Vista SP1 has been held up because of a problem in which some drivers don't work with the update. Mary Jo Foley notes that Amazon appears to be expecting the retail version to be available this week as well. Broad release though, has been slated for 'mid-March,' which by my calendar means it should come this week. Microsoft finalized the code for Windows Vista Service Pack 1 at the beginning of February and eventually allowed some technical users to start downloading the code. That said, many are still pointing to the release of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 as a key sign to businesses that the product is ready to be taken seriously. What was once taken as a sign that a product had the kinks ironed out is now more a psychological milestone than a technical one. For a long time now, Microsoft has been arguing that service packs are less significant than they used to be.
