Microsoft Makes Surprise CE 6 Release

An anonymous reader writes "Unexpectedly, Microsoft has released a beta of Windows CE 6, at its mobile developer's conference (MEDC) this week. CE is the real-time OS that underpins Windows Mobile and Microsoft's other device software stacks for phones, PDAs, set-top boxes, and the like. CE 6 looks to be a major rewrite, featuring the capability to support several orders of magnitude more concurrent processes and virtual memory. Also new is support for MS's .NET IDE. Together, these new capabilities seem calculated to morph CE from a closed-box, off-the-shelf OS into a more customizable OS."

Comments

Huh

[Anonymous Coward]

LOL HY LOL

Choose from some of the most popular search engines on the Web - they're pre-loaded in the Firefox Search bar.

Oh, so this is news.

[Anonymous Coward]

It's an announcement that CE 6 will come out some day, which is pretty much what we knew already. Jeez.

Meanwhile they've completely buried the news about Apple's new MacBook laptops:

May 9th, 2006

By Jen Tui

LOS ANGELES, CA (Presswire) - Apple Computer finally launched its long awaited Macbook series of consumer laptops today, after months of speculation from the computing community. The new systems replace the older iBook laptops, and are based upon Intel's recent Core series of computer chips, instead of IBM and Freescale's older PowerPC line.

"We're delighted to get these machines out the door to an eagerly awaiting public", Apple CEO Steve Jobs explained to a packed press conference. "We're expecting great sales with this model. It's great machine, extremely competitive with our rivals, and I think our customers are going to love it."

Choosing the E3 Expo to announce the new machines, Apple revealed models varying from a $799 model with an Intel Core Solo, 512Mb of RAM and 80 gigs of hard disk space, to a $1,499 "Macbook gamer" model, with a high-end ATI X1600 graphics card, 120gigs of hard disk space, 2Gb of RAM, and a DVD burning feature. All Macbooks come with a 13" screen, iSight digital camera, optical audio out, and infra-red remote control.

Surprising many, Jobs announced that instead of bundling the machines with Mac OS X, a specially customized version of Linux would be supplied instead, with both Windows XP and Mac OS X available for an additional fee. The version of Linux, called Gentoo, is bundled with software from Codeweavers Inc that allows the operating system to run many games designed for Microsoft's Windows XP operating system.

"It's a major step for us", said Jobs, "But we're confident users are going to love this. This isn't a laptop aimed at the high-end professional market, this is for the rest of us, and the rest of us need speed, performance, and cross platform compatibility. Our tests showed that Gentoo was about 5-10% faster than pretty much everything we compared it to."

Jobs also was keen to stress the Codeweaver's technology in each laptop. "We're looking at a laptop that runs everything. It does it faster, it does it more economically. And the Macbook gamer is the jewel in the crown, if you love games, you're going to love it."

The Gentoo operating system is bundled with a collection of lifestyle applications that complement Apple's own "iLife" suite. In addition to iTunes, running via the Codeweavers technology, the system includes Gimp, a graphics package, and VLC, a program for viewing DVDs. Apple has made some minor modifications, having the machines boot with a gray "Apple" logo instead of the usual scrolling Linux messages. For those who need compatibility with older Mac OS X applications, Mac OS X is available for an upgrade fee of $499.

Response to the new Macbooks has been mixed but generally positive at this games-orientated show. "I think most of us have been asking Apple to do this for a long time" one journalist told me, "The real problem with the Mac is the complete lack of games. At a swoop, with Intel, Linux, and Codeweavers, Apple has fixed this."

The new Macbooks are available immediately.

Why isn't that on Page 1? Oh wait, it's because it's APPLE, not Microsoft. Geez. Plus with Slashdot's well known anti-Gentoo bias, it doesn't stand a chance. They'll probably pretend the MacBook doesn't exist.

Re:I hate to admit it, but...

[misleb]

Wow, navigation system. What a luxury. I just keep an atlas in my back seat. Love the user interface! Ya know, for a systems administrator, I sure am low tech. I don't even own a cell phone.

-matthew