Next-generation Windows arrives in beta

Last week's beta release of Microsoft's long-delayed Windows Vista operating system, formerly called Longhorn, has persuaded few experts that firms will rush to upgrade when the full release arrives next year.

The Vista beta includes the first sight of Internet Explorer 7, as well as features to beef up security, search capabilities and manageability.

However, it requires a new set of device drivers, raising the risk of hardware incompatibility. In tests we could not install the beta on a system with an Nvidia graphics adapter, but were able to install it on an older PC.

Neil Macehiter of analyst Macehiter Ward-Dutton said tools in Vista would make life easier for IT managers. These include user account protection, the Indigo communications framework, and a new Network Access Protection system. “Microsoft is focusing on easing the admin process,” Macehiter said. “They want to win the TCO [total cost of ownership] argument with Linux.”

But some said delays to Vista, originally slated for release in 2003, had eroded the impact of new features.

Dale Vile of analyst Quocirca said features such as better desktop searching and tools to reduce information overload would have had more impact two years ago. “The value predicted [for Vista] has diminished [as] firms have moved towards other content management and search systems,” he said.

Peter McCartney of services provider Computacenter said his firm had approached customers to deploy Vista betas under Microsoft’s Technology Adopters Programme, but found many who had deployed XP were unconvinced.

“XP is a very good operating system and firms are going to sweat that asset for as long as they can,” he said. McCartney predicted that many firms would not look at Vista until 2008.

However, Microsoft’s David Weeks insisted Vista would prove a compelling upgrade, particularly when applications arrive to exploit its visual and information management capabilities.

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