Windows Vista

* Windows Aero: a re-designed user interface, named Windows Aero – an acronym for Authentic, Energetic, Reflective, and Open. The new interface is intended to be cleaner and more aesthetically pleasing than previous Windows, including new transparencies, animations and eye candy.
* Windows Shell: The new Windows shell is significantly different from Windows XP, offering a new range of organization and search capabilities. The Start menu has changed as well; it no longer uses ever-expanding boxes when navigating through Programs. Even the word "Start" itself has been removed in favor of a blue Windows "Pearl". (Though not in the Costumer Preview Beta 2) (Circular control buttons, or "pearls", are likely to appear in many other Windows Vista-era applications. A similar "pearl" is present in Office 2007.)
* Search: significantly faster and more thorough search capabilities, similar to what is offered by Microsoft's Windows Desktop Search, Beagle, Copernic, and Apple Computer's Spotlight. Search boxes have been added to the Start menu, Windows Explorer, and several of the applications included with Vista.
* Windows Sidebar: A new panel on the right-hand side of the screen, similar to Apple Computer's Dashboard, where a user can place Desktop Gadgets, which are small applets designed for a specialized purpose (such as displaying the weather or sports scores). The gadgets can also be placed on other parts of the Desktop, if desired.
* Internet Explorer 7+, an upgrade of Microsoft's web browser, with support for tabbed browsing, RSS, a search box, a phishing filter, IDN with anti-spoofing technology and improved standards support. For added security, ActiveX controls are disabled by default. Also, Internet Explorer will operate in a "protected mode" sandbox which operates with lower permissions than the user, preventing it from accessing or modifying anything besides the Temporary Internet Files directory.[6] Also, for better security, Internet Explorer is no longer integrated with the explorer shell (local files typed in IE are opened using the explorer shell and Web sites typed in the explorer shell are opened using IE).
* Windows Media Player 11, a major revamp of Microsoft's popular program for playing and organizing music and videos. New features in this version include word wheeling (or "search as you type"), a completely new and highly graphical interface for the media library, photos display and organization, and the ability to share music libraries over a network with other Vista machines, the Xbox 360, and other Media Center Extenders.
* User Account Control is a new security technology that allows Windows to operate effectively as a "standard" user with fewer privileges. This was often a difficult thing to do in previous versions of Windows, because the previous "limited" user accounts proved too restrictive and incompatible with a large proportion of application software. When an action requiring administrative rights is requested, the user will first be prompted to confirm their action (or be asked for an administrator password if they are not themselves an administrator).
* Windows Firewall: Supports monitoring both incoming and outgoing traffic. It's also possible to create advanced packet filter rules.
* Windows Defender: Microsoft's Anti-spyware product has been incorporated into Windows, offering protection against spyware and other threats. Changes to various system configuration settings (such as new auto-starting applications) are blocked unless the user gives consent. The new version uses Windows Automatic Updates to receive definition updates, also works properly with standard user accounts, and has integration with IE so that downloads are scanned when they are downloaded, which reduces the risk of accidentally downloading malicious software.
* Windows Mail: A replacement for Outlook Express that includes a completely replaced mail store that improves stability, and enables real-time search. A number of features from Outlook 2003 are also included, most notably junk mail filtering.[7]

Windows Update interface in Windows Vista build 5365
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Windows Update interface in Windows Vista build 5365

* Windows Update: Software and security updates have been simplified, now operating solely via a control panel instead of as a Web application. Mail's spam filter and Defender's definitions will also be automatically updated via Windows Update.
* Vista includes a range of parental controls to limit when accounts may be used, what programs and Web sites are blocked, and monitoring capabilities.
* Windows SideShow: Enables the auxiliary displays on newer laptops or on supported Windows Mobile devices. It is meant to be used to display Device gadgets while the computer is on or off.
* Speech recognition is fully integrated into Vista, which can be "trained" to understand a user's voice, to activate commands in any Windows application, and to enable voice dictation.
* Many new fonts, including several designed especially for screen reading, and a new high-quality Japanese font. See Windows Vista typefaces. ClearType has also been enhanced.
* Games: Every game included with Windows has been rewritten to take advantage of Vista's new graphics capabilities. New games include Chess, Mahjong Titans and Purble Place. The Games section will also hold links and information to all games on the user's computer. One piece of information that will be shown is the game's ESRB rating.
* Windows Calendar is a new calendar and task application.
* Windows Photo Gallery, a photo and movie library management application. WPG can import from digital cameras, tag and rate individual items, adjust colors and exposure, create and display slideshows (with pan and fade effects), and burn slideshows to DVD.
* Windows DVD Maker, a companion program to Windows Movie Maker, which provides the ability to create video DVDs based on a user's content.
* Windows Meeting Space is the replacement for NetMeeting. Users can share applications (or their entire Desktop) with other users on the local network, or over the Internet using peer-to-peer technology.
* SuperFetch, which will speed up the loading of programs and windows by noting the common time of day you use certain programs, then loading the necessary binaries and files in RAM shortly before the set time, so that when you open the program at your usual time, the programs will load much quicker than they would otherwise. Optionally, SuperFetch can also be used in conjunction with ReadyBoost to boost system performance.
* ReadyBoost makes PCs running Windows Vista more responsive by using flash memory on a USB drive, SD Card, Compact Flash, or other form of flash memory, in order to boost system performance. It does this by caching to the USB/Flash drive first, which provides faster access, for the drive is acting as temporary RAM. This is optional, and the choice to utilize this feature is presented to the user during Autostart, when the drive is first plugged in.
* ReadyDrive, enables Windows Vista PCs equipped with a hybrid drive to boot up faster, resume from hibernation in less time, and preserve battery power. Hybrid hard drives are a new type of hard disk that integrates non-volatile flash memory with a traditional hard drive.
* Touchscreen support will be included.[8]
* Problem Reports and Solutions, a new control panel which allows users to see previously sent problems and any solutions or additional information that is available.