Safety above all else

Operating system Microsoft is launching Windows Vista, which it claims is the biggest update of its operating system to date. For a long time, operating systems were primarily a necessary evil in order to run programs on them. A prime example was MS DOS, which did exactly this job - and nothing more. With the transition from workplace computer to multifunctional device, which has changed both everyday work and private life in many areas, the requirements for operating systems have also changed. Several gigabytes in size and consuming almost as much memory, this basic software increasingly supports people in their communication and is the interface for digital input (digital camera, video camera, music and film data carriers, IP telephones) and output devices (monitors and projectors, printers, external data storage devices, etc.). In order to keep up with the ongoing changes in these areas, the operating systems have to be updated from time to time - but probably also in order to flush money into the manufacturers' coffers.
More secure - and more insightMicrosoft recently made such a significant update to its operating system. Its new Windows Vista system was unveiled at the end of January - more or less simultaneously around the world. Peter Waser, General Manager of Microsoft Switzerland, summed up the highlights of Vista at a launch event on Bern's Waisenhausplatz: "Vista is more secure, simpler and enables better handling of digital media." For the stability of the system, Microsoft has integrated a separate layer in the system; if an application crashes, this crash no longer has to affect the system itself. Thanks to this separation, among other things, it is now also more difficult for hackers to gain external access to a computer equipped with Vista. In the run-up to the announcement of Vista, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates spoke about security in an interview and claimed that Vista is currently the most secure operating system. It remains to be seen how long this statement will hold true.
New in Vista is a display variant in Windows Explorer that provides a preview of file content - this is particularly practical when searching for images. It is also easier to compile and create or burn DVD disks, for which ready-made themes can be used. The new interface, called Aero, is pleasing - which is a matter of taste and, as we all know, debatable. An innovative technology called Windows Flip 3D is very practical and pleasing, which keeps open windows slightly rotated and arranged one behind the other in perspective. This makes it very easy to switch between open windows - supported by the scroll wheel of the mouse if required.
Who invented it? After six years of users gaining "experience" or eXPeriences with Windows XP, it is now time for a "wow" effect - at least that is what Microsoft's current advertising message conveys. This effect is supposed to occur when the new Windows Vista (Vista) operating system is used. But what is so revolutionary, so fundamentally new about Vista apart from what has already been mentioned?
For most PC users in the world, a lot of things. However, some of the innovations touted as new may seem familiar to Mac OS X users... If you look at both systems, you will notice that there are many similarities between Mac OS X 10.4 and Windows Vista. The differences are often reduced to where the function is located or how it is labeled. Here are two examples to illustrate this: The search technologies Spotlight (Apple) and Microsoft's search function differ only in that Apple makes the function accessible at the top right and Microsoft at the bottom left - both search the system for terms entered and even do this in documents, e-mails etc. and list the results as a result. Second example: Vista's "Sidebar". This tool enables access to small auxiliary applications (clock, calendar, dynamically updated share prices, notes, etc.), which are called up by clicking on the sidebar icon and can then be moved around on the screen. Apple introduced this technology with OS X version 10.4 and calls the auxiliary applications "widgets" - Microsoft calls the little helpers "gadgets". There is no other recognizable difference between widgets and gadgets - both are based on HTML code and there are utility programs for both available for download on the Internet. Both wow effects if you haven't seen the functions before - but are they completely new?
Finding out whether and to what extent Microsoft copied from Apple's Mac OS X for Vista is a difficult task. It should not go unmentioned here that at the time Microsoft announced its new functions for Vista, Apple had also not yet included them in its OS X version at the time.
Also a strategic productIf you look at the latest efforts of Apple and Microsoft, you will notice that both are increasingly involved in the area of digital media content. While Apple launched an attack on the providers of digital video content shortly before the launch of Vista with the Apple TV set-top box in conjunction with iTunes, Microsoft is countering with another promising move in Switzerland: Vista opens up access to a website of the Swiss television channel SF, which was updated on February 15 and enables television-on-demand. This new service allows you to watch their programs
live or at a time after the TV broadcast. In addition to a broadband connection, a computer equipped with Windows Vista or at least Windows XP Media Center Edition is required.
 

 
 
Vista per se more secureSoftware
Microsoft has given Vista more than 300 new functions. WW: What's new about Windows Vista? Shanon Boetcher: Vista's look and feel has been completely revamped - without Windows XP users not being able to find their way around it immediately. The system maintains views of documents, images, etc. without having to open them. A technology called Windows Flip 3D simplifies access to several open windows. In addition, a number of functions that previously required separate programs have been integrated directly into the OS or the new Windows Explorer. Another highlight is the support for a wide range of hardware. For example, Vista now also supports the latest generations of computers and systems that can be controlled via touchscreen operation.WW: Anyone who goes online today is not immune to potential phishing attacks, viruses etc. What has Microsoft done in terms of security? What has Microsoft done in terms of security? Shanon Boetcher: Microsoft has developed a new architecture for Vista that makes the operating system more secure per se. A different security approach allows access times to be set and content to be blocked. A technology known as parental control makes it possible to track where children have looked on the Internet, for example. In addition, computers equipped with Vista are also secure against physical access by third parties - for example, if the laptop computer is lost or, as is increasingly the case, stolen.  

Windows milestones in summarized formIn 1985, Microsoft introduced
presented its first alternative to the MS-DOS system with Windows 1.0. Two years later, Windows was adapted to new processors: Windows 2.0 supported the Intel 286 and Windows 2.03 the Intel 386 processors.
In 1990, Windows 3.0 was launched - equipped with a program, file and print manager as well as new icons. Microsoft describes the introduction of Windows NT 3.1, a 32-bit server system that set new standards in terms of security, performance, scalability and reliability, as a milestone. Windows for Workgroups 3.11 was released in the same year; network capability was an integral part of this version.
In 1994, Windows NT Workstation 3.5 was introduced, which supported the OpenGL graphics language as well as file names up to 255 characters long. One year later, Windows 95 came onto the market, which Microsoft saw as the first successor system, replacing technologies from Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups and MS DOS.
The software company launched its Windows NT Workstation 4.0 operating system software in 1996. Microsoft cited further simplified user guidance and better network throughput as the highlights. The company then said goodbye to the term NT in 1998 and introduced Windows 98 in the same year, a version "specially developed to meet the needs of users". It made it easier to find information both on the PC and on the Internet, and also supported DVD reading and the connection of USB peripherals.
In 1999, Microsoft released Windows 98 Second Edition, a major update of Windows 98.
At the turn of the millennium, the Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition was released - the last system based on Windows 95 code.
In October 2001, Windows XP was launched on the market, combining the previous consumer and business systems into one system or system family. Playing music, movies and photos, exchanging information via messaging and other features became more central than before.
In addition to Windows XP with Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home Edition and in 2002 with Windows XP Media Center Edition as well as a version adapted for 64-bit Intel Itanium processors (Windows XP 64-bit Edition) and tablet PCs (Windows XP Tablet PC Edition), further XP versions were released for different requirements.
Windows Vista, available since January, is the latest system. There are four versions: Home Baisc, Home Premium, Ultimate and Business. (jf)
Jürgen Franck