A Microsoft product manager couldn't correctly explain the "Vista Capable" marketing slogan, according to recent filings in a lawsuit that claims the company misled consumers with a prerelease Vista campaign last year.

In its continued attempt to convince business customers to adopt Vista, Microsoft has outlined and tried to explain some of what it calls the OS's most "misunderstood" features in a document posted to -- then mysteriously removed from -- its Web site this week.

I think Microsoft has given up on Vista behind the scenes. I’m sending this via email because well, I know it sounds like tinfoil hat time, but I think there’s some validity to it.

As the release of low-cost laptops based on Intel's upcoming Atom processor draws near, Microsoft is getting boxed into a corner. The software company plans to stop selling most Windows XP licenses after June 30, yet most of these low-cost laptops won't be powerful enough to run Vista when they arrive later this year.

Microsoft Corp. clarified its plans to seek open-source certification for its shared-source licenses on Wednesday, saying it will submit for approval only the two licenses that allow source code to be used on any platform.

Not only did Windows Vista - billed by Microsoft as its biggest operating system for 10 years - fail to distinguish Microsoft's latest fiscal year from previous, non-Windows-Vista years, but Microsoft also missed its own expectations by several million dollars.

Microsoft announced plans today to expand support for Windows XP on budget flash-storage computing devices with an eye towards getting Windows XP running on the OLPC. The software giant will publish design guidelines next year that will make it possible for manufacturers of low-cost mobile devices to build hardware that provides optimal compatibility with Microsoft's legacy operating system. The company also announced plans for field trials next month that will put Windows XP to the test on One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project's XO laptop.

I knew it. Vista simply wasn’t ready for prime time. Some internal documents that emerged from a class-action lawsuit over Vista Capable illustrated that hardware vendor, Dell, pushed back on Microsoft to fix issues with Vista before launching. Microsoft knew fully well of Dell’s feedback as early as Aug 2005.

If you read my blog yesterday, you noticed my entry about Microsoft's move to retire XP and effectively force Windows shops into a wasteful migration to Vista.