Microsoft is recognized to get nicely on its way in organizing Windows seven, the next version of Windows consumer slated to ship in 2010. Up till now, yet, there has been next-to-no leakage on characteristics or features planned for that release.On November six,
Office Professional Plus, blogger Stephen Chapman aided break the silence. Chapman posted a listing of some of the planned investment places that will allegedly be component of Windows 7. Although none with the components around the list is earth-shattering — most are just evolutions of the “pillars” that Microsoft delivered with Windows Vista — there are a couple of new characteristics to put on your Windows-watching radar screens: StrongBox and Part Delivery Platform.Not surprisingly, Microsoft won;t confirm or deny whether the Windows 7 listing on Chapman;s site is correct. A corporate spokeswoman sent the subsequent response via email:“As a company, we;re always exploring new ways to innovate Windows, using customer feedback as a guide. We have no new information to share on future versions of the operating system at this time.”But given Chapman;s past track record when it comes to unearthing all kinds of confidential Microsoft info, I;m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and say what he has posted is most likely based on real Microsoft information/documentation.Here;s what stood out for me around the list:“Part Delivery Platform: Also known as CBS, this is the core infrastructure utilized for defining Windows SKUs, optional parts and for the setup and servicing of Windows. The current plan of the CBS team for Windows seven is to provide aggregation, installation,
Microsoft Office 2010 Key, and servicing constructs for Windows elements (elements,
Microsoft Office Standard, drivers, etc.), including a set of interfaces that will be used by internal and external customers for a wide variety of operations ranging from SKU construction to install, uninstall and servicing of Windows features. This infrastructure will be leveraged by Windows partners to build their features and optional components for Windows seven.“StrongBox: One of the biggest challenges is the impact of all the different kinds of applications on each other and the Windows platform itself. The results are growing frustration with desktop applications, higher cost of ownership, and customers’ apathy to try new applications. Microsoft has assembled a small team in the Core of the Windows Division whose primary task is to gain control of this problem and, over a series of releases, begin to alleviate it. The evolution with the application platform - deployment, configuration, state management, and servicing - all fall under this team’s focus. (Internal Only Link: I asked Chapman whether he thought the Component Delivery Platform might be the same as MinWin, the componentized Windows core upon which Windows seven is expected to be built. He mentioned the component platform is not MinWin.“The part delivery platform is something complete different. From the end-user;s perspective, it;s basically when you enter a key and that key tells (Windows) which version (or SKU) to install. From an OEM perspective,
Purchase Office 2010, they leverage the CDP to add their components into an install,
Windows 7 Product Key, such as Dell adding in drivers onto an install of Vista that you get on a Dell DVD if you buy one of their computers.”And what about StrongBox? Is it just BitLocker on steroids? Chapman said it could be BitLocker 2, but also could include more encryption/security features outside of what BitLocker delivers in Vista.Given how early it is in the Windows 7 development process, I;m expecting there will be lots more new functions (maybe as many as 300!) to come before the release goes gold. If there isn;t, this list sure makes Windows 7 seem like a very minor upgrade to Vista.(Windows Future Investment Locations. Image from January 2007 from UXEvangelist.)