Come and experience first hand the face of Windows Server 2008. Formerly known as Windows Server code-name Longhorn, Microsoft's latest version of the server side Windows operating system was christened Windows Server 2008 by Chairman Bill Gates at the 2007 edition of Windows Hardware Engineering Conference in Los Angeles (WinHEC 2007). Back at WinHEC 2006, Gates highlighted the fact that Windows Vista, the Office 2007 System and Windows Server Longhorn had all reached beta 2 milestones.

Now that Microsoft is delivering the first public beta milestone for Windows Server 2008, the company is also inviting users to witness and change the face of the operating system. The Face of Windows Server 2008 website offers users a chance to meet the developers that have worked on the product, but also to contribute with their own faces to the project.

"An IT manger in Sydney, a developer in Munich, a CIO in Shanghai. Geography and language diferentiate them, but they share many of the same everyday challenges. With each other and with you. The face of Windows Server 20-08 brings the global IT community together. It's a way for you to discover how your worlds are alike, to learn from each other, and celebrate what you have in common. Upload a photograph of yourself and add it the composite human "face" of IT professionals from around the world. Watch the face of Windows Server 2008 evolve as more and more people add their face to the console," reads a fragment of Microsoft's invitation posted on the website.

Gates stated at WinHEC 2007 that Windows Server 2008 is scheduled to be released to manufacturing by the end of 2007. Microsoft has yet to confirm the actual availability date of its last 32-bit server operating system, and speculations point to either 2007 or 2008. The Redmond Company has only confirmed the RTM date in the second half of this year.