Microsoft claims the idea of an interim Windows release between Windows XP and Longhorn is just that: An idea. Nonetheless, such a release already has developers' and users' tongues wagging.

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"Longhorn is looking more like a 2007 release," said one developer with tight Microsoft ties, who requested anonymity.

The developer said that the interim release is more than just a what-if. He said it is the resurrection of "Shorthorn," the Windows release that Microsoft was planning a couple of years ago as a stop-gap between XP and Longhorn.

"Shorthorn equals XP plus (XP) service pack 2, plus maybe the new WMP (Windows Media Player) with iTunes-inspired features," he said. "MSN and others want to compete with iTunes, and for that they need the new WMP that Microsoft is working on that can be rebranded and do all kinds of other things. It won't be ready until June. But Microsoft can't wait until 2006/2007 to get that out there."

Steven Bink, a Windows 2000 and Windows XP Microsoft certified systems engineer and Most Valuable Professional based in Amsterdam, had plenty to say about an interim Windows update.

"I think it is great news and about time," said Bink, who also runs the Bink.nu Windows enthusiast Web site.

"This is great for OEM PC resellers, who (would be able to) easily deploy new systems without installing all the patches, DX9 (DirectX 9) and WMP9 (Windows Media Player 9)," Bink said. "I always wondered why Microsoft would not release an "OEM Service Release" or a "Second Edition" of XP."

Microsoft officials, for their part, said no options are out of the question, in terms of how to get the latest fixes and features into the hands of customers and partners. A full interim release is only one such option, said Greg Sullivan, lead product manager with Windows client. Additional service packs, updates and other options — a set of possibilities which Microsoft is calling collectively "Windows XP Reloaded" —are all on the table, Sullivan said.

Bink added he had not heard talk that Longhorn had slipped to 2007. But he noted, "if that's true I predict even a third edition of XP."

Jason Perlow, president of the Windows and Linux systems integration consultancy Argonaut Systems Corp., based in Tenafly, N.J., said an interim Windows release would make a lot of sense.

"It's obvious to me that Longhorn was way, way too ambitious a release to get out on such a tight time schedule," Perlow said. "I know people internally are working on the longhorn UI (user interface), and it's a serious as a departure for Windows as Windows 95 was for Windows 3.1."

"If Longhorn is really 2007, Linux will offer as solid a user experience as the Mac OS does by 2006," Perlow continued. "And aggressive shops will go to Linux a lot earlier than that, maybe by late 2005."