Just interrupting my lunchtime to mention that the hot rumour around the place is that the next version of Windows (Longhorn) will be called Windows Vista. Apparently this will be announced on Friday morning US time. Until then, Scoble’s keeping shtum.

Microsoft has registered windowsvista.us, and someone anonymous registered windowsvista.com and .net on the same day.

So, maybe they’re switching from acronyms (ME, XP) and numbers (98, 2000) to more Apple-esque words (Tiger)?

What’s less known is the shipping date and feature set. Not to mention whether or not it’ll be a compelling upgrade. (Hey, it took me until two months ago to get onto Windows XP.)