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Vista RC2 May Come Friday
With Windows Vista's promised ship date to corporate customers less than two months away, the rumor mill has been going wild with reports of phantom release candidate sightings. The latest is that Microsoft may release a new test build on Friday.
Microsoft began distributing Release Candidate 1 (RC1) to a broad public test audience in early September. The company subsequently shipped an interim build -- build number 5728 in late September -- which also carried the RC1 designation.
The rumors this week had Microsoft releasing an interim build of Windows Vista for download that was reportedly identified as RC2 -- short for Release Candidate 2. The build, which is numbered 5744, was identified by Windows enthusiast site Activewin.com.
In fact, on Wednesday, Activewin posted a link to a download site that purported to point to a Microsoft site that described build 5744 as RC2 and pointed to its download site. However, by Thursday, that page had been removed. Meanwhile, Microsoft has been acting as if build 5744 (nee RC2) doesn't exist. And perhaps it doesn't.
“As we have previously discussed, Microsoft does plan to deliver one more interim build of Windows Vista before releasing the final product . . . [however], the exact name of the build, and the date of its release, has not been announced,” a company spokesperson said in an e-mail in response to a request for further information.
Meanwhile, BetaNews is reporting that a Brazilian Microsoft site said Wednesday that RC2's release is imminent. Additionally, other news sites, including Wikipedia, are saying that RC2 will ship by October 6.
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.