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Roadmap Slide Pegs Windows 8 for 2012

Ryan Whitwam — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:00:42 -0600

An interesting Microsoft product roadmap has turned up. The document shows the year 2012 as the tentative timeframe for a “major release” code named Windows 8. This would put it at about three years out from the release of Windows 7. The interval between Vista and Win 7 was also three years. This could signal a new regular release cycle for Microsoft. No indication if the “code name” will stick, or if Redmond will decide to change naming schemes once again.

Vista was pushed back three years from its original release date after much of the code was scrapped. If this image is to be believed, Microsoft is confident in its ability to avoid such delays again. The timeframe fits with previous rumors we’ve heard, so there’s no reason to be overly skeptical.

Is the three year plan reasonable? We’ll have to wait and see what Microsoft can cook up in another three years.

Power Pack 3 to Enhance Windows Home Server on Nov 24

Ryan Whitwam — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:36:26 -0600

If you run a Windows Home Server, you can look forward to November 24th when Microsoft will be releasing Home Server Power Pack 3. It will be pushed out to all current users via Windows Update. While it is a somewhat major update, it will install automatically if you have Windows Update configured to install patches itself.

Power Pack 3 makes a number of improvements to the system. Users can expect Windows 7 enhancements relating to backup and restore of Windows 7 PCs, Windows 7 Libraries integration, enhancements for Windows 7 Media Center. There will also be better support for netbook computers.

Most of the upgrades seem to Windows 7 related, but some improvements to TV recording are there as well. Recorded TV can be automatically archived on Home Server Power Pack 3. Microsoft is also including an improved console view. Overall, it looks to be a nice update. Let us know how it goes when you get it.

Ballmer: Windows 7 Off to "Fantastic Start"

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:09:59 -0600

Windows 7 is the best PC operating system ever, according to Steve Ballmer. "We've already sold twice as many units as any OS in a comparable time frame," an exultant Ballmer informed shareholders at a meeting on Thursday.

Its latest operating system has helped the company obscure the spectre of Vista's failure. A couple of NPD reports published during the past fortnight indicate that Windows 7 has so far surpassed Vista in terms of sales, revenue, and adoption rate.

One shareholder apparently became the face of moderation for a bit during the meeting when he questioned Ballmer about Apple's huge popularity with the younger generation. Ballmer admitted that there is some room for improvement. But on the whole, he seemed satisfied with the fact that Windows is by far the most popular OS in the world.

8 Things You Need to Know about Chrome OS

Will Smith & Norman Chan — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:00:12 -0600

Google pulled the wraps off of Chrome OS today, and while there isn't a general availability announcement today, they spoke briefly about the Chrome browser (Linux and Mac versions due this year, along with support for extensions) before diving into the nascent OS. You can expect to see Chrome ship in about a year, and showed the first glimpses of the new OS, details about the architecture, the hardware it will run on, and gave us the first hints about what the Google Cloud OS will really look like.

Here's why Chrome OS won't be replacing Windows anytime soon.

Chrome OS is a hardware platform as well as an OS

Chrome will have very specific platform requirements. It won’t run on machines with physical hard drives, only SSDs. Only certain Wi-Fi chipsets will be supported. Chrome OS will also have requirements for screen size, a full-sized keyboard, and a decent sized touchpad. They demoed Chrome OS working on an eeePC today, and said that you'd be able to upgrade some netbooks on the market today using a screwdriver.

Google didn't announce hardware specs, but confirmed that Chrome OS will work with x86 and ARM-based machines, and is designed with the 802.11n Wi-Fi spec in mind.

Chrome is Open Source

Chrome OS uses code from Linux, Webkit, Ubuntu, and Moblin. It's based on what seems like a heavily modified Linux kernel. While there's no beta announcement today, the code is open source as of today, so people can download and work on the code, as well as contribute submissions back to the project.

The Chrome Browser is the Primary Interface

If you've used the Chrome browser, Chrome OS will look very familiar to you. There is no conventional Desktop, so to speak. The browser window is your web interface, file explorer, and web app launcher. You can open multiple Chrome windows (think multiple desktops), each with their own set of tabs and swap between them from an even zoomed out further desktop.

Data is Stored in the Cloud

While the user can save data locally, whether it's photos, videos, etc, everything in the user's /home folder is synced to the cloud. The local copy is just a cache, presumably to allow you to use the netbook offline or where there's poor Internet. This is very similar to the thin clients that Sun pushed in the late 90s, in that there are relatively slow computers with ubiquitous network connections that rely on the Internet for most of their usability.

When you use any Chrome OS device, you log in and all of your data is there immediately. This means that presumably you log into your Chrome machine using your Google account. Of course, the big question is what happens when Google's servers go down. How accessible will your data be when you're away from the Internet for a few days?

Chrome OS uses a New Security Model

Because the Chrome browser is the OS, users don't have access to the root folders of the machine. You won't be able to install applications on the OS, but there will be a plugin/extension architecture, presumably that works with extensions similar to the Chrome browser.

The OS kernel and browser will be digitally signed, so the OS will be able to check itself at boot. (Web apps won't require digital signatures.) If it detects something amiss, it will simply restore the affected areas of the OS, leaving your home partition alone. The OS will also automatically update at launch, during its verified boot.

Chrome OS is for Secondary Computers

Google doesn't anticipate Chrome OS being used on your desktop PCs (at least, not yet). Dual-boot will not be possible, and it won't work with your third-party peripherals that use non-standard drivers. Keyboards, mice, and USB hard drives will work, but it's extremely unlikely that you'll be able to sync your iPhone with Chrome OS. They say that they'll have a novel solution for printing in the future.

Chrome OS Runs Web Apps Exclusively

We've said it before, but we'll say it again now. The only native app for Chrome OS is the browser. There's no mail application, no control panels, no application launcher outside of the browser. The OS is the Chrome browser--anything you can run in the Chrome browser runs inside that. Google showed web Excel from Microsoft and specifically mentioned Yahoo and other providers during the demo. Anything that runs in the Chrome browser on Windows, will run on Chrome OS. All of the applications you'll run on Chrome OS are web applications.

During the Q&A Michael Arrington explicitly pointed out that this strategy exactly mirrors Steve Jobs' comments during the initial iPhone launch. The response? The iPhone has native apps, Chrome OS only has a browser.

Chrome is more like a TV than a Computer

It's instant-on, cold booting in about 7 seconds, and on the desktop about 3 seconds after that. This is why they're using a unique platform, so they control the hardware and software and can get performance and experience they need.

Here's Google's over-simplified explanation of Chrome OS:

Image credits: Gizmodo and Google

Google Explains Chrome OS in this 3 Minute Video

Norman Chan — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:30:28 -0600

This morning, Google gave the first public demonstration of the Chrome OS they announced earlier this year. We'll have a full recap of the presentation later today, but Google has also released a 3 minute video explaining the basics of their netbook-targeted operating system. The basics: Chrome OS is Chrome web browser, built on top of a Linux kernel, which only runs web apps (ie. primarily used when you're connected to the internet). And it's being designed with specific hardware specs in mind.

Update: Here's everything you need to know about Chrome OS!

Stay tuned for our recap of the Chrome OS presentation.

The NSA has been Working with Microsoft on Windows 7 Security

Paul Lilly — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:15:01 -0600

With the release of its latest OS, Microsoft appears to have put security at the forefront of the design phase. So much so that the National Security Agency (NSA) had a hand in helping the software maker lock down its operating system, a senior NSA official said on Tuesday.

"Working in partnership with Microsoft and [the Department of Defense], NSA leveraged our unique expertise and operational knowledge of system threats and vulnerabilities to enhance Microsoft's operating system security guide without constraining the user's ability to perform their everyday tasks," Richard Schaeffer, the NSA's Information Assurance Director, told the Senate Judiciary Committee in a statement prepared for a hearing held in Washington. "All this was done in coordination with the product release, not months or years later in the product cycle."

The NSA and Microsoft working together is not exactly a new venture. Back in 2007, NSA officials confirmed they had also lent a hand during the development of VIsta, but the collaboration goes even further back. In 2005, the NSA and other government agencies assisted Microsoft in securing Windows XP and other programs.

Of course, the NSA is probably best known for its electronic eavesdropping operations, and we can't wait to see what the conspiracy theorists have to say about the organization's involvement with Windows.

Number of Android Devices Has Devs Worried

Ryan Whitwam — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:02:31 -0600

It’s been just over a year since Android was released, and we’re finally seeing the floodgates open. There are currently no fewer than 12 Android phones available and still more coming soon. While this may make Android fans out there giddy with excitement, it’s not so thrilling for app developers.

There are 3 versions on Android in the wild: 2.0, 1.6, and 1.5. Developers increasingly find themselves devoting time to patching incompatibilities with new Android handsets. “Instead of working on updates to our apps, we find we are trying to make each app work for multiple versions of the OS and different hardware capabilities,” said Froogloid’s Chris Fagan.

The modifications some manufacturers are making to Android complicate things even further. The recent;y released HTC Hero, for example, was incompatible with Froogloid’s application ‘a2b’. When a2b attempted to enable GPS using standard commands, the Hero would instead respond by presenting the lock screen. The new Motorola Droid also had a few incompatibilities due to the high screen resolution and new Android 2.0 APIs.

Can Android overcome this fragmentation? The solution may be to keep phones more uniformly updated. But that requires better cooperation between hardware partners and Google. Only time will tell if Android’s ecosystem can continue to grow more robust despite these challenges.

Google to Give "Complete Overview" of Chrome OS on Thursday

Ryan Whitwam — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:24:03 -0600

It looks like those rumors about the impending release of Google’s Chrome OS weren’t all smoke and mirrors. Google is planning to hold a Chrome OS event at its Mountain View headquarters this Thursday. Apparently Google will be giving some technical background, as well as showing some demos of the OS in action.

Google Senior VP of Product Management, Sundar Pichai, and Google Engineering Director, Matthew Papakipos will be speaking at the show. There will also be a Q&A after the event. No word on possible developer preview access though.

Chrome OS was just announced in July, so the fact that Google is already prepared to give a complete overview is impressive. There have been a few leaks of possible browser UI designs, but now we’ll get to see what form the whole OS will take. Are your hopes high for this operating system? Feel free to share any predictions in the comments.