I would like to think that Dell choose the Quadrant/Cube solution because STB's isn't as good.
Shape Of PCs To Come
DAVID FLYNN
01/20/98
Sydney Morning Herald
Page 31
Copyright of John Fairfax Group Pty Ltd
Buying new gear for the new year? The PC98 specification details what will be under the hood, reports DAVID FLYNN. STARTING to plan your next PC purchase? Take a deep breath, or hum the opening bars of To Dream the Impossible Dream, because the PC circa 1998 will knock your socks off. It might also leave a dent in your budget, depending on how high you want to aim.
Under the PC98 specification, developed by Intel and Microsoft, the starting point will be a 200MHz Pentium MMX chip with a recommended 64Mb of RAM. This next-generation box will be DVD -ready, feature at least one USB (universal serial bus) port to be used for low-speed peripherals such as input devices, printers and modems and may also sport the ultra-fast IEEE1394 "FireWire" bus for scanners, external drives and digital video.
That is the specifications for the basic PC98, a floorplan that can be modified for consumer or office use. The higher-end workstation PC 98 favours a Pentium II with 64Mb of RAM minimum and supports multiple processors for added grunt.
Notebooks kick off with at least a 166MHz Pentium MMX under the hood and 24Mb of RAM (32Mb recommended) on board. This is the second PC9x specification, building on last year's PC97. The guidelines can be downloaded from www.developer.intel.com/design/PC98 and range from recommended CPU speed and amounts of RAM down to system icons and unique identifiers for Plug and Play devices.
"The overall goal of PC98 is to address the expanding uses and users of PC technology and to enhance the PC user experience and satisfaction," says David Bolt, the general manager of Intel Australia. It spans "all hardware that will ship from mid-1998 through 1999".
Both Intel and Microsoft take pains to stress that the technology guidelines are more a radar screen for system designers, developers and box-builders, not a strict and unbreakable system definition. But their joint involvement raises concerns that the partnership perpetuates the Wintel cycle - faster chips encourage bigger software that in turn needs faster chips - with each successive generation.
Bolt sees it as being more a matter of keeping the hardware and software in sync. "By writing this document together, Intel and Microsoft are ensuring that the enabling hardware and supporting software will be available at the same time.
"The lead-time for new hardware designs and for software device drivers is being overlapped to shorten the time to a working, available solution. This up-front co-operation and planning will result in a better user experience.
"As the PC matures into more categories and is used in more application areas, it is important that the industry as a whole has clear direction to ensure continuing standardisation and implementation as quickly and affordably as possible. History shows that through this process customers are continuing to receive higher performance and greater function for equivalent or less money with every new generation of product."
PC98 lays the groundwork for PCs running the Windows 98 and Windows NT 5.0 operating systems. Hardware meeting the PC98 spec can qualify for Microsoft's "designed for Windows" logo, which the colossus of code now intends to appear on PCs as well as software boxes.
Some of these OS-centric features include the OnNow power management system, which moves power management from the hardware and into the hands of the operating system. This will permit desktop PCs to be placed into a low-power "standby" mode from which they can awake within seconds.
It also increases the scope for centralised control of networked PCs to reduce administration at the desktop level and lower the total cost of ownership.
A PC built to the "Entertainment PC98" baseline will run everything from games to "active Internet" or Web TV as well as being the hub for home theatre.
It will require at least two USB and IEEE1394 ports, with one of each on the front panel for easy accessibility, plus a 56Kbps voice-data-fax modem and DVD drive.
A "27-inch or larger" screen is recommended, with the optional ability to connect to a TV set. An analog TV tuner is also mandated and digital or satellite broadcast tuner suggested, along with a remote control pointing device with dedicated Enter, Cancel and Menu buttons.
PC98 also marks a move away from the slow and aged ISA bus, an increasing cause of a bottleneck in multimedia machines. It promotes evolution of USB and FireWire as a means to shunt data between the CPU, subsystems and peripherals. "Removal of the ISA Bus will allow for true Plug and Play functions for all add-on cards and peripherals," says Bolt.
Other key additions are the introduction of mini- notebook criteria based on a 133MHz Pentium MMX chip with 16Mb of RAM, support for the Pentium II's Accelerated Graphics Port and a wide range of capabilities for video playback and broadcast TV reception on the desktop computer. |
