At the Worldwide Partner Conference 2008 on July 8, in Huston, Texas, Brad Brooks, corporate vice president, Windows Consumer Product Marketing, announced that Microsoft was going to go live with the Windows Vista Compatibility Center. It is clear that the Redmond company is fighting the bad aura that is clinching to its latest Windows client even after the release of Service Pack 1. For the past year and a half, software and hardware compatibility with Vista was improved constantly, but without palpable evidences of the evolution, consumers' perception remains unaffected.

"To help bust the myth that Windows Vista is not compatible with your software or devices, we're announcing a new Web site called the Windows Vista Compatibility Center. It's a way for any customer, a consumer or a business, to go to a very simple, easy to use Web site, and see all of the devices and all the applications that are compatible with Windows Vista," Brooks explained.

Just as Vista was plagued with compatibility problems when it hit the shelves in January 2007, so the Windows Vista Compatibility Center is not yet up and running. Initially, the website displayed the following message to visitors: "the Windows Vista Compatibility Center is currently unavailable. Thank you for your interest, but this site is not available yet. Please check back soon".

However, since then, the message was altered to read, "the Windows Vista Compatibility Center will be launching soon, please check back!" No word yet from Microsoft in regard to a less abstract deadline for "soon". When it goes live, the website will feature in excess of 9,000 Vista compatible solutions, both applications and hardware products.

"My call to action to you, if you're an ISV(Independent Software Vendor) or an IHV (Independent Hardware Vendor), go to that site, see that your device and your application is up there. If it is up there, update the information through our feedback forum so we can get the latest and best information to bust the compatibility myths around Windows Vista in the marketplace," Brooks added.