14 DAY TRIAL // Windows Vista may be delivered sooner than everybody thinks. Microsoft's Windows Omerta has all but muted details related to the first service pack for Windows Vista scheduled for availability in the second half of 2007, but crumbs to get through, and Microsoft is of course the source.
Microsoft's official website is literally crawling with Windows Vista SP1 references. For a company that is not offering Vista SP1 details, Microsoft is surely revealing a great deal about the service pack, if you know where to look.
For instance, the IcmpSendEcho2Ex (12 Parameters) function in IP Helper could otherwise be overlooked as a technical detail designed to send an ICMP Echo request and then return. But the fact of the matter is that, reading between the lines, IcmpSendEcho2Ex is a function specific of Windows Server 2007, code-name Longhorn, and of Windows Vista Service Pack 1.
Microsoft even provides a great resource informing of the innovations of IP Helper for Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server "Longhorn." You can't possibly miss the Windows Vista SP1 mention, it's black on white right in the title.
And how about The Windows Vista Developer Story: Application Compatibility Cookbook. One or two scrolls down and you will come across the following reference: "All items in this document are appropriate for both Windows Vista and Windows Server Codename "Longhorn" unless otherwise noted. There are no architectural changes for Windows Vista SP1. Applications that are compatible with Windows Vista RTM should continue to be compatible with Windows Vista SP1."
Slowly but surely, the Windows Vista SP1 picture is coming together. Still, the official position from Microsoft is that the availability date is unknown and that the Vista SP1 will not be anything beyond a standard service pack.