Delay, Derailed, or Deliberate?
Windows Vista is an important product for Microsoft. The OS slides in new security features, a new GUI, and networking. The project is a big undertaking and sometimes there are opportunities to rework the code. After considerable feedback, Microsoft is reacting to the information by changing timelines for beta two. This is good news. Paul Thurrott takes a different view with
his latest post about a change in plans.
"A Microsoft representative told me that the company remains on track for shipping Windows Vista in the second half of 2006. "We are on schedule and committed to shipping on time and ensuring a high-quality product," I was told. "Microsoft sets internal targets for the development team around milestones, but these are not commitments to specific dates. We do not comment on these internal milestones and we have not announced a specific timeframe for our next major Windows Vista milestone. "
"That said, customers have told us repeatedly they prefer more frequent code drops through our Community Technology Preview (CTP) program [which] provides a great avenue for real time feedback and testing from our customers--feedback we formerly received only through the beta process. You should expect Microsoft to continue their focus to deliver CTPs in the coming months given how successful this program has been.""