November 6, 2009 6:37 AM

Microsoft moved a lot of install disks, but hardware makers got a bigger bump two years ago

When Microsoft (MSFT) launches a new operating system, as it did two weeks ago, PC manufacturers like Hewlett Packard (HPQ), Dell (DELL) and Acer are supposed to reap the benefits. And everything seemed to be in place on Thursday Oct. 22 for that to happen.

But PC makers didn't make out quite as well. Although they had a relatively strong week, with unit sales up 49% year over year and 95% from the week before, it was nothing like Vista's launch in Feb. 2007. Then, sales soared 68% year over year and 170% from the week before.

In a press release issued Thursday, Baker explained what happened:

A combination of factors impacted Windows 7 PC sales at the outset, Baker wrote. Vista had a slight advantage at launch, as January traditionally has a bigger sales footprint than October. The other hurdle Windows 7 faced was sales of PCs with older operating systems (XP and Vista) were high, making up 20 percent of sales during the Windows 7 launch, compared to just 6 percent of older operating sales during Vistas launch week.

Ironically, it was the computer manufacturers who did best in Feb. 2007. Sales of new PCs with Vista pre-installed were up 67% the week that Vista launched compared with the same week in 2006....

http://vr-zone.com/forums/504924/vista-sold-more-pcs-than-windows-7-did.html

Now although information about Windows 8 will eventually become available, rather than the lack of information to this day about WMDs, Windows 8 details still remain sketchy. Here are Windows 8’s Known Knowns:

1.It will be called Windows 8 and there’s even a Windows 9 in the pipeline
2.It will be released no earlier than 2012 – it is unlikely it will be released in 2011
3.It will have new networking features
4.It will include 128 bit support and will see the end of 32 bit Operating Systems
5.It won’t be Microsoft’s last client based OS - Steve Ballmer says that won’t happen for 10-20 years.

http://windows8news.com/2009/10/22/windows-8s-known-knowns/

1.It will be called Windows 8 and there’s even a Windows 9 in the pipeline

4.It will include 128 bit support and will see the end of 32 bit Operating Systems

5.It won’t be Microsoft’s last client based OS - Steve Ballmer says that won’t happen for 10-20 years.

For starters, we can now say with some certainty that the Windows 7 build I tested is just a repackaging of Windows Vista. Key processes look and work much like they do under Vista, and preliminary benchmark testing shows that Windows 7 performs right on a par with its predecessor. Frankly, Windows 7 is Vista, at least under the hood; if nothing else, this should translate into excellent backward compatibility with Vista-certified applications and drivers.

I'm fully aware of what W7 is, it's what Vista should have been if MS hadn't cut corners, rushed it to the market, and hadn't gotten sidetracked with security issues in XP.

They didn't cut corners at all. This is perfectly in line with their business model.

They brought out Windows 95 with lots of bugs. Then when the customers had effectively tested Windows 95 and found the bugs, they brought out the finished version and called it Windows 95.

Then they brought out Windows 2000, let the customers test it, and then brought out Windows XP later as the finished version.

Then they brought out Windows Vista, let the customers test it, and then brought out Windows 7 as the finished version.

It saves them millions, because they don't need to test it themselves. They get almost double the income, by lots of consumers buying both versions. They've done it 3 times and every time, their customer base have accepted it.

It's a successful business strategy. You cannot blame them for making money with a strategy that has been successful again and again.

It's us consumers who are willing to fall for it. We're the mugs.

Most people who have Vista or 7 have it because they got it with a new PC or laptop. Everyone I know who's got Vista hasn't had any problems with it. I never even had any problems with XP. I think if you have any problems with your OS, it's probably because your PC or laptop can't run it properly. I think the XP versus Vista versus 7 debate is exaggerated.