Yes, they're all doing their best. But they can't work a miracle. Vista is irretrievably late. Microsoft is embarrassed again. PC makers insist that they won't take a significant hit in holiday sales, but Wall Street analysts are already recalculating their Q4 sales estimates.

Lost revenue, lost trust, a lost reputation. That's Vista's legacy, even before it's finished.

Ugly, yes? And it probably sounds familiar. Your IT shop likely has huge, challenging (and challenged) projects too. How do you avoid watching the next one become a Vista of your very own?

Start with the first rule of posterior protection: Underpromise and overdeliver. Or better yet: Make no promises at all.

If -- pardon me, when -- your boss, users or business partners demand a guaranteed deadline, give them a percentage chance that you can deliver the goods. That percentage goes up if they can accept functionality that doesn't work in the first version. But promise nothing.