Lessons. Lessons. Everywhere you look, there are more lessons to be learned from the Vista debacle. Don't overpromise. Don't under-deliver. Get the ISV/IHV community involved early and often. And most importantly, make sure that whatever changes you introduce are indeed "fully-baked" before the OS goes out the door. Judging by the level of secrecy surrounding Windows 7, it seems that Microsoft has take Lessons. Lessons. Everywhere you look, there are more lessons to be learned from the Vista debacle.Don’t overpromise. Don’t under-deliver. Get the ISV/IHV community involved early and often. And most importantly, make sure that whatever changes you introduce are indeed “fully-baked” before the OS goes out the door.Judging by the level of secrecy surrounding Windows 7, it seems that Microsoft has taken the first two lessons to heart. Now comes news that Microsoft is revamping its logo requirements for vendors wishing to obtain the company’s “Certified for Windows Vista” seal of approval. In addition to the normal mountain of test documentation and paperwork, companies seeking logo status will have to provide an additional set of results from a special compatibility test tool that will ship with the first Windows 7 beta. Note: This does not mean that the products in question will need to pass the test — just that the vendors seeking certification for Vista must provide the results data for their product running under the Windows 7 beta, too. Click here for the gory details (see pages 36-37).It’s all part of Microsoft’s effort to address point number three above. By requiring that new logo applicants at least try their products under the beta — and then share the compatibility results data with Microsoft engineers — the company hopes to identify potential trouble spots early in the release cycle, giving it more time to address them and/or work with vendors to correct any problems the tool identifies.Frankly, it makes a lot of sense. Microsoft has leverage over its vendor partners in the form of the aforementioned logo program. Using that leverage to prod these partners into testing against the next Windows seems like a judicious way to ensure a smoother migration across the myriad components of the Microsoft ecosystem. Now, as for lesson number four — not shipping “half-baked” changes — well … only time will tell. But I have to admit, I like what I’m seeing from this leaner, more-focused Windows development team. Kudos to Steve Sinofsky, the true “anti-Allchin.” Software DevelopmentSmall and Medium Business