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Microsoft's purported windows rt firefox ban: a quick explainer by wgre ethbtn
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Microsoft's purported windows rt firefox ban: a quick explainer |
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Business,Business News,Business Opportunities
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Microsoft is giving Internet Explorer an unfair technical advantagein Windows RT (Windows 8 for ARM-based devices) that is the "first step toward anew platform lock-in," according to the Mozilla Foundation. Thegroup behind the open source Firefox browser is complaining thatInternet Explorer will be the only browser on Windows RT allowed to run in the traditional desktop environment. That means IE will be able to integrate with Windows RT in waysthat competing browsers can't, giving Microsoft's IE a leg up interms of speed, stability and security, Mozilla s general counsel, Harvey Anderson , said in a blog post. Mozilla also suggests that Microsoft may be flirting with antitrustviolations by freezing out other browsers from Windows RT, echoingissues that sparked the software giant's antitrust battle with the U.S. government more than a decade ago.
What is Windows RT? Windows RT is the version of Windows 8 designed primarily forARM-based single-panel touch tablets, but is also expected toarrive on lightweight laptops. Windows RT will have two userinterfaces: a touch-friendly Metro-style interface and atraditional Windows 7-like desktop. This is similar to Windows 8for x86 chips. The difference, however, is how Windows 8 andWindows RT handle applications.
How Does Windows 8 Handle Apps? Windows 8 will have three application types: Metro, classicdesktop, and Metro-style enabled desktop browsers (MEDB). Mozillais already working on creating an MEDB version of Firefox for Windows 8 that allows users to install the browser once and run it on boththe Metro and desktop interfaces. However, Windows 8 will onlyallow your system's default MEDB to run in the Metro interface. Inother words, you can't run Firefox in Metro if IE is your defaultbrowser. What About Windows RT? Windows RT will focus on offering Metro-style apps optimized fortouch devices and connected to cloud services such as SkyDrive.
But there will also be a traditional desktop to run programs suchas Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote (all four are bundled with Windows RT ), Windows Explorer and the desktop version of IE. Legacy Windowsdesktop apps will not run on Windows RT. The problem is that Windows RT does not have an equivalent MEDBclass of apps, according to Mozilla's Asa Dotzler . MEDB apps on Windows 8 can access powerful applicationprogramming interfaces (APIs) that browsers need "to deliver moderncapabilities and performance," Dotzler wrote in a blog post.Third-party browsers on Windows RT will not be getting the sameaccess to those APIs as IE will have, according to Mozilla."Without that access," Dotzler says, "no other browser has a prayerof being competitive with IE." What is Microsoft Saying? Microsoft has not responded to PCWorld's request for comment.
Who Cares About Windows 8 for Tablets Anyway? It's not clear if ARM-based Windows devices are going to be animportant factor when Windows 8 starts rolling out this year.Previous reports claimed that five or fewer ARM-based Windows RT devices would be available at launch. And market research firm NPDDisplaySearch predicts that Windows RT tablets will grow slowly during the first five years, going from 1.5 percent of all tabletssold worldwide to 7.5 percent by 2017. So whether Mozilla will miss out by not being on equal footing withInternet Explorer on Windows RT is up for debate. Nevertheless,Microsoft's actions, if accurate, could give the company an unfairadvantage if Windows RT becomes a popular option for consumers anddevice makers.
And Microsoft's actions could bring up antitrustproblems for the company in the U.S. and Europe, according toMozilla. The irony, of course, is that Microsoft's original antitrustproblems in the late 1990s and early 2000s were sparked by how thecompany bundled Internet Explorer with Windows. But until Microsofthas had a chance to explain don't count on history repeating itselfjust yet. Connect with Ian Paul ( @ianpaul ) on Twitter and Google+, and with Today@PCWorld on Twitter for the latest tech news and analysis. I am Service Equipment writer, reports some information about collapsible dog cage , wall peg rack.
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