Okay, so CE 6 came out over two years ago. In the bn timeline, I don't remember exactly where this falls with ks versions. 7.2 was probably nearly complete, so it certainly could not have done in 7.2. 7.5 was probably already under way; upgrades take a long time to develop. Do you think, though, that hw has been working on ks 8 for over two years? If this bookshare crisis had not happened, would ks 8 not have been released yet? Furthermore, does hw ever plan to upgrade the OS?
----- Original Message ----- From: "Joseph Lee" <[email protected]> To: "BrailleNote List" <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 5:36 PM Subject: [Braillenote] The article on OS upgrade Hi folks, Here's the article that I've been talking about, along with few updates to accomodate features from KeySoft 8.0 press release: INTRODUCTION Whenever a new product is released to the general public from companies such as Microsoft, Apple, Samsung, etc., the general public wants to know what's new with the product. The features that these companies and other companies list as part of the product release would be easy for people to understand and many people would say that upgrading would allow them to use promised features. ON THE SOFTWARE SIDE For software developers like HumanWare staff and OEM's (Original Equipment Manufacturer), the release of a new operating system (particularly from Microsoft) usually means that they need to come up with strategies to implement features of this new operating systems to their benefit and for the benefit of the customers. For example, when Microsoft said, when Windows Vista (Windows NT 6.0) was released, that this new operating system would no longer support older CPU's such as Pentium III and older processors, many people who were using computers based on these chips were worried and switched to newer processors such as Dual Core processors from Intel and AMD. Also, for example, when Apple announced that it will establish partnership with Intel to create iMacks (hope I'm spelling it right), many people who were using Power PC CPUS to run Mac OSX switched to Intel-based iMacks for some experiments. As previous examples illustrates, whenever a major software or hardware is released, people would anticipate as to its impact on their computing lives. ABOUT WINDOWS CE 6.0 Microsoft released Windows CE 6.0 on November 1, 2006. Microsoft hinted that this new Windows CE version is different from previous versions and allows devices to run more programs. This was achieved by modifying the operating system kernel--the real heart of Windows CE--to take advantage of increased Virtual Memory from 32 MB to 2 GB. (An operating system kernel is some kind of a process that can be described as "heart of the OS" - meaning that it is a central component of the operating system that interfaces with hardware and software (mostly between firmware and software). Virtual Memory is some kind of a memory where you can use more memory than physical RAM.) Also, this new kernel allows devices to run almost unlimited number of programs/processes (processes is another term for programs) -- up to about 30,000 programs. (Remember, that under Windows CE 4.2, or any CE version before 6.0 to be exact, you can run up to 32 programs at once.) Also, the audio stack and bluetooth functions has been redesigned and the way of running programs is significantly different from Windows CE 4.2 (or any 5.x version). As the illustrations above shows, Windows CE 6.0 is not just a simple upgrade: it is a radical departure. SO WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH BrailleNote USERS? Because of the way Windows CE 6.0 is designed, just running KeySoft on top of CE6.0 when it is designed for CE4.2 will not work. Due to the redesigned operating system that takes advantage of nearly thousandfold of virtual memory (2 GB or roughly 2000 MB), KeySoft needs to be rewritten/recompiled to take advantage of increased virtual memory support. As the chat summary of July 13, 2007 states, the hardware on the mPower and PK is capable of running Windows CE 6.0 (especially on the mPower). WHAT ABOUT BrailleNote Classic USERS? We had several posts about this for a while. Many people asked why no more support for Classic. In light of this OS upgrade discussions, here's why: * The processor itself (MIPS R4000 at 100 MHz) does not have sufficient capabilities to support CE6.0 because of its speed and rarity of devices running Windows CE that is powered by MIPS processors. Most devices these days run under ARM processors. * Classic does not have enough memory to support CE6.0 features, notably newer audio stack and virtual memory (although one can use "emulation" for it). * The audio hardware on the Classic does not have sufficient capabilities to support newer audio stack (devices these days have multichannel sound cards vs. single channel sound cards present on Classic). These are reasons why Classic will not, and unfortunately unable to support upgrading beyond KeySoft 7.5, and in extension, Windows CE 6.0 (it has endured enough to be powered by Windows CE 4.2). WHAT POSSIBILITIES CAN USERS EXPECT FROM UPGRADING TO WINDOWS CE 6.0? If HumanWare upgrades to Windows CE 6.0, the following suggestions that were posted on the list will come true: * Enhanced Bluetooth supporting Bluetooth audio and Object Exchange (ObEx) protocol so you can send data to other Bluetooth devices (even to another BrailleNote). * Enhanced Audio stack (probably a new hardware upgrade is in order). * The issue of "not enough storage" error would be resolved through use of tons of virtual memory (KeySoft alone can use up to 2 GB of virtual memory). * Support for Office 2007 files (including Word 2007 docx files). * Support for Power Point (did I spell it right?) files. * Support for SDIO (Secure Digital InputstOutput) cards such as SD WiFi and modem cards, as well as SDHC cards (probably a new hardware is in order). * Support for IMAP email accounts and HTML email messages. These are some of the possibilities that we can expect in Windows CE 6.0. CONCLUSION: Every new product release, especially operating system release, carries considerable impact on customers, computer/device manufacturers and software developers. Although it may have new features for better productivity and computer lives, for developers, this means another challenge for them, especially if the product in question is different from what developers have been used to using. As illustrated above, Windows CE 6.0 is not just an evolutionary release, but rather a radical departure from what we've seen on devices that runs under Windows CE, namely support for larger virtual memory, redesigned audio and Bluetooth stack and so forth. For this reason, a software that has been designed for an older OS such as Windows CE 4.2 needs to be rewritten to take advantage of new features found in CE6.0. For instance, a software written for an older operating system, say for Windows 98 will not take advantage of new features released in newer operating systems such as Windows Vista. This is critical when running a software on a portable device such as BrailleNote family of products. Although we as users of this product, will see many improvements and suggestions come alive, for developers, it would be a challenge to compile KeySoft to take advantage of new features introduced in the latest version of Windows CE designed for portable devices. This is the main reason why HumanWare (and others) cannot easily say that a given release would happen soon, particularly if it involves OS upgrade. Cheers, Joseph P.S. I have modified the post itself to fit current situations. ___ Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a copy to the list as well. To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to [email protected] To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote ___ Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a copy to the list as well. To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to [email protected] To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote
