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Windows Blackcomb Re(code)named Vienna

Microsoft confirmed Friday that it has changed the codename for the next version of Windows beyond Vista, though it revealed little else.

“The codename for Blackcomb has changed to ‘Vienna’ . . . [but] this does not reflect a big change for us [because] we have used city code names in the past,” a Microsoft spokeswoman said in an e-mail statement.

For instance, Windows 95 was codenamed “Chicago.” More recently, Microsoft had settled on ski resort names as monikers. Windows XP was previously codenamed “Whistler” for a ski area just north of Seattle in British Columbia, Canada.

Indeed, Blackcomb is actually the second half of the name of the Whistler ski resort – Whistler Blackcomb – named for the famed resort’s two main ski mountains. Microsoft did not explain the reason for the name change or elaborate on what features will be in it.

Blackcomb – um, Vienna – will ship sometime after Longhorn server, which currently is due sometime after Windows Vista ships near the end of the year. That puts Longhorn server sometime in 2007. Vista also had the codename Longhorn. For the record, Longhorn is the name of a saloon between the Whistler and Blackcomb mountains.

About the Author

Stuart J. Johnston has covered technology, especially Microsoft, since February 1988 for InfoWorld, Computerworld, Information Week, and PC World, as well as for Enterprise Developer, XML & Web Services, and .NET magazines.

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