Vista SP1: Small things come in big packages
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As for why the service pack is so huge in the first place, Microsoft says several technical decisions come into play.
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Will Microsoft feel the heat from a tiny monster?
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Windows Vista boasts no earth-shattering improvements for mobile users but it does simplify matters by consolidating a lot of functions into a few well-designed interface elements.
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With a major launch event next month serving as an unmovable anchor for Microsoft at this point, the ancillary launches for Vista Service Pack 1 and XP SP3 would probably raise suspicion if they were delayed.
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Microsoft can't stop crowing about new Vista security features. But the system still has holes. Here's how to plug them.
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It&#39;s a market that could use a shake-up. Backup and recovery still can be too expensive and complex for many small and midsize companies that rely on Windows, but the software is vital to their businesses.
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The Microsoft operating system is improved by SP1, but Windows Vista still is missing some features we'd like to see.
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An IT professional discovers a way of getting a full version of Vista for the cost of a simple upgrade.
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Released to manufacturing Microsoft this morning released Service Pack 1 for Vista and Windows Server 2008 to manufacturers.â¦
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Microsoft is including a set of nonsecurity updates that prepare customers to install Windows Vista Service Pack 1 as part of its monthly &quot;Patch Tuesday&quot; security fixes.Two of three prerequisite updates needed to install SP1 are hitting Microsoft&#39;s Windows Update for the first time Tuesday along with the usual batch of security updates it releases every month. The technologies -- called KB937287 and KB938371 -- are marked &quot;Important&quot; and will install automatically if a Windows user has Windows Update set to the recommended configuration, according to a post on the Windows Vista team blog.KB937287 is an update to Vista&#39;s servicing stack, and KB938371 is a multicomponent update, according to the blog post attributed to Nick White, a product manager on the Vista team. Both must be installed before a machine can successfully be updated to Windows Vista SP1.The third prerequisite to installing SP1, KB935509, also is being released through Windows Update Tuesday. However, that technology is an update of a previously released technology, not a brand new release.Microsoft plans to release Vista SP1&#160;in its first five languages -- English, French, Spanish, German, and Japanese -- to the Windows Update and the download center on Microsoft&#39;s Web site in mid-March. However, some computers may not work with the update right away because of device-driver incompatibilities; Microsoft is hoping to resolve those by mid-March, which is why it is putting off the release until then even though the final code for SP1 is available now.Following its first release, Microsoft in mid-April plans to make SP1 available in the first five languages to anyone who has chosen not to download it. Microsoft will follow with the remaining language releases of Vista SP1 soon after. Many believe the SP1 milestone is the one that will bring about a new wave of adoption for Vista, especially among&#160;business customers that have been awaiting the service pack&#39;s release&#160;before updating employee desktops.Microsoft releases security updates every second Tuesday of the month, which is why security researchers call the day &quot;Patch Tuesday.&quot; The company often includes nonsecurity updates with these releases, although it also will release nonsecurity updates on the fourth Tuesday of the month.
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Microsoft released a refresh of its first service pack for Vista to beta testers on Thursday, indicating the final release might be near.On Thursday, beta users of SP1 received an e-mail from Microsoft alerting them that Vista SP1 refresh 2 is available for download. Microsoft released the latest build, which addressed a small number of bugs that testers encountered in the previous version, to around 15,000 beta users, the company said.Microsoft issued Vista SP1 Release Candidate in December&#160;and a refresh earlier this month. It has said that the&#160;final Vista SP1 will be available to the public during the first quarter of this year, with some reports suggesting that it might come out as soon as Feb. 15.The fact that Microsoft even has a beta of SP1 and has now issued two refreshes to it indicates that the company is trying to be very careful in testing the software and ensuring compatibility, said Andrew Brust, chief of new technology for consulting firm twentysix New York. &quot;They are working hard to under-promise/over-deliver,&quot; he said. &quot;Given the dynamics around the initial release of Vista, that is a prudent course to pursue.&quot;Because it&#39;s quite unusual to issue a beta and multiple refreshes, Microsoft is likely very close to issuing the final public version of SP1, Brust said.That will depend, however, on any problems that testers may find in the newest refresh. If something is broken, Microsoft will have to spend time fixing it, said Chris Swenson, an analyst at NPD Group. &quot;We&#39;re just in wait-and-see mode,&quot; he said.The release of a second refresh doesn&#39;t provide many more clues about when to expect the final version of SP1, agreed Michael Cherry, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft. &quot;The only thing is that we know they are making progress, but we don&#39;t know how close they are,&quot; he saidStill, the initial indication from people who have been testing SP1 is that it&#39;s pretty solid, so it&#39;s reasonable to think the final version might come out in a couple weeks, Swenson said.The final public release of SP1 could boost Vista sales, at least among enterprise users, since&#160;some companies have said they are waiting for the release of SP1&#160;before upgrading from XP to Vista. Consumers, however, don&#39;t appear to have decided to wait. Retail PC sales were up last year and less than 1 percent of all computers including Macs that sold in retail outlets last year had XP, Swenson said. &quot;It&#39;s more of an issue for businesses,&quot; he said.
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Microsoft is poised to deliver a new interim build of its Windows Server 2003 SP1 (Service Pack 1) to testers. Windows Server 2003 SP1 is the server complement to the recently released Windows XP SP2 (Service
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With SP2 out the door, Microsoft turns sights to Longhorn--which won't look quite as expected.
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The keyboards, mice, Webcams and headsets sport features for the upcoming Vista operating system.
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The Microsoft operating system is improved by the soon-to-arrive service pack, but Windows Vista still is missing some features we'd like to see.
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Microsoft releases a refresh of its first service pack for Vista to beta testers, indicating the final release might be near.
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Software giant tailors new version of office suite for small-business users.