Microsoft is having another go at releasing a new Windows operating system, but it is hedging its bets after fumbling the ball with Vista, which was supposed to be the successor to Windows XP. Now it turns out that Windows 7, the new version Microsoft will start releasing in its various forms at the end of this year, is the real successor to XP.

There are lots of problems with Vista, as detailed before in this column and in lots of technical and consumer sites. The main problem is Vista's hogging of processing power, leaving many users twiddling their thumbs while they waited for their computer to do something.

Another problem with the incompatibility of many applications with Vista. Companies were looking at a second big spend for updating the incompatible software.

The reports by early users and technical testers resulted in many IT executives deciding to stick with Windows XP. It was the first major rebellion against the Microsoft upgrading money machine. In fact so loud were the complaints that Microsoft extended its service for Windows XP and provided a means for people to revert the Vista systems that came preloaded with their computers, back to XP. In fact, retailers found they had a selling point by advertising machines loaded with XP, not Vista.

Now the company is releasing Windows 7 it is building in a 'revert to Windows XP' mode, just in case. It hopes the move will encourage business users to begin the upgrade but feel confident they can load their XP-compatible software.

The XP mode uses Windows Virtual PC technology to make the operating system compatible to run applications designed for XP. This will allow users to load XP applications into an XP system, then use them in Windows 7.

"Windows XP Mode is specifically designed to help small businesses move to Windows 7," Microsoft says on its site. "Windows XP Mode provides you with the flexibility to run many older productivity applications on a Windows 7 based PC."

You can read and listen to all the propaganda - and some interesting titbits - from the Microsoft engineers who worked on Windows 7 at http://talkingaboutwindows.com There, Microsoft's senior vice-president for the Windows core operating system, admits Vista was a misfire. He promises the engineers have not just loaded more features into an already top heavy software. They are measuring performance at every stage.

He says: "One of the things we heard - pretty loud and clear - from the Vista timeframe was just basic quality, whether it is performance or bugs or what have you. People were not satisfied. Basically it boils down to quality and value. An IT pro is going to be worrying about 'I am going to be spending this money. I am going to be spending this time. What does my organisation get out of that?'"

From my talks with the IT department where I work, a lot of IT executives are going to wait it out a year or two before considering whether to deploy Windows 7. Microsoft is hoping the timeframe is a lot shorter.

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Techies seem to be a happy lot - despite the economic downturn. More than two thirds (71 percent) of IT workers describe themselves are happy working in their chosen sector, according to research carried out by the UK's IT Job Board, a recruitment company. Nearly half of those who are not content with the industry they work in, would prefer to work in software and IT services.

Alex Farrell, managing direcAlex Farrell, managing director of The IT Job Board, noted that while the private sector is experiencing a real decline in job hires, the public sector is seeing growth.

The public sector accounts for 10 percent of the 13,500 vacancies the company advertises on the site (www.theitjobboard.com).

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A $100 netbook? It is apparently just about to be put on the market by China-based Skytone.

The company's Alpha 680 runs on the open-source Android, a platform and operating system originally developed by Google for mobile devices.

The Alpha 680 is a seven-inch netbook that doubles as a tablet.

It comes with up to 4 GB of flash memory.

The machine has not been release yet.

The tech media reports it will cost about $250 but the company has countered it is working on bringing the price down to $100, about the price of a good night on the town.

For that price I'll pick one up when it comes out.

Check it out, along with photos, in the English section of the company's Internet site at: www.skytone.net.cn

Send any comments to Ahmed at elamin.ahmed@gmail.com