What happened to Millennium Beta 1, A
Windows Me technology showcase
If you've been following the SuperSite for a while now, you've probably
been expecting to see my coverage of Millennium begin with the release of
Beta 1. Well so was I, actually. But Microsoft has decided not to supply the
press with copies of Millennium Beta 1 because the product, at this point in
time, doesn't accurately reflect the way it will look and feel when it's
released in mid-to-late 2000. According to my contacts at Waggener Edstrom
and Microsoft, the features in Millennium Beta 1 are largely structural,
dealing with changes to the underpinnings of the operating system.
OK, I understand. So in the days leading up to Millennium Beta 2, which
I'm
hoping to see by the end of 1999 (update: It was released in November
1999), I'll be supplying some analytical articles
that look at the things we're likely to see in Millennium. These include
the removal of Real Mode DOS, the driver signing issue, HTML-based
Activity
Centers and anything else we can think of. If you've got a burning
desire to
know more about Millennium, just let me know.
I'll write it up here or in the FAQ.
Anyway, here's what we know so far:
- Millennium will be packaged as a point release upgrade, similar to
Windows 98 and Windows 98 SE.
- Plans for HTML-based Activity Centers have allegedly been scrapped.
But I've seen at least four Activity Centers, Help Center, System
Restore,
Media Center, and Photo Center, in early builds of Millennium. We
should
know more by the time beta 2 is released.
- Support for Real Mode DOS has been canned: You cannot boot into DOS
mode or reboot into MS-DOS.
- The user interface will not be dramatically different. In
fact,
it will be almost identical to Windows 2000.
If you've got more info about Millennium, I'm listening: Let me know!
--Paul Thurrott
October 13, 1999
Updated March 5, 2000
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© 2002 Duke Communications International, Inc.
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