Update: Yukon database delayed until '05

Computerworld - Citing quality concerns, Microsoft Corp. plans to push back the release date of its next generation database, code-named Yukon, and the next version of Visual Studio by as much as six months.
Microsoft had originally planned to release Yukon commercially at the end of 2004 but decided to add a third beta release to the cycle, delaying shipment until the first half of next year. A second Yukon beta, as well as the "Whidbey" Visual Studio tool kit beta, are on track for shipment in the next few months, however. And Microsoft has at least settled on an official name for the database: SQL Server 2005.
Yukon has a number of planned enhancements to address various flaws in SQL Server 2000, including security issues (see story).
"The only reason is partner and customer feedback," said Tom Rizzo, director of product management for SQL Server. "There are a select group of customers who will run Beta 3 and have the ability to sign off on the final release. In the database world, you can't release a poor product. We aren't date-driven; we're quality-driven."
There are no specific areas of concern, he said, but because Yukon is such a major release, Microsoft wants its major test customers to use it in production before signing off on it. "There are a lot of areas we want them to test it [in] in the real world." He cited as examples Yukon's data management, usability, security and Visual Studio tool kit developer productivity features.
"From my perspective, of course it's an issue," said Don Watters, data group manager at Seattle-based film processor PhotoWorks Inc., which runs SQL Server 2000. "I've been touting its abilities to so many people here and in other organizations, that I'd like to actually be able to show them that it's going to become a reality someday and that it really will change how business is done."
Watters said he fears that the SQL team's focus on Yukon means it won't give as much attention to SQL 2000 and fixing existing bugs. But he hopes Microsoft will take advantage of the delay to correct issues such as security flaws and buffer overruns.
However, other users who were asked about the delay aren't as anxious to get their hands on Yukon.
"In terms of the delay, it will not impact us in a major way," said Kirk Pothos, a software development manager at Xerox Global Services. His unit runs SQL 2000 and Desktop Engine 2000 to write Web applications to help manage