A number of websites and blogs have picked up a story doing the rounds re: the new name for the upcoming release of Windows currently code-named Longhorn. Strong rumour has it that the new OS will most likely be called Windows Vista

That's according to sources close to the company who requested anonymity. They said that Microsoft unveiled the name in Atlanta on Thursday at the company's internal sales event, known as the Microsoft Global Sales Briefing, or MGB.
Word of Longhorn's new name began leaking to the Web on Thursday evening. One Windows site discovered that Microsoft registered the WindowsVista.US domain name. Microsoft is expected to make the official announcement of the new name on Friday morning. (US Time)

Microsoft has relied primarily on date-oriented names for many of its products, although it has shied away from those on occasion.

The last major version of Windows, code-named "Whistler," eventually was christened Windows XP.

Microsoft officials declined to comment on the specifics of a "Longhorn-related" news announcement slated for Friday morning.

Longhorn Beta 1 is widely expected to be unveiled next week. Beta 2 is due in the first half of 2006. Microsoft officials confirmed on Thursday the final release is still on track for the latter half of 2006.

Ooooh... interesting

Microsoft have actually registered the domain http://www.windowsvista.us! Have a look at this WHOIS search here - http://www.dnsstuff.com/tools/whois.ch?ip=...he=off&email=on

Is there any reason they chose to call it Windows Vista? Windows XP was an abbreviation of experiance, is there anything like that with Vista/longhorn?

I could care less, I don't really want to get it because it's bound to have all kinds of nasty "features" like this shite called Palladium that will disallow direct access to various devices like DVD players so that DVD ripping and region-free watching won't be possible.

Frankly, i feel that this is a bad move by microsoft. the name longhorn does sound cheeky, but now people are accustomed to it, after all the hype surrounding it. if they rename it to vista, it will create much confusion, and people will begin to think that vista is the successor of longhorn (now that's a bit too far)
can't they just decide on one thing? typical microsoft....

Well the site for Windows Vista is now up. Microsoft is at least moving away from various naming schemes that were, admittedly, quite sub-par. The original version numbering for Windows really wasn't too great for consumers. The year numbering idea really dated their programs more quickly than Microsoft PR could deal with. The tacky abbreviation idea (Me, XP, CE) would have been confusing moving forward. Choosing Vista was a good move.

Maybe they combined VISA (as in ya gotta pay every year with a credit card because it has to happen online?) and VESTA (a roman Goddess)

Frankly, I am not excited though I did see Longhorn in action on a friends computer. To Vista or not to Vista? I Linux!

It's just, I don't expect Vista or Longhorn to appear when Billybob Gates says it will LOL. It's MS tradition to be late.

I do like the new name better, mainly because it's shorter to type

Well...remember "Longhorn" is a codename...You don't actually see boxes with "Windows Chicago" or Windows Memphis"...

In my opinion, longhorn (or vista) is worth buying. Here are my points

-Longest interval of time between releases of operating systems ever (this means microsoft is spending more time with this, and it ought to be better)

-Security pluses (such as limited user preventing viruses to be installed)

-Graphics/3d, transparent, etc (who wouldnt want that )

-Removed many system components makes vista snappier (less lag, more multitasking w/o lag)

Right now, the main issue microsoft is being addressed is security, and getting vista will ensure that i can have a reliable system

Being a Mac guy, I really could care less on what MS chooses to name their product. However, seeing as code names have become somewhat mainstreamed (consumers didn't really pick on to OS X's code names until Jaguar came out, and now people are requesting the OS by the code name rather than version number), I think that MS is trying to capitalize on a catchy moniker, much like Tiger is for OS X. Vista literally means viewpoint or outlook, so I'm assuming that MS is conveying a sense of looking into the future.

Windows Vista just doensn't seem to cut it for me namewise. It just sounds like some sort of cheap car made by Kia that most people probably wouldn't care to own.

Longhorn is only a code name of the coming Microsoft Operating system. Most of the companies give a certain code name to their project. A codename is different from the producat name. So don't think that Longhorn has been renamed to Vista.
Longhorn is the codename of the project.
Vista is the name of the product.