First expected to be released in 2004, then pushed back until some time in 2005, Windows Longhorn has now been pushed back further, but Microsoft has declined to give an expected ship date, according to eWeek. Longhorn, the version of Windows set to follow XP, has been described by Bill Gates and other Microsoft executives as Microsoftis "most revolutionary operating system to date."

At next monthis Professional Developeris Conference in Los Angeles, California, Microsoft is expected to hand out Longhorn developer preview discs, followed by a beta of the new operating system next year. From eWeek:

Microsoft Corp. has once again shifted the schedule for the release of "Longhorn," the companyis next major version of Windows, leaving some users up in the air about an upgrade path.

Microsoft executives from Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates on down have long described Longhorn as the Redmond, Wash., companyis most revolutionary operating system to date. The product was originally expected to ship next year. Then in May of this year, officials pushed back the release date to 2005. But now executives are declining to say when they expect the software to ship.

"We do not yet know the time frame for Longhorn, but it will involve a lot of innovative and exciting work," said Gates at a company financial analyst meeting this summer. Since then, other Microsoft officials have neither retracted nor clarified Gatesi statement.

You can read the full article at eWeekis Web site.