Windows Chief Allchin Rallies Developers Around Vista

Allchin, who is retiring after Vista ships, said the operating system remains on schedule to ship to businesses this year, and to consumers in January. Quoting industry analysts, the co-president of platforms and service at Microsoft, said some 200 million people are expected to be using Vista within 24 months after its launch.

"People will flock to software that is new, compelling, and 'cool,'" Allchin said on the Windows Vista Developer Center. "You have got to be ready for this opportunity."

Allchin promised that the next version of Visual Studio, code named "Orcas" and available as a community technology preview, would "make development for Windows Vista even more powerful."

"More than 1,000 companies are engaged in our early adopter programs, and some of the initial work I've seen has simply blown me away," Allchin said. Microsoft has created a showcase site for Vista applications.