Looking Ahead to Windows Vista: Part I What's New in the Upcoming Vista OS Joe Moran
If you've been detecting a stale odor around the office lately, there's a good chance it might be your operating system. Although there have been a couple service packs and numerous minor updates for Windows XP (mostly security patches), there hasn't been an entirely new version of Windows since XP debuted way back in October 2001. That was nearly five years ago, and based on Microsoft's past history it's practically an eternity — after all, Windows 98 launched roughly three years after Windows 95, Windows 2000 debuted about two years after 98, and Windows XP hit the streets a mere 20 months after Windows 2000.
It's been a long time coming, but it looks as if the new version of Microsoft Windows is finally just over the horizon. Microsoft's long-awaited and oft-delayed next-generation operating system, formerly code-named "Longhorn" but rechristened last year as Windows Vista, is due to go on sale late this year or early in 2007 (depending on the version you choose — more on that in a bit.)
Thus begins our three-part series on Windows Vista. In this first installment we'll provide an overview of Vista's capabilities and outline the various "flavors" of the operating system. In June, part two will delve into some of Vista's new features in more detail, explaining how they improve on Windows XP and more importantly, how they can benefit your small business. Come July, our final segment will focus on how to prepare your business for Windows Vista, exploring how to make sure both your existing systems — and any new ones you plan to purchase — are equipped to take full advantage of Windows Vista.
What's New in Vista
Since Vista is still in beta release, many of its features are still evolving, and exactly which ones make it into which version of the product is also somewhat still up in the air (as are some other product details, like pricing). Nevertheless, based on recent announcements by Microsoft as well as an examination of the latest Windows Vista Community Technology Preview (also known as build 5308), we have a reasonably good idea of what some of Vista's new features will be.
Productivity Perhaps the most talked-about aspect of Windows Vista is its revamped user interface, dubbed Aero. Aero's features — which will vary depending on the graphics hardware your computer has — include a host of attractive visual effects such as windows with translucent menu bars. Vista includes other interface improvements as well, like the ability to see thumbnails of your open application windows when you place the cursor over Taskbar items or switch between programs using the Alt+Tab keys.
Vista's Start menu has also been overhauled and simplified so things are easier to find, and it no longer uses the word "Start" (possibly to avoid the oddity of clicking "Start" when you want to shut down your system).
Searching your system has also been greatly improved in Vista. It's now highly integrated into the operating system (a search field is available in almost every window), and you can much more easily search by keyword. You can also save your search results for later reference.
Security Most people would agree that keeping a Windows system protected from online threats is a major headache, so Vista incorporates a number of improved security features designed to allay those concerns. Vista's built-in firewall, for example, can monitor both outgoing and incoming network traffic, and Internet Explorer 7 adds a host of security improvements, including a phishing filter that can warn you if a Web site you're about to give personal data to might be malicious.
Vista also includes a new utility called Windows Defender to help guard your system against spyware (though not viruses) and BitLocker, which can encrypt an entire hard disk to safeguard data when a system is lost, stolen, or intentionally discarded.
Mobility If your primary system is a notebook, then you'll probably appreciate Vista's new Sideshow feature, which takes a cue from modern mobile phones and uses a small secondary display to show certain kinds of important data. In Vista, this display will work when the system is suspended or even off, which can mean not needing to boot up your notebook just to check your schedule or to look up a contact.
This can save both time and battery life, but of course the catch is that you won't be able to take advantage of this feature without buying a new notebook.
