Don’t do this to us, Microsoft

Seven.

Seven is a decent number of CDs for a car trip. A good amount of sodas to have on-hand when your friends come over. And a fine number of days to be on vacation.

Seven is not the right number of versions for a consumer software package. I respect Microsoft not only for the developer tools they build but for the their marketing savvy, which is why I’m shocked they’re making such a mistake with their upcoming Vista operating system:

• Windows Vista Starter Edition
• Windows Vista Home Basic Edition
• Windows Vista Home Premium Edition
• Windows Vista Professional Edition
• Windows Vista Small Business Edition
• Windows Vista Enterprise Edition
• Windows Vista Ultimate Edition

In order to help my relatives who’ll be calling when they buy their next computer, I’m studying now for Microsoft’s newest certification test, 70-399: Choosing a Version of Microsoft Vista.

About Me: My name is Rob Walling and I'm a software developer living and working in Boston, Massachusetts. I write about hiring, managing, and motivating software developers, in addition to random outbursts on improving development skills and software startups.

My consulting firm, The Numa Group, performs .NET development for clients throughout the United States. If you are in need of a .NET developer or architect, drop me a line.

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