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MS to back Linux?... Quick Bluetooth setup... Gateway uses idle PCs |
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Sylvia Carr Senior Editor, AnchorDesk Wednesday, December 11, 2002 |
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Though Microsoft has backed off some from its Linux bashing, the idea that the software giant would offer server software that runs on the open-source OS seems far-fetched, to say the least. But research firm Meta Group predicts it'll happen, anyway. With 45 percent of new servers running Linux by 2006 or 2007, Meta says, Microsoft will have no choice but to go along with the crowd and provide Linux support for .Net, its Exchange software, and Internet Information Server. Meta also predicts that Linux's growing popularity will cause Redmond to reprice Windows, or separate it into new version, so that it can compete with the low-cost (or free) Linux. Microsoft quickly rejected Meta's prediction, saying the company "will not be engineering server software expressly for Linux."
Go to the full story by Joe Wilcox and Stephen Shankland.
Bluetooth, the wireless technology that allows you to share data between devices in close proximity, is not nearly as pervasive as many thought it would be a few years back. One 1999 estimate said there'd be 200 million PCs and 80 percent of all cell phones equipped with Bluetooth by now. But in 2001 only 56 million Bluetooth devices were shipped. How can Bluetooth gain ground? By being quicker and easier to set up, says Mike McCamon, executive director of the Bluetooth Special Internet Group (SIG). Speaking in San Jose, he says you should be able to wirelessly connect devices in only five minutes. If it takes any longer, he believes that your all-important first impression begins to sour.
Go to the full story by Ben Charny.
Ever imagine what could be done with the processing power available in all the unused PCs sitting on store shelves? Gateway has. And it concluded that this situation presented an opportunity for it to make a little extra money. The PC seller says it's working on a new project, along with start-up United Devices, that will allow companies to purchase the combined power of its idle PCs. The cost? Fifteen cents per PC per hour. Gateway's network of 8,000 PCs can deliver 14 teraflops (trillions of calculations per second) of power, equivalent to the raw processing power of some supercomputers. The service should be particularly well-suited to companies in the life sciences and financial services industries.
Go to the full story by Ian Fried.
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