Gates: 80 percent chance of Vista in January

Microsoft chairman tells software partners a delay is possible if beta testing yields problems.

While Microsoft officially ceased support today for its last-generation Windows 98 operating system, its next-gen, gamer-friendly Vista OS is not yet ready to go. According to Market Watch, during a presentation today to software partners in Cape Town, South Africa, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said there was an 80 percent chance the company would launch Vista in January.

"We got to get this absolutely right," Market Watch quotes Gates. "If the feedback from the beta tests shows it is not ready for prime time, I'd be glad to delay it."

Microsoft previously delayed the release of Vista from its planned 2006 launch in March to the current January date, saying the developers "needed just a few more weeks." Some of the operating system's planned features were actually cut in order to help meet that 2006 release date.

Any delay in the release of Vista would also impact gamers. At the D.I.C.E. Summit in February, Peter Moore, head of Microsoft's gaming division, apologized for the company's "dereliction of duty" when it came to PC games and emphasized how the Vista platform would benefit PC gamers. One of the higher-profile Vista titles set for release is the PC edition of Halo 2, which will run only on the Vista OS.

56 Comments

  • ukd4u_86

    Posted Jul 16, 2006 10:21 am PT

    i can wait 4 vista ....but not for Halo 2 !!!

  • _Sam_

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 9:48 pm PT

    They should take their time

  • Pete5506

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 7:57 pm PT

    LOL I cant wait for vista. Why is this you might say? I get it for free!!!!! How you might say? From where I work!! so I cant wait!!!!

  • juvinwo1

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 7:15 pm PT

    how much DOUGH is it gonna be??

  • i_love_my_ds

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 5:51 pm PT

    i wonder how much it will cost......

  • bigelf72

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 2:10 pm PT

    Most of you peeps are like "Its just a rehash of xp pro".....but beneath that is an entirely new vista exclusive caled Directx 10....and Directx 10 is yeilding a 60% performance gain over Directx 9 when playing games.....Vista not only looks great....but it will allow your graphics card to produce higher frames per second.

    Although alot of the visual effects that are included with Vista and Directx 10 are only capable with Directx 10 cards (soon to be released) Directx 10 games will be a huge leap above what we are playing right now.....like comparing last generation of console systems....to the new generation of console systems. There will be a big leap...Vistas release is the perfect time to build a new computer.

  • Bio_Spark

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 12:07 pm PT

    But... I'm not done with XP yet!

    It still feels too early to have another version. No smart person would buy a new OS for at least a year after it is released anyway. Same goes for consoles.

  • Kh1ndjal

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 12:01 pm PT

    i have a decent-old system (runs doom3 perfect medium qualitu 1024x72 and i installed a beta vista version, my pc crawled to deaths with bugs and lag

  • jheale

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 12:00 pm PT

    No surprise... have they ever released an OS on schedule

  • juanfraino

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 11:29 am PT

    im not in a hurry, because ill need to put at least 512 more RAM in my PC to have ar its full potential.

  • enoslives7

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 11:28 am PT

    Vista is a joke ! It is nothing more than a rehashed XP with some new bells and whistles.

  • shamarke

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 10:44 am PT

    Though I'm not a PC gamer it will still be a nice improvement

  • chrisdojo

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 9:46 am PT

    80% what the...... hey billy boy, either it comes out or it doesnt.

  • jaefrmbk2k

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 9:11 am PT

    no rush

  • crazy_boy166

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 8:04 am PT

    Cant wait

  • metdevthegamer

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 7:09 am PT

    That's good news. Not that I'm going to use Vista anytime soon after it's out; first time out I have no doubt it'll be all buggy, with spyware, viruses, and all sorts of nasty stuff. Once they get everything in check, then I'd give it a go.

  • thefjk

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 5:13 am PT

    This is the only microsoft product that I really crave for, and they are still gonna delay it, most of the BETA testers reported a couple of problems here and there but it was working aight! I just hope they finish it ASAP! I need a new PC!

  • ymcop

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 4:17 am PT

    haha, I think so, and I also have to buy a new computer to put "Vista" thing to my computer, Vista is great, but I don't really like Halo serie!

  • anamnawshad

    Posted Jul 12, 2006 12:26 am PT

    I'll wait.......maybe 2 years
    I have to get a new PC for that thing to run.......

  • vroenis

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 10:27 pm PT

    Early adopters are almost always punished by the highest price in a product's history, and the most reliability and compatability issues. Support from third party hardware and software producers, no matter how heavily promoted, is always soft in the first year of any product's release.

    There is no hurry to convert immediately, the point at which the first or second 'Service Pack' is released would most likely be the wisest time to purchase Vista, as has been the pattern with every Microsoft OS.

  • rynmls

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 10:08 pm PT

    vista is coming up..

  • Kayrod29

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 8:18 pm PT

    Cool, but I will wait

  • gamer_10001

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 7:49 pm PT

    Though I'm not a PC gamer it will still be a nice improvement.

  • grnidbandit

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 7:48 pm PT

    i will be getting vista professional on my new pc when all those bugs have been ironed out

  • spidey008

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 6:49 pm PT

    I can wait until it's ready. Windows Xp was a great advancement in OS's. I am excited about Vista overall and would love to see it released with few bugs...knock on wood.

  • chikahiro94

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 6:34 pm PT

    Hopefully the requirements for the nicer UI in Vista will help push the power found in integrated video solutions found on budget motherboards. Nobody is going to want to buy a new computer with Vista and be told they have to settle for the less pretty version...

    Toss in DirectX 10 and I'm pretty happy. I only have Windows for gaming anyhow - all my real work gets done in OS X.

  • runstalker

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:56 pm PT

    I believe the 'regular' flavor of Vista (think XP Home) will be $119.00, according to the MSRP leak at E3. Bear in mind: Vista is apparently going to SKU in 5 different flavors. Who knows where functionality like XP Pro will rank. No.4 or no.5 perhaps? As a gamer, you want the 'pro' version. That SKU fetches $199.00. So it's almost like buying a Wii! Of course, you'll have a Wii already by the time Jan '07 rolls around. Ask your woman for the Vista pre-purchase as your Christmas gift; how romantic.

  • K1LLSWITCH

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:54 pm PT

    I'll believe it when I see it. Then I'll laugh at it. In order to play Halo 2, a basic FPS that somehow made it to popularity, is only playable on Windows Vista? Whats next? Players will need to pay extra in order to play it online? Watch out for worthless patches to make the software compatible with the hardware, and possible pop up ad's. Since thats what Microsoft wants right?

  • gamepunk86

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:38 pm PT

    vista is gonna cost a crap load anyway. i'm just gonna wait years after it comes out to drop before getting it

  • Maquis_UK

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:30 pm PT

    so long as you're happy to be watched and spied upon. seeya micro$haft, i use no micro$haft software or hardware anymore. bill gates wants the world. end software tyranny now!!

  • Maquis_UK

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:30 pm PT

    [This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

  • makemeweak

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:29 pm PT

    Takes time to program for so many different billions of platforms, so it doesn't surprise or concern me. I'm just glad that Microsoft isn't trying to push anything out too soon. Anyway it will give me time to save up for an upgrade to my graphics card. The specs don't seem very taxing, but I'd like to be able to use DX10.

  • Chromebound

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 5:18 pm PT

    So many of you complain and whine about Vista now. Do you realize the same reaction took place prior to the release of XP? One day Vista will become the norm (sooner than later) and your adament approach to the operating system will have done nothing to slow its influence.

  • Pablo620

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 4:52 pm PT

    What a load of crap. i want Halo 2 for PC and i dont want Vista YET. What a bunch of ............ they are, forcing me to get Vista. From March 2006 to January 2007, just a few weeks

  • sstravisd

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 4:45 pm PT

    I wouldn't care if Gates says 99% chance of Vista in January.

  • elementfx

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 4:44 pm PT

    Well I do. The pc version of halo was way better on computer. So I'm hoping halo 2 will turn out the same. I think it will.

  • jasonmacrillo

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 4:22 pm PT

    run damnsmalllinux on yer 386 itll run sweet forget 98

  • Phazevariance

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 4:20 pm PT

    Running Beta 2 right now, and lots of XP software works on it. DX10 will make DX9 look like old pac-man graphics. Just wish Nvidia and ATI would get some better drivers finished for it. Hard to benchmark on beta drivers...

  • SnuffDaddyNZ

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:59 pm PT

    Sucks about Windows 98, I have a few games that don't work on XP (most notably the first four need for speed games), and besides that it's the best choice for running old DOS games.

    When I have run Win98 on dual boot to play certain old games I always make sure to unplug my router.

  • Chubbums

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:45 pm PT

    2 kinncolts, how do I know Halo 2 is an overhyped game? Because I own it and have played online alot.

    proof

  • runstalker

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:45 pm PT

    I just want a stable, commercial 64-bit OS that plays oh-so-friendly with my FX-60. Not too much to ask for!

  • tyler2010

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:41 pm PT

    How Much i wonder?

  • JephirDromulus

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:38 pm PT

    Well, the thing that happened to Halo PC might happen to Halo 2 PC. People make millions of mods and soon you have multiplayer with flying warthogs... hmm... that's not a bad idea! I'll put that on my to-do list.

  • rwbojorquez

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:36 pm PT

    I tried vista the beta version. I have a decent processor but good for vista i believe if you get you need a dual core processor.

  • Ronin_87

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:36 pm PT

    The biggest issue I have with Halo 2 on PC is that even though it doesn't use DX10 at all (stated previously by devs) M$ insist on making it Vista exclusive. It's really annoying.

  • kinncolts

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:34 pm PT

    2 chubbums..how is Halo 2 overhyped?????

    it was one of the best games for XBOX...the best mutliplayer game to this day...adn with the expanded online features..better graphics..and map editor...i think it will de really well..

  • JoHnWeSs187

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:33 pm PT

    Vista plague with drm, wga, and spyware. Plus they want private info from the user. Yep zero privacy from mircosoft lastest OS.

  • blackIceJoe

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:25 pm PT

    I really do not care when Vista comes out XP is fine with me.

  • caesarbites

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:17 pm PT

    Wow. Halo 2!! I can't wait to play that game. I hope it's good.

  • rgsniper1

    Posted Jul 11, 2006 3:17 pm PT

    Personally I'd wait until I saw Halo 2 running on Vista before I'd dog it. Being on PC and with a good development time, it could be the Halo that people have been waiting for.

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