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All I will say is that while this specific compile isn't the February CTP, but it is an early build of the CTP. It will bare the build number 5308 and will be from the idx01 branch. The build itself installs much faster than any previously release builds, and Thurrot is correct about the Sidebar being in the build. The build is feature complete, although it is not UI complete... meaning the April CTP (aka Beta 2/RC0 equivalent... although the April CTP will not be milestone quality) will contain most of the final UI touches and bits.

Umm... what do you mean by "April CTP will not be milestone quality?" Are you talking about Beta 2?

Umm... what do you mean by "April CTP will not be milestone quality?" Are you talking about Beta 2?

Excuse that, I was mistaken speaking Allchin had made statements as if the April CTP wouldn't be a Milestone... while I recently was told it should be a combined Beta 2 and RC0 Milestone that gets released around that time... sorry for the confusion, but blame it on Jim Allchin :laugh:

Excuse that, I was mistaken speaking Allchin had made statements as if the April CTP wouldn't be a Milestone... while I recently was told it should be a combined Beta 2 and RC0 Milestone that gets released around that time... sorry for the confusion, but blame it on Jim Allchin :laugh:

Huh? Do you have a source? I'm quite sure Allchin said nothing of the sort. And Beta 2 and RC0 are not the same thing...

Looks like there are some cool changes in store in the February CTP.

Hey what's this about RC0? Allchin said quite clearly there will be no RC0. I'm sure I read it or heard it right.

Anyway. Congratulations to the OEM Testers. They kept build 5308 a secret for far longer than I thought they would.

#1: The many interviews Allchin has done lately have had him saying there would be no more milestones for Vista until RC1, at least thats how I took these comments by him...

"Beta 2 is really the culmination of the three previous CTPs," Allchin told me. "It's really just a different approach for developing the product. We think about Windows Vista only in terms of CTPs. But you can think of it as Beta 2, or the final Beta 2, or even as RC0. We think the quality is going to be good enough there that we won't even have to do an RC0 release. And then the next CTP will be RC1."

I asked Mr. Allchin if he thought whether other groups at Microsoft would pick up on the CTP approach and drop the major milestone schedule. "I don't know," he said. "Certainly, we're going to do it with this product, and we're getting a lot of good feedback. We'll have to see. Many of the things we think of as platforms are doing CTPs as well. But you still have to designate a CTP for a particular purpose, which is what the beta [releases] were for. The difference is that, instead of having a beta and then huge amounts of dead time, and then another huge drop, you have more constant updates. And we think that will speed up the development process."

However, he confused me and others, because my internal MS sources confirm for me the following...

#2: Beta 2 and RC0 WILL be the same thing, well sort of anyhow... thus the April CTP. This will be refered to as a Milestone, equal to Beta 2, but not 'just' Beta 2. Even Allchin said it could be considered as RC0. Honestly, by the time it strolls around... I wouldn't doubt they dub it RC0... but for now it will be a Beta 2/RC0 hybrid 'so to speak'... don't you just love Microsoft? lol

I hope that clears things up... for now... :blink:

I dont think so, i think vista is gona have that black theme, but they may had a bit more shine to it so it looks more mordern for those who wont have Areo ( i think thats the right one) intallled on their system.

It WILL have a blue look and feel kind of theme, it was said by one of the developers on a recent Channel 9 interview, btw a link to that interview is a few topics below read on.

It WILL have a blue look and feel kind of theme, it was said by one of the developers on a recent Channel 9 interview, btw a link to that interview is a few topics below read on.

The only blue thing that's planned is Aurora, but it's expected in many, MANY places, so it makes the look and feel "blue"

However, he confused me and others, because my internal MS sources confirm for me the following...

#2: Beta 2 and RC0 WILL be the same thing, well sort of anyhow... thus the April CTP. This will be refered to as a Milestone, equal to Beta 2, but not 'just' Beta 2. Even Allchin said it could be considered as RC0. Honestly, by the time it strolls around... I wouldn't doubt they dub it RC0... but for now it will be a Beta 2/RC0 hybrid 'so to speak'... don't you just love Microsoft? lol

I don't know about this whole combined Beta 2/RC0 speculation. I certainly can't speak for the official plans, but we're still working toward Beta 2, just as always. I don't know what the deal is with the RC0/RC1 business. Does it really matter what the first RC is named?

I don't know about this whole combined Beta 2/RC0 speculation. I certainly can't speak for the official plans, but we're still working toward Beta 2, just as always. I don't know what the deal is with the RC0/RC1 business. Does it really matter what the first RC is named?

My information is fact, so anything you've heard is either outdated or simply wrong. The Milestone will be a combination of Beta 2 and RC0. By April they may just decide to call it RC0, but that all depends on if they believe it is of quality, and personally I expect it to be such. You can kind of think of the February CTP Build 5308 to be the Beta 2 that isn't milestone quality, but rather CTP quality. What comes in April will be much better in more ways than I care to conclude. :cool:

i don't think micrsoft will include any 'old' theme's (xp and longhorn builds)

i don't worry about it at all...can you imagine what stardock could do with vista's technologies ?

microsoft and apple don't care about customization...but that's where companies like stardock and panic fill that void.

Quite pointless. ActiveWin just wants publicity, i think this is their attempt at grabbing more attention to their website

At least we don't post incorrect information on our frontpage (Vista SKUs). :whistle:

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