Seven things Windows 7 can learn from Linux

[ Thanks to An Anonymous Reader for this link. ]

"1. More frequent release cycles. As I've already explained, Microsoft's worst enemy has been its very long release cycles. Linux distributors, on the other hand, have the opposite problem – too frequent release cycles. But what would a consumer be more interested in, an operating system that's eight years old (Windows XP) or one that's updated every year or even six months? Fresh product releases means fresh marketing and Microsoft knows this. From Windows 7 on it's bye, bye many-year release cycles and hello two year cycles at the most.

"2. Sane release versioning. Okay, before anyone comments about how INSANE Linux distribution release versioning is, it's still not as bad as Windows'. Yes, there is a systematic way in which Microsoft versions its Windows releases, but that's been hidden behind the marketing hoopla. We've had Windows 3.1, 95, NT, 98, 2000, Me, XP, Vista and 7 which makes perfect sense. Suddenly Ubuntu's 7.10, 8.04, 8.10, 9.04, etc, doesn't seem so silly after all. Nor does Fedora's 8, 9, 10. Mac OS X? This stays the same with just minor release versions and code names - brilliant for the not-so-tech-savvy. Dumb it down Microsoft. If you're going to name a product Windows 7, release Windows 8 after it, not "Windows Panorama" or "Windows 2012"."

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