Next Version of Windows to Incorporate Advanced Touch Features

[eastcoastsurfer]

ZACTLY, still waiting for them to get Vista right. My next computer comes with my tax rebate, my first Apple, a 24"i-Mac! buh-bye MS, hell-low

It seems like if you want the best from Apple right now you should buy a itouch or iphone. They've let the MacPros flounder. The quality of the MBP has dropped significantly (fn' keyboard issues they refuse to acknowledge and fix). Leopard is a step back in a lot of areas (look at network printing, stacks implementation, multiple desktop implementation, wireless network issues, time machine backup drives, etc...) Look at their apps, like iMovie..wtf?

Your iMac may end up being a nice machine. Personally I'm starting to wonder is OSX is worth paying for premium hardware, when it isn't so premium anymore.

 

[hyddan]

That tech had obviously not had a look at the old fingerworks pads. I got one here and you can do pretty much anything combining finger movements on a flat surface (including program your own commands with most movements).

Microsoft do have some talented people in there somewhere so it will be interesting to see what they can cook up.

Would be nice if anyone could finally evolve the mouse+keyboard hassle.

 

[AidenShaw]

With so many dud OS's (2000, ME, Vista...), I would like to know which ones MS thought constituted a big enough overhaul to give them a new number? I realize that I'm probably asking in the wrong place, but does anyone know?

Windows NT 4 is v4
Windows 2000 is v5
Windows XP is v5.1
Windows Vista is v6.0

When you start a command window on XP, you'll see:

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

On Vista, it's:

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6000]
(C) Copyright 2006 Microsoft Corp.

This is the number returned by the "get OS version" APIs in Windows.

 

[Teddy's]

Hopefully this'll bring up some friendly competition between MS & Apple to make better products.

Yup, That's the best part.

While marketing rolls out more PC vs Mac ads. That's ok. For all business, cash is blood. Let everything flow and enjoy the show.

 

[nickane]

Windows NT 4 is v4
Windows 2000 is v5
Windows XP is v5.1
Windows Vista is v6.0

When you start a command window on XP, you'll see:



On Vista, it's:



This is the number returned by the "get OS version" APIs in Windows.

Cheers, Aiden, should've known it'd be you who'd answer me. I've never used half those versions and never pay attention to the DOS bit in startup. Don't let the naysayers get you down, fingers crossed for the midrange tower in '08. I desperately need one to buy me the time with which to save up for a Rev B. MP which I'm expecting about the same time as Windows 7.

 

[Sped]

I'm surprised that so many people rated this article negatively. Competition is good and will keep Apple strong.

 

[Consultant]

incomprehensible babbling

XP to Vista = 7 years
Hum, let me guess Vista to 7 is how many years? Could it be another 7 years for their alpha release?

Is that you Ballmer? You monkey boy should know that in 7 years your knockoff that is named Windows (which we all know acts as a broken Mac OS) will still not match the iPhone technology of today.

Also, how many years has that cripple of a windows mobile been on the market? iPhone even the 1.0 version is already running circles around it. You do know the iPhone is named by Time magazine as Invention of the Year?

 

[brianus]

You're saying that 10 year old Microsoft software runs fine on Vista, but OS X somehow breaks software with new releases? I have to ask, because it seems so ludicrous.

Uh, have you ever used either of these operating systems? Apple routinely breaks compatibility without a care. You can argue for or against that, and there are good arguments on both sides, but it's a fact. I haven't even upgraded to Leopard yet because of all the 3rd party programs I use that either don't work with it or have issues that the developers haven't yet patched. By contrast, I'm running Vista in Parallels on my Mac Pro, running some software that's more than 12 years old (yes, Windows 3.1 software in a couple cases!). Again, there are good and bad things about requiring an OS to provide such extensive compatibility, but it's a fact most folks acknowledge: MS makes a pretty significant effort in this area. (note that I'm referring to software compatibility. When it comes to supporting old hardware, particularly peripherals, they continue to suck hard).

 

[AidenShaw]

Cheers, Aiden, should've known it'd be you who'd answer me. I've never used half those versions and never pay attention to the DOS bit in startup.

The number is displayed as the heading in any command shell window, ("term.app") not at boot time during the "BIOS graphics" phase of startup.

The command shell actually has nothing to do with actual DOS code, it's a native 32-bit or 64-bit shell that happens to implement an enhanced successor to the old DOS command language. (I've seen people claim that the command terminal was "proof" that XP and Vista have a 16-bit kernel )

Don't let the naysayers get you down, fingers crossed for the midrange tower in '08.

I'm expecting Jobs to say "and one more thing for you, Aiden" when he introduces the new mini-tower.

I desperately need one to buy me the time with which to save up for a Rev B. MP which I'm expecting about the same time as Windows 7.

Windows 7 is just an informal term for the current development stream. They'll probably come out with another Canadian codename for the beta, and a different silly name for the final product.

 

[notnek]

Good for them.
I'm personally more interested in what Apple's touch implementation(s) will look like in 2010.
Should be fun...

agreed. who cares what microsoft does. apple is my company of choice as well as my family's.

 

[Jaymes]

I'm sure this will be have all the awesomeness that the Zune had to offer.

Perhaps it will be just as cool as this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZrr7AZ9nCY

 

[buymeaniphone]

Thats microsoft's problem, they take 5 years to release technology that Apple is already producing. I've seen the touch screen tables microsoft put out for demo and I'll admit that its pretty cool, but how long will it take before I can have one of those in my office? 10 years, 15 years?

 

[samarks]

Microsoft Vaporware

Microsoft, since the dawn of time, has been famous for announcing 'features' long before products are more than a dream to steer buyers away from competitors. Wasn't this old like 10 years ago? Also kind of a desperate cry for attention. "How come the cool kids get all the attention? What about us?"

 

[nickane]

i think the surface is supposed to be coming to market mid-2008 actually.

 

[plumbingandtech]

More like Windows 70.

 

[bretm]

I think Windows 7 is slated to be released as soon as 2009. Vista's delayed release was exceptionally unusual. Remember that before Vista, major versions of Windows were being released every 2-3 years, just like OS X.

Ummm --- OS X. 7 years old. 6 versions. Do your math.

 

[Consultant]

Windows NT 4 is v4
Windows 2000 is v5
Windows XP is v5.1
Windows Vista is v6.0

When you start a command window on XP, you'll see:


.

LOL

Windows 95: v4.0.950
Windows 98: v4.10.1998
In three years they surely made a lot of progress.

Released: February 2000, Windows 2000: v5.0.3700.6690
Released: September 2000, Windows Me: v4.90.3000
Looks like the quality is so bad, the windows version has to be reduced by 0.1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows

 

[tny]

Vista isn't a colossal failure. It's actually selling better than XP. And corporations aren't supposed to be talking about their next products? And it's funny how Apple was talking about Leopard more than a year before its original release date of spring, only for it be delayed. And then delayed again, all while crippling some features and removing others.

And the Surface is quite revolutionary, but dumb Apple fanboys wouldn't understand that.

How much does MS pay for astroturfing nowadays? You must know, because let's face it, the only way you'd be making the "Vista isn't a colossal failure. It's actually selling better than XP" statement is if you were being fed talking points by MS marketing. Compare the percentage of systems upgraded to Vista since release to the percentage of systems upgraded from 2K/98/ME at the same point in XP's release cycle, and I think you'll see why everyone in the industry sees Vista as a disaster.

 

[tny]

LOL

Windows 95: v4.0.950
Windows 98: v4.10.1998
In three years they surely made a lot of progress.

Released: February 2000, Windows 2000: v5.0.3700.6690
Released: September 2000, Windows Me: v4.90.3000
Looks like the quality is so bad, the windows version has to be reduced by 0.1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows

You can't compare Windows 98 and Windows 2K version numbers. 2K is a version of Windows NT (the successor to NT4), ME is a version of Windows (the successor to Windows 98). Windows NT was a ground-up rewrite, analogous to OS X. The version numbers are disjoint because Windows NT and Windows 95/98/ME were sold simultaneously, unlike Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X.

 

[NAG]

I mostly like the bit where a tech demo is called revolutionary. Wake me when this stuff is actually shipped. If you want to know why, look at Longhorn's feature list just after they first announced it. Ignore the amount of time it took them to ship the thing. Just look at the feature list and look at what actually got shipped.

 

[space1nvaders]

Why announce?

Why do I always hear about stuff that Windows is supposed to be doing in some distant future? MS is always getting into new things after other companies have already mastered it. Like Live Search vs Google, Gadgets vs Widgets, etc. Keyboards or Stylus were leading edge technology for MS before the iPhone. Everyone said customers would not like the touch screen keyboard before Apple proved them wrong. Now MS is going to blow away the iPhone in 2010??? Who the heck is running the show in Redmond???

 

[Clive At Five]

You guys can go ahead and laugh all you want about Windows, but let me tell you something: Microsoft may look like a big dumb ogre, but they're not complete idiots. They know that Vista is a bust. They know they are losing users to Apple and they know that if they don't do anything about it, they're going to suffer, big time.

Windows 7 is Microsoft's way of turning over a new leaf. They've already written a new, super small (40MB in-use), non-cluttered Kernel (called MinWin), and from there will rebuild windows in the way Vista was meant to be rebuilt. Windows 7 will be lean and it will be fast. It will, for the first time, be a worthy competitor to Mac OS X, and it will get done on time (or heads WILL roll......... Balmer).

Microsoft has the manpower to do it too. They just need the organization that they've never had before. The main reason for delayed OSes is bad management and legacy support. If Microsoft follows this path (and I think they've resolved their managment issues), they will once again become a force to be reckoned with.

This last decade has been an "easy" one for Apple. Windows has been the sleeping giant. But now it's awake and it is MAD. It's no longer going to be a walk in the park for Apple. This excites me, too, because it'll bring greater competition, and henceforth greater innovation between the two companies. It's a great time to be not only a Mac user, but a Windows user as well. Their side of things are about to get considerably better, I feel.

-Clive

 

[gnasher729]

One of the main touch features will probably be 'control-alt-delete' replaced by a single wipe of your index finger?

No, you'll have to take a tissue and wipe the screen clean

 

[Consultant]

You guys can go ahead and laugh all you want about Windows, but let me tell you something: Microsoft may look like a big dumb ogre, but they're not complete idiots. They know that Vista is a bust. They know they are losing users to Apple and they know that if they don't do anything about it, they're going to suffer, big time.

Windows 7 is Microsoft's way of turning over a new leaf. They've already written a new, super small (40MB in-use), non-cluttered Kernel (called MinWin), and from there will rebuild windows in the way Vista was meant to be rebuilt. Windows 7 will be lean and it will be fast. It will, for the first time, be a worthy competitor to Mac OS X, and it will get done on time (or heads WILL roll......... Balmer).

Microsoft has the manpower to do it too. They just need the organization that they've never had before. The main reason for delayed OSes is bad management and legacy support. If Microsoft follows this path (and I think they've resolved their managment issues), they will once again become a force to be reckoned with.

This last decade has been an "easy" one for Apple. Windows has been the sleeping giant. But now it's awake and it is MAD. It's no longer going to be a walk in the park for Apple. This excites me, too, because it'll bring greater competition, and henceforth greater innovation between the two companies. It's a great time to be not only a Mac user, but a Windows user as well. Their side of things are about to get considerably better, I feel.

-Clive

Hold on, I thought that WAS the goal of Vista, to have it written from the ground up? Seems like wishful thinking. Look at Vista now, Vista is suppose to be an improvement on XP... So an improvement on Vista would be like Mac OS 7?

 

[Antares]

That Microsoft blog post is really pointless. It's basically like a Honda engineer saying that they're developing a car that will be released in the future that gets better fuel economy and efficiency than a Toyota Prius released last year. Well, I hope so. A product that is released several years AFTER a product that is currently on the market better be more advanced/refined. I think the post was made to show that not just Apple is working on multi-touch software/devices but also Microsoft. To let consumers know that they are in "the game" and Apple is not the only company to turn to if they want touch control. Apple is clearly focused on further developing and advancing multi-touch. By the time Windows 7 is released, Apple will likely also have multi-touch integrated with the OS with many more features than the limited amount available on the iPhone/iPod Touch.

And....what's wrong with being a fanboy/fangirl? If there's a company who makes products you like, a sports team you love, a movie or tv series you really enjoy....what's wrong with supporting them and telling others about their greatness? I enjoy Apple products and really like the company. I'm proud to be an Apple fanboy.