In July 2009, more than 1,400 business technology professionals weighed in on their Windows 7 deployment plans. At the time, we saw a general feeling of discontent with Microsoft’s direction, laced with an undercurrent of malice. A vocal minority gave us an earful about Vista’s failure in the enterprise, but what really fanned the flames was XP’s impending end of life. One respondent, in an interesting-albeit somewhat maudlin-analogy, compared XP’s demise with forcing your perfectly healthy 10-year-old Labrador retriever into a doggy nursing home. Such compelling philosophical arguments aside, most CIOs and IT staffers expressed serious skepticism that Windows 7 would deliver real business value.

What a difference a few months can make.

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