Microsoft EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) has debuted their “Guess the Windows Vista Launch Date Contest.”
The official launch date of the new operating system Windows Vista has not yet been set. When will the final product be launched? Enter your guess now and win an exclusive invitation to the international Vista launch event in the USA!
Are you already a member of the Beta Experience campaign? Then you can get started right away. And if not, then this is the ideal opportunity to secure an information edge. As a member of the Beta Experience, you are one of the first to be informed of the new product features, long before the final version is released to the market. In addition to the beta versions to test and co-develop, you benefit from valuable resources and expert knowledge. And the newsletter gives you regular insider tips and exclusive bonus material – your absolute competitive edge!
All legal residents of Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, UK who are 18 years of age or older will have the chance to win.
• 1st Prize: Be live at the Launch Event in the USA
• 2nd–4th. Prize: New XBOX 360
• 5th–10th Prize: XBOX Core System
More info here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews reader “sketchtrain” for the heads up.]
Only Microsoft would have the cojones to hold a contest to guess the launch date of a product that’s slipped so much and so often (and shed so many of its originally-promised features) that it’s become an industry joke. Plus, doesn’t the first place prize violate Article 5 of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
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NEVER
Here is some useful info for future Vista users:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/viruses/default.mspx
Not much chance of winning – it could be anytime this millennium!
Does it really matter?
Never or too late
Once we know when Mac OS 10.5 ships, everyone should guess that date. That would show microsoft!
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” /> What better than to flood their stupid poll with the release date of an OS that already has twice the features and will be available to the general public sooner?
What is an XBOX Core System?
Guess which day it is going to ship? Bill’s having to have trouble guessing which century it will be release in!!!
Talk about taking a piss on yourself! They’re asking for trouble with that one.
@petervrdk – wouldn’t it have to be the booby prize anyway?
@dogfriend – I looked at the URL and where it says “/security/viruses/default.mspx”, I read “security? viruses ARE default! ms pox!”
MDNMW = neither, as in “Windows or Vista?”
Hey, it already launched, but under an old name. Windows 98
This means one of two things:
1. MS EMEA now know what the launch date is.
or
2. MS EMEA do NOT know the launch date and are taking the piss out of head office.
My vote goes to the latter. I’ll vote – Oct 12 2007. (That’s what my Uncle Bill told me over Christmas lunch).
By the time of the launch of Windows Pasta enough people will have heard that OSX is already years ahead of it and will have, or planned to, switch anyway!
Vista = chicken in Romanian or turkey… depends upon how you translate it.
V = Viruses
I = Infections
S = Spyware
T = Trojan Horses
A = Adware
Yep, I want that in my computer and I am also dumb enough to pay an extra $35.00 USD a year to keep at least 50% of it put of my system. That makes perfect sense to me.
XBox Core system = a PowerPC – hmm, maybe an iMac…
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MDN = North as in Olie North had better bull $hit in his testimony to Congress than M$ has in there press releases about Vista. (Howz that for a stretch. Happy 2006!!
So, MSFT’s idea of a motivational prize is the opportunity to be liberally covered in Steve Ballmer’s sweat.
And their idea of a second prize is the opportunity to win a games console with some “issues”.
And the third prize is a the option to win the cut-down red-headed step-brother of the second prize.
Someone really ought to take their marketing department out for a long lunch prior to shooting them all in the back of the head and burying them in a mass grave.
Anyone else find it odd that none of the prizes included a full computer set up with the new Vista operating system in it?
Typhoon’s song parody continued:
In the year 2525
Still won’t have Vista, Gates ain’t alive.
You’ll get your system, and computer too.
From Apple’s web page, set up just for you.
(BTW, great song hadn’t thought if it in years.)
I’m guessing Feb 24th, 2007
Exactly 6 years after OSX 1.0 was released.
Hey, don’t knock my hero Ollie. I knew I was gonna like that guy when Congress asked him why he shredded all those documents. His answer “I thought that’s why the government put a shredder in my office” (or words to that effect).
6 ‘o clock on 6 june in 2006……the number of the beast LOL
consider what has hapened already:
MDN = methods as in, it is too lame to think of any prognostication methods to divine the pseudo-release date of VISTA.
Hey, my driver’s license expires on 6/6/6! YIKES!!
…and 06hrs 66 mins (6:66) = 7:06 GMT.
It seems rather unscrupulous for a company that is in full control of the release date to make a contest for others to guess the release date. All they need to do is have a bunch of their friends be given the date in advance so they can win. I suppose that all of the winning entries will be gathered and a single winner drawn.
Regardless, it is a very poor marketing idea for a company and a product line that are infamous for delayed release dates. Shining a spotlight on your flaws is not a good idea. Stealing everything else, you’d think they would steal Steve’s tactic of keeping everything highly secret and then create shock and awe when the product is fully ready.
It gets pretty bad when Microsoft can’t even steal the good ideas, and can’t see when an idea blatantly sucks. I’ll bet they add Bush to their Board of Directors in 3 years; he’d fit right in.
An XBox “Core” system is the cheaper version of the 360. Leave it to Microshaft to have different versions of the same console out. I believe the core system has no HD, which means it can’t play the old XBox games because it can’t download the emulator. It lacks some other features too. From what I’ve read, people who buy the core system are throwing their money away even more than the people buy the high-end version of this lame-ass system.
1st Prize – 1 week in Redmond Wa.
2nd Prize – 2 weeks in Redmond Wa.
January 16th, 2018–I’ll win!!!
BTW, great take, MDN
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great take, MDN!
Isn’t anyone who has ever used Windows part of the “Beta Experience Team”?
MW = before. As in, I’ll be using an Apple nanobook before Vista ships!
Certainly the North American release party will also have many contests and games as well.
* See who can write the quickest virus for VISTA
* Best alternative name for “Podcast” contest
and my personal favorite:
* chair throwing contest