Delayed Vista a loss for Microsoft

Microsoft has yet released a preview version of the long awaited Windows update codenamed "Longhorn" now officially named as "Microsoft Vista". The company plans to release more and more preview versions instead of "Beta" and "Release Candidate" versions. In order to improve the quality of the final version the company plans to release a series of test versions this year. Each version of the release is intended to get feedback from specific audience. Vista has been a long wait for the consumers; perhaps this is the first time that MS plans to more frequent previews program. The company had planned for more frequent CTPs in order to get higher feedback but then later decided to go slow on releases. While all these may seem like a good move to improve the quality of the product, it could cause a great loss for the company. On the other side Apple computers yesterday announced the public beta release of Boot Camp Software that enables Mac users to run Windows XP natively on Intel based Macs. The software will be launched with the next version of Mac OS X 10.5 called the Leopard and is available for download on the Apple website. In last June Apple announced that it was shifting to Intel-based computers. Apple has been developing Mac OS X for with the intension that it would run on Intel and IBM PowerPC chips. In January this year first Intel-based Mac PC was released with Intel Duo dual core chips the new Macs are said to be three times as faster than previous ones that used IBM PowerPC chips. While Microsoft has been struggling to release its new operating system, Apple has regularly put out updates for its Mac OS. Moreover, Apple is already strong in areas where Microsoft has promised to deliver key improvements with Vista: security, and features such as video and photo editing and search. If someone wants the features that Vista has been promising to deliver then they can get it now from Mac. Many of the new music-handling and photo management tools in Vista are also strikingly similar to features that Apple has either in its OS or in companion products such as iPhoto and iTunes. There is a huge difference between Mac users and Windows users, Windows users don't bother to update to the newer version as fast as Mac users do. there are many reasons for this. One reason could be that most of the Home and Small Scale Industries use pirated version on the OS, the other reason could be that MS has failed to gain confidence of their users in terms of security and reliability. The Apple software and its integration with iPod could attract more users to the apple side.. It is heats up the competition with the hardware manufacturers too. The Macs are optimized for performance and shall surely perform much better than the normal PCs that are manufactured by companies like HP, Compaq, DELL, etc... Microsoft has taken around 5 years to release its new OS while Apple has been releasing update after update for its Macs. The major reason that MS faces is the need to support a large variety of hardware by different manufacturers and different standards. Apple too could face some troubles as has not completely switched over to the Intel chips, but then that is something that can be over come in a short span.. The two are likely to draw even more head-to-head comparisons now that both operating systems are running on the same underlying processors and other internal components. Apple's quicker pace has allowed it to get new features into its operating system faster. For example, both Microsoft and Apple talked about the need for improved desktop search at roughly the same time. Apple shipped the feature as part of a Mac OS X 10.4 update last April, while Microsoft's similar feature won't show up until Vista, though the company has made a downloadable desktop search (MSN Toolbar) add-on available amid competition from Google and others. Microsoft has always been best in what it has been doing: Improve the ideas that others have discovered. Microsoft has been doing just this from the days Windows OS was first launched. Win XP tried to provide the features that Mac OS X had. Now Vista promises to provide the features that Tiger includes.. By the time Vista is released Apple would come up with its next version of OS the Leopard that is expected late this year or early next year... This story is going too long i think i need to stop this here.