Microsoft's latest versions of its flagship products have been artificially joined at the hip. Windows Vista and the Office 2007 System made their initial steps together via the business launch in November 2006 at the NASDAQ headquarters in New York. Subsequently, Microsoft also joined the consumer launch of its main cash cows at the end of January 2007. For the Redmond company, this has been nothing short of a strategic move, and in no way a gambit. Blurring the line that separates the productivity suite from the operating system, Microsoft is pushing the perspective of Vista and Office 2007, designed as complementary products.

And the Redmond company is even providing comprehensive guidance for getting the best out of the combination of Vista and Office 2007. The "Work smarter using the 2007 Microsoft Office system and Windows Vista" resource is designed to suggest best usage practices for both the client platform and the productivity suite. Again Microsoft references the two together rather than focusing on each separate item. "These simple, easy-to-use customizable job aids created by Microsoft IT help employees get started with something new, learn more about using a technology or product effectively, select the right product or service, or review best practices," Microsoft revealed.

The document streamlines access to a luxuriant variety of Office 2007 and Windows Vista resources, dealing with everything from the basic functionality to setup, maintenance, best practices, collaboration, and even security. A recent poll put together by CDW indicated that the consumer adoption behavior concerning Vista and Office 2007 focuses on the fact that the two products are an inseparable couple, with 42% of the respondents that have installed the operating system also planning to deploy the productivity suite.

In this context, Microsoft has also bundled the two products in a virtual hard disk image set up for Virtual PC 2007. Via the Office 2007 Professional VHD, users can test drive Windows Vista Enterprise as well as the Office 2007 Professional System inside a virtual machine for a whole month. And while marring Vista and Office might have seemed a good idea initially, Microsoft is without a doubt still to reek in the benefits, as the two items will undoubtedly market each other, even though their success levels vary.