[Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes.

**NetRyder** · December 9th, 2005

Windows Vista December CTP: Build 5276

The December Community Preview (CTP) build of Windows Vista will be build 5276, plus or minus one build, I was told today. Beta testers, MSDN subscribers, and TechNet members can expect to the see December CTP in a week or ten days. It includes a huge number of new features when compared to the previous CTP (October), but is not the feature complete version of Vista that Microsoft promised to deliver in December. That feature complete version will be delivered internally this month, but testers won't see a feature complete CTP until January or February.

Microsoft Cuts Vista UI to Two Display Modes

And speaking of Windows Vista, you might recall that Microsoft had originally planned to deliver three versions of the new user interface, called Aero Glass, Aero Express, and Aero To Go. Those plans have been revised. Now, Microsoft will offer two modes only, called Windows Vista Aero (which includes the glass effects) and Windows Vista Basic, which is roughly like the XP display. However, all of the capabilities of the three previous modes are still in there: Windows Vista Aero is the equivalent of Aero Glass, and you can get the equivalent of Aero Express by turning off the translucency effects while running Windows Vista Aero. The best news? Contrary to rumors, you'll only need a 64 MB video card with hardware 3D capabilities to run Windows Vista Aero on a typical PC (higher resolution displays will require more video RAM).

http://www.windowsitpro.com/windowsp...ott_48722.html

Seems like the December CTP is going to be just in time for the end of finals. Looking forward to testing this, especially since I basically had to skip over 5231.

**madmatt** · December 9th, 2005

Mail me a copy.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

I read about that earlier, saw the post on Neowin. Makes me wish more and more I had beta access

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

So can it be concluded that the change in graphics card requirements is a result of advanced GUI features being cut as well? I can't tell if the implication is that 64MB will run the GUI to full capacity, of if that's for more minimalistic settings.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

I would assume so. I think I read initially you would have needed a 128MB video card, which has now been cut to 64MB. However, I could be wrong on that.

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

Earlier on I had heard 256MB would be necessary to run with full effects. If that was legitimate and it's gone down to 64MB, then surely things have been cut.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

Originally Posted by muzikool

Earlier on I had heard 256MB would be necessary to run with full effects. If that was legitimate and it's gone down to 64MB, then surely things have been cut.

That's more like a butcher.

I wonder why they made such a drastic change?

**Grandmaster** · December 9th, 2005

Kunal should have an answer soon 0_o

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

*waits*

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

I don't have anti-Microsoft or anti-Vista sentiments whatsoever, but I can't help notice the "cuts" or "push-backs" that keep occurring with this OS. They have solidified a release period, but so many other things do not seem solid.

Vista will be an improvement on XP, but will the final version be "the greatest Windows release since 95?" It's rough when the good news concerns what isn't going to be cut, instead of what success has been achieved with new features and innovations.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

Well I would think they are trying things, which aren't initially working out. Either that, or they are finding better ways to do it

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

Originally Posted by kcnychief

Well I would think they are trying things, which aren't initially working out. Either that, or they are finding better ways to do it

It just seems a bit late in the game to be "trying things" to see if they "work out." I would think, at this point, that features and requirements would be solidified. Maybe that's not how the roadmap works, but as a consumer it makes me nervous about the final product when it's less than a year away.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

You make a valid point, but until the OS goes to RTM, the hardware requirements could change a billion times

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

But they (hardware requirements) are changing on account of things that shouldn't be last-minute.

I'm not a programmer and I don't have the experience to know how these things should play out. Once again, I'm speaking from the perspective of a concerned consumer.

**NetRyder** · December 9th, 2005

The real requirement for Aero Glass was and still is a DX9-capable GPU. The amount of video memory never was and is still not an enforcemed requirement.

256MB of VRAM was only recommended for displays with resolutions higher than 1600x1200. The amount of VRAM determines the overall performance - like anything else, the more the better.

See the second slide on this page that I had posted from WinHEC '05 back in April this year. 64MB of video memory was always the baseline requirement for Aero. 128 and 256 were recommended, and they still are for better performance, especially on higher-res displays.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

I think right around the time Vista comes out, time for Derek to get a nice new PC

**Grandmaster** · December 9th, 2005

Vista will be just fine. I constantly keep on finding out about new features...

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

It will be fine, but will it be the best since 95? I'm almost positive I've heard that claim from Microsoft itself.

**kcnychief** · December 9th, 2005

I think it will be, and you can see by the "constant changes" they are working very hard at it.

'tis a shame that WinFS won't be in the first relase though, that would have been hot!

**muzikool** · December 9th, 2005

They are no doubt working very hard on it, as I'm sure they have been for a long time. "Constant changes" doesn't make me secure about the result when coming down the final stretch. At this point I would hope they were nitpicking the heck out of a mostly final product. Have the feature set complete, the GUI done, and spend the time left fixing every little bug that's reported by testers.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #1
NetRyder Tech Junkie Joined: April 2002 Location: New York City Posts: 13,256 Reputation: 4260 Power: 294	[Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Windows Vista December CTP: Build 5276 The December Community Preview (CTP) build of Windows Vista will be build 5276, plus or minus one build, I was told today. Beta testers, MSDN subscribers, and TechNet members can expect to the see December CTP in a week or ten days. It includes a huge number of new features when compared to the previous CTP (October), but is not the feature complete version of Vista that Microsoft promised to deliver in December. That feature complete version will be delivered internally this month, but testers won't see a feature complete CTP until January or February. Microsoft Cuts Vista UI to Two Display Modes And speaking of Windows Vista, you might recall that Microsoft had originally planned to deliver three versions of the new user interface, called Aero Glass, Aero Express, and Aero To Go. Those plans have been revised. Now, Microsoft will offer two modes only, called Windows Vista Aero (which includes the glass effects) and Windows Vista Basic, which is roughly like the XP display. However, all of the capabilities of the three previous modes are still in there: Windows Vista Aero is the equivalent of Aero Glass, and you can get the equivalent of Aero Express by turning off the translucency effects while running Windows Vista Aero. The best news? Contrary to rumors, you'll only need a 64 MB video card with hardware 3D capabilities to run Windows Vista Aero on a typical PC (higher resolution displays will require more video RAM). http://www.windowsitpro.com/windowsp...ott_48722.html Seems like the December CTP is going to be just in time for the end of finals. Looking forward to testing this, especially since I basically had to skip over 5231. http://kunal.kundaje.net

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #2
madmatt Bow Down to the King Joined: April 2002 Location: New York Posts: 13,312 Reputation: 4090 Power: 294	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Mail me a copy.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #3
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. I read about that earlier, saw the post on Neowin. Makes me wish more and more I had beta access XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #4
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. So can it be concluded that the change in graphics card requirements is a result of advanced GUI features being cut as well? I can't tell if the implication is that 64MB will run the GUI to full capacity, of if that's for more minimalistic settings.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #5
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. I would assume so. I think I read initially you would have needed a 128MB video card, which has now been cut to 64MB. However, I could be wrong on that. XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

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December 9th, 2005	Top \| #6
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Earlier on I had heard 256MB would be necessary to run with full effects. If that was legitimate and it's gone down to 64MB, then surely things have been cut.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #7
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Originally Posted by muzikool Earlier on I had heard 256MB would be necessary to run with full effects. If that was legitimate and it's gone down to 64MB, then surely things have been cut. That's more like a butcher. I wonder why they made such a drastic change? XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #8
Grandmaster Electronica Addict Joined: February 2002 Location: Santa Clara, CA Posts: 10,574 Reputation: 2960 Power: 257	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Kunal should have an answer soon 0_o

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #9
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. waits XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #10
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. I don't have anti-Microsoft or anti-Vista sentiments whatsoever, but I can't help notice the "cuts" or "push-backs" that keep occurring with this OS. They have solidified a release period, but so many other things do not seem solid. Vista will be an improvement on XP, but will the final version be "the greatest Windows release since 95?" It's rough when the good news concerns what isn't going to be cut, instead of what success has been achieved with new features and innovations.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #11
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Well I would think they are trying things, which aren't initially working out. Either that, or they are finding better ways to do it XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #12
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Originally Posted by kcnychief Well I would think they are trying things, which aren't initially working out. Either that, or they are finding better ways to do it It just seems a bit late in the game to be "trying things" to see if they "work out." I would think, at this point, that features and requirements would be solidified. Maybe that's not how the roadmap works, but as a consumer it makes me nervous about the final product when it's less than a year away.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #13
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. You make a valid point, but until the OS goes to RTM, the hardware requirements could change a billion times XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #14
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. But they (hardware requirements) are changing on account of things that shouldn't be last-minute. I'm not a programmer and I don't have the experience to know how these things should play out. Once again, I'm speaking from the perspective of a concerned consumer.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #15
NetRyder Tech Junkie Joined: April 2002 Location: New York City Posts: 13,256 Reputation: 4260 Power: 294	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. The real requirement for Aero Glass was and still is a DX9-capable GPU. The amount of video memory never was and is still not an enforcemed requirement. 256MB of VRAM was only recommended for displays with resolutions higher than 1600x1200. The amount of VRAM determines the overall performance - like anything else, the more the better. See the second slide on this page that I had posted from WinHEC '05 back in April this year. 64MB of video memory was always the baseline requirement for Aero. 128 and 256 were recommended, and they still are for better performance, especially on higher-res displays. http://kunal.kundaje.net

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December 9th, 2005	Top \| #16
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. I think right around the time Vista comes out, time for Derek to get a nice new PC XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #17
Grandmaster Electronica Addict Joined: February 2002 Location: Santa Clara, CA Posts: 10,574 Reputation: 2960 Power: 257	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. Vista will be just fine. I constantly keep on finding out about new features...

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #18
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. It will be fine, but will it be the best since 95? I'm almost positive I've heard that claim from Microsoft itself.

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #19
kcnychief █▄█ ▀█▄ █ Joined: April 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 16,949 Reputation: 4941 Power: 302	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. I think it will be, and you can see by the "constant changes" they are working very hard at it. 'tis a shame that WinFS won't be in the first relase though, that would have been hot! XBOX Live Gamertag: kcnychief

December 9th, 2005	Top \| #20
muzikool Act your wage. Joined: December 2001 Location: Texas, USA Reputation: Yes, please. Posts: 7,626 Reputation: 2900 Power: 229	Re: [Vista] December CTP coming; Vista UI changes. They are no doubt working very hard on it, as I'm sure they have been for a long time. "Constant changes" doesn't make me secure about the result when coming down the final stretch. At this point I would hope they were nitpicking the heck out of a mostly final product. Have the feature set complete, the GUI done, and spend the time left fixing every little bug that's reported by testers.