Microsoft partners get Vista successor

Industry sources have confirmed the shipment to "key partners" of an early version of Windows 7, the successor to Windows Vista. The new Microsoft operating system was previously code named Blackcomb Vienna and is likely to be introduced in the second half of 2009. The version will be a "Milestone 1" (M1) edition for validation purposes only; two more Milestone builds are expected before the public Beta release. Microsoft's roadmap for release had slated 2010 for the debut; that has now been moved up a few months to second-half 2009. The new Windows is likely to offer advanced touch screen capabilities, taking advantage of multiple graphics card setups now offered by hardware vendors. A new integrated Media Center

is also included supporting full home media and entertainment platforms. Another key feature is a reduced kernel size that takes up only 40MB of memory; the leaner operating core is called MinWin. It will become clearer when Windows 7 will be going into production when Microsoft announces its Windows Logo Program Changes for the software; at present there is little information available on Vista's replacement. A Microsoft spokesman said: "We're continuing to work with our customers and partners on the development of Windows 7, the next version of the client operating system. We're not sharing additional information at this time; instead, we're focused on helping customers today get the most value from their PCs using Windows Vista, and we're encouraged by the response and adoption so far." Still with Windows, we are asking ourselves if Microsoft can right the wrongs and increase the adoption of Vista with the release of Service Pack 1 (SP1). The Beta version of SP1 was made available to the public for testing earlier this month and there have been mixed reports about it. Improvements have been indicated in reliability, performance and security, with the update boasting faster file transfer and booting speeds. Microsoft claims the service pack reduces the time it takes to copy files from a remote non-Windows Vista system to a SP1 system by 45% and a 50% gain is seen when copying files from a remote SP1 system over a LAN to a local SP1 system. However, the biggest problems still lie in the fact that Vista performs so poorly on lower spec PCs that don't have the hardware to get the most out of it. This doesn't seem to have been addressed in the Beta SP1, and neither have the annoying authentication issues. We'll wait for the final release, which has been rumored for release on February 15 and a number of other dates, but we won't be holding our breath. InternetHackers managed to bypass security measures and target the website of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) last weekend. The attacks included a database overload which slowed the server down and the deletion of portions of the site leaving it in a blank state. High-profile lawsuits issued by RIAA against online file sharers, many of whom are children and low income earners, have made it a prime target for hackers. During the past five years the site has reportedly been defaced a number of times and has undergone several denial-of-service attacks. Job cuts are rumored to be on the cards for Yahoo! employees as the company prepares to announce its fourth-quarter results. With a steady drop in share prices and increased competition from Google and Microsoft the Internet giant is facing tough times. The layoffs were partially confirmed in an email statement to media outlets by Yahoo spokesperson Diana Wong, who said, "Yahoo has embarked on a multi-year transformation that includes making tough decisions about the business to help the company grow ... Yahoo plans to invest in some areas, reduce emphasis in others, and eliminate some areas of the business that don't support the company's priorities." Yahoo's total workforce is estimated at around 14,000. It was not disclosed how many jobs will be cut. Last week, the Chinese government reported the country's Internet population has reached 210 million, putting it on track to exceed the US online community and make it the world's largest. A report by the China Internet Network Information Center stated that the online population grew 53% from 137 million at the same time last year. Many of the new users, almost 30 million, are in rural areas. Unlike the US, many Internet users in China still rely on Internet cafes as they are unable to afford a home computer. However, this could be changing as according to a recent International Data Corporation report almost 37 million PCs were shipped to China last year, up from the 29 million units in 2006. Shipments were expected to increase to 69 million units by 2011 with a compound annual growth rate of 17.2%. Lenovo remains the largest vendor in China with a 28.8% market share. Reports also show that the number of broadband Internet users in China has reached 163 million as the technology spreads across the country and more people are able to get online. Although the government promotes Internet use for education and business it still remains heavily censored behind the great firewall of China. HardwareAMD has finally announced some good news following the trend of recent upsets by competitors Intel, which has maintained the lead in the processor race. The bug in AMD's Barcelona core has been ironed out and the production of 45 nanometer CPU's is likely to commence later this year. President Dirk Meyer said that the higher speed Phenoms will have to wait and AMD will roll out triple-core Phenoms and 65-watt (low power) quad-core CPUs during the first quarter. "Higher speeds will follow in Q2," he said. The 45 nm cores are likely to appear late this year meaning that Intel will still have a full year's lead in the production process. Apple made a record number of iPod sales in the last quarter of 2007, with numbers reaching 22 million in the period. The company also sold 2.3 million Mac computers, helping to drive up profit for the quarter to US$1.58 billion. An estimated 47% of Apple's revenue comes from Mac systems and $170 million was made from sales of the new operating system Leopard. The iPod however remains the foundation of Apple's business and the iPhone supplemented figures with 2.3 million sales during the quarter. Not all was rosy for Apple, as investors unloaded tech stocks last week resulting in an 18% loss, or $27.64, to $128.00 on Wednesday. Also setting revenue records was Microsoft, with $16.3 billion for the second quarter of its fiscal year. The increase over the earnings of $14 billion in the same period a year earlier was attributed by the tech giant to the adoption of Windows Vista, more international customers and a total sales figure of 17.7 million units for the Xbox 360.