Windows Vista Review

[sheem]

Windows Vista

Windows Vista is the latest release of Microsoft Windows, a line of graphical operating systems used on personal computers, including home and business desktops. Before its announcement on July 22, 2005, Vista was known by its codename Longhorn.[1] On November 8, 2006, Windows Vista development was completed and released to manufacturing. Over the next two months it was released to MSDN subscribers, computer hardware and software manufacturers and volume license customers. On January 30, 2007, it was released worldwide to the general public,[2] and is available for download from Microsoft's web site.[3] These release dates come more than five years after the release of its predecessor, Windows XP, making it the longest time span between two releases of Windows.

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According to Microsoft,[4] Windows Vista contains hundreds of new features; some of the most significant include an updated graphical user interface and visual style dubbed Windows Aero, improved searching features, new multimedia creation tools such as Windows DVD Maker, and completely redesigned networking, audio, print, and display sub-systems. Vista also aims to increase the level of communication between machines on a home network using peer-to-peer technology, making it easier to share files and digital media between computers and devices. For developers, Vista introduces version 3.0 of the .NET Framework, which aims to make it significantly easier for developers to write high-quality applications than with the traditional Windows API.

Microsoft's primary stated objective with Vista, however, has been to improve the state of security in the Windows operating system.[5] One of the most common criticisms of Windows XP and its predecessors has been their commonly exploited security vulnerabilities and overall susceptibility to malware, viruses and buffer overflows. In light of this, then Microsoft chairman Bill Gates announced in early 2002 a company-wide 'Trustworthy Computing initiative' which aims to incorporate security work into every aspect of software development at the company. Microsoft claimed that it prioritized improving the security of Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 above finishing Windows Vista, significantly delaying its completion.[6]

During the course of its development, Vista has been the target of a number of negative assessments by various groups. Criticism of Windows Vista has included protracted development time, more restrictive licensing terms, the inclusion of a number of new Digital Rights Management technologies aimed at restricting the copying of protected digital media, and the usability of new features such as User Account Control.


New or changed features

End-user features

The appearance of Windows Explorer has changed significantly from Windows XP.
Windows Aero: a new hardware-based graphical user interface, named Windows Aero – an acronym (possibly a backronym) for Authentic, Energetic, Reflective, and Open. The new interface is intended to be cleaner and more aesthetically pleasing than those of previous Windows, including new transparencies, animations and eye candy.
Windows Shell: The new Windows shell is significantly different from Windows XP, offering a new range of organization, navigation, and search capabilities. Windows Explorer's task pane has been removed, integrating the relevant task options into the toolbar. A "Favorite links" pane has been added, enabling one-click access to common directories. The address bar has been replaced with a breadcrumb navigation system. The Start menu has changed as well; it no longer uses ever-expanding boxes when navigating through Programs. Even the word "Start" itself has been removed in favor of a blue Windows Orb (also called "Pearl").
Windows Search (also known as Instant Search or search as you type): significantly faster and more thorough search capabilities. Search boxes have been added to the Start menu, Windows Explorer, and several of the applications included with Vista. By default, Instant Search indexes only a small number of folders such as the start menu, the names of files opened, the Documents folder, and the user's e-mail. Advanced options allow to choose for a specific file type how it should be indexed, the properties only or the properties and the file contents or exclude it.
Windows Sidebar: A transparent panel anchored to the side of the screen where a user can place Desktop Gadgets, which are small applets designed for a specialized purpose (such as displaying the weather or sports scores). Gadgets can also be placed on other parts of the Desktop, if desired.
Windows Internet Explorer 7: new user interface, tabbed browsing, RSS, a search box, improved printing, Page Zoom, Quick Tabs (thumbnails of all open tabs), a number of new security protection features, and improved web standards support. IE7 in Windows Vista runs in isolation from other applications in the operating system (protected mode); exploits and malicious software are restricted from writing to any location beyond Temporary Internet Files without explicit user consent.

Windows Media Player 11

Windows Media Player 11, a major revamp of Microsoft's program for playing and organizing music and video. New features in this version include word wheeling (or "search as you type"), a completely new and highly graphical interface for the media library, photo display and organization, and the ability to share music libraries over a network with other Vista machines, Xbox 360 integration, and support for other Media Center Extenders.
Backup and Restore Center: Includes a backup and restore application that gives users the ability to schedule periodic backups of files on their computer, as well as recovery from previous backups. Backups are incremental, storing only the changes each time, minimizing the disk usage. It also features CompletePC Backup (available only to Ultimate, Business, and Enterprise versions) which backs up an entire computer as an image onto a hard disk or DVD. CompletePC Backup can automatically recreate a machine setup onto new hardware or hard disk in case of any hardware failures.
Windows Mail: A replacement for Outlook Express that includes a completely replaced mail store that improves stability, and enables real-time search. It has the Phishing Filter like IE7 and a Junk mail filtering which is enhanced through regular updates via Windows Update.[9]

Windows Update with Windows Ultimate Extras

Windows Calendar is a new calendar and task application.
Windows Photo Gallery, a photo and movie library management application. WPG can import from digital cameras, tag and rate individual items, adjust colors and exposure, create and display slideshows (with pan and fade effects), and burn slideshows to DVD.
Windows DVD Maker, a companion program to Windows Movie Maker, which provides the ability to create video DVDs based on a user's content.
Windows Meeting Space is the replacement for NetMeeting. Users can share applications (or their entire Desktop) with other users on the local network, or over the Internet using peer-to-peer technology (higher versions than Starter and Home Basic can take advantage of hosting capabilities, limiting previous to "join" mode only)
Windows Media Center, which was previously exclusively bundled as a separate version of Windows XP, known as Windows XP Media Center Edition, will be incorporated into the Home Premium and Ultimate editions of Windows Vista.
Games: Every game included with Windows has been rewritten to take advantage of Vista's new graphics capabilities. New games include Chess Titans, Mahjong Titans and Purble Place. The Games section will also hold links and information to all games on the user's computer. One piece of information that will be shown is the game's ESRB rating.

Previous Versions

Previous Versions automatically creates backup copies of files and folders, with daily frequency. Users can also create "shadow copies" by setting a System Protection Point using the System Protection tab in the System control panel. The user can be presented multiple versions of a file throughout a limited history and be allowed to restore, delete, or copy those versions. This feature is available only in the Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions of Windows Vista and is inherited from Windows Server 2003.[10]
Windows Mobility Center is a new control panel that centralizes the most relevant information related to mobile computing (e.g. brightness, sound, battery level / power scheme selection, wireless network, screen orientation, presentation settings, etc.).
Windows Update: Software and security updates have been simplified, now operating solely via a control panel instead of as a web application. Mail's spam filter and Defender's definitions will also be automatically updated via Windows Update.
Parental Controls: Allows administrators to control which websites, programs, and games each standard user can use and install.
Windows SideShow: Enables the auxiliary displays on newer laptops or on supported Windows Mobile devices. It is meant to be used to display Device gadgets while the computer is on or off.
Speech recognition is fully integrated into Vista. It is an improved version of Microsoft Speech Recognition currently working under Office 2003, with a better interface, a rich and flexible set of commands, and an extensive command-and-control capability to activate the computer by voice. Unlike the Office 2003 version, which works only in Office and WordPad, it works for dictation system-wide. In addition, it currently supports several languages: English US and UK, Spanish, French, German, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), and Japanese.
New fonts, including several designed especially for screen reading, and new high-quality Chinese (Yahei, JhengHei), Japanese (Meiryo) and Korean (Malgun) fonts. See Windows Vista typefaces. ClearType has also been enhanced and enabled by default.
Problem Reports and Solutions, a new control panel which allows users to see previously sent problems and any solutions or additional information that is available.
Improved audio controls allow the system-wide volume or volume of individual audio devices and even individual applications to be controlled separately. Introduced new audio functionalities such as Room Correction, Bass Management and Speaker Fill.
System Performance Assessment is a benchmark used by Windows Vista to regulate the system for optimum performance. Games can take advantage of this feature, reading the data produced by this benchmark in order to fine-tune the game details. The benchmark tests CPU, RAM, Graphics acceleration (2D and 3D) and disk access.[11]
Windows Ultimate Extras: The Ultimate Edition of Windows Vista provides access to extra games and tools, available through Windows Update. This replaces the Microsoft Plus! software bundle that was sold alongside prior versions of Windows.

Editions and pricing

Windows Vista Starter

Much like Windows XP Starter Edition, this edition will be limited to emerging markets such as Colombia, India, Thailand,Indonesia and the Philippines, mainly to offer a legal alternative to using unauthorized copies. It will not be available in the United States, Canada, Europe, or Australia.[26] It will have many significant limitations, such as only allowing a user to launch three applications with a user interface at once, not accepting incoming network connections, a physical memory limit of 256 MB, and will run only in 32-bit mode.[27] Additionally, only AMD's Duron, Sempron and Geode processors, and Intel's Celeron and Pentium III processors are supported. No pricing announced N/A
Windows Vista Home Basic

Similar to Windows XP Home Edition, Home Basic is intended for budget users not requiring advanced media support for home use. The Windows Aero theme with translucent effects is not included with this edition. 64-bit Home Basic supports up to 8 GB of physical memory, and will be supported until 2012. US$199.00

CA$259.00
GB£179.99
€259.00
AU$385.00
US$99.95
CA$129.00
GB£99.99
€139.00
AU$199.00

Windows Vista Home Premium

Containing all features from Home Basic, this edition also supports more advanced features aimed for the home market segment, such as HDTV support and DVD authoring. Extra premium games, mobile and tablet PC, network projector, touchscreen, and auxiliary display (via Windows SideShow) support, and a utility to schedule backups are also included. Home Premium supports 10 simultaneous peer network connections (compared to 5 in Home Basic). The version of Meeting Space included will also allow for interaction (in Home Basic, meetings may only be viewed). This edition is comparable to Windows XP Media Center Edition. 64-bit Home Premium will support up to 16 GB of physical memory, and will be supported until 2012. US$239.00

CA$299.00
GB£219.99
€329.00
AU$455.00
US$159.00
CA$179.00
GB£149.99
€229.00
AU$299.00

Windows Vista Business

Comparable to Windows XP Professional and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, Windows Vista Business Edition is aimed at the business market. Includes all the features of Home Premium with the exception of Windows Media Center and related technologies, Parental Controls, and Windows DVD and Movie Maker HD (the regular Movie Maker is included). Includes the IIS web server, fax support, Rights Management Services (RMS) Client, file system encryption, dual processor (two sockets) support, system image backup and recovery, offline file support, a full version of Remote Desktop that supports incoming connections, ad-hoc P2P collaboration capabilities, Previous Versions (Windows ShadowCopy), and several other business features not in Home Premium. 64-bit Business supports 128 GB of memory. Mainstream support for Business ends on 4/10/2012; extended support ends on 4/11/2017. US$299.00

CA$379.00
GB£289.99
€419.00
AU$565.00
US$199.95
CA$249.00
GB£189.99
€279.00
AU$378.99

Windows Vista Enterprise

This edition is aimed at the enterprise segment of the market, and is a superset of the Business edition. Additional features include multilingual user interface support, BitLocker Drive Encryption, and UNIX application support. This edition will not be available through retail or OEM channels, but through Microsoft Software Assurance. Since Enterprise is a benefit of Software Assurance (SA), it will include several SA-only benefits, including a license allowing for multiple virtual machines to be run, access to Virtual PC Express, and activation via VLK.[28] 64-bit Enterprise supports 128 GB of memory. Mainstream support for Enterprise ends on 4/10/2012; extended support ends on 4/11/2017. Part of Software Assurance enterprise licensing N/A
Windows Vista Ultimate
This edition combines all the features of the Home Premium and Enterprise editions, a game performance tweaker (WinSAT), and "Ultimate Extras". On January 7, 2007, at CES, Microsoft began to announce what some of these Ultimate Extras will be. When Vista launches to consumers on January 30, Microsoft will immediately make the following Extras available for Ultimate users: "Dream Scene", a utility that will allow for full-motion video desktop backgrounds; "Hold'Em", a Vista-customized version of the Texas Hold'Em poker game; Multi-user interface language packs, designed to allow individuals fluent in different languages to share the same PC; BitLocker Online Secure Key Storage, where Ultimate customers will be offered a secure place to store their BitLocker encryption keys in the Online Vista Marketplace; and "Digital publications," a collection of tips and tricks, blog links and other resources for getting the most out of Ultimate.[29][30] After that, many more are expected to be announced through 2007, including a photo editing and merging tool shown at CES called "GroupShot". More detailed information regarding some of these extras can be read at the Vista Ultimate website here The Ultimate edition is aimed at high-end PC users, gamers, multimedia professionals, and PC enthusiasts. 64-bit Ultimate supports 128 GB of memory. Mainstream support for Ultimate ends on 4/10/2012; extended support ends on 4/11/2017. Another upgrade variant of Windows Vista Ultimate is the Windows Vista Ultimate Upgrade Limited Numbered Signature Edition, a limited, numbered edition of Windows Vista Ultimate that features Bill Gates' signature on the front of the packaging along with its unique number.

US$399.00
CA$499.00
GB£369.99
€599.00
AU$751.00
US$259.00
CA$299.00
GB£249.99
€299.00
AU$495.00

[Nidz]

thanks good sharing and review