Microsoft: Vista Downloads Maxing Out Net

Internet running slow? Well you can thank Microsoft for putting Vista Beta 2 for download on the net. This multi-gigabyte installer for the next-generation Vista operating system is in such high demand that there isn't enough bandwidth to supply it. Microsoft commented that they couldn't provide additional bandwidth for the download without impacting the Internet as a whole.

I wrote about the Vista Beta 2 public release here.

Microsoft is encouraging users to order a DVD copy of the software to help quell download demand for the software. There is also a torrent for the installer to ease the distribution.

You have to wonder whether Microsoft knew that the public release would cause this kind of reaction. Seems that they would have been better off releasing the file as a torrent to start as well as offering the DVD. After the initial demand subsided they could post the file on their site for direct download. Maybe this was all part of Microsoft's plan to make everyone realize how in demand Vista is. Then again maybe Microsoft didn't release Vista as a torrent because many copies of its software is illegally swapped on BitTorrent networks.

Hopefully the demand will subside in the next week and everyone can get back to life as usual.