Microsoft will require hardware makers to test their device drivers on Windows 7 to receive certification for Windows Vista, according to documents posted on the company’s site. In a long explanation (download PDF)of the Windows Logo Program, Microsoft spelled out the new requirement. “Beginning with the release of the first beta of the next operating system, all Windows Vista client and Windows Server 2008 submissions must include a complete [set of] test logs for the new beta OS,” the company said in the document.
In spite of all the bad press Windows Vista has had to endure, Microsoft chief operating officer Kevin Turner stands firm on his belief that the operating system is surging ahead and doing better than its predecessor. Prior to his current stint as head of operations at Redmond, 42-year-old Turner spent 19 years in retail chain Wal-Mart, where he held various senior positions including chief information officer and chief executive of Wal-Mart subsidiary Sam’s Warehouse.
In case you hadn’t noticed, the massive weight of interest has now almost completely shifted from Microsoft Windows Vista to the largely vaporware Windows 7. This is testament to how royally screwed up Microsoft’s Vista go-to-market plan has become. On the one hand, it insists that Vista is a huge success, with tons of sold licenses and happy customers. On the other, the company recently offered Windows XP Home as a low-cost PC OS. Clearly, there’s a disconnect. Now, even more damaging to Vista, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer just used an important tech conference to preview major innovations on Windows 7.
Lots and lots of material clogging up the internet pipes today about Windows 7. It follows the first public demo of the technology yesterday at the All Things Digital conference in San Diego. You can read Maggie Shiels’ piece here. Putting aside issues about the touch technology itself for one moment, the biggest question about this public demo of Windows 7 is: what harm will its promise do to sales of Vista? I just received an interesting note about Windows 7 from the Microsoft PR team. In it, it states: “Microsoft absolutely recommends customers deploy Windows Vista today.”



Recent Comments