Windows gets a mini-me
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Microsoft engineer shows off a new "MinWin" kernel that takes up a fraction of the space of the traditional OS.
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Tiny AVCHD device uses Secure Digital memory card for storage.
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The core code for Microsoft&#39;s Windows OS is undergoing a rewrite to make it slimmer for use in a wide range of future products, including&#160;Windows 7, the OS that will succeed Vista.The internal project, code-named &quot;MinWin,&quot; is not being readied for a product just yet but will be part of&#160;Windows 7, said Eric Traut, a distinguished engineer, during a recent presentation at the University of Illinois. A video of his talk has been posted online.The kernel is the fundamental code underlying an OS that manages services for applications such as drivers, file management and memory.&quot;A lot of people think of Windows as this large, bloated operating system, and that&#39;s maybe a fair characterization, I have to admit,&quot; Traut said. &quot;But at its core, the kernel, and the components that make up the very core of the operating system, is actually pretty streamlined.&quot;Traut showed a demonstration of MinWin, which lacks a graphical user interface. It takes up just 25M bytes when stored on disk, compared to the massive 4GB the full Windows Vista OS needs, Traut said.MinWin can run on under 40MB of RAM, he said. &quot;That&#39;s kind of proof there is actually a pretty nice little core inside of Windows,&quot; Traut said.But Microsoft still wants to shrink it. &quot;It&#39;s still bigger than I&#39;d like it to be,&quot; Traut said.Microsoft uses its kernel in a range of products, from its client Windows OS to servers. Keeping the kernel as small as possible enables it to be used in OSes for lower-memory environments, such as embedded devices.&quot;This will provide us the ability to move into even more areas,&quot; Traut said.Microsoft has said it will release Windows 7 by 2010, although the company has not revealed much detail on its features.&#160;
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The tiny player is compatible with Windows Media Audio, WMA 9 Lossless, MP3 and WAV audio files, and can also display JPEG images.
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Priced at about US$36, the Starter Edition gives users limited options and features, compared to the standard Windows version. Microsoft hopes the low price will help it compete in Russia
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft has released a version of its .Net programming framework for coding on embedded devices such as microwave ovens or remote controls. The .Net Micro Framework provides a platform for running programs using the C# language on small devices, the company announced Tuesday at Embedded World 2007 in Nuremberg, Germany. It also released a software development kit (SDK). Microsoft has made a strong push into the embedded device development area. The company is trying to attract developers who may have avoided using itsÂ Windows CE embedded OSÂ because the associated hardware was too expensive and the OS had too many features, said Colin Miller, product unit manager. Those developers could be working on code for devices such as a retail kiosk, Miller said. Often, those developers may have turned to embedded Linux programs, Miller said. But some developers don't want to run both Linux and Microsoft programming environments because of the complexity, Miller said. The SDK can be used to develop programs using the company's Visual Studio development software. Its features include hardware emulation and graphical debugging of emulated and real hardware. The framework and SDK supports hardware platforms based on Arm 7 and Arm 9 microprocessor cores, which are used in many consumer devices such as microwave ovens. Microsoft said the SDK and the .Net Micro framework can be used to develop a range of applications, such as home automation systems, industrial sensors, retail displays and health care monitors. Miller said Microsoft will work on adding Web services features to the platform that will enable plug-and-play functionality. For example, a consumer who buys a new dishwasher would be able to directly integrate the appliance into their home automation system. Microsoft will use volume licensing for the .Net Micro Framework and SDK, charging about $1 to $2 per device, Miller said. The company has sought to make the work of embedded systems developers easier with the .Net Micro Framework, Rob Miles, a lecturer in the computer science department at the University of Hull in Hull, England, and rated by Microsoft as a "Most Valuable Professional," wrote on his blog. Writing code for small devices has been difficult since programmers had to learn low-level interfacing and write code that runs directly on the hardware, Miles wrote. The programs are hard to debug, and the programmers had to use lots of new tools, he wrote. With the .Net Micro Framework, the code can be written and debugged in Visual Studio 2005. The hardware features are exposed in an object-oriented manner "which makes them very easy to use," Miles wrote. "This will make embedded code much easier to create and open it up to a wider range of developers," Miles wrote.
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$50 device will feature hot keys designed for the alternative operating system.
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Look for more consumer electronics products and services from the PC behemoth. Also: SuSE Linux for Dell servers.
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New virtual-machine technology can be used to test software patches and migrate aging Windows NT applications. By John Foley, Paula Rooney, CRN.
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Tycho:  I don't know whose fault it is exactly, mine or theirs, but I won't be installing Vista anytime soon.  I would like some crazy shit to happen when I minimize something don't get me wrong.  I want my windows to go Waja-wajow(!) is possible.  But if there's a great reason to "trade horses midstream" or whatever the going metaphor is I haven't discovered it.
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The little diagnostic test kit maker that could.
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From the "luggable" Apple IIc and Commodore SX-64 to today's Asus Eee PC, portable computers have gotten ever smaller and sleeker. Here are some favorites from days past.
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Microsoft's new Virtual PC emulator lets an Apple computer run Windows XP amazingly well. It's a great product for those occasions when you must sully your Mac with a Windows-only application. By Leander Kahney.
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In an era when computers get ever smaller and more portable, it seems almost a throwback, but software giant Microsoft hopes a Â£5,000 coffee table bristling with technology could be the next big step forward.
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The Chinese PC maker releases a smaller form factor desktop PC that it promises will suck less energy and take up less space.
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New component could allow players small enough to fit in notebook PCs.
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At only over 1 pound, Sony&#39;s VAIO U Ultra Portable PC is a full Microsoft Windows XP computer, on a form factor that resembles that of a PDA.