Intel hands off BIOS successor to trade group

The Extensible Firmware Interface, which could speed the boot-up process for PCs, has been handed over to a group that will promote and standardize it.

The United EFI Forum will essentially try to pave the way for EFI to succeed the basic input/output system, or BIOS, inside PCs. The BIOS lets the hardware speak to the software. Though the BIOS was once relatively straightforward in its design, over the years it has morphed into a figurative bowl of spaghetti as it's been changed and updated to accept new technologies.

Advocates say EFI would make it simpler for companies to add improvements, while also enabling PCs to boot up faster.

Some members of the open-source community are currently promoting open-source BIOSes. Major PC makers, however, have not actively championed this effort. Executives at BIOS makers and chip giant Intel have said that more tightly controlling this element in a PC helps maintain PC security and stability and fosters competition by protecting companies' intellectual property.

Intel began to promote EFI in 2003 and wrote an initial specification. The United EFI Forum says it will come out with a 1.10 version of the spec by the end of the year. Other members include Dell, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft and BIOS specialists Insyde Software and Phoenix Technologies.

[My-Self]

And the goal is ?

This is all about inserting a DRM 'security' layer a level below the OS, where it will supposedly be more difficult for the user to circumvent it ...

[Had_to_be_said]

Its NOT just about DRM...

Its also about...

...Locking out Competition.

...Locking-down the PC, FROM consumer-control.

And...

...Tracking ALL Citizen computer-activities.

[Stating]

Keith's Law

"The time required to boot a Windows computer always exceeds the speed improvements in hardware by a factor of two."

With 3 dozen XP services starting up with each boot (and an equal number disabled), it takes a ridiculous amount of time to boot. I'm supposed to sit around at Starbucks and wait the full five minutes for everything to load? Hell no. I put my laptop in standby or hibernate mode and save the reboots for when I am doing the dishes.

BTW, what's the expected boot time of a standard issue Vista computer using mid-range hardware? Will a new BIOS design save us? Stay tuned...

[jerblack]

5 minute boot?

Not sure what the issue that you're experiencing is, but I go from complete power off to full usable desktop in less than 40 seconds. Granted that's not as fast as I would like, but 5 minutes? No way. For reference, this is on my more than 18 month old Pentium M 1.4Ghz laptop, so we're not talking SATA drives or Hyperthreaded P4 or anything.

I'm afraid you might be having other issues that can't be blamed just on Windows XP

[JLem]

Confusing OS boot with firmware boot

Most of your boot time is taken up by Windows loading, not by the boot operations being done in BIOS. Fixing the firmware will help boot time, but not much since most of the problem is beyond its control.

[Andrew J Glina]

Err...

The BIOS is still used when booting from hibernation.

[Gayle-Edwards]

"Trusted-Computing", Marches on...

Frankly, there is NOTHING good, technologically, about this current "BIOS" initiative.

It is CLEARLY part of a larger plan, which continues moving forward at an ever-faster pace.

This agenda ("Trusted Computing", which just so happens, is primarily the brain-child of MICROSOFT and INTEL) ONLY really provides benefits to a scant-few by creating the technological ability to FORCE private market-goals, and political-agendas, upon people that actively resist them.

It is painfully-apparent that "Trusted Computings" ultimate-goal is complete-CONTROL. Period...

To see the over-all picture, just look at recent-news...

...A new "...security specification for servers", requiring them to contain a "TPM" (Trusted Platform Module "Fritz-chip").

...The full implementation of "...trusted-routers" designed specifically to refuse to allow "...non-trusted" (I.E. ALL current, and obviously any future, un-controllable "open-source") computers, from accessing the internet.

...Calls (from politicians) to REQUIRE ISPs to CONTROL their customers activities, ...and, "...monitor them".

...Microsofts next Operating System which, it seems, is really little more than "XP" with HARD-DRM, ...activity-monitoring, and use-control, ...BUILT-IN.

...endless news-stories about "...security problems", and "...the Zombie-Computer threat" (which always seem to fail completely to mention that both issues are ALMOST-ENTIRELY the result of ONE MONOPOLYs FAILURE to produce good-products).

...The stated intention (which is already being implemented) to lock-up ALL "media" with DRM, ...which requires complete-compliance from ALL devices capable of accessing it.

...Etc, etc, etc.

And, do not forget, just how all of this fits in with such totalitarian-goals as, the "...new International Cyber-Treaty" (already signed by the President). It specifically requires the power to CONTROL private-computer-use and ELIMINATE many Constitutional-freedoms (that those in power seem to find "...objectionable"), ...as well as extend "COPYRIGHT" even further (...than the OWNERSHIP-ROBBING OBSCENITY which it has already become).

But, hey, if it helps fight the RIDICULOUSLY-OVER-HYPED "Zombie-computer" myth, ...and reduces "SPAM", ...and stops "Identity-theft" (by handing the keys to MY-OWN PROPERTY, and PRIVACY, over to BIG-MONEY, and POLITICAL, interests) THEN, ...by all means, I am for it.

NOT...

[JLem]

Why not use Open Firmware (IEEE 1275)?

i don't understand why someone would want to reinvent what has already been very well laid out. IEEE 1275, AKA Open Firmware, AKA OpenBoot, is an open standard, with both commercial and free implementations available. It is used by Sun and by Apple, among others, quite successfully.

See the Wikipedia page on this, from which several informative links can be followed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Firmware

[Andrew J Glina]

Ask Apple

Acording to Wiki they are dropping it. Perhaps it is too dedicated to the PPC platform.