Las Vegas - If just the thought of reading long reports on the screen of a tiny palmtop computer gives you a headache, Bill Gates may have an answer.
Gates used the stage of the 19th annual Comdex show to introduce a new technology called ClearType, a software being developed in Microsoft's research lab to increase the resolution delivered by existing hardware by 300%. Gates said that by integrating this technology into future versions of both Windows and Windows CE, it will be more visually feasible for users to read long electronic documents on-line, such as periodicals and books.
Gates also wowed the audience with a demonstration of a new Windows NT 4.0 workstation specifically built to handle 3-D technical design jobs. The new Silicon Graphics Visual NT workstation demonstrated on stage had enough power and resolution to handle four PhotoShop images, assembled as a 3-D block, spinning on the screen in real time without interrupting the delivery of a streaming video also presented on the flat-paneled display.
The audience was impressed enough with the demonstration but thunderous applause erupted when the SGI vice president announced that when the product is delivered next January, it's going to be priced under $4,000.
"The PC model proves itself once again," Gates said.
In the remainder of his speech, Gates mainly reverted to his recurring simplicity theme explaining in detail about his plans to make Office 2000 and Windows 2000 so much easier to use than their shipping counterparts.
RELATED LINKS
