Longhorn steers WinHEC agenda

Extending its reach into the hardware and handheld-device realms, Microsoft this week will detail plans for the forthcoming Longhorn version of Windows, Windows CE .Net 4.2, and its Windows RTC (Real-Time Communications) Server.

Microsoft executives are also expected to demonstrate early prototypes of computers that use the company’s NGSCB (Next-Generation Secure Computing Base) technology at WinHEC (Windows Hardware Engineering Conference) 2003 in New Orleans .

Formerly known as Palladium, NGSCB is a combination of new hardware and software that Microsoft says will boost PC security. Critics, however, fear that NGSCB — which is to be included in a future version of Windows, possibly Longhorn — could be a scourge for user freedom.

NGSCB includes a software component for Windows called a “nexus” and a chip — dubbed the Security Support Component — that can perform cryptographic operations. The technology creates within a PC a second operating environment that is meant to protect the system from malicious code by providing secure connections between applications, peripheral hardware, memory, and storage.

Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates will use his keynote at the show to highlight Microsoft’s vision for the datacenter, mobile applications, and the home.

Next-generation PC prototypes will also be featured by Gates, as will innovations in machine provisioning, application deployment, and systems management, according to Microsoft.

Gates is also expected to discuss details of Microsoft’s efforts in the embedded arena. Company officials declined to offer additional details, but the news will reportedly emerge from Microsoft’s Embedded and Appliance Platforms Group, the team responsible for XP Embedded.

Executives will also detail the multimedia capabilities in Longhorn, the code name for the next version of the Windows XP OS. Longhorn, expected to ship in 2005, will enable deployment of applications with rich media types such as video.

A third internal test version of Longhorn was leaked onto the Internet in late April. Build 4015, also referred to as Milestone 5, has its own startup logo, a screen that shows a user’s settings are being loaded, and a more refined search interface, according to testers who have posted screenshots of the software on various Web sites.
Microsoft is also expanding features that will support the new WinFS (Windows Future Storage) file system. WinFS, which will be part of Longhorn, will allow users to view files indexed from various physical locations instead of displaying the contents of specific folders or directories such as My Music or My Images.
Windows CE .Net 4.2, an embedded OS, will also be under discussion. Released to manufacturing last month, Version 4.2 includes VOIP (voice over IP) and STB (set-top boxes) features for device manufacturers to build “compelling” devices with communication, data, and voice requirements, according to Microsoft.

Windows CE .Net 4.2 is reported to provide improved API compatibility across CE-based devices. Other features for the forthcoming OS will include improved security and kernel enhancements.

Windows Real-Time Communications Services is also expected to be a key topic at the show. Microsoft's upcoming RTC Server, formerly dubbed Greenwich and due to ship this fall, is described by Microsoft in a statement as an IM server that empowers companies to collaborate on new information more quickly and to take advantage of industry-standard protocols such as SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) and SIMPLE (SIP for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions) when deploying and structuring real-time communications tools.
Analyst Dwight Davis said he wanted to hear more about Microsoft's Dynamic Systems Initiative at the conference. "They've been closed-mouthed about some of the broader ramifications of that initiative, and they talked about it primarily in the context of the software model that they're going to be promoting, so I don't understand the ramifications for hardware vendors," Davis said.

This initiative, featured in the recently released Windows Server 2003 operating system, attempts to unify hardware, software, and service vendors around a software architecture designed to leverage industry-standard hardware and simplify IT operations.

WinHEC's primary objective is to map out the strategic direction of Windows-based technologies for hardware manufacturers in order to accommodate the long lead times their products require, explained Michael Cherry, lead analyst of operating systems at Directions on Microsoft in Kirkland, Wash.