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TECH UPDATE
Microsoft revamps pocket PC OS
Microsoft is upgrading and renaming its Pocket PC operating system, and a handful of PDA vendors are ready with new models that take advantage of the software’s enhanced security and multimedia functions.
Microsoft’s operating system for personal digital assistants is now dubbed Windows Mobile software for Pocket PCs. The new Windows Mobile brand will also be used for Microsoft’s handset OS, which will be known as Windows Mobile software for Smartphones.
Windows Mobile 2003 software for Pocket PCs, the successor to the Pocket PC 2002 OS, is by no means a must-have upgrade, but it does deliver assorted tweaks and may also be available as an easy download for some Pocket PC 2002 devices.
In addition to HP and Toshiba, Microsoft says new Pocket PCs running the new OS are coming from Asustek, Dell, Fujitsu Siemens Computers (FSC), and ViewSonic. Two other vendors, Gateway and JVC, will offer their first Pocket PCs by the end of the year, and Panasonic and China’s Legend Group are also developing Pocket PCs based on Windows Mobile software in the same time frame, Microsoft says.
IBM to add order to XML
IBM plans to release next year a software tool that will improve DB2 Content Manager’s ability to manage the many different XML documents used by enterprises.
Code-named “Cinnamon,” the utility will be integrated with the administrative tools for Content Manager’s repository. The new tool will ship next year, but IBM hasn’t decided whether it will be available only with upcoming versions of Content Manager, Jim Reimer, chief architect for the product line, said.
The utility is meant to address some of the problems that have accompanied the increasing use of extensible markup language to build electronic documents. While XML is a standard for how content is defined, the schema, or actual definition of the content, varies greatly. Thererfore, it’s impossible to simply dump documents into a repository and have them retrievable by a search engine.
Faster WLAN standard approved
The IEEE standard-setting group has crossed the “t” and dotted the “i” as it gave final approval to the long-awaited 802.11g specification for wireless networking.
The new standard, which won ratification from the Standards Board of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), lays down the rules for wireless hardware capable of transmitting data at speeds up to 54Mbps while remaining backwards compatible with the ultra-popular 802.11b gear that runs at a comparably pokey 11Mbps. Both specifications use the 2.4GHz band of the radio spectrum.
“IEEE 802.11g gives WLAN suppliers and users added flexibility in choosing systems that best fits their needs,” said Stuart Kerry, the chair of the IEEE 802.11 working group, which shepherded the standard through the ratification process.
Office 2003 beta ‘refreshed’
Microsoft has released a “refresh” of its Office 2003 beta 2 to a small number of testers, a rare move by the vendor to improve the stability of the product when it is released later this year.
The “Microsoft Office System Beta 2 Technical Refresh” is being made available to 15,000 “technical” beta testers via BetaPlace, Microsoft’s site for beta testers, the company said. The testers will be asked to give feedback on the improvements Microsoft made to the second beta version of the upcoming 2003 version of the applications suite, Microsoft says.
PDAs for new OS
Gateway and Hewlett-Packard are unveiling new handheld devices this week in conjunction with the launch of Microsoft’s Windows Mobile Software 2003, an update of the Pocket PC operating system.
As expected, the announcement marks Gateway’s entrance into the handheld market, but Gateway’s personal digital assistant won’t ship until July, the company says.
HP is also announcing several new iPaq models that feature integrated Bluetooth wireless technology and secure digital I/O (SDIO) expansion slots. Other vendors are expected to refresh their handhelds with Microsoft’s new operating system, called Windows Mobile 2003.
HP’s new h1940 is the same size and weight as the older h1910 PDA, but HP switched to a 266MHz processor from Samsung Electronics for the new handheld, Box says. The h1910 currently uses a 200MHz XScale processor.
The Gateway 100X will feature a 400MHz XScale processor from Intel and a 3.5-inch screen. The company expects the device will be priced between $300 and $350, says Mike Stinson, vice president and general manager of mobile products. — Dawn ScienceDotcom Report
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