pallmall1 - Slashdot User

Submission + - One Laptop Per Child using Microsoft OS

Submitted by pallmall1 on Monday May 21, 2007 @08:42AM

pallmall1 writes: The One Laptop Per Child flagship XO laptop is going to roll off the assembly lines loaded with Microsoft embedded software. The recent price increase of the laptop to $173 is due in part to the hardware and licensing costs required to run the Microsoft software. According to Mary Lou Jepsen, CTO of the OLPC project, the "OLPC`s XO laptop series uses Microsoft`s embedded operating system, which requires special drivers to work. However, this increases the cost by nearly US$20 for the laptop, including US$3 for Microsoft`s operating system, and US$15 for a 2GB flash memory to drive the system".

So much for the statement from the OLPC project's President of Software and Content, which flatly denied any plans to incorporate Microsoft software by default.

Submission + - EU Rejects Microsoft Royalty Proposal

Submitted by pallmall1 on Wednesday April 04, 2007 @07:55PM

pallmall1 writes: According to MSNBC, The Financial Times has reported that the EU is going to drastically reduce or even eliminate Microsoft's proposed royalties on interoperability information required to be released by the EU's antitrust ruling issued three years ago. According to a confidential EU document, "Microsoft will be forced to hand over to rivals what the group claims is sensitive and valuable technical information about its Windows operating system for next to no compensation...". Even Neil Barrett, the expert picked by both Microsoft and the EU to oversee Microsoft's compliance with the 2004 ruling, says a zero percent royalty would be "better".

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