Windows Vista Versions
Back to first ever full GUI (Graphical User Interface) powered Windows - Windows 95, there is only one edition of it. At that time, you used Windows 95 at home, at work or maybe in restroom watching your VCDs. This one edition culture continues from Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows ME till Windows 2000. Then, when Microsoft released the Microsoft Windows XP, there were two versions - Home edition and Professional edition. As an IT guy, I was also being asked the same question by my clients, “which version of Windows XP I should buy?” I told them “it is easy, use Home edition at home, Professional edition at work. Using Home edition doesn’t mean you are not professional at all (Luckily, Microsoft didn’t name Professional Edition as Smarter Edition).” Easy, right? If you still get confused with Windows XP editions, then Microsoft Windows Vista will blow you away.
Do you ever wonder how many editions of Microsoft Windows Vista will be? The answer is 7. Yes, you read right, there are 7 editions of Microsoft Windows Vista and to be honest, if you ask me what are difference between these 7 editions, I can’t answer you on the spot. I still have to read my notes below.
1. Windows Vista Starter Edition
Likes XP Starter Edition, is a crippled (and lame) product aimed at the two-thirds world. It will limit users to three concurrent applications, and provide only basic TCP/IP networking, and won’t be suitable for most games.
2. Window Vista Home Basic Edition
The sibling of today’s Windows XP Home. However, as the name suggests, there’s also Home Premium Edition, and this is where we start to split features like hairs and create a gaggle of products. HPE will build on the the Basic Edition by adding, most notably, the next-generation of Media Center capabilities, including support for HDTV, DVD authoring, and even DVD ripping backed up (of course) by Windows DRM. For non-corporate types, this is probably going to be the OS that most people use. It’s similar to XP Pro in power, but with all of the added bells and whistles for entertainment. Well, most of them.
3. Windows Vista Professional Edition
This won’t occupy the same spot that XP Pro occupies today, because this time it’s truly aimed at businesses. It won’t feature the MCE functionality that Home Premium Edition has, but it begins to provide the kind of functionality you’d expect in a business environment, such as support for non-Microsoft networking protocols and Domain support. But don’t expect too many businesses to necessarily turn to PE. Microsoft is also planning both a Small Business Edition and an Enterprise Edition, which build upon pro by adding (seemingly minor) features aimed at appealing to each market. SBE, for instance, includes a networked backup solution, while EE will include things like Virtual PC integration, and the ability to encrypt an entire volume of information.
4.Windows Vista Ultimate Edition
Oh, ya Ultimate!
5. Windows Vista Pro Edition
The best operating system ever offered for a personal PC, optimized for the individual. Windows Vista Ultimate Edition is a superset of both Vista Home Premium and Vista Pro Edition, so it includes all of the features of both of those product versions, plus adds Game Performance Tweaker with integrated gaming experiences, a Podcast creation utility (under consideration, may be cut from product), and online “Club” services (exclusive access to music, movies, services and preferred customer care) and other offerings (also under consideration, may be cut from product). Microsoft is still investigating how to position its most impressive Windows release yet, and is looking into offering Ultimate Edition owners such services as extended A1 subscriptions, free music downloads, free movie downloads, Online Spotlight and entertainment software, preferred product support, and custom themes. There is nothing like Vista Ultimate Edition today. This version is aimed at high-end PC users and technology influencers, gamers, digital media enthusiasts, and students.
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