Seven versions of Vista
by Nikola Strahija on September 14th, 2005 Windows-watcher Paul Thurrott claims that Microsoft plans to release the next version of Windows in seven different variants.
According to him, Vista will exist in a number of forms depending on whether it is being used in the home or workplace.
Home users will be able to choose from Vista Home Basic Edition, Vista Home Premium Edition, and Vista Ultimate Edition, and there will be a stripped-down version for sale in developing countries called Vista Starter Edition.
Business users will encounter one of three versions, including Vista Small Business Edition, Vista Professional Edition, and Vista Enterprise Edition.
Thurrott says the product names are not final but the division of a single operating system into so many different variants sounds plausible. Microsoft’s Windows Empire currently comprises an equally large and confusing array of versions, but these relate mainly to different generations of the software released in the last decade.
-What's scary here, of course, is how widely Microsoft is expanding the Windows product line. As with its Office family of products, Microsoft is stretching things a bit with this wide number of product editions, and this will lead to consumer and business confusion, he concludes.
