Microsoft sets pricing for Windows Vista
411138
Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O announced on   Tuesday U.S. prices for Windows Vista, the long-awaited new   version of the operating system that sits on more than 90   percent of the world's personal computers.
20976
Windows Vista, Microsoft's new operating system, goes on sale to business customers.
523648
By Ken Dey, The Idaho Statesman, Boise  Jan. 31--The long-awaited Microsoft Vista operating system went on sale Tuesday to consumers nationwide.
536373
Talking the talk Analysis Microsoft's $500m Windows Vista launch on Monday was the culmination of months' of heavy sell intended to persuade the company, as much as everyone else, that not only is the operating systems is essential to users' computing needs but also that it will translate into sales gold.â¦
632373
An IT professional discovers a way of getting a full version of Vista for the cost of a simple upgrade.
507142
Microsoft  said on Thursday it  was on track to launch its Windows Vista operating system in  Europe in January but again asked the European Commission to  detail concerns it may have with the system.
234485
Microsoft Corp.  launched  Windows Vista for businesses on Thursday and said that by the  end of next year more than 200 million people would use the new  version of its dominant operating system or new office software  and server computer products.
273075
Microsoft confirmed Thursday that its invite-only group of about 15,000 testers has had the final version of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) for the past two weeks.Other Vista users, however, will have to wait until March to obtain a legal copy of the release-to-manufacturing (RTM) version of Vista SP1, the company reiterated.According to a Microsoft spokeswoman, the build designated Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2, which was seeded to testers on Jan. 24, is identical to&#160;the code that company developers shipped&#160;out the door on Monday as RTM.&quot;In final stages of a product, Microsoft likes to get as much validation as possible before releasing,&quot; the spokeswoman said in an e-mail. &quot;The release candidate ended up being a high enough quality to be approved to release to manufacturing.&quot;The shift in nomenclature, but not bits, is common. Eventually, a vendor must approve a build as &quot;gold code,&quot; at which point that edition becomes the shipping version. Last November, for example, Apple Inc. issued a test build of Mac OS X 10.5.1 to developers one day, then called it good to go and posted it for download the next.However, users who weren&#39;t part of the SP1 testing group must wait until March to get their hands on the update, the spokeswoman repeated today. In five to six weeks -- mid-March according to Microsoft -- the service pack will be offered via Windows Update as a 65MB optional update and posted to Download Center as a 450MB stand-alone installer that supports five languages. A month later, in mid-April, Windows Update will automatically download and install SP1 on Vista-equipped PCs whose users have set Automatic Updates to do hands-off updating.Subscribers to the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) and TechNet will get a slight jump on the general public. &quot;In early March, MSDN and TechNet subscribers will be able to get the &#39;Windows Vista with SP1&#39; full DVD,&quot; the same spokeswoman said in another e-mail. The updated operating system will be offered to MSDN and TechNet subscribers through their respective download centers.Microsoft is holding SP1 so that it can identify device drivers that won&#39;t reinstall -- as they must -- during the service pack update process. On Monday morning, Mike Nash, vice president of Windows product management, said that while SP1 had met the RTM criteria, it would not be available for several weeks because of the&#160;driver problems.That generated a firestorm of criticism from users, who vented by posting over 200 comments to Nash&#39;s announcement, calling the decision &quot;stupid&quot; and &quot;one of the all-time worst moves&quot; by Microsoft.Judging by the tone of nearly 120 comments left on Microsoft&#39;s official TechNet blog, IT professionals and developers are even angrier. The subscribers called the withholding of SP1 &quot;boneheaded&quot; and a &quot;slap in the face,&quot; or dubbed it &quot;the Vista SP1 RTM Debacle.&quot; Others questioned the value of their TechNet subscriptions, admitted that they had had to download a pirated copy using BitTorrent so that they could start testing, and said they would postpone Vista deployments for months because of the delay.Several wondered why reviewers in the press had the finished bits before they did.But a commenter identified only as Joe put it most succinctly: &quot;This is the lamest decision since Microsoft Bob. I get this the same time as my mom?&quot;The backlash may have gotten through to Microsoft. On Monday night, Kathy Dixon, the TechNet Plus team member who normally writes the blog, said that she was looking into the possibility of moving up the availability date of SP1. But as of Thursday night, she had no solution for users. &quot;I have escalated this and am continuing to push internally for a solution ASAP,&quot; Dixon wrote around 8 p.m. EST. &quot;Please hang in there, I should have something more specific soon.&quot;Computerworld is an InfoWorld affiliate.
441543
Priced at about US$36, the Starter Edition gives users limited options and features, compared to the standard Windows version. Microsoft hopes the low price will help it compete in Russia
723632
Here are some details about Microsoft's new Windows Vista operating system, which became available to consumers Tuesday:
580336
Microsoft has announced initial pricing and product information for its upcoming Dynamics Live CRM service.
754716
REDMOND, Washington  - Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O   unveiled a new line of computer peripherals on Wednesday,   including a $250 wireless keyboard and mouse compatible with   its upcoming Windows Vista operating system.
359698
For a lot of users, the cost of upgrading to Windows Vista could be the first of many outlays needed to bring their system up to date. You've also got to update all those programs -- and a lot of vendors may not offer free compatibility updates.
634242
Microsoft Corp. said on Wednesday it expects to sell twice as many copies of its new Vista PC operating system in its first year on sale compared with the launch of its last major upgrade, Windows XP, in 2001.
645927
Microsoft is set to offer either free or discounted Vista upgrades to those who purchase new computers during the holiday season, press reports indicate. To qualify for the coupons, a PC would need to be purchased after October 28 of this year.
496284
Microsoft has agreed to revise its Vista operating system under a compromise with federal and state officials monitoring the company's compliance with a five-year-old antitrust decree, according to a court filing last night.
741929
(InfoWorld) - In an effort to simplify the distribution of Windows Vista and make it easier for customers to upgrade, Microsoft Corp. will include the various retail versions of the OS on one DVD instead of having separate DVDs for each Vista edition. In the past, Microsoft distributed each version of the Windows client OS on its own disk. However, in a move it is calling "Windows Anytime Upgrade" -- which cuts costs for Microsoft as well as making it easier for customers to upgrade -- the version of Windows Vista that a customer buys will be activated by his or her product key and will be on a disk with the other editions of the OS. For example, if a customer buys Windows Vista Home Premium from a retail store, he or she will get a DVD that also includes Windows Vista Ultimate, but the product key for the purchase will only activate Home Premium and its features and functionality, said Mike Burk, a Microsoft spokesman. "With Windows Anytime Upgrade, the idea is to provide customers with the most convenient user experience possible by enabling them to more easily and directly upgrade to a higher edition of Windows Vista from within their current edition," he said. Consumers will have their choice of several versions of Windows Vista when it becomes available, which is scheduled for January 2007: Windows Vista Ultimate, which will cost US$399; Windows Vista Business, which will cost $299; Windows Vista Home Premium, which will cost $239; and Windows Vista Home Basic, which will cost $199. Microsoft has said it plans to urge customers to purchase premium versions of Vista in favor of Windows Vista Home Basic, the entry-level version for U.S. consumers.