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Microsoft moves to integrate Windows with BIOS
ZDNet UK ^
| 10-3-2003
| Matthew Broersma
Posted on 10/03/2003 7:38:43 PM PDT by Coral Snake
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To: Coral Snake
hmmmm....
To: All
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3
posted on
10/03/2003 7:44:59 PM PDT
by
Support Free Republic
(Your support keeps Free Republic going strong!)
To: Texas_Jarhead
desperation.
4
posted on
10/03/2003 7:45:12 PM PDT
by
Robert_Paulson2
(robert... the rino...)
To: Coral Snake
How much does a typical PC bios actually do once a system is booted?
5
posted on
10/03/2003 7:45:19 PM PDT
by
supercat
(Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
To: Coral Snake
No brainer .. access to much of the hardware by the OS already bypasses 'the BIOS' ...
6
posted on
10/03/2003 7:45:45 PM PDT
by
_Jim
(<-- More resources/click on name ... also: Blackout of 2003 --> www.pserc.wisc.edu/Resources.htm)
To: supercat
Little.
7
posted on
10/03/2003 7:46:22 PM PDT
by
_Jim
(<-- More resources/click on name ... also: Blackout of 2003 --> www.pserc.wisc.edu/Resources.htm)
To: Coral Snake
The relationship, announced this week, is designed to make PCs simpler and more reliable, the companies said. Looks to me like they're trying to make computers and their owners more dependent on Windows, while at the same time controlling content.
Glad there's competition out there, I have no intention of handing my equipment over to anyone if that's what Microsoft has in mind.
To: supercat; Coral Snake
How much does a typical PC bios actually do once a system is booted? Imagine how much faster it would be to boot a computer if the entire operating system were contained in ROM.
9
posted on
10/03/2003 7:52:21 PM PDT
by
Paleo Conservative
(Do not remove this tag under penalty of law.)
To: Coral Snake
Bypassing the BIOS, doing direct hardware access where applicable for mutli-media apps with a common programmer interface -
- already been done and shipped. It's called DirectX.
10
posted on
10/03/2003 7:56:22 PM PDT
by
_Jim
(<-- More resources/click on name ... also: Blackout of 2003 --> www.pserc.wisc.edu/Resources.htm)
To: Paleo Conservative
Imagine how much faster it would be to boot a computer if the entire operating system were contained in ROM.Simply storing the core image, oh, sorry, that's a a 1960's analogy, rather simply storing an image of the current contents of system DRAM to HD can simulate this (some laptops used to offer this option - results in "Instant turn-on" versus a 'boot sequence' where configuration file after configuration file/driver is loaded ... part of the 'magic' in this scheme is re-programming all hardware registers in each CPU perpheral back to it's pre-power down state though) ...
11
posted on
10/03/2003 8:00:38 PM PDT
by
_Jim
(<-- More resources/click on name ... also: Blackout of 2003 --> www.pserc.wisc.edu/Resources.htm)
To: supercat
How much does a typical PC bios actually do once a system is booted? Little
It will have more.
Just as,for reasons of lower cost, Windows Modems have never worked well under any other operating system, due to critical proprietary elements of the modulation/demodulation being in Windows,
... similarly for reasons of Digital Rights Management, other operating systems will not work well on Windows PCs, because critical elements of such things as all access to storage, display and communications devices is denied, due to the BIOS both refusing to even register at boot any device that doesn't comply with Microsoft standards, and refusing to register any device if not loading a Microsoft operating system.
Perhaps, for example, if you plug an old disk drive in, it won't work, because the BIOS, on startup, will identify that this is not a Microsoft Certified DRM Disk Drive. Or you plug a new Microsoft Certified drive into an old box, and that doesn't work, because the drive didn't get some special handshake its new DRM respecting firmware required. Or you try to boot Linux on the box, and nothing works -- the BIOS won't let you get past boot.
All the above is conjecture on my part -- I'll wager a pretty penny however that Microsoft would dearly love being in such a cat bird seat.
To: Coral Snake
NFG
To: Coral Snake
Let's put it in simple terms: can you boot another operating system on an Apple PC? Why do you think they've been calling IBM PC 'open architecture'? Littlebittysoft Corp would luv to be the Apple of your eye!
To: Coral Snake
Microsoft has never paid much attention to the BIOS anyway, going right to the hardware whenever it was convenient.
SO9
To: ThePythonicCow
All the above is conjecture on my part Okay ... of course, this overlooks those forces by the various HDW vendors that would like to see Linux capability exist for a given MB ...
16
posted on
10/03/2003 8:19:16 PM PDT
by
_Jim
(<-- More resources/click on name ... also: Blackout of 2003 --> www.pserc.wisc.edu/Resources.htm)
To: ThePythonicCow
Perhaps, for example, if you plug an old disk drive in, it won't work, because the BIOS, on startup, will identify that this is not a Microsoft Certified DRM Disk Drive. Or you plug a new Microsoft Certified drive into an old box, and that doesn't work, because the drive didn't get some special handshake its new DRM respecting firmware required. Or you try to boot Linux on the box, and nothing works -- the BIOS won't let you get past boot...
All the above is conjecture on my part... True, it's all conjecture. But if you were to replace the words Microsoft with Apple, you'd be talking about the Macintoshes that are being built today. Apple controls the hardware, bios, and software. But I won't hold my breath waiting for you and others here to protest about that.
To: Revolting cat!
can you boot another operating system on an Apple PC? If anyone's ported another OS to the Apple I wouldn't see why not. Macs have been running Unix for over a decade.
18
posted on
10/03/2003 8:26:35 PM PDT
by
supercat
(Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
To: _Jim
Okay ... of course, this overlooks those forces by the various HDW vendors that would like to see Linux capability exist for a given MB ... OpenOffice 2.0 coming out shortly is supposed to be the one that gives Microsoft Office a run for its money. There will always be a Linux market, and if Microsoft pushes the envelope on control they're just going to send more people to the competition.
To: _Jim
Simply storing the core image, oh, sorry, that's a a 1960's analogy, rather simply storing an image of the current contents of system DRAM to HD can simulate this (some laptops used to offer this option - results in "Instant turn-on" versus a 'boot sequence' where configuration file after configuration file/driver is loaded ... part of the 'magic' in this scheme is re-programming all hardware registers in each CPU perpheral back to it's pre-power down state though) ... Windows XP does that pretty well, but if you change the hardware configuration or make other changes, you still have to boot the normal slow boot sequence. I have been spending lots of time in the last week look at computers boot up after updating the BIOS, upgrading memory, and adding peripherals.
20
posted on
10/03/2003 8:43:05 PM PDT
by
Paleo Conservative
(Do not remove this tag under penalty of law.)
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