WinInformant meldt dat we op 28 februari al Beta 2 van Windows XP kunnen verwachten. Ook wordt in het artikeltje gemeldt dat Windows XP Home Edition en Professional gereleased zullen worden op 30 mei en de server-editie op 1 oktober. Zoals we al eerder meldden komt er in Beta 2 een nieuwe user interface, genaamd "Luna". In deze nieuwe interface zullen de icoontjes wat groter/vriendelijker zijn, die in 24-bits kleur gerenderd worden. Windows XP 2 Beta zal ook het nieuwe login scherm krijgen dat op de CES gepresenteerd is. Hieronder een gedeelte uit het artikel:
The server editions of Whistler will also be refreshed with Beta 2, and corporations are eager to see the new features, which have been less widely touted than the client improvements. CRN says that Whistler Server Beta 2 will include drag and drop object management in Active Directory, a Resultant Set of Policies feature for performing "what if" scenarios before committing the changes, cross-forest management capabilities, a new version of the Microsoft Management Console (MMC), and a number of Active Directory-related bug fixes.
[...] Though the company has long been criticized for maintaining separate consumer- and business-oriented operating system products, the consolidation of these lines with XP will introduce some interesting new problems. How Microsoft plans to market a product with a dual-use personality remains to be seen, and it will be interesting to see how corporations react to a new release of Windows that seems to be targeted almost exclusively at home users. Either way, we should know more Tuesday, when executives Bill Gates and Jim Allchin introduce Windows XP and its new user interface at the Experience Music Project (EMP) in Seattle.
Met dank aan Daniel voor de tip.