But I like
windows vista x64...
I also like...
Microsoft is set to release the first beta of its upcoming operating system Windows 7 at some point this month, but ahead of that release the trial version has already – unsurprisingly – landed on BitTorrent sites. Anyone who is actually eager to get their mitts on the beta, which has the build number of 7,000, can download it …
"But oddly, Microsoft, which grumbles loudly and often about the “illegal” distribution of its software, remained pretty quiet on the whole affair."
The more angry noise they make, the more people will begin ask themselves "What is this pirate bay thing and do I really not have to pay for Windows anymore?"
No, best to just shut up and push for the Death Penalty to be handed to those responsible.
Hey, if you're MS then you probably want as many people as possible to try the Beta version, which you've hopefully built a bunch of expiry mechanisms into (it's *just* a beta) and hope that they get excited about it and tell their friends to do it to.
If they can get computer literate geeks saying it's a good thing this far ahead of a GA date then they know everyone else will roll over. And we all know those guys that like to show off about getting hold of beta/pre-release software via some shady channel. They'll be promoting it just because noone else has it.
This is of course assuming it is any good. If it's not then it's bad for MS because they don't get to sell a whole load before folks realise it's another polished turd...
I like the marine analogies. Perhaps M$ should start naming Windows versions after large lumbering animals - whale, hippo, rhino, elephant, etc. It would be appropriate.
How do they get to #7 anyway? If W95 is 4 (because it followed 3.1.1) then 98 is 5, 2000 is 6, then ME, XP, Vista ... I've got to 9 already!
"Microsoft has not released Windows 7 code to the public and we caution consumers and businesses that downloading software (including workarounds) from a non genuine source can pose risks to their environment."
Kettle black the calling Pot?
What Microsoft really means to say is that it poses risks to their environment and SAP revenue streams, and this is the Big One which they are probably always plausibly going to deny, for is not Windows Sophisticated Stealthy Spyware on every aspect of one's Work, Rest and Play, as would be any OS connecting electronically through Network InterNetworking Communications Channels, a threat to terrorists who govern with the Classic Phorm Model and War of Terror Template?
And that is XXXXtraordinarily Rendered as a Question not because of any possible expression of Doubt, but rather more as an Invitation to consider Azure as a Virtual Pathfinder OS with ITs AIdDrivers declaring War on Errors with Words of Massive Description.
Although that does suggest that Proxy Virtual Drivers in the Environment of ITs Cloud, will be Leading with AI Following in Microsoft's Wake/Development Furrow. I wonder if an Alien could Interest them in a Free Beta Trial with them Trailing a Knight Champion Application of Special Access ProgramMIng feeding their Every Need and Desire? Or would that be considered a Spooky Competitor Trojan, and/or robbing Peter to pay Paul?
But Hell, what does it matter, for at least it would be something New and Different and even SurReal to Work on in REST and 42 Play in Virtually. The only Excuse and/or Reason for not Doing IT is Ignorance, which is easily taken care of and dismissed with Further Enlightening Edutainment.
Knock,Knock, Microsoft .... Is there anybody in there? Or has everything gone to Pot and Seed rather than Flower and Bloom. Where's Vital Viral Imagination and ITs CyberIntelAIgents hiding? ...... Your Country Needs You .... http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?PubID=890
There are many reasons that this is a non story.
Why would MS be concerned that it's leaked? It will be free to download on it's official release anyway, so what's a few days either way? It's only a beta.
Almost everything ends up on the bay anyway, it doesn't seem to stop people paying up. If MS somehow managed to stop people pirating Windows I doubt very many of the current pirates would actually pay up for a copy, they'd probably move to Linux.
However I wouldn't be surprised to hear that some partner has been on the receiving end of a good kicking from Redmond when they manage to trace the source of the leak.
Or, we have NT4 -> windows 2000 (NT5) -> windows XP(NT6) -> Windows Vista (NT7)
So unless XP was NT5.5 they really hve screwed there numbers. Christ alone knows where NT stated from, the first version i was aware of was NT3.5
Name software after the (intended) year of release is stupid, just give it a version number but dont make it part of the name.
"Microsoft has not released Windows 7 code to the public and we caution consumers and businesses that downloading software (including workarounds) from a non genuine source can pose risks to their environment."
Installing Windows from a GENUINE source can pose risks to consumer and business environments!!!
Mine's the one with the FreeBSD disk in the pocket.
They had to pull large numbers of people off other projects to get the [cut-down] Vista release out [late]; customer pressure has forced them to extend the life of XP; Vista SP2 is due for release some time around April... so with MS about to lay-off up-to15,000, will they have the resource to complete W7 on time?
There have actually been 2 branches of Windows versions through the years:
#1: 'Home Use' - 9x kernel
95 = 4.0
98 = 4.5
me = 4.9
And there was never version 5 of this.
#2: 'Business Use' - NT kernel
NT4.0 = NT4.0
2000 = NT5.0
After this home & business OSs used the NT kernel
XP = NT5.1
Server 2003 = NT5.1
Vista = NT6.0
Server 2008 = NT6.0
7 = NT7.0
Would not surprise me if microsoft had a more direct hand in the leak, by getting it onto torrents, lots more people will install and test it for free than you would get from the fanboys :)
Got vista 64 bit after the first service pack was released, ie most of the major bugs had been fixed, now it works fine and seems more stable than XP
I could be wrong but I think you'll find that Windows 2000 uses version 5 windows kernel (build 5.0.3700.6690 for example), and XP is essentially a modified version of this kernel (build 5.1.2600.5512 for example). Vista is a newer version 6 kernel (build 6.0.6002.16497 for example) and obviously they are now moving onto version 7. Whether it has any relation to Vista, like XP does to 2000, is anybody's guess, but they won't want that association so will move to version 7 either way.
For reference, ME is version 4 for some reason.
I can see why M$ is not overly concerned with piracy.
Any computer NOT on the 'net is useless. (Computers are far more valuable as communication tools. [That's why M$ is DESPERATE to find some way to stop the iPhone.])
With the computers 'phoning home' for driver and other software updates and M$ being able to withhold those updates from anyone NOT in their database of paid up customers, well ...
They got you by the "short 'n curlies" don't they.
Windows 95 is 4, as is NT 4 and Windows 98 and ME too as it was a rehash of Windows 98 with Windows 2000's pretty interface.
Windows 2000 is 5, XP is 5.1 and Vista is 6.0.
Hence Windows 7 is 7.0
Tells you all about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows#Timeline_of_releases
Personally I don't see why MS don't release ISOs officially as they did with Windows XP x64 and let everyone be clear that they're unsupported versions, if they screw your PC/blow up your house/set your cat on fire (delete as appropriate) then there's no come back on Microsoft (actually, thinking about it, don't they already do that with their released operating systems?).
Rob
Windows 95, 98, Me, and NT 4.0 (not NT 3.5) are all version 4. Windows 2000 and XP are version 5, and Vista and Server 2008 are version 6.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows#Timeline_of_releases
Oddly enough, the current version of Windows 7 identifies itself as being version 6.1 . Presumably that will be changed when it ships.
Yes, maybe I'm just a bit paranoid but if they leak it onto the torrent, maybe they're hoping to get a bit of bug feedback, & hear about any exploits, & perhaps have an "underground" hit with it, recovering (they may imagine) a bit of street cred as well(yeah, right :)). If there's a big moan about some new feature then they could switch horses before RTM.
PS What happened to WinFS? ha ha
Well, Richard -- Windows NT 4.0 was NT 4.0. Windows 2000 was NT 5. Windows XP is NT 5.1. Vista, I'm given to understand, is NT 6. Windows 7, therefore, must be NT 7. Makes sense, eh?
(Except that Wikipedia's list of Windows versions calls Windows 7 NT 6.1.something. I don't know whether that's because it's currently in beta, or whether the GA version of Windows 7 will still claim to be NT version 6.1. So I have no real idea.)
Very fast, noticeably faster than Vista and have put it on a few laptops of varying ages, including a P3850 and running a charm. It will take a bit of getting used to but very pleased for a Beta.
By the way - do we REALLY NEED a list of every Windows version EVER made in the comments every time Windows 7 is mentioned? It's getting a little boring now.
This is getting quite tiresome, people, GOOGLE before you type daft questions, believe it or not MS can count, they are not completely stupid and finally they can call THEIR OWN operating system what ever the hell they like, hopefully the EU monkeys won’t try and sue them for that just yet.
I am guessing they will have the resources- if they pull people off jerkoff projects and refocus them on the OS, which may well be a bit of a make or break one for big M. They've lost a lot of face over Vista, and even the proles are wondering (well, the brighter ones, anyway) if there's another way besides Windows, and considering that their computing need not be a monoculture. ]
Losing mindshare is a scary thing, I suspect they'll shake a tailfeather for W7. Meantime, every single time they have to extent the life of XP, they are reminding people what a disaster Vista is. The sooner Redmond put that one behind them, the safer and happier they'll be. A hard balance, they don't want to rush it, and have it launch as broken as Vista, but they don't want to take too long and have to extend the XP deathwatch too much- glad it's not my job to call.
Is this Richard Porter from Sniff Petrol / Top Gear books fame?
As already discussed it's from the NT kernel. 3.x, 4.x, 5.x was 2000, XP was basically 2000 with a fisher price colour scheme, Vista was 6.x, MSOSX is 7.x
If this was the car industry, it would be the equivalent of that unpopular Impreza with the googly headlights being replaced by the sober headlighted version, then the beaky grille version, then the Kia lookalike followed by pulling out of WRC, the sport that defined the Impreza's raison d'etre.
Perhaps this is the future after the unpopular Windows "googly headlights" Vista, the safe design Windows, followed by the beaky "corporate redesign" Windows, then a Windows that looks like a forthcoming Korean OS, followed by pulling out of the Desktop OS market (hopefully).
This explains how they came up with the name of Windows 7....
http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/windowsvista/archive/2008/10/14/why-7.aspx
"The very first release of Windows was Windows 1.0, the second was Windows 2.0, the third Windows 3.0.
Here's where things get a little more complicated. Following Windows 3.0 was Windows NT which was code versioned as Windows 3.1. Then came Windows 95, which was code versioned as Windows 4.0. Then, Windows 98, 98 SE and Windows Millennium each shipped as 4.0.1998, 4.10.2222, and 4.90.3000, respectively. So we're counting all 9x versions as being 4.0.
Windows 2000 code was 5.0 and then we shipped Windows XP as 5.1, even though it was a major release we didn't' want to change code version numbers to maximize application compatibility.
That brings us to Windows Vista, which is 6.0. So we see Windows 7 as our next logical significant release and 7th in the family of Windows releases."
What an awesome marketing ploy. If people are pirating software, make sure it's YOUR software. After all, when certain markets emerge later on and open up to the west, all of them will be MS compatible. Also, how many people have pirated software and then gone on to download the genuine article later on when they've 'tested' it thoroughly. Also, those pirated software users won't be eligible for updates. There is enough scare-mongering on the net to make getting the full legit version an attraction for the serious end user.
For the record:
Windows 1 - 3.11 were all DOS based before the days of NT.
Because of that, Windows NT 3.1 was started at version 3 for marketing purposes. ("it looks and acts the same as your home machine")
But wait we still had some DOS based systems being released:
Windows 95 = 4.00
Windows 98 = 4.10
Windows ME = 4.90
Then we have NT 4 (released just after Windows 95)
Microsoft then stopped naming the NT line releases after the kernel version.
Windows 2000 is NT 5 (released just before ME)
Windows XP is NT 5.1
Windows Server 2003 is NT 5.2
Windows Vista is NT 6.0
Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 are NT Kernel 6.1
Windows 7 will likely be 6.1 still.
Please remember an operating system these days is more than just a kernel!
Do I install windows 7 now or wait for the offical badly compiled buggy version to come out?
Lets face it... unless you run games or some seriously expensive windows software( £5000+ per seat), do you actually need a PC with windows on?
The last one is actually the m$ nightmare question, because as more and more people come to realise that there are alternatives to windows, m$'s market share will continue to plummet, thus exposing more people to alternatives and forcing the m$ market share even further down.
Now, while the demise of m$ would give us geeks a great deal of entertainment, maybe just maybe the fact of greater competition would give m$ a decent kick in the vitals and get them to produce good quality secure products instead of tying IE so closely into the OS that any exploit in IE can corrupt the system re. several updates issued in the past 3 months.
Pinguin.... because guess which OS I use
PS those arguing over windows versions......... Get a life!