Vista: open for Corporates
"This is the biggest launch in our company's history.
That's for sure," Chief Executive Steve Ballmer
of Microsoft said at the launching presentation in New
York.
Microsoft, one of the world's richest
companies, finally released most eagerly awaited Windows
Vista, an operating system that falls in the Windows
family of operating systems. The operating system released
right now, only to the business customers and corporates.
It is the first major upgrade available for Windows
family in five years of delay. This upgrade released
after release of Windows XP, the desktop operating system.
Windows Vista vs Windows XP
Microsoft predicts that, the operating system will
be the best one in features and also stronger in security
and will be enjoyed by around 90 percent of PC population.
Microsoft also hopes that, the operating system will
reach to around 200 million people across the world
by the end of 2007.
As said above, Windows Vista, a major upgrade which
is certainly going to replace Windows XP, has got a
rich collection of features. The major development is
the screen design, i.e. desktop design. If one looks
at the most significant 3D aero and translucent windows
features, then he may come to conclusion that, computers
will no longer run Windows XP and its predecessors.
It has improved a lot in terms of other features too
including search system, reliability and security.
In aero, one can get a window displayed to look like
3D, from different angles and different ways. The different
program windows can be stacked or staggered. To get
this feature to work, the system must have graphics
card of DirectX 9 capability and graphics memory of
128 MB. Without this feature, one cannot differentiate
Windows Vista from Windows XP now.
The operating system release was delayed due to some
problems at the development stages. As said above, if
one tries to compare the OS with Windows XP, Windows
Vista will emerge as a clear winner. But, the popularity
among PC users faces an acid test, especially when it
comes to pricing. Vista will be stricter than its predecessors,
in terms of Anti-piracy. The product must be activated
within some days of installation. Otherwise, the product
features will get disabled meaning that one cannot enjoy
the disabled features till the product is activated.
During activation process, the product gets tested for
genuineness. If the installed product is not genuine,
the product will not get activated. This process will
force the user to legally purchase and install the software.
There will be different product editions, Windows Vista
will offer. The prices of editions differ depending
on the number of feature they offer. Editions available
for lower pricing will not include some of the features,
even the aero feature. As said above, without the aero
feature, Windows Vista may look similar to Windows XP
to the ordinary audience, PC users. The users may come
to the conclusion that, the windows vista does not have
any new features. Microsoft should see aspects too,
before releasing the new editions. Microsoft may loose
some of the users due to this issue. They may switch
over to other operating systems like Linux etc, which
are free operating systems.
Vista with additional features
Apart from Aero, translucent windows, improved search
system, security measures, windows vista includes upgrade
to Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player and introduces
several new features which include the side bar etc.
Internet Explorer 7.0 provides secured navigation through
web pages. It includes anti-Phishing system which warns
when one visits fake site, without their knowledge.
Tabbed browsing is another feature of Internet Explorer
7.0. The media player in Windows Vista will be of version
11. One can enjoy new features available in the music
library, such thumbnail and stacking views. Also, there
will be quicker search in the Media Player 11.
Encryption feature in Vista will give better security
There is a new encryption feature, which enable people
to stay secure, even if they loose their laptop due
to theft. All the data or information in the entire
disk will be kept in the encrypted form. The user who
logs on to the system by providing correct information
will be allowed to see the correct data.
New Vista & New Office 2007
Along with Windows Vista, Microsoft also launched Office
2007 suite and exchange server to its business customers.
This may be a plus point for Windows Vista buyers. However,
one needs to see how it works for Microsoft. Again,
the Anti-Piracy program of the company will ensure that
the product installed will be legal one. This will be
major issue for Microsoft in the years to come, as the
company may loose some of the admirers and users. But,
any way, well done and Good Luck, Mr. Gates and Microsoft! |
