REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 5, 2001 — Microsoft Corp. announced product names today for the upcoming new Microsoft® Windows® desktop operating system and Microsoft Office desktop applications suite. Windows (formerly code-named
“Whistler”
) will become Windows XP, and Office (formerly code-named
“Office 10”
) will become Office XP. The XP name is short for
“experience,”
symbolizing the rich and extended user experiences Windows and Office can offer by embracing Web services that span a broad range of devices.
“These breakthrough versions of Windows and Office will give people the most powerful end-to-end computing experiences ever available,”
said Bill Gates, chairman and chief software architect of Microsoft.
“The coming generation of Windows XP and Office XP will enable customers to communicate and collaborate more effectively, be more creative and productive, and have more fun with technology.”
Windows XP and Office XP are important steps toward the Microsoft .NET vision of empowering customers to move beyond disconnected applications, services and devices to complete, connected computing experiences that redefine the relationship between people, software and the Internet.
“The .NET platform uses XML to expand the platform from a single PC to include other PCs, servers, smart devices and Web services,”
Gates said.
“Now, instead of having individual applications on each device, users will get a rich experience that spans all their devices. This evolution from applications to experiences starts with Windows XP and Office XP.”
Windows XP — Enhancing the Windows Experience
Windows XP is the new Windows for home and business computing that will deliver and enable enhanced experiences on a proven foundation. Windows XP will deliver the intelligent, connected and dependable engine to power key experiences for the home and business.
Windows XP at Work and Home
An important design goal of Windows XP is to deliver complete experiences for home and business users in the following areas:
-
Richer communications. Real-time voice, video and application-sharing will enable people to communicate more effectively.
-
Enhanced mobility. Mobile users’ ability to access their information any time, anywhere will be further improved.
-
Improved help and support. Users will be able to easily connect to people and resources for help whenever they need it.
-
Simple digital photos and video. Windows XP will make it easy to create, organize and share digital memories.
-
Exciting music and entertainment. Windows XP will deliver the best experience for the discovery, download, personalization and playback of high-quality audio and video content.
-
Enabling of the
“
connected home.
” Windows XP will give people an easy way to share information, devices and Internet connections within the home.
Additional details about Windows XP will be unveiled on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
Office XP — The Smarter Work Experience
Office XP delivers a smarter work experience by making productivity simple, enabling collaboration for everyone, and extending Office beyond the desktop.
-
Making productivity simple. Office XP greatly improves personal productivity and simplifies the way people work by doing the following:
-
Presenting people with the tools they need when they need them and giving them greater control over the way Office works through new Task Panes
-
Giving people quick access to other information in Office, other applications and the Internet through smart tags
-
Delivering new document recovery tools to ensure that users do not lose their information if errors occur
-
Enabling collaboration for everyone. Office XP enables any computer user, from PC novice to expert, to easily collaborate on documents and work more effectively with others by doing the following:
-
Providing new Send for Review tools to revolutionize the document editing and review process
-
Empowering teams to manage their projects and activities with a prebuilt Web site solution called SharePoint™
Team Services that provides an easy-to-create Web-based workspace for teams -
Making it easier to communicate with others by integrating popular communication tools like the Hotmail® Web-based e-mail service and MSN® Messenger into the Outlook® messaging and collaboration client
-
Extending office beyond the desktop. Office XP serves as an information hub that will enable people to harness information from multiple locations by doing the following:
-
Offering new Web services that are tightly integrated into Office to continuously extend the value of Office
-
Enabling people to access their Office information from the Web and seamlessly synchronize with mobile devices
-
Making it easy to find information through advanced search capabilities that extend from the desktop to intranet and Internet sites
Windows XP and Office XP are currently in beta testing. Windows XP is scheduled to be generally available in the second half of 2001. Office XP is scheduled to be available toward the end of the first half of 2001.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
Microsoft, Windows, SharePoint, Hotmail, MSN and Outlook are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft’s corporate information pages.
