Under deal struck with regulators, Microsoft must release beta by end of year:

    It's unusual, but confirmation of the availability of Windows Vista's first service pack came yesterday not from Microsoft Corp., but from the U.S. Department of Justice.

    Tucked into the government's 27-page joint status settlement report (download PDF) released late Tuesday was evidence that Microsoft will put the beta of Vista SP1 into users' hands before the end of the year. The report also confirmed Windows XP SP3, but did not specify beta or final release dates, although it said some code would be finalized this summer.

    Microsoft has been loath to talk about either service pack, but has been particularly mum about Windows Vista SP1, a widely anticipated bug update that some enterprise users are waiting on before deploying the new operating system.

    As recently as April, when Intel Corp.'s CEO Paul Otellini hinted that Vista SP1 would likely release in October or November, Microsoft refused to confirm any schedule.

    In the compromise struck between Microsoft and state and federal antitrust regulators, the company must make changes to Vista's desktop search tool so users and OEMs can pick a default search and indexing program to replace Vista's baked-in software for running Start menu searches. The user- or OEM-selected default must also be an option in searches initiated from Windows Explorer or the Control Panel.

    "Microsoft will deliver the required changes in Service Pack 1 of Windows Vista, which Microsoft currently anticipates will be available in beta form by the end of the year," the report stated twice, albeit in slightly-different phrasing each time.

    The changes to Vista's desktop search were prompted by a complaint filed by Google, Inc. in late 2006.

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