Windows Vista Released To Manufacturing

Many readers wrote in to make sure we know that Microsoft execs have signed off on the code and Windows Vista has been and released to manufacturing. As APC put it, "It's good to go — or as good as it is going to be until the first round of patching begins." CNN has a good roundup of Vista's long development history.

leaked

[Turn-X Alphonse]

Leaked in 3 2 1..

Good to go?

[klogg_siebentag]

Woohoo, Vista is here! It must be 2003 already! Oh wait...

Norton Antivirus?

[bogaboga]

Have Symantec solved their issues with Microsoft? If not, be prepared for an even louder rant from Symantec. Adobe should also watch out. For me, I doubt I will touch this Vista thingie anytime soon. Windows 2K and Xandros are still doing OK for me.

CNN !=CNET

[SNR monkey]

Amazingly, the summary has an error, the link is to a CNET article, not a CNN article. It doesn't make much sense for CNN to be covering the RTM of an operating system.

New Features

[Chayak]

Remember it's not a bug, it's a feature...

Re:

[LiquidCoooled]

Yes there is an error, but why shouldn't CNN cover the completion of Vista [cnn.com]?

where is...

[cucucu]

the torrent of the .iso image?

Re:

[Prophetic_Truth]

orly?

CNN article [cnn.com]

Re:

[LiquidCoooled]

hmmmm try again:
Yes there is an error, but why shouldn't CNN cover the completion of Vista [cnn.com]

Slash just eaten my comment.
how bizarre, it exists but its not in the threadtree.

Re:

[Moby Cock]

CNN coverage [cnn.com]

Re:

[Prophetic_Truth]

orly?
CNN Article [cnn.com]

WTF??

[$RANDOMLUSER]

How did the guy who tags all the other articles "itsatrap" miss this one?

Is slash turning into Digg?

[LiquidCoooled]

Top level comments only?

Its just eaten 2 comments, well they exist in my history but not in the flow.
There is a gremlin in the database.

Re:

[Ritz_Just_Ritz]

"For me, I doubt I will touch this Vista thingie anytime soon."

I suspect a lot of people fall into this category. However, as soon as it launches, anyone buying a new PC is going to get it rammed down their throats whether they want it or not. If you turn off most/all of the eye candy, it's much like XP, but it comes with all that mess turned on by default.

Cheers,

Re:

[ncc74656]

If you turn off most/all of the eye candy, it's much like XP, but it comes with all that mess turned on by default.

The default eye "candy" in WinXP is obnoxious enough; I crank it down to something that looks more like Win2K. Will Vista do that?

50/50

[4solarisinfo]

Only here on slashdot could a new OS get POUNDED (appropriately so) and still have everyone asking for a copy...

Re:

[JPDeckers]

Given the fact that MSDN is now displaying a "MSDN Subscriber Downloads Service Outage Notification" for 7:00PM to 9:00PM Pacific time, Friday, November 10, 2006, I guess you'll just have to wait one more day

Re:

[SNR monkey]

Well, I guess CNN did cover [cnn.com] the RTM of Vista, my mistake. The article I found was a little lacking on details though.

Only missed deadline by a few days...

[ZachPruckowski]

Does anyone else find it funny that after all the delays to Vista, the RTM was delayed by like 2 weeks? I mean, they "launch" to major businesses at month's end, I'm glad they're getting the code out a bit before the launch.

Overheard

[rootnl]

It compiles! Ship it!!

Re:

[leonmergen]

Leaked in 3 2 1..

As far as I'm told, this is the same release as RC2, which has already been leaked.. :)

Last version of Windows

[CrazyTalk]

With each release Windows becomes more bloated and bug ridden, and it takes more time for a release. For the avearage consumer, computer OS's have reached maturity - there is really very little motivation for the average user to upgrade from XP to Vista (unlike going from DOS to Windows 3.1, or Windows 3.1 to Win 95 etc. which were huge changes). How much longer can this continue? Is anyone else convinced that this will be the last version of Windows as we know it?

Re:

[Apocalypse111]

Its not just a "guy" who tags these things as traps... its a highly trained team of crack evaluation-monkeys, and they don't act until they've all had a chance to read the article and discuss amongst themselves (an ugly process involving the much poo-flinging and the occasional sex act) whether or not it is, indeed, a trap.

In other words....

[Rixel]

"until the first round of patching begins."

AKA Vista 2008

Tagspam

[Fyz]

Someone is either seriously paranoid or is abusing his right to tag the summaries.

What's the point with those tags anyway? Are they mini-posts or what? They certainly can't be used for searching...

Re:

[fruey]

I never had any motivation to upgrade to XP until I discovered that hardware I had bought (with Win2K drivers) didn't actually work in Win2K. So I upgraded, and it worked.

Of course, it being a USB digital TV dongle (for DVB free transmissions), I was asking for trouble.

Vista won't run on anything I own right now, so I won't be rushing out to buy it / download it / whatever.

Time to milk the cash cow

[GomezAdams]

And by SP2 all the older Office apps will be crippled forcing an upgrade to the Vista Office suite. Just think of the billions of dollars taken out of the world wide economy that could have been spent on REAL business improvements.

Re:

[Weedlekin]

"Just think of the billions of dollars taken out of the world wide economy that could have been spent on REAL business improvements."

But would most likely have been spent on higher salaries for top executives, jets for top executives, apartments in the most expensive areas of the world's most expensive cities for top executives to use when they spend a day there once every three years, high-class hookers pushing wheel-barrows full of cocaine into said apartments during that day, share options for top execut

Is it Vista or Vista?

[AnXa]

I'm having good vista out of my window...

Yes, but

[wumpus188]

will Linus send them a cake?

Re:

[linuxci]

The real deadline was to beat Duke Nukem Forever, as they achieved that all the Vista team get huge bonuses. Now Microsoft really does have an OS fit for 2004 that needs 2007 standard hardware.

Anybody Else Tired of Hearing This:

[Luscious868]

From TFA:

Ultimately, we never could have achieved this milestone without you, the enthusiast community, who have played a key role in making this the highest-quality, most secure, most reliable and most usable version of Windows the world has ever seen.

Really? If each new release of Windows is marketed as the highest-quality, most secure, most reliable and most usable version of Windows then why has each new release of Windows had more security patches released than the previous version?

Just look at the amount of holes that have been plugged since XP SP2 was released. The heck with waiting for Vista SP1, I'm telling my clients to steer clear of Vista all together until Microsoft stops releasing patches to new vulnerabilities found in XP.

Re:

[Waffle Iron]

It doesn't make much sense for CNN to be covering the RTM of an operating system.

Nevertheless, it's currently linked [cnn.com] from their front page under the "technology" section.

Re:

[Rixel]

hmmm....

itsatrap

its a trap

Vista trap

Forgot the 'V'

Remember kids...

[Yuioup]

... every time you install Vista a penguin loses its wings.

Y

Re:

[mqduck]

... every time you install Vista a penguin loses its wings.

Oh teh noes! Then Tux/Tuxette won't be able to fly!! *sniff*

Re:

[klogg_siebentag]

aka December 2006

Re:

[Threni]

> I'm telling my clients to steer clear of Vista all together until Microsoft stops releasing patches
> to new vulnerabilities found in XP.

They have stopped releasing patches. It'll be just incremental updates from now on.

Re:

[ramunas]

you could try to find it here [thepiratebay.org]

Re:

[GreatDrok]

"Is anyone else convinced that this will be the last version of Windows as we know it?"

It certainly should be but I don't know if MS has the balls that it takes to drop the entire OS and start again. What I expect will happen is that they will keep retreading this tired old crossply of an OS until it finally blows. In our company we treat Windows as a second place OS now. All workers have a copy of Windows running under VMware on their workstations but it is really relegated to running MS Office and a fe

Re:

[Rixel]

Or....

wait for it

ReVisit8

not perfect, but let the linux marketing fanboys play a bit and I guarantee there's a meme in there

The tagging

[Rik Sweeney]

Seriously, the tagging is rapidly dissolving into childish rubbish (even by Slashdot's standards). I'm fed up of seeing every story getting tagged with "itsatrap". Can it be removed or can the lameness filter be extended to the tags?

Re:

[Lord_Slepnir]

I'm tagging this one "manybothansdiedtobringusthisinformation" instead.

Interesting counter point

[UnknowingFool]

The other day, MS was trying to convince business to install both Vista and Office 2007 at the same time saying it would be easier on companies. If you read this article, MS basically provides a counter point why companies should not:

Allchin said that, with Vista code done, businesses will "now start hard-core deployment testing" and make sure their applications work with the operating system. . . .
"Businesses need to do their testing. They need to be very comfortable," he said.

Given MS long history of releases and patches and patches to fix patches, only fools would not take on two simultaneous large scale MS deployments at once.

Re:

[SecretAsianMan]

Amazingly, the summary has an error, the link is to a CNET article, not a CNN article. It doesn't make much sense for CNN to be covering the RTM of an operating system.

Think again:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/ptech/11/08/windows.v ista.ap/index.html [cnn.com]

I also heard about it on NPR during the commute this morning.

I predict....

[Trelane]

Stunning profits as soon as it's pre-installed on millions of PCs worldwide.

Disappointed

[HikingStick]

I saw the news piece in a headline on CNN.com. It read "Vista is done." I was sorely disappointed when I read that "done" meant finished rather than "done for," "kaput," or "ain't gonna happen."

Well, it was a pleasant dream while it lasted...

wow!

[minus_273]

2003 is already here! This is going to rock! [youtube.com]. Funny how conan is still singing about the year 2000. Silly conan.

Re:

[Jerom]

[off topic]

Strange,

I'm just trying to reply

J.

Re:

[Jerom]

Sure enough it does not seem to work any more

I'm waiting for the final.

[Opportunist]

Or, in MS terms, "Service Pack 2".

XP? Y'all from the future?

[Rogerborg]

I'm a power user and developer, and I can't see a compelling reason to upgrade from Win2K Pro. Any suggestions?

Re:

[DerGeist]

Yes and no. The concept of an "operating system" is becoming increasingly outmoded as everything moves to internet applications. Probably we'll see the internet becoming more tightly integrated -- we'll all own "hubs" that connect to the 'net and suck our computing power from somewhere else. Most things will be web-based, making our dumb terminals cheap and just about everywhere. Appliances, too, will be connected allowing complete control over our homes remotely and within the home. (Cue the "self-aware" a

Re:

[halfnerd]

There, fixed it.

This will keep going forever

[Opportunist]

Not because we need the new features or the new gadgets, but because MS will not implement (and now won't allow to implement) drivers for new hardware, and they will stop patching bugs and security holes in old software. In short: They drop support, so you have to upgrade.

Look at NT4.0. Basically, unless you're fond of games, this is all you really needed. Unless you want to use USB sticks. Because there is no (official) USB support for NT4.

Win2k. Even if you're into games, this is all you would ever need.

Re:

[UncleRage]

Filters: One Line = None

Refresh, or if truly impatient (and on a slow connection), click one line link afterwards to expand.

Re:

[adolf]

No.

By saying that Windows is finished, you are also, by extension, saying that computers are finished.

And that's just not so. Hardware is still more difficult than it should be to configure, and software still crashes. I still don't have a flying car, and my games are not photorealistically rendered with real depth in the air in around me.

Really, now. Saying that Windows is finished is like saying that the Internet is complete. That cars are done. That there is nothing left to learn about medicine. Or

Where's a good history

[jbengt]

"CNN has a good roundup of Vista's long development history" links to CNET, and doesn't have a history of what became Vista.

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

RC1 avalible for download (legally)

[@madeus]

You joke, but you can actually download the ISO [microsoft.com] of RC1 freely from Microsoft (without having to jump through lots of hoops - assuming you have a Passport [MSN/Hotmail/X-Box Live] account already, or don't mind creating one). You need to give your details to get a licence key (which is immediately presented, and emailed to you for good measure), and you can use it on up to 10 PC's.

You must apply for a licence before November 30th to get a serial number though! If you do purchase it you can upgrade to the ful

See http://slashdot.org/tags

[cmdrbuzz]

What's the point with those tags anyway? Are they mini-posts or what? They certainly can't be used for searching...

Have a look at http://slashdot.org/tags [slashdot.org]

Not that I agree with the idiots that are spamming the tags...

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:

[IflyRC]

Good!

Re:

[pubjames]

Is anyone else convinced that this will be the last version of Windows as we know it?

If they have any sense they will realize that the idea of completely rewriting everything from the ground up each time is just dumb. Much more sensible to do it the way Apple does - a big incremental upgrade each year.

Of course, Microsoft's problem has been that they've had to completely rewrite because their code has been so crappy. Hopefully the vista code isn't crappy, and so in that sense you're probably right - this i

Re:

[Opportunist]

Being the most secure, most reliable and mose usable version of Windows is like being the fastest one legged marathon runner.

I mean, this is said like it's some kind of achivement. Of course Vista is more secure and stable, or at least it better be! MS be damned if it isn't! That's to be expected. I do also expect a 2006 BMW to be more secure, more reliable and more comfortable than a 1986 model.

Why should I not expect it from my OS?

Being the most secure... Windows is to be expected from the most current ve

Re:

[cybermage]

Seriously, the tagging is rapidly dissolving into childish rubbish (even by Slashdot's standards)

Well, I, for one, welcome our trap-detecting overloards!

I offer them these gifts: a beowulf cluster; Natalie Portman; and, of course, Hot Grits (tm).

Oh, and remember: In Soviet Russia, Cowboy Neal options you!

--
under-reported news with commentary [apathy.net]

Re:

[ledow]

Yes, but it was of course inevitable. Unless you want to mod and meta-mod tags themselves, we were always going to get this rubbish. You can't stop the tags any more than you can stop spam email coming through by blocking anything that contains the word "penis" in it. They'll just change the word, change the spelling, etc. and you'll still end up with spam. Tags never were a bright idea, it's the AUTHOR or EDITOR who should be tagging stories, not the general Slashdot populous.

Re:

[Opportunist]

So DRM seems to work.

No , there'll be more.

[Viol8]

But eventually the bloat will cause MS to release a "minimalist" OS in the same way they reduced some of the bloat on Office (alledgedly) and market this new found slimline look as a feature (in the same way cars slowly grow in size and suddenly they're too big and get shrunk down again - then start to grow again). Who knows what the long term futures holds , Windows could either predominate, be overtaken by Linux or OS/X or some other OS/hardware combo which doesn't even exist yet or there could be a compl

Re:

[cybermage]

Seriously, the tagging is rapidly dissolving into childish rubbish (even by Slashdot's standards)

Well, I, for one, welcome our trap-detecting overloards!

I offer them these gifts: a beowulf cluster; Natalie Portman; and, of course, Hot Grits (tm).

Oh, and remember: In Soviet Russia, Cowboy Neal options you!

--
under-reported news with commentary [apathy.net]

Re:

[Opportunist]

Preferably in the face?

What? Ain't like it's never happened before!

new activation technology

[eljasbo]

It seems that Microsoft is wanting to stop people buying a volume license key and installing it on unlimited computers. They have new Volume Activation 2.0 now [microsoft.com] that gives you a central activation server or a multiple activation key now. My new volume license key is now available at their page also. I just need the iso now...

Appropriate

[bsc_zap!]

"All that compiles is not gold."

I also predict...

[LordEd]

The profits they make on pre-installed Vista PCs will be balanced by the reduction of profits from pre-installed XP home machines.

Re:Last version of Windows

[Tim C]

it takes more time for a release

Really? What was the gap between Win95 and Win98? Between Win98 and Win2k? Between Win2k and XP? Let me give you a clue [microsoft.com].

I'm not debating that Vista has taken a metric shit-load of time to drag itself to RTM (we didn't use to call Longhorn Longwait for no reason), but your assertion that each release takes longer than the last is demonstrably false.

there is really very little motivation for the average user to upgrade from XP to Vista

There's very little motivation (beyond not wanting to feel that their computer is old and out of date) for the average user to upgrade from any given OS to any other. Most people do not upgrade their OS, they upgrade their PC and use whatever OS comes with it. They upgrade their PC as and when they feel that their current one is too old and slow for their needs; that varies from person to person. Even some gamers are still using Win 98 (see Valve's survey [steampowered.com], scroll down to/search for "Windows Version"), and gamers are the group most likely to upgrade their OS.

Is anyone else convinced that this will be the last version of Windows as we know it?

I'm not convinced that it will be, but I concede that it might be. Don't expect Windows to go anywhere any time soon though, it's far too popular (as much as we might hate it) and makes MS far too much money for that to happen.

Re:

[Fez]

Subscribers can use tags so they can more easily find stories they liked later on. Under your personal page there's a 'tags' link and the stories you have tagged appear there with the tag names.

The tags are displayed publicly, I suppose, so that others can see how people have classified the story. Sort of suggestions for your own tags.

I suspect that someone has quite a large tags page full of stories that are very trap-like...

Re:

[CaymanIslandCarpedie]

It doesn't have to make sense, but here is CNN's coverage of it. [cnn.com]

Re:

[morgan_greywolf]

How did the guy who tags all the other articles "itsatrap" miss this one?

Anyone who misses the fact that this one is a trap deserves what they get. ;)

Re:

[Renraku]

This release is a (thinly) veiled attempt at wedging DRM securely into the OS.

Look at the pretty graphics..look at the DX10..look at the networking stuff..

*exaggeration* Oh, you can't play music or DVDs anymore without paying us for a two hour licence. No refunds on the software, either. If you violate it, we'll format your hard drive for you. Immediately and without warning. And all connected drives.

Re:

[suffe]

My idea would be for something that lets everyone tag and then only uses the most popular tags (or a slightly more complex sorting routine). That still doesn't change the underlying problem though. People tag things for their own personal use (see flickr, del.icio.us etc) and not for other peoples use (see slashdot). I mean, honestly, how many times a week does the average user search old slashdot articles? But, but, but it's TAGGING. It has to be good, right?

Re:

[frogstar_robot]

Just look at the amount of holes that have been plugged since XP SP2 was released. The heck with waiting for Vista SP1, I'm telling my clients to steer clear of Vista all together until Microsoft stops releasing patches to new vulnerabilities found in XP.

That will only happen when MS decides to stop supporting XP. Not to defend MS, but any codebase as vast as that of Windows will inevitably have bugs and patches throughout it's lifecycle. It isn't bugs you need to worry about but how they are responde

Re:

[malsdavis]

Why the '+Funny' moderation?

This is a serious question. Us nerds should be trying out the OS which will be making all our lives a misery over the next few years.

I've seen countless Vista RC# and similar torrents. But as yet no (real) final release torrents.

Re:

[Keith Russell]

When I visited the front page for the first time today, the only visible tag was "itsnotafuckingtrap". It's gone now, but I got a good laugh out of it. Preemptive strikes are rarely this funny.

Re:

[advocate_one]

Which is why I tag anything to do with Vista as defectivebydesign... same with any DRM related topics

Re:

[Opportunist]

But you have to admit, the ad is true. It shows you things you never thought possible!

Re:

[Alizarin Erythrosin]

Funny, it was on CNN (televised) when I was walking in to work this morning. "This is the first major upgrade to the Windows operating system in 5 years" is what the anchor said, IIRC. Something also about a consumer release in January.

Vista Kernel was released long ago

[macz]

Since they abandoned the longhorn kernel and have merely modified the Windows 2003 Server kernel, Vista's core has been out in the wild for some time now. For all intents and purposes, Vista could be released as a service pack for 2003.

Re:

[Danny Rathjens]

DirectX 10 will be Vista-only. So most gamers will want to upgrade. :)

Klingon software?

[mcd7756]

I thought these two items appropriate: Klingon Programmer Honour Code [klingon.org]

• Klingons do not "release" software. Klingon software escapes, leaving a bloody trail of design engineers and quality assurance people in its path.
• Our users shall know fear and cower before our software! Ship it! Ship it and let them flee like the dogs they are!

*ROTFLMAO*

[msobkow]

After five years and many twists and turns, Microsoft on Wednesday said that development of Windows Vista is complete.

So I guess if you change the name from "Chicago", the project schedule starts anew, and the previous decade of effort doesn't count. :p :D :p

Re:

[nickos]

Yeah, I wish this had been released back when they originally said it would be. If they've improved the security as much as they say they have this should drive down the number of zombies that are responsible for spam and comment spam etc...

Nested comments

[nickos]

What the hell just happened to the "Reply to this" links - they were here a minute ago. Slashdot's best asset is the quality of the discussions, and that's only possible because of nested comments!

will Vista reduce the number of zombies?

[nickos]

I wish this had been released back when they originally said it would be. If they've improved the security as much as they say they have this should drive down the number of zombies that are responsible for spam and comment spam etc...

Re:

[Tim C]

I agree 100%. Yesterday, it seemed like every single story was tagged with most or all of "itsatrap", "notatrap", "fud", "notfud", etc. Today, it looked like someone had woken up and seen some sense, as most of them were gone. Unfortunately, it looks like they're slowly but surely coming back.

Oh, one thing I do find amusing though is that someone has tagged the story about the bar owner being arrested for copyright violation for performing tunes on his harmonica with "riaa", even though the entire incident

Which editions?

[ShyGuy91284]

Anyone have any idea what editions this involves? I'm not sure if the consumer one is delayed so they have more time to churn out discs for distribution, or if they needed more time to work on some of the features in the consumer editions.

No Compelling Reason

[HermMunster]

Keep in mind that for the most part and for the average person, there is no compelling reason to upgrade. The costs of the OS, even to upgrade, are very high (most people have XP and it does more than the average person needs).

The majority of the costs are going to be in the hardware upgrades. I know that gets vendors all excited. The average person just doesn't need to have someone who is foaming at the mouth about upgrades trying to sell those to people who just don't need them. Be fair to the customer

Re:

[ericfitz]

Complete brainless robotic anti-M$FT FUD, and if you had spent even 60 seconds checking your facts, you would have found that your statement is a lie.

Windows 2000 Pro: 250+ security bulletins
Windows XP Pro: 187 security bulletins
Windows Server 2003 Std: 124 security bulletins

Source: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security [microsoft.com]

So not only is your statement untrue, it's the opposite of reality.

Check your facts before you post.

Re:

[hritcu]

It's called Longhorn you ignorant!

Re:Anybody Else Tired of Hearing This:

[Michael Wardle]

What do you have to back up your claim of "more security patches released that the previous version"?

If true, perhaps this actually suggests they are paying more attention to security than before?

In any case, I'm glad we haven't seen anything on the scale of Blaster since XP SP2.

Well, since you asked...

[GrahamCox]

What's the point with those tags anyway? Are they mini-posts or what? They certainly can't be used for searching...

Indeed, they have no point. They are a typical example of something that sounds good on paper, in a meeting, etc, but actually doesn't work at all in practice, because the human element wasn't factored in. Sounds like Vista, actually! Since every tag is the same, it conveys no signal, just noise. So here's the noise you have to subtract to make it even slightly useful:

yes, no, maybe, f