Intel previews Atom 'Pineview' chip, Linux OS
Updated at 1:45 p.m. PDT with additional comments about Moblin market share.
On Tuesday, Intel released information on its next-generation Atom silicon and the next version of its Linux operating system for Netbooks.
Noury Al-Khaledy, general manager of Nettop and Netbook Computing at Intel, announced a technology platform called "Pine Trail" that--at the risk of confounding readers with similar product names--uses a new Atom processor dubbed "Pineview."
Intel announced the Moblin v2.0 Beta Tuesday
(Credit: Intel)Essentially, what all of this means is that Intel will move more features onto the "Pineview" Atom processor that are currently in the surrounding chipset. The graphics function and so-called memory controller--which connects memory with other parts of the system--will now be on the same piece of silicon as the processor.
Other functionality--the so-called I/O hub--will remain on a separate chip.
"We have a processor, we have a chipset, and we have an I/O hub. What we've done is reduce that three-chip partition to a two-chip partition," Al-Khaledy said.
The new Atom technology will launch in the second half of this year, Al-Khaledy said.
The goal of integration is to reduce power consumption and increase performance in Netbooks--which are small, inexpensive laptops designed for Web browsing, email, and less-demanding media applications.
Intel also announced the Beta version of the Moblin version 2.0 Linux operating system, which is targeted at Atom processor-based Netbooks, handhelds, Nettops (Atom-based desktops), as well as other markets such as automotive. "We're doing Moblin to unify Linux across all these segments," said Doug Fisher, general manager at Intel's software and services group.
Moblin 2.0 includes a new interface called the M-zone, which replaces the desktop and is "the entry point to the Netbook and Nettop," according to an Intel statement. This new interface is aimed at improving social networking and media--audio and video--consumption.
Intel did not disclose what PC makers may use the operating system--which will compete with Windows 7--but said Acer and Asus have used Linux in the past for Netbooks.
"We're seeing 20, 25 percent Mobilin share in Netbooks and Nettops," Al-Khaledy said. Much of the Netbook market today uses Windows XP and is expected to adopt Windows 7 when it comes out later this year.
Moblin 2.0 Beta is available for immediate download here.
Brooke Crothers has served as an editor at large at CNET News, an editor at Dow Jones' Asian Wall Street Journal Weekly, and a senior editor at InfoWorld. His CNET blog covers chip technology and computer systems, and how they define the computing experience. He also contributes to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure. Follow Brooke on Twitter @mbrookec. 
Intel uses Linux as a reference environment not because it is somehow lucrative to sell OSes. Repeat that about forty times, please.
They do it because it makes developing hardware around their chipsets extremely inexpensive. Repeat that about sixty times, pelase.
So how does it save money? Why, by providing an entire development environment to OEMs and ISVs for $0.00 in additional overhead and licensing costs. This means both Intel and OEM don't have to shell out for Microsoft licensing just to get up a development environment on hardware. At the same time, the 'customers' (OEMs and such) get everything from compilers to IDEs, to libraries, to build scripts/recipes... all in one big, fat, happy package. The OEMs take that, and use the money they save to put towards lowering margins, reducing the licensing costs they do have (e.g. paying up for WLAN product PDKs/licensing) and the like. If they want to spend money on Microsoft licensing after that, they can, but it is no longer necessary to do so just to get up a working kit.
Of course, a wonderful side effect is that Linux already comes with (or at least has handy) all the drivers for the netbooks being built, since the OEMs will take Intel's dev environment and use that to build-out their netbook kit.
It sounds like Intel will integrate its own graphics chip with the CPU and expect vendors to use that instead of relying on an Nvidia or AMD GPU as some of the netbooks do now. Which seems kind of strange, considering that Intel has been the least interested in providing decent Linux drivers for its GPUs. If that finally changes it will be another big leap forward for Linux.
Overall this is a stunningly important development. Intel, Google, IBM, Apple, and many other tech giants are now setting up the structures that could cut Microsoft out of the OS market for netbooks, cellphones, and other personal-sized tech. Linux already dominates the server market. As big desktops go obsolete, Microsoft may discover that open-source has taken over the market by stealth.
Before all the recent developments with Apple (iPod, iPhone, Mac OS X, ....), Google (search, Google Apps, Android, ...), Linux (Ubuntu, Moblin, ....), web browsers (Firefox,Chrome,Safari,Opera), Microsoft pretty much WAS sitting around twiddling its thumbs. They had a solid monopoly and they were content to just milk the Windows & Office cows, for as much milk as they could get.
These days, Microsoft appears to be awake and executing like a serious company. Hopefully, they will lose enough grip on the market & technology to make them like every other tech company that has to work & innovate to stay relevant.
I don't think this will happen over night, but it seems that the future of the OS is a free OS. I know that people are saying this for years, and Ubuntu and the likes had a long time to actually change things, but now the "big companies" are getting on board the "free OS" train.
I like MS OSes, and I'm excited about Win 7, but it seems to me that in several years there will be much more choices for the costumers. And most people will choose the free one, if it is up to the job.
Mac OS X is based upon the Mach kernel. Certain parts from FreeBSD's and NetBSD's implementation of Unix were incorporated in Nextstep, the core of Mac OS X. Nextstep was the object-oriented operating system developed by Steve Jobs' company NeXT after he left Apple in 1985.
Personally, I see a future generation of netbooks/tablets including smartphone hardware (touchscreen, 3G, GPS, accelerometer, compass, etc.) and supporting cell phone calls and SMS. The Nokia/Intel oFono initiative fits right in with this.
I currently use Ubuntu as my primary OS, but I could see a day where I might have a dual boot (or virtualized) Android/Moblin setup. Things are REALLY getting exciting!
The article is about Linux and the newest Atom processor. You're a fan of MS. Who mentioned Apple?
- by BSinton May 19, 2009 10:49 PM PDT
- Dear monkeyfun14,
- Like this Reply to this comment
-
(21 Comments)Oh dear me, Apple or Mr. Jobs has really got you upset.Mr.Jobs is off sick at the moment , so be kind to him.
The truth is that the real arrogant pricks are over at Microsoft.
I confess , I am using Ubuntu.