Delays For Windows 2000

Microsoft [1] promised Windows 2000 and a whole lot more, but hasn’t delivered – yet. Microsoft announced a new release date in November which means many IT professionals may not get the new operating system until January. So much for ringing in Y2K with Windows 2000.

Beta testers of the software complain that the ongoing delays have affected their maintenance plans and their budgets. For example, one company budgeted training money for the new operating system for a certain quarter. When that quarter came and went without Windows 2000, so did the training budget.

The buzz on the street is that Microsoft has taken some components out of the original beta version and will offer downloadable versions for those users who need the fix. Again, IT professionals aren’t interested in that offering. It makes it too hard to support their organization’s users.

Microsoft shipped beta copies to 650,000 testers last week. A manager for Microsoft declined to comment whether or not another beta copy will be released prior to the new November release date. How long does it take to gather results from those testers and incorporate changes? More than 6-8 weeks? Maybe.