Windows Vista

[Becky]

Windows Vista is the latest version of Microsofts Windows operating system. The business version was released at the end of 2006, while the consumer version shipped on January 30, 2007.
The Vista operating system includes an updated look from Windows XP, referred to as the Aero interface. The desktop, windows, icons, and toolbars have a smoother 3D look, similar to the Mac OS X interface. These graphics are generated using the new Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) graphics subsystem included with Windows Vista. Other improvements include faster indexed file searching (which can locate text within files), built-in Web services called the Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), support for the new XML Paper Specification (XPS) document format, numerous security improvements, and more multimedia capabilities built into the operating system.
Windows Vista was code-named Longhorn for much of the development process. The operating system was originally slated to ship in 2003 as an update to Windows XP, but Microsoft decided to make additional updates to the operating system and scheduled it for release in 2005. Several delays pushed back the release date to 2006 and eventually to the beginning of 2007. In order to ship the consumer version by early 2007, the new file system called Windows Future Storage, or WinFS, was left out of the release. Microsoft plans to incorporate the WinFS file system in a future update.
Overall, Vista is a major upgrade to the Windows operating system (which is a good thing, since it has been over five years since Microsofts last major OS release). The interface feels more modern, file navigation has been improved and system security has been designed to be stronger than Windows XP.
If you plan to purchase Windows Vista for your system, you can choose one of five options: