Microsoft still likes HD DVD, not going to be ready for it in Vista

We'll save our comments about what it means when companies hold press conferences to remind users they're still supporting this or that, but what really flummoxes us is why Microsoft's pick for the next-gen optical format,
HD DVD, would lack support in
Windows Vista when it's released next year. They do, after all, have a tight working and IP
relationship with Toshiba, and are probably their most important standing backers. Oh, and let's not forget how freaking long they've had to get on this thing. Yet Ballmer himself said that HD DVD support may not be there until "the earliest and appropriate time." Steve,
buddy, you may want to sit down for this one: the earliest and appropriate time to support HD DVD (and anything else,
for that matter) is launch time, mkay?