An insurance company and a non-profit group Thursday announced plans to give away US$10 million to the team that designs, builds and brings to market the most viable and efficient vehicle that can get 100 miles per gallon.
Progressive Insurance and the X PRIZE Foundation jointly made the announcement at the New York International Auto Show.
The international competition, called the Progressive Automotive X Prize, was launched to help break the world's addiction to oil and stem the effects of climate change, according to the X Prize Foundation, a non-profit group that sponsors contests encouraging innovation.
The foundation billed the contest as independent and technology-neutral, open to teams from around the world that can design green vehicles that people want to buy, and that meet market needs for price, size, capability, safety and performance.
"The Progressive Automotive X PRIZE is a call to action to promote and inspire innovation," said Peter H. Diamandis, chairman and CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, in a statement. "The environmentally friendly cars created as a result of this competition will affect everyone who drives in ways we can't even imagine today."
The foundation said that so far, more than 60 teams from nine countries have signed a Letter of Intent to compete. Four teams and their vehicles were on hand at the auto show during the announcement Thursday.
"Development of a super-efficient car would be a major step forward in the fight against global warming, and it would help us reach our goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions in New York City by 30% by 2030," said New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who attended the press conference Thursday. "The Progressive Automotive X PRIZE is an excellent example of how the private sector can spur solutions to our most complex challenges."
The foundation will be accepting applications for the competition until mid-year.
Teams and their plans will be examined for safety, cost, business plans and production feasibility. The teams that are accepted into the competition will race their vehicles across the U.S. in various legs in 2009 and 2010. Overall performance will be rated, along with emissions standards and their placement in the races.
Host cities for the races will be announced "soon", according to the X Prize Foundation.
In 2004, the X PRIZE Foundation awarded a $10 million prize in a global competition to design a private suborbital spacecraft.
Monday, March 24, 2008
OpenOffice 3.0 promises to bash Office
Microsoft's Office suite could have plausible challenger on the desktop for the first time since Lotus gave up trying to take on Redmond a decade ago.
With developers struggling to get OpenOffice 2.4 out the door, details are emerging of the features users have to look forward to in the upcoming bullet point release, version 3.0.
A sneak peek on a developer blog OpenOffice Ninja shows a new and easier-to-understand start screen featuring the main applications, and overhauls of the Writer application to better compete with Microsoft's Word. That application can now display pages side by side, allows notes to be added in the margins of copy a la Word, while the Calc spreadsheet also features a large number of small tweaks to improve usability.
The suite will be able to cope seamlessly with Office 2007's XML-based file formats, though the blogger notes that the current development skeleton manages this with mediocre results.
Thus far the Sun-sponsored OpenOffice suite has remained an outsider, used mostly by open source enthusiasts or just those too tight to pay the high price ticket of Office. Despite offering a usable alternative to Office, it has made no noticeable impression on its sales figures.
One element that will remain missing is a rival to Microsoft's industry standard email app, outlook.
"For years, there have been talks of including Mozilla's Thunderbird and Lightning (calendar) application with OpenOffice.org. However, not much has come of it yet. Perhaps with the financial resources of the new Mozilla Messaging Corporation, the Mozilla Calendar will get the boost it needs," says the author.
It's also apparent that OpenOffice 3.0 appears to be modelled on a layout one generation behind Microsoft's Fluent interface, which admittedly not everyone has taken to .
Others maintain that the whole model of deskbound productivity applications is obsolete, foreseeing a future in which businesses and individuals instead use lightweight online applications such as Google's Docs . It is likely, however, that all models will flourish in their own way-- desktop behemoths such as Office, alternatives such as OpenOffice, and online apps -- being embraced by users for different purposes.
With developers struggling to get OpenOffice 2.4 out the door, details are emerging of the features users have to look forward to in the upcoming bullet point release, version 3.0.
A sneak peek on a developer blog OpenOffice Ninja shows a new and easier-to-understand start screen featuring the main applications, and overhauls of the Writer application to better compete with Microsoft's Word. That application can now display pages side by side, allows notes to be added in the margins of copy a la Word, while the Calc spreadsheet also features a large number of small tweaks to improve usability.
The suite will be able to cope seamlessly with Office 2007's XML-based file formats, though the blogger notes that the current development skeleton manages this with mediocre results.
Thus far the Sun-sponsored OpenOffice suite has remained an outsider, used mostly by open source enthusiasts or just those too tight to pay the high price ticket of Office. Despite offering a usable alternative to Office, it has made no noticeable impression on its sales figures.
One element that will remain missing is a rival to Microsoft's industry standard email app, outlook.
"For years, there have been talks of including Mozilla's Thunderbird and Lightning (calendar) application with OpenOffice.org. However, not much has come of it yet. Perhaps with the financial resources of the new Mozilla Messaging Corporation, the Mozilla Calendar will get the boost it needs," says the author.
It's also apparent that OpenOffice 3.0 appears to be modelled on a layout one generation behind Microsoft's Fluent interface, which admittedly not everyone has taken to .
Others maintain that the whole model of deskbound productivity applications is obsolete, foreseeing a future in which businesses and individuals instead use lightweight online applications such as Google's Docs . It is likely, however, that all models will flourish in their own way-- desktop behemoths such as Office, alternatives such as OpenOffice, and online apps -- being embraced by users for different purposes.
Sony charges $50 to remove laptop bloatware
Sony is offering to remove some of the trial software it crams onto the hard disks of new laptops -- for a fee.
Buyers of the configure-to-order versions of its Vaio TZ2000 and Vaio TZ2500 laptops can opt to have Sony remove the some of its own applications, in addition to trial software and games.
The "Fresh Start" option, billed as a software optimization, costs US$49.99, and is only available to customers choosing to pay an additional $100 to upgrade the operating system to Windows Vista Business from the Windows Vista Home Premium edition offered as standard.
PC manufacturers are often paid by software publishers to include such trial versions on the computers they ship. Bloatware, as it is often called, poses problems for businesses because it reduces system performance and available hard disk space, makes it harder to maintain a consistent software image across PCs from different sources and may introduce additional security vulnerabilities or -- in the case of games -- unwanted distractions for workers.
Dell was one of the first PC manufacturers to offer to remove bloatware. Last July it introduced Vostro, a range of PCs for small businesses designed to be simpler to manage. Everex followed suit a week later, saying it would eliminate bloatware from a $300 desktop machine for consumers.
Customers opting for Sony's Fresh Start will miss out on software including Microsoft Works SE 9.0 bundled with a 60-day trial version of Microsoft Office, Sony's Vaio Creation Suite Photo Software bundled with a 30-day trial version of Corel Paint Shop Pro; the Click to Disc video editor; WinDVD, and a free edition of QuickBooks Simple Start that can only track 20 customers.
Sony justifies the $49.99 fee by saying it covers removal of the unwanted software before shipment -- although selecting the option appears to have no consequences on the estimated shipping date.
Although Sony has other laptops with configure-to-order options, including the FZ, SZ, AR and CR ranges, none of those are available with Fresh Start.
Buyers of the configure-to-order versions of its Vaio TZ2000 and Vaio TZ2500 laptops can opt to have Sony remove the some of its own applications, in addition to trial software and games.
The "Fresh Start" option, billed as a software optimization, costs US$49.99, and is only available to customers choosing to pay an additional $100 to upgrade the operating system to Windows Vista Business from the Windows Vista Home Premium edition offered as standard.
PC manufacturers are often paid by software publishers to include such trial versions on the computers they ship. Bloatware, as it is often called, poses problems for businesses because it reduces system performance and available hard disk space, makes it harder to maintain a consistent software image across PCs from different sources and may introduce additional security vulnerabilities or -- in the case of games -- unwanted distractions for workers.
Dell was one of the first PC manufacturers to offer to remove bloatware. Last July it introduced Vostro, a range of PCs for small businesses designed to be simpler to manage. Everex followed suit a week later, saying it would eliminate bloatware from a $300 desktop machine for consumers.
Customers opting for Sony's Fresh Start will miss out on software including Microsoft Works SE 9.0 bundled with a 60-day trial version of Microsoft Office, Sony's Vaio Creation Suite Photo Software bundled with a 30-day trial version of Corel Paint Shop Pro; the Click to Disc video editor; WinDVD, and a free edition of QuickBooks Simple Start that can only track 20 customers.
Sony justifies the $49.99 fee by saying it covers removal of the unwanted software before shipment -- although selecting the option appears to have no consequences on the estimated shipping date.
Although Sony has other laptops with configure-to-order options, including the FZ, SZ, AR and CR ranges, none of those are available with Fresh Start.
India rejects Office Open XML again
A technical committee in India has rejected Microsoft's Office Open XML file format as a standard.
In the meeting of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) technical committee Thursday, 13 members voted against the standard, while five members, including some outsourcing companies, and the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) voted for making Open XML a standard.
Nasscom is in favor of multiple standards, including Open XML and ODF (Open Document Format), the association said in a statement. It added that technology neutrality and competition will lead to falling prices of IT products.
The technical committee was constituted by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), India's national standards body, after moves by Microsoft and other organizations to make Open XML a standard of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
BIS is a founder member of ISO, and represents India at the ISO.
The BIS committee had voted in August against making Office Open XML a standard, although some participants said at the time that Open XML may be again reconsidered as a standard by the technical committee and BIS after Microsoft makes the required changes to the document format.
The India vote comes ahead of a March 29 deadline for ISO members to reconsider their votes if they wished.
While disappointed by the decision of the BIS committee, Microsoft said Thursday that it was however encouraged by the support of IT industry players like Nasscom, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro and Infosys who voted in favor of Open XML becoming an ISO standard.
In the meeting of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) technical committee Thursday, 13 members voted against the standard, while five members, including some outsourcing companies, and the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) voted for making Open XML a standard.
Nasscom is in favor of multiple standards, including Open XML and ODF (Open Document Format), the association said in a statement. It added that technology neutrality and competition will lead to falling prices of IT products.
The technical committee was constituted by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), India's national standards body, after moves by Microsoft and other organizations to make Open XML a standard of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
BIS is a founder member of ISO, and represents India at the ISO.
The BIS committee had voted in August against making Office Open XML a standard, although some participants said at the time that Open XML may be again reconsidered as a standard by the technical committee and BIS after Microsoft makes the required changes to the document format.
The India vote comes ahead of a March 29 deadline for ISO members to reconsider their votes if they wished.
While disappointed by the decision of the BIS committee, Microsoft said Thursday that it was however encouraged by the support of IT industry players like Nasscom, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro and Infosys who voted in favor of Open XML becoming an ISO standard.
Multicore boom needs new developer skills
More than charity lies behind Microsoft and Intel's announcement this week that they will donate US$20 million to a pair of U.S. colleges in the hope of spurring advances in parallel, or multicore, programming research, as a Microsoft research scientist readily acknowledged.
"There is a worldwide shortage of people experienced in parallel computing experience, for sure," said Dan Reed, director of scalable and multicore computing at Microsoft. "One of the collateral reasons is to raise awareness in the academic community, because that's where the next generation of developers will come from."
While for years, ever-higher clock speeds almost guaranteed that application code would run faster and faster, the rules are different for the multicore processors of today.
The difference has been compared to a sports car and a school bus. While the first is capable of blazing speed, the other moves more slowly but can move far more people at once.
The problem is, simply adding more cores to a computer's CPU doesn't increase the speed or power of conventional application code, as a recent Forrester Research report notes.
"To gain performance from quad-core processors and prepare for the denser multicore CPUs that will follow, application developers need to write code that can automatically fork multiple simultaneous threads of execution (multithreading) as well as manage thread assignments, synchronize parallel work, and manage shared data to prevent concurrency issues associated with multithreaded code," the authors wrote.
In other words, complex work is required to fill all those seats on the bus.
And the quad-core processors common today will soon give way to radically more advanced designs, Forrester notes. "Expect x86 servers with as many as 64 processor cores in 2009 and desktops with that many by 2012."
The situation has had chip makers and major software vendors making broad-based efforts to raise awareness of both the promise and challenges of programming for multiple cores.
TopCoder, a software development company that invites its membership to work on various aspects of a project through competitions, just began a series of special contests, along with chipmaker AMD, that focuses on multithreading.
Mike Lydon, TopCoder's chief technology officer, said multicore programming remains the province of an elite few. "What we've seen from the skill set perspective is, it varies quite a bit," he said. "As you would expect, the high-end developers are familiar with threading. After that it drops off pretty quickly."
"It's surprising to me because multithreading programming isn't new," he added. Indeed, one instructional article available on a Microsoft's MSDN Web site dates to 1993.
"I think it stems primarily from the collegiate level," Lydon said. "I've heard very little about colleges teaching multithreaded programming, but I would think and hope that it's changing very quickly."
However, Forrester's report suggests the urgency isn't being felt across the board. It notes that major operating systems and most middleware products are already prepared for multithreaded operation and for "near term" multicore processors, and that corporate development shops may look to ISVs (independent software vendors) to solve the problem through development tools and platforms that can better handle multicore-related tasks.
But Microsoft's Reed believes that multithreading over time will become "part of the skill set of every professional software developer."
In the meantime, most of the parallel computing resources available now don't necessarily hide the complexity of coding for multiple threads. "Development pros have options today, but most of them are low-level language extensions and libraries," Forrester said.
For example, in February AMD open-sourced more than 3,200 software routines under a project called Framewave, which it said will help coders build multithreaded applications for x86-type processors.
"Libraries can't provide a complete answer, but we see these as iterative steps," said Margaret Lewis, director of commercial solutions and software strategy at AMD. "There's things that you can do today as you're waiting for those [more advanced] tools that can increase the multi-threadedness of your applications," she said.
There are some higher-level products already on the market, such as the platform sold by RapidMind, which takes single-threaded C++ code and then, through an abstraction layer, "parallelizes" it across a number of cores.
However, it would be "fairly idealistic" to think that better tools alone will be enough, Lydon argued. "When you actually get into the points in code where you're going to leverage performance by spawning multiple threads, it takes a human mind to see where the benefits could take place."
"There is a worldwide shortage of people experienced in parallel computing experience, for sure," said Dan Reed, director of scalable and multicore computing at Microsoft. "One of the collateral reasons is to raise awareness in the academic community, because that's where the next generation of developers will come from."
While for years, ever-higher clock speeds almost guaranteed that application code would run faster and faster, the rules are different for the multicore processors of today.
The difference has been compared to a sports car and a school bus. While the first is capable of blazing speed, the other moves more slowly but can move far more people at once.
The problem is, simply adding more cores to a computer's CPU doesn't increase the speed or power of conventional application code, as a recent Forrester Research report notes.
"To gain performance from quad-core processors and prepare for the denser multicore CPUs that will follow, application developers need to write code that can automatically fork multiple simultaneous threads of execution (multithreading) as well as manage thread assignments, synchronize parallel work, and manage shared data to prevent concurrency issues associated with multithreaded code," the authors wrote.
In other words, complex work is required to fill all those seats on the bus.
And the quad-core processors common today will soon give way to radically more advanced designs, Forrester notes. "Expect x86 servers with as many as 64 processor cores in 2009 and desktops with that many by 2012."
The situation has had chip makers and major software vendors making broad-based efforts to raise awareness of both the promise and challenges of programming for multiple cores.
TopCoder, a software development company that invites its membership to work on various aspects of a project through competitions, just began a series of special contests, along with chipmaker AMD, that focuses on multithreading.
Mike Lydon, TopCoder's chief technology officer, said multicore programming remains the province of an elite few. "What we've seen from the skill set perspective is, it varies quite a bit," he said. "As you would expect, the high-end developers are familiar with threading. After that it drops off pretty quickly."
"It's surprising to me because multithreading programming isn't new," he added. Indeed, one instructional article available on a Microsoft's MSDN Web site dates to 1993.
"I think it stems primarily from the collegiate level," Lydon said. "I've heard very little about colleges teaching multithreaded programming, but I would think and hope that it's changing very quickly."
However, Forrester's report suggests the urgency isn't being felt across the board. It notes that major operating systems and most middleware products are already prepared for multithreaded operation and for "near term" multicore processors, and that corporate development shops may look to ISVs (independent software vendors) to solve the problem through development tools and platforms that can better handle multicore-related tasks.
But Microsoft's Reed believes that multithreading over time will become "part of the skill set of every professional software developer."
In the meantime, most of the parallel computing resources available now don't necessarily hide the complexity of coding for multiple threads. "Development pros have options today, but most of them are low-level language extensions and libraries," Forrester said.
For example, in February AMD open-sourced more than 3,200 software routines under a project called Framewave, which it said will help coders build multithreaded applications for x86-type processors.
"Libraries can't provide a complete answer, but we see these as iterative steps," said Margaret Lewis, director of commercial solutions and software strategy at AMD. "There's things that you can do today as you're waiting for those [more advanced] tools that can increase the multi-threadedness of your applications," she said.
There are some higher-level products already on the market, such as the platform sold by RapidMind, which takes single-threaded C++ code and then, through an abstraction layer, "parallelizes" it across a number of cores.
However, it would be "fairly idealistic" to think that better tools alone will be enough, Lydon argued. "When you actually get into the points in code where you're going to leverage performance by spawning multiple threads, it takes a human mind to see where the benefits could take place."
Security chief quits OLPC amid restructuring
A drastic internal restructuring underway at the One Laptop Per Child Project has caused a director of security to resign from the nonprofit effort.
Citing differences with OLPC's aims and shift of focus, Director of Security Architecture Ivan Krstic resigned from his post three weeks ago, Krstic revealed in a blog entry this week.
"I cannot subscribe to the organization's new aims or structure in good faith, nor can I reconcile them with my personal ethic. Having exhausted other options, three weeks ago I resigned my post at OLPC," Krstic said.
The MIT Technology Review named Krstic one of the world's top innovators under the age of 35 for his work on the OLPC security platform, Bitfrost.
In an interview with BusinessWeek in early March, OLPC Chairman Nicholas Negroponte said OLPC was operating "almost like a terrorist group, doing almost impossible things," and that the organization needed to be managed "more like Microsoft."
Negroponte said OLPC was searching for a new CEO and reorganizing departments into four operating units -- technology, deployment, market development, and fundraising and administration.
Calling OLPC "more a second home than a workplace," Krstic said he had been asked to stop working with OLPC President of Software and Content Walter Bender, whom he highly respected. "I was to report instead to a manager with no technical or engineering background who was put in charge of all OLPC technology," Krstic said.
OLPC did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. The group has been dogged by problems since it launched the effort to develop a US$100 XO laptop for children in developing countries three years ago. It has struggled to realize the ambitious vision, facing delays, rising costs and reduced orders.
In January, OLPC lost Chief Technology Officer Mary Lou Jepsen, who started an organization to commercialize parts of the OLPC's technology, including the screen and battery. A few days later, Intel said it was quitting OLPC after the nonprofit insisted that Intel abandon its effort to develop and distribute Classmate PC, a rival low-cost laptop. OLPC later said that it would welcome Intel back to the effort.
Citing differences with OLPC's aims and shift of focus, Director of Security Architecture Ivan Krstic resigned from his post three weeks ago, Krstic revealed in a blog entry this week.
"I cannot subscribe to the organization's new aims or structure in good faith, nor can I reconcile them with my personal ethic. Having exhausted other options, three weeks ago I resigned my post at OLPC," Krstic said.
The MIT Technology Review named Krstic one of the world's top innovators under the age of 35 for his work on the OLPC security platform, Bitfrost.
In an interview with BusinessWeek in early March, OLPC Chairman Nicholas Negroponte said OLPC was operating "almost like a terrorist group, doing almost impossible things," and that the organization needed to be managed "more like Microsoft."
Negroponte said OLPC was searching for a new CEO and reorganizing departments into four operating units -- technology, deployment, market development, and fundraising and administration.
Calling OLPC "more a second home than a workplace," Krstic said he had been asked to stop working with OLPC President of Software and Content Walter Bender, whom he highly respected. "I was to report instead to a manager with no technical or engineering background who was put in charge of all OLPC technology," Krstic said.
OLPC did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. The group has been dogged by problems since it launched the effort to develop a US$100 XO laptop for children in developing countries three years ago. It has struggled to realize the ambitious vision, facing delays, rising costs and reduced orders.
In January, OLPC lost Chief Technology Officer Mary Lou Jepsen, who started an organization to commercialize parts of the OLPC's technology, including the screen and battery. A few days later, Intel said it was quitting OLPC after the nonprofit insisted that Intel abandon its effort to develop and distribute Classmate PC, a rival low-cost laptop. OLPC later said that it would welcome Intel back to the effort.
Elitegroup announces Eee PC rival with HSDPA
Taiwan's Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) has revealed plans to launch a low-cost laptop to compete against Asustek's Eee PC, but which uses 3G (third-generation mobile telecommunications) networks to keep users connected wirelessly.
Elitegroup plans to allow users to choose from several versions of the Simply Smart ECS G10IL laptop family. The top-end model comes with a 10.2-inch screen and takes advantage of tri-band mobile phone networks to keep users connected to the Internet wirelessly with HSDPA and HSUPA (High Speed Downlink/Uplink Packet Access). The technology ensures users can tap into mobile broadband from just about anywhere mobile phone coverage is offered.
The G10IL also connects to Wi-Fi networks, carries a 56 kbps analog modem on board for wireline Internet connections, supports Bluetooth wireless and comes with a four-in-one card reader.
The laptop family in general will run on Intel's Atom microprocessor paired with an Intel 945 GSE chipset. Users will have a choice of machines running Microsoft Windows XP or a Linux OS, as well as a smaller screen size of 8.2-inches. The laptops can take up to 2G bytes of DRAM (dynamic RAM), but the company does not specify how much will come with each model. Hard disk drives and solid state drives will both be offered for storage, and batteries with either four-cells or six-cells.
Pricing will depend on the configuration of the laptop, and has not been set yet.
The company could not be reached immediately for comment on when the laptops might be for sale.
Asustek started the trend toward low-cost laptops by launching its Eee PC to great fanfare and projecting sales of as many as 5 million units this year.
Elitegroup plans to allow users to choose from several versions of the Simply Smart ECS G10IL laptop family. The top-end model comes with a 10.2-inch screen and takes advantage of tri-band mobile phone networks to keep users connected to the Internet wirelessly with HSDPA and HSUPA (High Speed Downlink/Uplink Packet Access). The technology ensures users can tap into mobile broadband from just about anywhere mobile phone coverage is offered.
The G10IL also connects to Wi-Fi networks, carries a 56 kbps analog modem on board for wireline Internet connections, supports Bluetooth wireless and comes with a four-in-one card reader.
The laptop family in general will run on Intel's Atom microprocessor paired with an Intel 945 GSE chipset. Users will have a choice of machines running Microsoft Windows XP or a Linux OS, as well as a smaller screen size of 8.2-inches. The laptops can take up to 2G bytes of DRAM (dynamic RAM), but the company does not specify how much will come with each model. Hard disk drives and solid state drives will both be offered for storage, and batteries with either four-cells or six-cells.
Pricing will depend on the configuration of the laptop, and has not been set yet.
The company could not be reached immediately for comment on when the laptops might be for sale.
Asustek started the trend toward low-cost laptops by launching its Eee PC to great fanfare and projecting sales of as many as 5 million units this year.
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