Microsoft plans to release a long-anticipated test version of an update to Windows XP on Thursday, a company representative said.
The update, or Service Pack 1, will ship to about 10,000 testers, according to the representative. As previously reported, it will include features intended to make it easier for consumers to choose third-party software over Microsoft's own products, in compliance with a settlement brokered in Microsoft's 4-year-old antitrust case.
The service pack will introduce four options for managing, customizing or removing Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, Windows Media Player, Windows Messenger, Microsoft's version of the Java Virtual Machine, and competing so-called middleware from other companies.
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