Well that didn't take long. BetaNews is reporting that Windows Vista Beta 1 and IE 7 Beta 1 have now both leaked to the web, less than a day after they were officially released to beta testers. A crack for the Windows Product Activation security component is included in the leak, which is almost 2 1/2 Gigs in size. The size hasn't appeared to deter the file sharers though. I can see why Microsoft is keeping such tight wraps on their top-secret new user interface for Vista. It appears that there's just no way they can control the leaks.
[Via digg]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-29-2005 @ 2:36PM
murph said...
Fark.com would slap the OBVIOUS tag on this one...
Reply
7-29-2005 @ 4:13PM
juliuss said...
I don't get why you say you can see why they're trying to keep the interface under wraps... Maybe because it looks just like XP? Maybe because it's nothing new and they are hoping people will actually buy it?
Reply
7-29-2005 @ 4:19PM
Jason Clarke said...
The user interface that we have seen so far in the screenshots is not what Vista will finally look like, although this will be the low-end version, if I understand correctly. Basically, there is a whole new graphical subsystem in Vista that will be exploited with a fancy new front-end. I don't think we're supposed to see it until at least Beta 2:
http://www.pcworld.com/resource/article/0,aid,121914,pg,1,RSS,RSS,00.asp
Reply
7-29-2005 @ 7:03PM
Stephen said...
Why anyone would willingly install what M$oft openly calls BETA is beyond my comprehension. Their final products are little more than beta. One can only imagine what this would be like.
Reply
7-30-2005 @ 12:40AM
metric152 said...
I was going to try and find it, but my PC doesn't meet the minimum requirements. it's sad when a OS requires a 1.6ghz CPU and 512 ram just to run.
Reply
7-30-2005 @ 2:07PM
Victor Agreda, Jr. said...
While I'm sure they're not happy about it, I doubt MS is that angry either. This little item is probably getting more exposure than the name change non-event from the other week.
And actually there IS a lot of new graphics candy in Vista. In this screenshot you can see a sort of "piles" implementation. Those folders aren't just showing generic icons. They are showing iconized summaries of several docs within. That's one of the major features of Vista-- data that presents itself. A very cool idea... Although without WinFS there'll be some bumps along the road...
Reply
7-31-2005 @ 12:28AM
David Chartier said...
Gee, folders that let you know what's inside em huh Victor? GROUNDbreaking. :P
Reply
7-31-2005 @ 1:07AM
Jason Clarke said...
Victor didn't call it groundbreaking - just new. Do we really want to get into the unwinnable debate about the differences between Windows and Macs? And do we want to do it *all the time*?
Macs and Windows PCs are both fine, and people choose to use one or the other (or both) due to personal preference. It's incredibly boring to see the unending "we did it first/more/faster/better" comments that accompany most posts here that are Mac or PC specific. Let's all get on with it already. Peanut butter and chocolate really can live together peacefully, and maybe even make the world a better place together.
Reply
7-31-2005 @ 1:59AM
hafa said...
Jason, its Linux who got it first, not windows nor macs.
and, don't forget us unix people
we're making the world better one server at a time :)
Reply
7-31-2005 @ 2:06AM
Jason Clarke said...
Haha - fair enough! Our world should be big enough to fit any OS.
*** I'm just dying to drop in a line like "Even the crappy ones", (without specifying which OS I mean) just to get people riled up, but I just can't bring myself to do it. ***
I'm just glad there's healthy competition between OS's (OSes?) to keep everyone striving forward. And David, I have to give it to Apple - they've made more recent progress than MS, that's for sure. And I'm glad of that, since it will force MS to move foward. Same goes for Linux, or anything else - BeOS (or whatever they're called now).
Reply
11-16-2005 @ 3:35PM
hal69 said...
Is this thang running true native
multithreading. Vista/os should be
more then a one native thread ability
regardless which flavors it's come in.
Reply
11-18-2005 @ 6:49PM
Luke said...
For being the most widely adopted operating system it sure it a wonder that MS is completely screwing over their customer base with Vista. As metric152 stated, Vista requires at *least* a 1.6 ghz processor and 512 megs RAM. I can't imagine that 50% (give or take) of the personal computers out there are going to be able to handle this, so either they will have to shell out for a brand new system just to run the latest operating system. Where you'd think that wouldn't necessarily be a problem, those who don't care about having the latest OS can just pass it up, think of the virus issues. MS promises so much increased security with Vista and it sounds like XP is just going to be somewhat overlooked with a shrug and a "sorry, you should upgrade" (the MS solution to everything). The worst part about it all is that it doesn't have to be that way, they're just trying to cover up all of the tarnishes to Windows by adding trivial elements like these stacks or piles or whatever they are, and especially this Aero stuff. Having titlebars that are eternally translucent and blur whatever is beneath it is slick, sure, but that's very needlessly taking up processor and video card power, just to run a freaking Windows Explorer window! Why!? Do they think that such candy effects are going to win over the population who may be thinking about switching to Mac OSX, assuming that it's merely a cosmetic thing? No, Macs are just much more stable and for the time have no viruses. THAT is why people are switching. I get the feeling that there will be a great deal more switchers when people look at the price tag that will be required just to run Vista and think "hmm, I could get a Mac for the same price."
Reply
11-21-2005 @ 4:53PM
blubman said...
It's actually quite simple. Vista looks better because poeple will want it to. Vista isn't meant to run on current PC's - M$ is aiming for NEW desktop PC that'll be purchased next summer. All new desktopsystems will probably have powerful 64-bits processors by than, and sufficient memory and a kickass graphicscard (for current standards). Ever noticed how fast the computer hardware is going? And it's still going faster and faster.
Those fancy folder thingies aren't the only thing Vista had to offer by the way. One of the main goals of Msoft in Vista is to have it boot in under 10 seconds, "reliable and fast like a television" (or something) is what they said.
Don't get me wrong, though. I won't run to the stores when it comes out. And I sure as hell won't download the beta. I know what happened with WinXP when it first came out - it was a lot worse than Win2k... I stuck with 2k for about 2 years before jumping on the XP-train. Just have patience and it might just turn out right.
Just my two pence.
Reply
11-24-2005 @ 3:21PM
Pixel Advertising Forum said...
I know the transparent Windows Vista bars are pretty cool and all, but I seriously doubt that the users would be calmed down by the esthetic appearance when seeing their computers under virus attack.
And I honestly don't think that the virus makers will stop doing what they do best just because Windows Vista looks nice.
Reply
11-27-2005 @ 2:20AM
Squirrel Milk said...
Vista huh...? Sounds like a money scam to me
Reply
12-02-2005 @ 4:47PM
undisclosed99 said...
"No, Macs are just much more stable and for the time have no viruses."
Yeah but as everybody moves to Mac more and more bugs/security holes will be found. Why do you think so many are found in Windows? (Besides bad programming!) Its because >50% of the world's population use it, and naturally any hacker will go for the "big cheese"! And like he said, there are few viruses now, but as it becomes more popular...well take a guess will ya? If Mac users had a little more common sence they wouldn't be bragging. Someday (probably sooner than we expect it) the Mac users will look up to the MS OSes and think "You know, Windows is more secure and has less viruses!" Don't think it will happen? People actually "downgrade" to the old Windows 9x to escape the problems of the new OS...and guess what? It works pretty damn good to!
Reply
12-04-2005 @ 2:24PM
undisclosed99 said...
by the way the "few viruses..." part was directed to the Mac OS.
Reply
12-06-2005 @ 11:33PM
deceasedcomrade said...
Windows Vista is part of a long standing trend of Microsoft stealing more and more ideas, and trying to do things that other operating systems have done for up to 30 years (XP had a ton of features that seemed to be straight from Unix). Vista is Microsoft's attempt to create the blend of functionality and style of OSX, which is probably going to fail miserably. But Vista isnt only going to be stealing from Apple, its going to be including bits of age old *nix technology, specifically in their BASH knockoff "MSH" which is going to (finally) introduce real functionality to the command line. Its not surprising that Microsoft is stealing most if its "innovations", because almost all other operating systems seem like a breath of fresh air when compared to windows.
Reply