Microsoft ensures that NT 5.0 is a "must-have" for corporate users

Microsoft is taking steps to ensure that Windows NT 5.0--due next year--isthe must-have upgrade that Windows 95 was for home users. Though Windows 95was a smash success for the home crowd, only 50% of corporate users whocould upgrade actually took the plunge. The company is therefore planningon making Windows NT 5.0 a no-brainer for these 16-bit holdouts. To accomplish this, NT 5 will have a slightly smaller or same memory anddiskspace footprint as Version 4.0, but will include new features such as Active Desktop and Internet Explorer 4.0. Microsoft is planning on offeringsupport for migration from Windows 3.x to NT 5.0, but will delay migration tools that support 3.x to Windows 98.

The "Hydra" Windows terminal scheme will be updated to support Windows 3.xnodes as well. With this new technology, corporations will be able to buildapplications that take advantage of NT 5.0 functions such as transaction processing, integrated Web serving, and the new Directory services, yet still run on Windows 3.x.

Currently, a select group of hardware developers is working with NT 5 alphacode. In September, Microsoft is planning on releasing beta 1 to a largergroup of technical testers