Microsoft looks beyond Vista, sees Vienna

update Although Microsoft is hard at work trying to ship Windows Vista this year, the company is beginning to set its sights on the next horizon, Vienna.

Vienna, once labeled Blackcomb, is the new code name for the successor to Vista. It is not clear when Vienna might ship or what features it might contain. Microsoft confirmed the name change on Friday, but declined to comment on Vienna's stage of development.

"The 'Blackcomb' code name has been changed to 'Vienna,' but we do not have any other details to share on timing or focus," Microsoft said in a statement to CNET News.com. "This does not reflect a big change for us; we have used city code names in the past, which are derived from cities/locations in the world known for great 'vistas'--the kinds of places we all want to see, experience and that capture the imagination. Vienna fits with this concept."

The code name for Windows XP was Whistler, a Canadian ski resort. Blackcomb was also a ski resort, while Longhorn (Vista's code name) came from the Longhorn Saloon, which was about halfway between Whistler and Blackcomb.

Microsoft evangelist Robert Scoble first confirmed the new code name in a posting to the company's Channel 9 developer site.

Directions on Microsoft analyst Michael Cherry said that Microsoft is looking to speed up the frequency of its Windows releases, but cautioned not to read too much into the name change.

"It's just a morale thing," Cherry said. "The other names have been kicking around so long. It's much more about trying to keep focused and keep some excitement around where they are going."

As for Vista, Microsoft is slated to ship it in the second half of this year, roughly five years after it shipped Windows XP. The Vista update promises to have better search, a new graphics engine and other improved features.

However, there are several features that were pulled out of Vista that could conceivably become part of Vienna, most notably a new file storing mechanism known as WinFS.

[206538395198018178908092208948]

Whistler is in the US?

Uh, one clear error in this article is that Whistler or Blackcomb is located in the United States. They are not. They are both situated two hours north of Vancouver, British Columbia (not Washington) and are two ski resorts that sit directly next to one another. Whistler/Blackcomb is the largest ski area in North America.

[206538395198018178908092208948]

Whistler is in the US?

Uh, one clear error in this article is that Whistler or Blackcomb is located in the United States. They are not. They are both situated two hours north of Vancouver, British Columbia (not Washington) and are two ski resorts that sit directly next to one another. Whistler/Blackcomb is the largest ski area in North America.

[hotwheel16]

Interesting geography and other such unforgivable offenses

"The code name for Windows XP was Whistler, a U.S. ski resort"

I know us Canadians are but a blip on most technology radars, but come on. Give us credit for more than just the Blackberry - Whistler is purely Canadian.

- A concerned Vancouver citizen

[hotwheel16]

Interesting geography and other such unforgivable offenses

"The code name for Windows XP was Whistler, a U.S. ski resort"

I know us Canadians are but a blip on most technology radars, but come on. Give us credit for more than just the Blackberry - Whistler is purely Canadian.

- A concerned Vancouver citizen

[Goose]

Didn't release Vista and already working on a new one?

Bugs and design flaws are common. Of course all 'issues' with MS
software will be dealt with in the next release.... but not right now.
That's the whole point: instead of fixing bugs, Microsoft actually
uses these flaws as an excuse for an aggressive update policy.
Microsoft doesn't fix bugs, but continuously releases new versions.
They call this "innovation", but in truth the only purpose of this
strategy is to inflate Microsoft's already obscene profits even
further."

[Goose]

Didn't release Vista and already working on a new one?

Bugs and design flaws are common. Of course all 'issues' with MS
software will be dealt with in the next release.... but not right now.
That's the whole point: instead of fixing bugs, Microsoft actually
uses these flaws as an excuse for an aggressive update policy.
Microsoft doesn't fix bugs, but continuously releases new versions.
They call this "innovation", but in truth the only purpose of this
strategy is to inflate Microsoft's already obscene profits even
further."

[HawaiiBob]

Seems to me

It seems to me that Microsoft would be better advised to
concentrate all it's energies on getting Vista right. Yeah fat chance
of that happening. Oh well Vista might be a good product after the
230th service pack.

[HawaiiBob]

Seems to me

It seems to me that Microsoft would be better advised to
concentrate all it's energies on getting Vista right. Yeah fat chance
of that happening. Oh well Vista might be a good product after the
230th service pack.

[Klar]

Irony

I found it a little ironic that the name is the same as an open source
RSS client for Mac OS X, which I happened to find the story with.

[Klar]

Irony

I found it a little ironic that the name is the same as an open source
RSS client for Mac OS X, which I happened to find the story with.

[aabcdefghij987654321]

Clamor from those who know so little of how things work

To those of you who criticize MS for working on the next version while the previous one is still in progress I submit that this is a standard operating process for all large software projects.

For example go and look at the roadmap for the excellent Firefox browser and you'll see that they've got several future releases on the map and an idea of what features they want to add in each of those releases.

It would be more worrisome if a software producer didn't have an idea about where they'd be going next with their product.

So please try to stick with real issues and not get all hyped up over such a total non-issue, it only makes you sound ridiculous.

[aabcdefghij987654321]

Clamor from those who know so little of how things work

To those of you who criticize MS for working on the next version while the previous one is still in progress I submit that this is a standard operating process for all large software projects.

For example go and look at the roadmap for the excellent Firefox browser and you'll see that they've got several future releases on the map and an idea of what features they want to add in each of those releases.

It would be more worrisome if a software producer didn't have an idea about where they'd be going next with their product.

So please try to stick with real issues and not get all hyped up over such a total non-issue, it only makes you sound ridiculous.

[rcrusoe]

Vienna's features were promised in Vista

which is what, three years late and is now little more than
Windows XP SP3?

Based on the latest news, Vista is just as vulnerable as XP, and
will basically be a GUI upgrade with much greater hardware
requirement.

If you are a Windows fan, great. But what you've got, is all you
get.

[rcrusoe]

Vienna's features were promised in Vista

which is what, three years late and is now little more than
Windows XP SP3?

Based on the latest news, Vista is just as vulnerable as XP, and
will basically be a GUI upgrade with much greater hardware
requirement.

If you are a Windows fan, great. But what you've got, is all you
get.

[Mister C]

Vienna?

Like the sausage? How appropriate!

[Mister C]

Vienna?

Like the sausage? How appropriate!

[assman]

..i had no idea the windows code names were cities

longhorn is a city?? i always thought it was name based on bulls..

[assman]

..i had no idea the windows code names were cities

longhorn is a city?? i always thought it was name based on bulls..

[Michael G.]

When One Thinks of Vienna, Austria...

One thinks of (nostalgic) elegance. Johann Strauss waltzes in the moonlight with one's chosen partner. Gilded halls and structures in white and gold. Museums and Art Galleries. The best old-style Europe has to offer, in terms of culture.

When One Thinks of Microsoft Vienna:

Microsoft has plenty of history to offer, but lacks sophistication and elegance when it comes to making operating systems gracefully dance. It is like the BIGFOOT of the dance floor in Vienna's Ballroom.

[Michael G.]

When One Thinks of Vienna, Austria...

One thinks of (nostalgic) elegance. Johann Strauss waltzes in the moonlight with one's chosen partner. Gilded halls and structures in white and gold. Museums and Art Galleries. The best old-style Europe has to offer, in terms of culture.

When One Thinks of Microsoft Vienna:

Microsoft has plenty of history to offer, but lacks sophistication and elegance when it comes to making operating systems gracefully dance. It is like the BIGFOOT of the dance floor in Vienna's Ballroom.