IDF: MIDs will run Windows XP and Vista, Intel says
Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) based on Intel's Centrino Atom chip package
will be available with Microsoft's Windows operating system in addition to Linux,
according to the chip maker.
"The platform is going to be enabled for both Windows XP and Windows Vista,"
said Gary Willihnganz, director of marketing at Intel's Ultra Mobility Group.
MID is the name that Intel has given to handheld devices based on Centrino
Atom that are expected to be produced in a range of form factors, with many
using touch screens or slide-out keyboards. The devices, which are being showcased
at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in Shanghai, are seen as a way for users
to access the Internet and play media files when they are on the move.
Intel showed off four prototype MIDs at a news conference in Tokyo Wednesday
although precise details about the computers were lacking.
The machines included a Centrino Atom version of Fujitsu's previously launched
Ultra Mobile PC (UMPC) and an Atom-based Panasonic Toughbook tablet PC. Also
on show were two MIDs that were first unveiled at CES in Las Vegas in January:
a mobile navigation device from Clarion and a keyless device from Toshiba.
In the past, Intel had said these devices would run Linux and established an
effort, called Moblin.org,
to develop a version of the open-source software for MIDs. The fruits of that
effort include versions of Canonical's Ubuntu and Asianux that are designed
for MIDs.
Support for Windows XP on MIDs is particularly noteworthy, because Microsoft
plans to stop selling most Windows XP licenses on June 30 -- around the same
time that many MIDs will just be hitting the market. Microsoft's stance on license
availability is expected to change over the next few days, according to a source
familiar with the situation, who said the company plans to announce extended
of Windows XP for certain products, such as low-cost laptops.
Besides Vista and XP, Windows Mobile may also find its way onto these devices
some day.
The man appointed to develop a version of Windows Mobile for MIDs is Len Kawell,
formerly the CEO of Pepper Computer, who joined Microsoft last month. During
the 1980s, Kawell was a founding member of Iris Associates, the company founded
by Ray Ozzie, now Microsoft's chief software architect, to develop Lotus Notes.
He also has experience with MIDs, as his former company, Pepper, developed a
version of Linux for these devices.
IDG News Service
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