Microsoft To Release A New OS In 3 Years?

I just stumbled on this article. If this is old news to some of you I apologize in advanced.

Is Microsoft bailing already on Vista? I've remembered since Windows 95 each release was met with anticipation and the product was pretty much accepted from computer users. Vista in my opinion is different in that there has been resistance from the masses including the computer makers who have started to sell Windows XP for those who don't want anything to do with Vista.

What are your thoughts?

Now for the article:

http://news.com.com/2100-1016_3-6197943.html

Next version of Windows: Call it 7

Microsoft is planning to ship its next major version of Windows--known internally as version "7"--within roughly three years, CNET News.com has learned.

The company discussed Windows 7 on Thursday at a conference for its field sales force in Orlando, Fla., according to sources close to the company.

While the company provided few details, Windows 7, the next client version of the operating system, will be among the steps taken by Microsoft to establish a more predictable release schedule, according to sources. The company plans a more "iterative" process of information disclosure to business customers and partners, sources said.

Windows Vista, the oft-delayed most recent release of Windows, shipped to businesses in November and to consumers in January after more than five years of development. Vista's gestation period was marked by shifting product details as internal priorities changed and problems arose with development.

Like Vista, Windows 7 will ship in consumer and business versions, and in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. The company also confirmed that it is considering a subscription model to complement Windows, but did not provide specifics or a time frame.

Windows 7 was previously known by the code name Vienna. A Microsoft representative confirmed that Windows 7 is the internal code name for the next client release of Windows. The details were released "as part of our ongoing outreach to enterprise customers and partners, Microsoft has begun sharing plans for how they will continue to deliver value to businesses in the future…Software Assurance customers in particular," a representative said in a statement via e-mail.

"Microsoft is scoping Windows 7 development to a three-year time frame, and then the specific release date will ultimately be determined by meeting the quality bar," according to the representative.
Tell us what you think about this story

 

Sounds about right. Microsoft is planning to ship it in 3 years which means it will ship in about 5-6 years.

Vista should get its first service pack in 2008 and then maybe service pack 2 in 2010. And then Windows 7 in 2012.

 

Didn't MS state not too long ago that Vista will be the last 32bit OS?

 

Release a OS and then start to convince us it is already outdated! Sounds like MS, money,money, money thanks Bill! I am going to try and skip Vista altogether! Glad Bill & Tina can give my money away in Africa! Good job!

 

I say for certain but I do remember reading that Vista would be the last of it's kind. That MS was going to a subscription based OS where they would offer the core and you purchased the what you wanted in the future. I like that approach instead of the Swiss Army Knife approach. OS' tend to get bloated when they try to become everything to everyone even if you don't need it.

I prefer going with the lean mean stripped down version. Wasn't this the approach with DOS way back in the 80's?

 

^ It isn't in MS's nature to offer stripped-down products - merely full-sized products with reduced functionality. Take Vista, for example. Every main version of the OS is approximately the same size upon installation. However, some versions are simply gutted, function-wise, in order to boost sales in the "professional" versions of the OS. Rest assured that if they venture into a subscription-based service, it'll be a new OS, same as the old OS, wherein you'll still receive a bloated piece of software, except you'll have to purchase various keys to unlock different parts of the architecture.

 

i havent read that anywhere official but according to Paul Thurrot (a guy who writes alot about microsoft products) he estimates that the next microsoft OS will only be 64bit. also there is an article on wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7
and in that article it says that their aming for a 2010 release

 

Yes, according to Paul's article on Windows "7" , he stated that it will most certainly ship in 64bit according to Microsoft's transition plans. He has since updated it.

7 sounds less exciting than XP or Vista. Of course, 3 years is a bit too optimistic given the 3 years of Longhorn development collapsed. And hopefully, we won't see any empty promises this time round.

 

bah,

I'm keeping 'windows' only because it would be suicidal to use a different OS during university studies

As soon as i'm done with Uni, screw windows, i'm going with Linux, even if I have never used it. I have come to trust more and more the open source products we now have available

 

I think its Windows 7 is coming out in 7 years

 

lol agreed

 

yes microsoft anounced this before code named vienna

 

And car companies! Its like they release a new version of their product -every year-

Last year, for example, Toyota releases all "2007" versions of all their car lines. And this year, they release "2008" versions of all their car lines.

When will it stop! Why cant things stay the saaaaaame foreeeeevvverrrrrr.

[end sarcasm mode]

Seriously. Why do some people bag on microsoft for continually developing and updating and improving. So many people start to soound like old grannies wishing they never replaced rotary phones or metal ice cube trays.

 

This is what I suspected as well. It seems odd that they would release a 32 bit OS three years down the road, when 64 bit hardware began shipping for notebooks since basically Core Duo in 2006.

 

Most of the older hardware are still 32bit, as the same goes with the software. If the next windows version is 64bit only, those with 32bit hardware will not be able to upgrade from the then outdated XP or crap Vista.