Retiring Windows boss Jim Allchin talked with The Seattle Times’ Brier Dudley about Microsoft’s upcoming Windows Vista operating system.
Q: Is Windows Vista late?
A: We’re on track, as I mentioned, for this holiday year. I will also make a cautionary notice that I will not ship this product if it doesn’t achieve the quality that’s demanded by our customers. So although everything looks great right now, quality will be the deciding factor. I feel pretty good right now and we’ll see how it goes the rest of the year.
Q: Is “holiday 2006″‘ a bit later than expected?
A: No, that’s what we’ve always said. That’s what I said last April; that has been the plan since 2004.
Q: Are there any features you regret leaving out?
A: Well, that’s a hard thing. There’s nothing that comes to mind right now. At this point, literally, I just want to complete what we’ve got in there because it’s so rich in terms of features.
Q: Will you make a version of Vista for Apple computers, now that they’re using Intel processors?
A: We have no plans to move Vista to the Macintosh hardware.
Q: There’s a bit of feature overlap with your new operating system and Apple’s. What is the competitive situation going to be like now that you’re on the same hardware platform?
A: I actually am not sure that sharing the same hardware platform’s going to make that much difference, personally. People may disagree on that perspective. … We’re a massive company. By that, I mean that Apple really has no presence in business, and we think Vista’s going to have a huge presence in business. We think we’re going to help the corporate IT stack save money. We think we’re going to help information workers. And we think in the home space, we have significant advancements that we’re very proud of, in terms of how we integrate with TV and how we do gaming. And most important, we’re super proud of the fact that we’re a partnership-level company where we’re working with ISVs [independent software vendors] and IHVs [independent hardware vendors] and we’re not trying to do it all ourselves. There’s a fundamental difference of perspective there. And so the fact that they moved to Intel, I’m not sure that makes a lot of difference.
Full article here.
So, remember, boys and girls, Windows XP SP3, er “Vista,” is not late, the Windows chief can’t think of even one feature from the many that were promised and axed along the way and are now filling Redmond’s “Discarded Vista Features” recycle bins, security at Microsoft is job one (no, seriously), Microsoft is massive (and moves like it), and Microsoft is “super proud” that they’re still stuck with the broken “too many cooks in the kitchen” model which is why Windows is unreliable, convoluted and they can’t possibly hope to deliver anything close to, say, iLife ’06 or Mac OS X to their users.
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Doesn’t he mean “we have no plans on moving our version of OS X to Apple hardware?
Nothing comes to mind?
They removed ALL the main features/pillars they were first hyping for Longhorn! And yes, late 2006 IS later than they said before!
And here’s a funfact: they won’t need to “move” Vista to Mac, they’ll just need to get with the 2000s and support EFI. Which they’ve already planned.
I love how he’s ALREADY hedging against maybe having to push Vista into 2007. What a train wreck.
Yeah, their monopoly in business will help them. But it will only help them make money, not make a quality product.
Can you just HEAR the passion for greatness in his words? 😀
“I feel pretty good right now”
“At this point, literally, I just want to complete what we’ve got in there”
“We think we’re going to help information workers.”
“we’re super proud of the fact that we’re a partnership-level company”
Oh boy, sign me up, Vista’s going to ROCK!
(ps, MDN doesn’t like to load any more if there’s any network congestion. Forget it on dialup: 2 tried to load any page! This has been like the last week or 2. And most fun of all: if the page does load, the magic word often doesn’t. Something is timing out too soon: most sites don’t give up so quickly on trying to send you a page.)
“We are at war with Eastasia. We have always been at war with Eastasia.”
For an engineer, his Newspeak is doubleplusgood.
If they did “move” it to Macintosh hardware there could be some serious revenue erosion in Redmond.
…’And most important, we’re super proud of the fact that we’re a partnership-level company where we’re working with ISVs [independent software vendors] and IHVs [independent hardware vendors] and we’re not trying to do it all ourselves.’
microsoft ‘a partnership level company’ …PLLEEEEEEEASE.
you couldnt make the hardware as good as Apple does, thats why you dont do it.
two words ‘meat-head’.
“quality that’s demanded by our customers”
So it will be crap then?
Wow. Where does one start?
“I will not ship this product if it doesn’t achieve the quality that’s demanded by our customers.”
This statement can be brought into reality if you replace the word “demanded” with “deemed good enough”.
And when asked about what it was that they left out, he replied “There’s nothing that comes to mind right now.”
Holy Cow! The list of “things to leave out” is longer than “what to put in” and he can’t recall a single one?
And “We think we’re going to help the corporate IT stack save money.”
Not real sure though, are ya? I’d be hedging my bets too if I were him. Like, one major virus attack and all he thought they might save is down the toilet. Not to mention all the new hardware a lot of businesses would have to (re)buy in order to run the bloated OS. Remember the old ad that went “Gee, I coulda had a V-8!”? Well, by 2008 I bet some businesses will be saying “Gee, we coulda had a Mac” (and for for 500 bucks).
One last thing… “we’re super proud of the fact that we’re a partnership-level company where we’re working with ISVs [independent software vendors] and IHVs [independent hardware vendors] and we’re not trying to do it all ourselves. There’s a fundamental difference of perspective there.”
Boy he’s got that right, a BIG fundamental difference. Another saying, that applies to hardware & software as well as soup, is “Too many cooks spoil the broth”.
This guy must be from another planet. Or from Redmond.
> it’s so rich in terms of features
There’s that word “rich” again… OK, so what are some of these features…?
> we’re going to help the corporate IT stack [and] information workers
OMG, do I want to deal w/ a company that thinks of its customers in these terms…? What the hell is an “information worker”…?
> we’re super proud
Well that’s super… <hehehe>
An “information worker” is someone who spends alot of time researching information on Vista viruses and spyware.
I swear Ive never seen people at such a high corporate level in such a state of denial.
They don’t need to release Windows Vista for Apple. I’m sure someone out there will figure out an easy way to install it on an Apple.
http://musobs.blogspot.com
They’re late coze they need to see LEOPARD before release XP SP3. They need to know if they can compet with. So, Apple kill them with a bit of LEOPARD showing features that they need to postpone xp sp3 again and lost the credibility.
We know who the REAL Kool-aid drinkers are!!!
a Windows sidebar that can display all kinds of information such as upcoming appointments, just-in e-mail messages and a clock,” Joris Evers reports for CNET News
Vista’s got a CLOCK!!, A CLOCK!!!, we’re sunk.
“Q: Will you make a version of Vista for Apple computers, now that they’re using Intel processors?
A: We have no plans to move Vista to the Macintosh hardware.”
Thank the heavens for small favors! I’d rather plunge two knitting needles deeply into both eye sockets than install Vista on a Mac.
I know he is super rroud, but is he super *duper* proud?
What is this, a frackin’ pep squad?!
I think we have our first person to try this new brain-scan lie detector on.
Believe you me, I have NO plans to move Vista to MY Macintosh hardware either
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Since when do Microsoft’s customers “demand quality” from Microsoft?
Is that a joke?
“To some degree, when we did Windows 2000 and Windows XP, we worked on trying to take away the reliability stigma that PCs had.
By that I mean I don’t think people even think about their machines having to be rebooted, not like they used to be in the old days.
It used to be very common to reboot your Windows 9x machine. I think we did a very good job there.”
To some degree, when we did 737 and 747, we worked on trying to take away the reliability stigma that airplanes had.
By that I mean people even think about the engines having to be restarted in mid air several times per flight, not like they used to be in the old days.
It used to be very common to restart your engines in mid-flight on your 7×7 airframe. I think we did a very good job there…
Considering the delay in release of Longhorn and Vista one wonders if Microsoft plans to move any of these “operating systems” to PC’s.
“And here’s a funfact: they won’t need to ‘move’ Vista to Mac, they’ll just need to get with the 2000s and support EFI. Which they’ve already planned.”
Great. That’ll get it to boot.
Think Microsoft is going to include drivers for the built-in iSight? How about for Airport? Firewire? Temperature Sensors? Think they’ll support anything on the custom-designed Apple motherboards?
You think Apple will write these drivers for Windows?
Yes, getting Windows Vista to boot is the first step. Getting all the appropriate drivers is the next step. And that’s gonna be the biggie.
“Q: Is Windows Vista late?
A: We’re on track…”
WTF!
That’s the problem at Mafiasoft: They all have their heads up their asses.
MDN Magic Word: “eye”. As in I can’t believe he said that shit!
Wow, he used “hope” three times and “dream” four times. LOL
Re MDN’s take: “…they’re still stuck with the broken “too many cooks in the kitchen” model…”
Broken? And who declares it broken? Mac fanboys? Please.
I guess his comment about M$ working with ISV’s and IHV’s hit home. That is M$’s weakness and its strength. It is a weakness in that it hinders the development of vertically-integrated solutions (e.g., iPod + iTMS), but it is a strength in that it spreads out development costs and attracts adherents to the platform among third-party vendors, thus building mass and the accompanying economies of scale. Why do you think Intel won out over the PPC, despite the latter having a superior architecture?
M$ will always be hobbled by having to cater to so many, while Apple will always have the luxury of a (relatively small) captive market that always buys everything they release, regardless of cost, changes to architecture, etc. This is the reality of the marketplace. And the great thing about it is that there is enough of a market for both approaches to survive – although we all know which one will remain the dominant player.