The Penguin Ping.
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Posted on 05/18/2003 4:28:09 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SEATTLE (Reuters) -
Upgraded to Windows XP (news - web sites) yet? If not, you might miss your chance, because Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news)is already working on the newest version of its operating system, code-named Longhorn, due for release in 2005.
Although Windows XP, the most current version of Windows, is just 20 months old, the world's largest software maker is betting that users will be ready to upgrade within the next couple of years as personal computers become more powerful, faster and affordable.
Details about the new operating system remain scant, but Microsoft has already started soliciting feedback from hardware makers and software developers on key features of Longhorn, such as its graphics and security capabilities.
The challenge for Microsoft is to ensure that Windows, the software that runs on nearly all of the world's personal computers, will show enough of an improvement to convince users to upgrade, while fending off growing competition from Linux (news - web sites), the free operating system.
Although Microsoft previewed some of Longhorn's features at a hardware engineering conference last week, the software giant is holding its cards close to the chest.
"Microsoft is pleased with the progress to date on the development of the next version of Windows, code-named Longhorn," said Greg Sullivan, lead product manager for Windows, but added that "it's important to realize the product is still under development and evolving each day. As a result, it's too early to talk about specifics for the final version."
Still, technophiles eager to get their hands on this nascent version of Windows have already circulated "alpha," or early working versions, on the Internet and are buzzing over some of Longhorn's newest features.
NEW PLUMBING
Much of Longhorn's most significant improvements will be in its basic design and inner workings.
Microsoft is also developing a new security technology, code-named Palladium, which is widely expected to be a part of Longhorn.
Palladium will allow Microsoft to secure information passing through software and, more significantly, hardware.
For example, Microsoft could encrypt keyboard strokes passing through the cable connecting the keyboard and the PC, making it difficult to find out a secret password or eavesdrop on sensitive information.
Since Palladium also makes it easier for Microsoft to track users and locate illegal copies of its software, some consumer groups and Microsoft's competitors have voiced alarm over giving the Redmond, Washington-based software maker too much control.
A new file system allowing the operating system to store data more efficiently will also be a core part of Longhorn's design, Microsoft has said.
That system, based on database technology, is aimed at facilitating storage of different types of files, which are automatically categorized, and also making it easier to manage files without using folders.
The new file system will also make it easier to store and retrieve data in different locations, such as on a server or another computer in a different location.
NEW LOOK
The most dramatic change for most users, however, will be in the design of the Windows desktop.
Recent demonstrations by Microsoft hint the software maker is aiming to make Windows behave more like, well, Windows.
The individual windows in Longhorn will be semi-translucent, making it possible to discern the contents of one window hidden behind another.
The trick is in the degree of opacity -- completely transparent windows atop one another would turn information into a jumble of letters and graphics, while more opaque ones might defeat their own purpose.
The operating system's windows would ripple when moved and shrink or expand their content automatically, effects that require a significant amount of graphics power, the kind usually reserved for high-action 3D games.
What this means is that the new software will most likely require new hardware or upgrades to work well. PC Makers welcome the opportunity to make new sales, but users are becoming increasingly reluctant to buy new hardware to go along with software every few years.
"Longhorn sort of continues Microsoft's insistence and belief that the desktop personal computer is best served by a fully high-powered device," said Dwight Davis, a strategist at Summit Strategies.
My biggest gripe about how fast Microsoft puts out new versions of their operating system is how incompatible the new versions can be with existing software. I have a $40k software package I work with that did not have XP compatibility till early this year. Apparently Microsoft decided to rewrite all its math function DLL's to improve security. Trying to run the Windows 2K version on XP resulted in getting erroneous mathematica results, which meant that if you were buying a new machine to run it back in December, you would definitely have needed to order a machine running Windows 2K.
You're right. Remember this?
Windows 95 = Machintosh 88
Bwahahahahahaha!!! Please! Find me a "box" console that can run a modern FPS game at 1600 by 1200 with 6x AA and 16x anisotropic filtering and still get 40 fps. My P4 2.66 w/ Radeon 9700Pro can. The Xbox or PS2 would be getting .5 frames per second...
Developers LOVE consoles, because coding for consoles takes all of the compatability issues out of the equation. But the average console still doesn't get half the performance of a P3 with an old 3dfx Voodoo5 card in it (especially since Microshaft contracted Nvidia to provide the graphics chips for the Xbox... with technology Nvidia bought from 3dfx).
If you want full graphics quality on any modern game, you can't do it with console level hardware. Half Life 2 or Doom3 (both due out in this year) would bury a console in 2 seconds...
Since none of these requires WinXP, I kindly disagree. ;)
If you run a DOS window in Windows 2000, and run the "VER" command, Windows will report that you are running version 5.00. If do the same thing in XP, Windows will report that you are running version 5.1. Obviously Microsoft doesn't think they are that much different. Also, Win 2K is more compatible with older and slower hardware than is Windows XP.
Wanna be Penguified? Just holla!
Got root?
Yes, cleartype is very cool technology.
I use hacked copies of TTF fonts that force the 'font smoothing' built in to Win98 right down to 4 point type.
It's a crude substitute for cleartype, but it eliminates the sawtooth thing, and is a huge improvement over 'stock.'
Excellent advice.
Ummmm... DHCP anyone?
Doing bad things to bad people...
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