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Updated: Microsoft’s Steven Sinofsky Speaks About Windows 7
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As Windows XP deadline approaches
Q: In contrast to the pre-release publicity for earlier versions of Windows, we haven’t heard a lot about Windows 7. Why?
Ans. We’re always super anxious as engineers to talk about the work that we’re doing. But on the other hand we really take seriously our responsibility of being part of the overall Windows and PC ecosystem. We want to make sure that when we do share information, that the information we share is accurate and reliable, and that we have in place the mechanisms for feedback such that the feedback is really taken seriously with respect to our plans. The reactions that we’ve had to some of the lessons learned in Windows Vista are really playing into our strategy of getting together a great plan for Windows 7, and working with all the partners in the ecosystem in a very deliberate way, such that the end result is a very positive experience for all of us.
Q: How do you balance that with trying to make sure that people see a future in Windows worth investing in?
Ans. Well, that’s a great question. I think that when you say people, there are many audiences. What we’re trying to do is be deliberate with each of the many audiences that we have to deal with, and give them the information such that they do see and share the optimism that we share for the future of Windows and the future of PCs. So, it’s really an audience-specific type of question.
Q: A lot of our readers are pretty passionate about computers, and we haven’t heard as many reasons from Microsoft as we hear from your competitors about why people should be excited about the direction the platform is going in.
Ans. I would talk about an example of the way that we see this playing out, which is the way that we’ve talked about Internet Explorer 8. With Internet Explorer, of course, we have a lot of enthusiasts or very activist people who really want to learn about the future of our browsers, and we put together a plan that had some really significant investments, and we started to talk about them when we felt like we could demonstrate that those investments were going to really pay off, and that they were going to be actionable. So, you saw us do the planning, come through with working with all the partners that we work with and the influentials in a very deliberate, very one-on-one kind of way, and then we started talking about it broadly. We were ready with a beta, and we were ready for people to really act on the work we had done, and provided us the feedback that we’re actually ready to absorb and ready to put into action.
So, for the enthusiasts, who are really excited about Windows, well, first, I share their enthusiasm. And second, we’re really going to focus on making sure that when we talk about the product, that they’re getting information that is really what we’re doing for the product.
Q: In the absence of information from Microsoft about where it’s going, it seems like you have your competitor, in this case Apple, on the consumer front really defining Microsoft in the absence of Microsoft defining Windows out there in the marketplace.
Ans. In a way that’s a different question. That’s sort of a question about how are we talking about our current products in the marketplace. I think that Apple has a very visible campaign, and we work with partners, and have a very different approach to how we’re communicating our product. In a way, what I would say is Apple isn’t really talking about where they’re going, and that was the root of your question.
Q: So, when Bill Gates was speaking in Miami, and said that Windows 7 was coming in the next year, was he referring to when the beta version would show up?
Ans. What I think I want to say is what I just said, which is we said we’d be out there with a release of Windows 7 three years after the general availability of Windows Vista. We’re excited; the investments that we have are really about producing a major and significant release at that time.
Q: So, were the problems with Vista support and
Ans. I don’t really want to dwell too much on the views of the past, and sort of just tell you again the lessons that we learned in working with partners. The team feels this tremendous responsibility to working with IHVs and ISVs and OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), because they’re running businesses, they have their own business challenges, their own business goals, their own aspirations, and when we speak about what we might do, they will take it seriously. So, we appreciate that and we respect that, and it’s a great benefit. But if we’re not accurate or the information we provide causes them to do one thing, and then we change our mind, that doesn’t bring the ecosystem forward. A big set of challenges that we learned…is making sure that the information we provide legitimately reflects the promises that we’re making to ourselves and to the team as a product.
Q: Is one of the goals with Windows 7 that there will be more things right out of the box to get people interested in this release?
Ans. Again I don’t want to talk about any more specifics today, because we’re focused today on how we’re going to communicate things. But really again to really make sure I’m clear, we’re working on a major release, and I think that each customer segment will have its own way of understanding what it means for them to be a significant release. And some of the things that we’re going to do are going to make the release more applicable to a broader set of people, but it also might mean, oh, well, if you’re not re-architecting the whole thing, then maybe it’s not a major release. But we’re actually going to bring forward the compatibility, and we’re going to make sure that there’s a lot of value for everybody who’s a customer of Windows 7.
Q: Do you think there’s a risk that the more tight-lipped nature publicly will alienate some enthusiasts and folks who really want to know early on where you guys are going?
Ans. There are many different models for disclosure that different companies work in, and I talked about the one that we’re basing on the lessons that we learned from Windows Vista. But, of course, you could look at any of the other vendors in the marketplace, and see how they deal with disclosure, and come up with different models, and speculate about the pros and cons that they really see. I think that we’re just focused–the No. 1 goal we’re focused on is really the responsibility that we feel, and the respect that we have for all of our customers and partners, and making sure that what we share with them is really accurate and actionable, and that we are focused, like I keep saying, promise and deliver.
Let me just end with this. Look, we’re working–the team is working super, super hard on this release of Windows, and you have to imagine we’d really be excited to start showing it to people. We want to show it, and we want people to get their hands on it, but we want to do that under the umbrella of being responsible members of the ecosystem, and being respectful of people’s time and energy and the work that they’ll put in to making Windows 7 great from the work that they can do.
You can read rest of the interview here.
While there has been too much talks about Windows 7 we happened to get some of the screenshots on how Windows 7 looks. As Windows 7 is going to get introduced in 2010 many of these features can change.
These were some of the awesome pictures. I am looking forward for its release. Here is a small summary on Windows 7 via Wikipedia:
Windows 7 (formerly known as Blackcomb and
Microsoft is maintaining a policy of silence concerning discussion of plans and aspirations for Windows 7 as they focus on the release and marketing of Windows Vista, stating that Microsoft does not want to promise features and then fail to deliver, as happened with Windows Vista Ultimate, though some early details of various core operating system features have emerged. As a result, little is known about the feature set, though public presentations from company officials have disseminated information about some features. Leaked information from people to whom Milestone 1 (M1) of Windows 7 was shipped also provides some insight into the feature set.
I hope that Windows 7 fulfills consumer’s desires and expectations or Microsoft might run into some more serious problems. And hopefully Steve Ballmer will stop using Mac if 7 turns out to be a better OS. Lol. 
Update: While I was busy updating my Twitter status I happened to read labnol’s tweet which says “Long finds the source of fake Windows 7 screenshots that you just saw at Techcrunch.” Hmm..So we are not the only one who fell for the pics which are said to be fake. Anyways here is the link which says that the pics are fake. Would love to get your feedback regarding the same.
Windows 7 pic source : CrunchGear
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