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Microsoft COO dismisses SP1 concerns
…"we're not at all worried"

By Tom Espiner

Published: Wednesday 05 March 2008

Microsoft's chief operating officer has dismissed concerns an update to its flagship Windows Vista operating system is incompatible with a number of applications.

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Speaking at the CeBIT trade show in Hanover, Microsoft's third-in-command, Kevin Turner, told silicon.com sister site ZDNet.co.uk that the software giant was not concerned by the problems Service Pack 1 (SP1) has encountered with some third-party programs.

Turner said: "No, [we're] not at all worried. We've had several million downloads of SP1. We're very excited about it. It still hasn't been officially released, but we're excited about it."

Vista SP1 is already available to subscribers to the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) but will not receive a formal public release until mid March.

Two weeks ago, Microsoft published a list of programs that would experience reduced functionality, or not work at all, after the installation of SP1. Microsoft customers have also been complaining that the update has upset the functionality on their machines.

The programs SP1 has been breaking are mostly from security vendors, including Trend Micro. Eugene Kaspersky, co-founder and head analyst of Kaspersky, said while the security company has not yet itself encountered any difficulties with SP1, Microsoft could lose customers if it does not sort out the reported problems.

Kaspersky told silicon.com sister site ZDNet.co.uk: "With Microsoft Vista, there are problems with usability; Microsoft has had complaints as its system slows down machines. Microsoft should pay more attention to the usability of its systems. If they don't do that, they won't be in so good a position against Mac OS X and Linux." Kaspersky said SP1 difficulties may have a negative effect on people's opinion of Vista, and that negative effect may impact Vista sales.