Okay, Fiji is due for release at midnight PST on the 22nd May; but having used and tested Vista since it was first released last year, the build has taken 10 months to reach a point where it does not keep crashing. Knowing that the team have worked wonders, against all the odds, in the development of Vista; I do NOT believe that it's ready for release just yet.

Look at it this way ?

Microsoft need to address support issues before the release ?.

With the release of IE7 Beta2 Preview, Microsoft failed to advise that the version prior to March 20th was vulnerable to several known issues. It was only after considerable pressure was applied & logic argued that Microsoft amended the relevant KB to state that IE7B2P was vulnerable, and that users should update.

This raises another issue in that the user is required to remove IE7B2P, which invokes a system restore point, and removes any applied patches/software that has been installed after the IE7B2P leaving the machine vulnerable to attack, until the user has re-applied the patches; but in the meantime their machine is within the public domain with minimal security; yet Microsoft were not willing to accept responsibilty for this issue, and continually stated that IE7B2P should not be used upon a live system - ? Just how many spare non-productive computers do they think a family owns ?

There are still bugs within the product, that have been identified for quite some time, not to mention that lack of drivers - whether this is originally a Microsoft issue or not, it is Microsoft that will receive the grief, and therefore something that Allchin should ensure is resolved before Fiji is released to the public, (currently scheduled for Midnight 22nd May PST).

There is also the lack of documentation concerning the build for the general public; in that the x64 version uses both "program files", and "program files(x86)" yet this has not been mentioned in anything that I have seen available to the general public.

Will Microsoft also release documentation explaining how to navigate around their new "Windows Explorer"? - This can be confusing upon first use ...

My biggest concern is how will Microsoft handle security patches.

Microsoft currently state that Vista should not be installed upon a live production system. however, with the pending release of the Operating Environment into the Public arena, Microsoft have the moral responsibility to ensure that those people who have installed Vista, and who are testing it - whether it be for kudos, curiosity, or research - are fully protected.

If Microsoft are not going to include Vista within their monthly patch cycles, then they need to produce a statement to this effect; and explain whether they are going to continue issuing monthly updates - as current - which will cause an uproar from within the user community.

Although I have blogged upon this issue, I have kept it to exclusive sites. However, for once I'm going to raise my head above the parapet & openly state that although Vista has the potential to be a really good and secure OE that until Microsoft have address the support, and security issues it is not ready for release to the public community until Jim Allchin, (as Project leader), must ensure that he has provided a resolution to these issues before any form of Public Beta is considered ....

Vista has the potential to be one of the best OE?s released by Microsoft, however, with current guidance from senior management, (JA), Vista has the potential to become more of a joke than Me ? and we still laugh about that today !!

If Jim Allchin is placing his name upon this release, and stating that he is happy with the product in it's current guise then he is both a danger to Microsoft and a fool displaying that there is a need to be removed sooner rather than in August of this year.

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