Windows Vista

Windows Vista is an operating system by Microsoft. It was released worldwide on 2007-01-30. It succeeds Windows XP and was replaced by Windows 7. It reached RTM on 2006-11-08.

The development of Windows Vista has gone through many stages, starting from 2001 (under the codename Whistler +1) to it's final release in November 2006. Windows Vista (or 'Longhorn' as it was originally known) was intended as a bridging release between 'Whistler' (Windows XP) and the later version of Windows 'Blackcomb' (which much later became Windows 7). Feature creep became an issue as development progressed, and stability was a major issue throughout development. As a result, development of Windows Codename "Longhorn" was reset, soon after the compilation of build 4093. The original code base was Windows Server 2003 RC. Omega-13 builds also used Server 2003 as a base, but the Service Pack 1 build was used to help improve stability and security. In April 2005, a pre-beta build was released to testers (build 5048). This build showed the progress made since the reset, and also proved much more stable than previous builds. Build 5112 (Beta 1) was released to the public soon afterwards, and showcased an early version of the Aero interface, as well as many stability improvements over XP. Over the next year, many builds were pushed to testers in a public beta program.

Editions
Windows Vista came in many editions. Unlike Windows XP, there was no special edition for Media Center and 64-bit capability, since these features were included in at least one of the consumer editions. Windows Vista also did not have an embedded version, perhaps due to the considerable grunt required to run optimally.
 * Starter This edition is intended for emerging markets and low-cost PC's. As in XP, the 3-program limit was there , and only 1GB RAM was accepted. Other software restrictions applied as well. This version is hence not available in 64-bit.
 * Home Basic Found in low cost to mid-end, this version of Windows Vista does not fully have Aero(though it has DWM) , and hence does not have effects like transparency and 3D Flip. Windows Media Center is also dropped from this build. Parental Controls is included however. It does not have the hardware and 3-program limit.
 * Home Premium The consumer version of Windows Vista, this version includes full Aero functionality and Windows Media Center. It also includes Premium Games(eg - Inkball).
 * Business The business oriented version of Windows Vista, it contains several features like full RDP(client/host) capability, Group Policy and domain join ability. However , Windows Media Center and Parental Controls are not included, and Premium Games are disabled by default.
 * Ultimate The top consumer variant of Windows Vista, it is a merger of the features included Windows Vista Home Premium and Business. Bitlocker is included in this version.
 * Enterprise The business variant of Windows Vista. It is similar to Ultimate, but without Windows Media Center and includes enterprise-specific tools.

Note that certain features(like Aero or TV support) may require premium/different/upgraded hardware and so may not be available on all PCs's.