Windows Vista Team Blog : Works with Windows Vista

Partners helping fix Vista Software Compatibility Issues

James Senior — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:43:00 GMT

When chatting with people about the deployment of Windows Vista within their organisation, one of the topics that comes up is software compatibility. It's a no brainer that their business applications continue to work whilst they are enjoying the benefits and features of Windows Vista. Microsoft have worked hard to ensure we had a large number of software vendors ready to offer their software as "Certified for Windows Vista" or "Works with Windows Vista". These certifications mean that either software is designed specifically to take advantage of new features in Windows Vista or is compatible with Windows Vista.

Whilst these certifications go along way to answer questions about software compatibility, there are still bespoke software solutions or legacy applications that might not have been tested by Microsoft to gain the certification. For businesses in this situation there are a range of tools that will help test the compatibility of applications on Windows Vista. Microsoft provide a great toolset, for instance, called the Application Compatibility Toolkit which is worth checking out for the analysis of your software portfolio.

Our partners have also taken the initiative when it comes to application compatibility testing and fixing of issues. ChangeBase, a company based in London, England have recently launched their new software "AOK" which analyses applications and then fixes any issues that might cause problems, leaving you with the green light to get on with your deployment. They recently published a press release highlighting the great work they have been doing with AstraZeneca who have roughly 70,000 desktops across 60 countries. You can find out more information about ChangeBase and the application compatiblity software at their website.

New Application Compatibility training available

Peg McNicol — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 19:19:00 GMT

When we talk about application compatibility for our large customers, it goes beyond making sure the latest game or end user application works. Our enterprise customers sometimes have hundreds of thousands of PCs to manage. That means a lot of different applications, from many different companies, some custom and some customized. To help these customers we created a suite of enterprise tools called the Application Compatibility Toolkit (see my earlier post), and also worked with partners to create a service called the Application Compatibility Factory (see here).

One thing you may not know is that we also have a team of specially trained consultants who work with customers on some of these very large deployments. We try to make sure all our customers can take advantage of the team's knowledge, so we send them to events like TechEd or IT Forum and they contribute significantly to the content you find on TechNet and MSDN. Unfortunately it's not always possible for customers to have one-on-one interaction with this team. That's why we are pretty excited that one of the consultants, Caio Chaves Garcez, recently recorded the full 2 day training the team usually presents to these large customers. The training covers most common application compatibility issues found with Windows Vista, as well as how to use the various tools we make available. Whether you are an IT Pro starting your deployment or a developer trying to make your older applications work with Vista, the content of this webcast is well worth the just over 8 hours it will take you to get through it. If you want to learn more about what the team is working on, you can also check out Chris Jackson's blog.

Download the training

TechNet Radio Chat on Windows Vista Readiness

Baldwin Ng — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 04:54:00 GMT

Tune in and listen to the radio interview of Microsoft Product Manager, Baldwin Ng and IT Pro Evangelist, Chris Avis as they discussed how the newly released Windows Vista Hardware Assessment solution accelerator has become the popular tool in helping businesses determine their readiness for Windows Vista migration.

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=88283

Baldwin Ng baldwin.ng@microsoft.com

Sr. Product Manager, Microsoft Solution Accelerator

Windows Vista Hardware Assessment v2.0 Beta Program Now Open!

Baldwin Ng — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 04:28:00 GMT

Good news! The Windows Vista Hardware Assessment v2.0 Beta Program is now open for registration! Please join our beta program and test drive new features including OU-targeting, machine names import, localized UI/readiness reports and more.

Visit the Microsoft Connect site to join: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=88282

For those of you who are not familiar with Windows Vista Hardware Assessment, it is basically a network-wide PC readiness assessment tool that helps organizations understand their readiness to migrate to Windows Vista. It provides organization-wide reports on hardware compatibility, device compatibility, upgrade recommendations and more. The coolest part is that this tool does not require any software agents to be installed on individual computers.

Visit our TechNet Web Page and download the tool (v1.0) today at: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=83405

Baldwin Ng (baldwin.ng@microsoft.com)

Sr. Product Manager, Windows Vista Hardware Assessment Solution Accelerator

Windows Vista Hardware Assessment Guidance Pages now available in 8 new languages

Baldwin Ng — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 07:23:00 GMT

Hi all,

We are happy to announce the availability of Windows Vista Hardware Assessment guidance pages in 8 new languages in addition to the already-available US English version. The list of localized web sites is listed below, please click the individual link to visit your language of choice:

For more information about Windows Vista Hardware Assessment v1.0, you may also visit the original blog post last month:

http://windowsvistablog.com/blogs/windowsvista/archive/2007/02/20/windows-vista-hardware-assessment-1-0-released.aspx

Baldwin Ng (Product Manager, Solution Accelerators Team - baldwin.ng@microsoft.com )

Certified for Windows Vista Devices and Software

Ben Reed — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 22:10:00 GMT

Have you been wondering how you can tell which software and devices will be compatible with the premium features of Windows Vista? You can easily identify these products by looking for the devices and software that are Certified for Windows Vista. Read below for more specifics on the program, and then enter to win thousands of dollars worth of Certified for Windows Vista products.

What does it mean to be Certified for Windows Vista?

You all have probably seen the Designed for XP logo that appears on PCs. The Windows Vista Logo Program is the next generation, however, we’ve made two important changes. First, Microsoft has worked with industry partners to develop new standards and device categories so Windows Vista can take full advantage of dramatic advances in hardware and devices to enhance the types of computer activities people have become accustomed to. Secondly, we’ve set up a certification process, so that devices and software need to go through Microsoft compatibility tests before they qualify for the logo. So, yes, there are there thousands of applications and devices that are compatible with Windows Vista, however, Certified for Windows Vista devices and software have been tested to help ensure that they are compatible with the premium features of Windows Vista. Devices and software that carries the Works with Windows Vista logo are tested for baseline standards of compatibility with all PCs running Windows Vista.

Devices:

To talk a bit more specifically about device drivers, they have undergone Microsoft compatibility tests for ease-of-use, better performance and enhanced security. We are continuing to add approximately 1,600 device drivers per month. These devices will install easily on Windows Vista and can automatically download device driver software. Wireless devices are also intuitive to set-up and security-enhanced.

Devices are tested to deliver performance and quality beyond basic compatibility, so you can have high-definition experiences with photos, music, videos and communications. For example, they are able to take advantage of Windows Vista features like native DVD burning, Network and Sharing Center and Windows Aero user experience. Color sensitive devices like monitors and printers work together with the Windows Color System so when you print pictures, they look like what’s on your screen. Certified of Windows Vista wireless routers provide reliable connectivity for demanding applications like on-line gaming and HD media streaming, while wireless networks are security-enhanced.

Software:

And now on to some software specifics. I want to emphasize here that Certified for Windows Vista software products are tested to Microsoft’s compatibility standards to help make software easy to install, better performing and more secure. For example, software is specifically tested to minimize the number of crashes, hangs and reboots that are typically experienced by users. It also installs without degrading the performance of Windows Vista or other applications. I also think it’s important to mention that Certified for Windows Vista software should continue to improve over time, because we require that they not just include error reporting, but that they also use this data to continually update their product. Certified for Windows Vista software is also designed to work with advanced security features in Windows Vista, as well as meets the Anti-Spyware Coalition privacy guidelines.

I’m planning on posting information about specific Certified of Windows Vista products on a regular basis, so continue to check back for product highlights and deeper spec information. This is a just an introduction to the program. Don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions. In the meantime, enter each week for a chance to win a ton of great products from our partners.