Incremental updates to the latest Windows and Java technologies have been made available recently, with Microsoft Corp. offering a new preview of its upcoming Longhorn server platform and Sun Microsystems Inc. adding a fix for daylight saving to Java.
Microsoft posted earlier this month a Community Technology Preview (CTP) build of Windows Server Longhorn to serve as a precursor to an upcoming Beta 3 of the operating system. Microsoft wants beta customers to test and evaluate the CTP, which is available to beta participants at the Microsoft Connect site.
“The April 2007 CTP is another milestone on the march to Beta 3, which is still on track for the first half of this year, and it includes a number of enhancements to existing server roles and features plus some [user interface] changes, most notably in the Server Manager tool and the addition PowerShell,” said Helene Love Snell, Microsoft senior product manager, Windows Server Division, in a statement.
PowerShell is command-line shell and scripting language to boost IT productivity. It features more than 130 command-line tools and consistent syntax and utilities.
The general release of Windows Server Longhorn is planned for the latter half of 2007.
On the client side of the Windows equation, a Harris Interactive Inc. survey of 2,223 U.S. consumers in March found that while 87 per cent of the respondents were aware of Windows Vista, only 12 per cent of that number plan to upgrade to it. Microsoft, however, said more than 20 million copies of Vista were shipped from January 30 to February 28.
An upgrade to Java SE 6, identified as Update 1, was also issued early this month. It adjusts to the new daylight-saving time change. The time change was moved up to last month instead of the first weekend in April, which was when it previously occurred.
Adjusting to the time change previously required a separate tool, said Bill Curci, Sun product marketing manager for Java SE. This fix ensures proper time settings in Java applications running on the system.
Also featured in the update are various bug fixes. First released in December, Java SE 6 offers enhancements in areas such as performance, reliability and availability for applications. Monitoring and management have also been improved.
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