that have bulk licensing arrangements with Microsoft. It will include all the functionality of the Business edition plus:
  • Windows BitLocker™ Drive Encryption to help protect information on a hard drive if a laptop is lost;
  • Virtual PC Express, which will allow for up to four additional instances of Windows or another operating system to be installed in virtual machines. This will be useful for organisations that have legacy applications that require earlier versions of Windows.

  • A subsystem for UNIX-based applications, allowing UNIX and Linux applications to run on a Vista PC. Primarily intended for system administrators in a multi-platform environment.

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  • Ultimate: Ultimate is just that. It includes all there is to have in Vista, but with the biggest price sticker.
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    Upgrade Paths

    Upgrading involves updating to a new version of Windows while maintaining the personal files, preferences and settings from the old version.

    Not all users of prior versions of windows will be able to upgrade to Vista and maintain their personal settings. Users of Windows 95, 98 and 2000 will have to backup their files and settings, do a complete install of Vista and then reload their files and settings.
    Even users of Windows XP have some restrictions on how they can upgrade to Vista. Essentially it will be possible to upgrade to an equivalent or better level only.

  • Windows XP Professional can upgrade to Vista Business or Ultimate.
  • Windows XP Home can upgrade to Home Basic, Home Premium, Business or Ultimate.
  • Windows XP Media Centre can upgrade to Home Premium or Ultimate.
  • Windows XP Tablet PC can upgrade to Business or Ultimate.
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    Summary

    Windows Vista and Office 2007 will be the biggest change for Microsoft’s clients since Windows 95 was released. Vista promises improved security, file management and graphical effects but will involve a degree of re-learning and has increased hardware requirements. Most of the Office 2007 applications have acquired new user interfaces which, while ultimately more intuitive, are radically different to any of their predecessors.

    The next 12 to 18 months promise to be very interesting.

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