Microsoft announces first major update for Windows Vista

Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, is planning to make Windows Vista Service Pack 1 available in the first quarter of 2008, according to a posting on company’s WIndows Vista blog.

Vista SP1 is Microsoft’s first major update for the latest operating system, Windows Vista, and it features security upgrades, improved performance, and support for emerging hardware and standards.

Ending months-long speculations that have long been circulating around possible “Windows service packs”, the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions, Microsoft on Wednesday revealed in its posting that the first beta of Windows Vista SP1 will be shipped to the testers in the coming weeks, while a final version as early as the end of this year.

The Redmond company will release the Windows Vista SP1 as a limited beta, meaning it initially will be released to a "moderate sized audience" and won't be available for general download. General public will get access to the update by the first quarter of year 2008.

"A small group of testers has been putting a preview of the SP1 Beta through its paces to help prepare for broader release," Nick White, a Microsoft product manager, wrote in Windows Vista’s official blog. "We made the choice to start with a very small group of testers because we think it's better for both our customers and for Microsoft to keep the beta program small at the start."

The Windows Vista SP1 is intended to address key feedbacks Microsoft has so far received from its Vista users who mainly complained about its Performance, compatibility, and reliability.

However, Vista SP1 won't deliver any new features, but it will be capable of fixing problems related to the three major trouble areas. Besides many of the patches, fixes, and updates thus far released through Windows Update as well as some other fixes and adds, the SP1 will include support for new types of hardware such as the Extended File Allocation Table (exFAT), a new file system that allows for easier transfers between mobile devices and a PC.

In addition, a new encryption generator, improved security algorithms, better performance for SD Card data transfer, and common security APIs for security partners will also be added to it.

Microsoft will make Vista SP1 available in three forms: express, stand-alone, and slipstream. The express version would enable users to download a pared down version of SP1 online, while the stand-alone option is intended for computers with limited Internet connectivity. The slipstream version, which already includes the service pack, enables companies to deploy Vista on new computers or to upgrade existing ones.

Launched on January 30, 2007 for consumers, Vista has attracted more than 20 million consumers worldwide in its debut month to buy the licenses, apparently giving a strong presence in the consumer market. Vista for commercial clientele was launched in November last year.

Windows Vista, company's first new operating system in five years, is donned with a number of features, including Windows Aero, a redesigned user interface, a new Window Shell, consisting of improved filtering, sorting and grouping, and a Windows Sidebar, a panel on the side of the screen where the user can place desktop gadgets.