It's March 19, according to a post the tech press and punditocracy pounced on today.

Microsoft has said mid-March, thought it has already released the update to developers through MSDN, where it acknowledges the pack has been released to manufacturers.

Here's the top of today's column, a rumination on where Microsoft's software and services strategy could lead:

"A few years from now, when you drive into a McDonald's parking lot, your dashboard computer will start beeping.

"The computer is synced to your phone, and both devices have geographic location services. They know where you are and, based on your credit-card activity, they guess you're about to order another burger and supersized fries.

"But because you've subscribed to Microsoft Personal Trainer 2015, a premium feature of the online health-management system you've been using since 2012, technology intervenes. The services are gathering information on your behalf, using a new software platform that began taking shape in 2008."