Vista Stinks

The window on Microsoft’s operating system agility has closed, and to fix it, Randall Stross argues in the New York Times , the tech giant needs to start from scratch. Windows “has become an obese monolith built on an ancient frame,” Stross says, and it “seems to move an inch for every time that Mac OS X or Linux laps it.” More »

Intel has decided not to upgrade the 80,000 or so computers its employees use to Windows Vista, seemingly betraying its longtime bosom buddy Microsoft, the New York Times reports. The latest Windows iteration has drawn jeers for being bloated and buggy. “This isn’t a matter of dissing Microsoft,” said an Intel source. “Intel information technology staff just found no compelling case for adopting Vista.” More »

Hewlett-Packard’s revamped TouchSmart PC, a one-piece desktop computer with a touch-controlled user interface, improves on its previous, bulky iteration, with a sleek case, big 22-inch screen, and wireless keyboard and mouse, personal-tech guru Walter Mossberg writes in the Wall Street Journal. But the touch-screen software is still in its nascent form, simple and somewhat rough around the edges. More »

Microsoft's strategy of marketing Vista to consumers has turned off its other core constituency, the Wall Street Journal reports: business. Certainly, technical issues and a fat price tag have decimated the number of companies planning to install it: Just 26% of IT departments say they expect to install Vista by 2010, down from 68% last year. More »

Microsoft, still smarting over consumer discontent with its Windows Vista operating system, yesterday offered a peek at the touch-screen operating system it believes will revolutionize personal computing, the Wall Street Journal reports. The OS isn’t expected to hit shelves for 20 months, but already is creating buzz with its iPhone-like ease of use. More »

Microsoft is going to keep Windows XP on the market—but only for a few users and not for the sake of those unsatisfied with its successor, Vista. The company will stick to its June 30 deadline for withdrawing XP from stores but will supply the older operating system for at least two years on low-cost computers such as the Asus Eee PC and Intel Classmate, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. More »

The long-awaited first service pack for Microsoft Vista will be available online starting today, at least according to Amazon, which is taking orders for boxed copies of the upgrade pack and says it will start shipping them tomorrow. Many of the pack's updates and security fixes have already been sent to users as part of monthly updates since Vista launched last year to decidedly mixed reviews. More »

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer did an animated, sometimes antic, on-stage interview yesterday at Mix, Microsoft’s annual conference for web developers, emphasizing that he has every intention of taking some of Google's advertising business and using Yahoo to do it, the Seattle Times reports. "Advertising on the Internet is a big thing, and will be the next super-big thing," he said. "Search ... at least today and for the foreseeable future, it is the killer application for online advertising." More »

Many Windows Vista users have struggled to make the operating system work with their hardware, and emails released this week reveal that even Microsoft bosses had a tough time, PC World reports. The emails have been made public as part of a lawsuit that claims Microsoft deliberately misled consumers by slapping "Vista Capable" stickers on machines that weren't capable of running many of the system's important features. More »

Vista’s first major service pack may do more harm than good. Microsoft is warning that its upcoming update may disable various third party programs, particularly virus protection and security software, which accounted for half of the dozen programs Microsoft listed as victims. Microsoft said that list wasn’t comprehensive, and told users to contact the software developers, not Microsoft, with any problems. More »

Microsoft is facing vocal opposition to its decision to stop selling the Windows XP operating system June 30, 13 months after the launch of Windows Vista, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Vista has sold well, aided by its default inclusion with new PCs, but users have complained of compatibility troubles. Some have returned to XP or are holding out for Microsoft’s next OS. More »

Microsoft topped estimates today, revealing a 79% jump in quarterly profits over the same period last year—and raising targets for the year. On Xbox 360 and Windows sales, the world's largest software maker boasted net income of $4.71 billion for the period ending December 31, up from the previous year’s $2.63 billion. Sales rose 30% to $16.4 billion, Bloomberg reports. More »

On his way out the door, Bill Gates is defending Windows Vista, the OS that has failed to woo consumers away from Microsoft's older Windows XP. "I think a lot of people would say it was the best new product of the year,” Gates said in an interview with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer before his speech last night at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. More »

When PC World decided to whip up a list of 2007's most disappointing tech, was there really any doubt what would headline the list? Vista wasn't awful, but neither was it, you know, good . Here's how the list broke down: Vista The Hi-Def Format War Facebook Beacon Yahoo Apple's iPhone More »

It has been almost a year since Windows Vista was released to businesses, but a spate of hardware compatibility issues has many still waiting to upgrade until the release of the first service pack, scheduled for early next year. With the next version of Windows due in late 2009, PC World thinks many companies may skip upgrading to Vista altogether. More »

Microsoft yesterday reported a 23% leap in net income and its best revenue growth since the dot-com boom, making it an isolated winner in a tumbling market. The announcement drove up the company's shares 10% in after-hours trading. The sales of new PCs with Windows installed helped drive the gains, especially in developing countries creating large new markets for computers. More »

Wall Street Journal tech guru Walter S. Mossberg wants you to think, and think hard, before buying your next PC. Here are some tips from the man himself: If you're going for Vista over Windows XP, opt for the Home Premium version. Avoid junk software that slows your computer by buying Dell's Vostro models and opting out of trial software. Go with 1G of memory for Home Basic, 2 for other Vista versions. More »

Though he may rule the boardroom, all it took to unravel Microsoft’s chief executive was a mom on a rampage about his new Vista operating system. An analyst questioning Steve Ballmer at a conference said she’d become an early Vista adopter at her 13-year-old daughter’s request—only to revert to XP due to the new OS’ built-in difficulties, PC World reports. More »