The first upgrade to Windows for five years, though a bit delayed, should be worth the wait, says Joe Bolger in The Times (London).

For, he writes, “Windows remains at the heart of Microsoft’s business. Twenty-one years after the operating system was launched, it forms the backbone of more than 90 percent of the world’s computers. It accounted for 31 percent of Microsoft’s revenues last year, 66 percent of operating profits, and has helped to sustain the Seattle-based company as an entity worth $281 billion (£162 billion).”

But the company is under attack from all sides. “Open-source developers, who work together and distribute their work free, are gaining increasing traction. Linux-based operating systems are increasingly seen as a viable alternative to Windows software.”

With all the Web-based alternatives to Microsoft’s software, such as Google’s newly-acquired Writely, “could users decide they don’t need a fancy front end to organize what few files they do have on their computer?”

David Weeks, Vista’s UK marketing manager, has other ideas: “People like to share, but they also want to own their content,” he says. “We’re hoarders.”

Bill Gates sees the desktop PC branching out to become an entertainment hub. “The growth in digital photography and the use of digital music players has increased dependence on home computers as an entertainment medium.”

The rising penetration of high-speed internet has fuelled that growth, as users share pictures and files. High-definition video content will also become increasingly accessible, alongside robust demand for online services. At the centre of this hub, Gates hopes there will be a copy of Windows Vista.

An optimistic, but fair, assessment of Windows Vista by Bolger, but the effects of the constant delays, which may not be the last, are rather played down.