Well, my headline may be a bit of an exaggeration, but in one case it is absolutely true. Computer manufacturers are being told by Microsoft that by the end of this year, they will no longer be able to install Windows XP in new computers. This comes in the face that consumer demand is still high for Windows XP in new systems and that Vista still has some on-going hardware and software compatibility issues.
Despite Microsoft's relentless promotion of Vista, manufacturers are still seeing plenty of demand from customers for systems preloaded with XP, especially in the finicky small office/home office market. In a recent post on its Direct2Dell blog, Dell reaffirmed to concerned customers that it wasn't about to force small business users, who typically purchase PCs piecemeal, rather than in large enterprise-style orders, to shift to Vista, which has experienced a less-than-stellar reaction from many buyers because of driver issues and moderately beefy hardware requirements.
There's general agreement amongst PC resellers that Vista has provided a minor boost to PC sales, but hasn't produced blockbuster numbers. One blogger I read recently said he thought Windows Vista should have been called Windows Edsel as it is the product Microsoft thought we should all have. Good one!
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