Vista service pack planned

Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system has not been released to the consumer market yet and the company is already planning its first service pack of bug fixes and other enhancements, reports News.com.

According to the report, Microsoft has already called for businesses to volunteer to test the software. Although the first Vista service pack has not yet been finalised, indications are changes will be minor like Windows XP Service Pack 1 and not a major overhaul like Windows XP Service Pack 2.

Microsoft says it expects the first service pack for Windows Vista to be released in a timeframe similar to that of service packs for previous versions of Windows. Windows XP Service Pack 1 arrived in September 2002, 11 months after XP's debut.

A new wireless card from Intel will enable notebook PC users to share five times the data at twice the range of their current 802.11a/g cards, reports ARN.net.

The new Wireless-N network connection is an embedded network adapter card that is aimed at improving PC capacity to download music and stream high-definition video. The card uses the 802.11 Draft-N standard, but will also work with the a, b and g standards.

According to Intel, the Wireless-N card will improve a notebook's battery life, performance and wireless connectivity.

Microsoft has released its Asynchronous JavaScript and XML tool, ASP.NET AJAX 1.0, to enable developers to build next-generation Web applications through integration with the .Net Framework and the Microsoft platform, reports eWeek.

The report says ASP.NET AJAX, formerly known by the code name Atlas, includes enhanced training capabilities made available by Virtual Labs, MS Learning Online Clinics, resource kits, third-party reference materials and online tutorials.

In addition, ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions will be available under the Microsoft Reference Licence. This will enable developers to view the ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions code to aid in application debugging, maintenance and interoperability.