여러분 새해복많이 받으세요... HAPPY, NEW YEAR...
* Logo Websites Updated! Simpler, Yet More Comprehensive
With the New Year comes a new and improved Logo website. The
website, http://www.microsoft.com/windows/thirdparty/, contains
links to six Logo websites: Designed for Back Office, Designed
for Windows NT and Windows 95, Designed for Windows 95 - Windows
NT Compatible - Windows NT Ready-to-Run, Designed for Windows CE,
Office 97 Compatible Program, and the Powered by Microsoft
BackOffice Program. The Designed for Windows NT and Windows 95
website, http://www.microsoft.com/windows/thirdparty/winLogo.htm,
has also been revamped to give you simpler instructions on how
to apply for the Logo. This website should be your first
destination when you have questions about the Logo program.
We also updated the Designed for BackOffice website,
http://www.microsoft.com/backoffice/designed/, including a new
online submission form which premieres this Friday. The form
will allow you to submit all your products for testing via the
web (of course, you'll actually have to send the physical
product in to us!) Please let us know what you think of the
new sites - they are there to help you get into the Logo
program, and get the most out of it! Also, keep an eye out
for an online submission form for the Designed for Windows
Logos which will arrive shortly.
Finally, for those of you who have grappled with the downloadable
Vendor Questionnaire, VeriTest will soon have an HTML version on
their website. This web-questionnaire, besides eliminating the
necessity of downloading that big file, will allow you to apply
for testing for multiple Logos, with just one single form.
(Includes all Logos that VeriTest tests for except the Office
Compatible Logo.) Also, VeriTest has upgraded the Step-by-Step
instructions on http://www.veritest.com/stepbystep.htm to work
for both the combined Logo and the Windows 95 only Logo.
Please let VeriTest know how you like their new forms.
* Direct3D for Windows NT in 1997
Direct3D support for Windows NT, originally target for release
to developers by the end of 1996, has been pushed into 1997.
Software emulation support for Direct 3D on Windows NT 4.0
will become available as part of the DirectX 3.0 SDK, which is
currently slated for arrival in the second quarter of this
calendar year with the next service pack, SP 3, for Windows NT 4.0.
Hardware support is currently scheduled for the next Windows
NT 4.0 service pack, SP 4, later in 1997. The next major release
of Windows NT will also include Direct 3D, currently scheduled for
the late 1997. At this time, games and multimedia developers
will be able to ship Direct 3D applications that run on both
Windows 95 and Windows NT, thus being eligible for the Designed
for the combined Windows NT and Windows 95 Logo. To read about or
download the current DirectX SDK, check out
http://www.microsoft.com/mediadev/.
* Testing for Designed for Windows 95 Logo Extended Until
March 1997 for Games Vendors
Due to the delay of Direct 3D for Windows NT mentioned above,
the deadline for games vendors to apply for the Designed for
Windows 95 Logo has been extended to at least March 1, 1997.
Originally, we had planned to eliminate the Windows 95 only
Logo at the beginning of 1997, however, we feel it is important
to offer this Logo until the time when games developers
can ship Direct3D applications for both Windows 95 and Windows
NT. Games vendors should be aware that, with the exception of
Direct3D applications, they should be developing and testing
on both Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 and applying for the new
combined Logo. Only games that use Direct3D will be eligible to
apply for the Designed for Windows 95 Logo.
* Microsoft Ships Memphis Developer Release To Limited Number
Of External Testers
A very early release of Memphis, the next version of Windows 95,
has been made available to a limited number of external testers,
primarily IHVs, OEMs and ISVs under Non-Disclosure (NDA). The
developer release went to all currently licensed Logo'd Windows
applications developers in December as a benefit of being
Logo'd. This is NOT a beta level release. It is designed to
enable partners to do WDM, USB, DVD, Digital Audio, ACPI and
other hardware development work. It is not functionally
complete, particularly in the shell and browser areas (e.g.,
no IE4). The primary purposes of the developer release are
(1) to provide the underlying infrastructure to support new
hardware and driver development, and (2) to begin the process
of testing for hardware and driver compatibility, app
compatibility, and our setup code. The release is the first
milestone along the way to product release. Memphis Beta 1
remains on track for release in Q1 of calendar year 1997. We
will post updates on Beta 1 availability for Logo'd ISVs as
soon as we have the information.
* Microsoft Posts Service Pack 2 For Windows NT 4.0
Windows NT Service Pack 2 was completed and placed on
http://www.microsoft.com in mid-December. The major components
of Service Pack 2 include: -- The newest version of Microsoft
Internet Information Server - IIS 3.0 (which includes Active
Server Pages), Microsoft Index Server 1.1, Microsoft NetShow,
Microsoft FrontPage 97 Server Extensions, and Crystal Reports.
More information on IIS 3.0 can be found at
-- The newest version of Internet Explorer for Windows 95 and Windows
NT Workstation - IE 3.01. New features in version 3.01 include
security enhancements, a Java virtual machine which provides enhanced
Java/COM integration and minor bug fixes, and enhancements for
improved integration with web features in Office 97. More
information on IE 3.01 can be found at
http://www.microsoft.com/ie/default.asp.
-- 128-bit encryption for Remote Access Services and an uninstall
option
which will completely remove all Service Pack 2 components and fixes.
SP 2 also provides fixes for several bugs including an intermittent
file
corruption problem (Q78303), Windows NT hanging on shutdown
with certain PCMCIA devices (Q108261), and Internet Information
Server running out of memory (Q142658). For a more complete listing
of bug fixes in Service Pack 2 please see:
ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/bussys/winnt/winnt-
public/fixes/usa/nt40/ussp2/readme.txt.
NOTE: You can use the Q number that precedes the title of the bug fix
to
query the Microsoft Knowledge Base to find an article about that bug.
The International English version will be available on January 31st.
* Microsoft World Wide Technical Briefing in Seattle Next Week
The theme of this annual gathering, to be attended by over 1,500
Microsoft Consultants, System Engineers, and Premier Technical
Account Managers, is "The Enterprise Experts." On Tuesday,
January 14th from 7-10 p.m., Microsoft Consultants, System
Engineers, and Premier Technical Account Managers have been
invited to eat a buffet dinner and visit our partner pavilion at
the Boeing Museum of Flight. The pavilion has 40 partner
spots for Enterprise Development Partners and BackOffice Logo'd
partners. Our BackOffice Logo'd partners and Platinum Windows
Logo'd partners were emailed an exclusive invitation to participate
in early December, and space was allocated on a first response basis.
The spaces sold out the same day the invitations were emailed!
Keep an eye on your email, and this newsletter, for future chances to
participate in these types of events.
* How Many Products Got Logo'd in 1996??
Over 631 products passed testing for one of the Designed for Windows
Logos this year! That makes a grand total of over 873 products with
the Designed for Windows 95 Logo and 56 with the Designed for
Windows NT and Windows 95 Logo. We should hit the 1,000
mark this month! On the BackOffice side, over 165 applications
received the Designed for BackOffice Logo in 1996. Make sure
to send your products in for testing so that you, too, can be one
of the partners receiving the benefits of licensing a Microsoft Logo!
See exactly what these benefits are by looking at
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/common/w95logobenefits.htm.
* Microsoft Delivers Beta 1 Of "Wolfpack" Clustering Technology.
Microsoft will release in limited beta "Wolfpack" clustering technology
for Microsoft's Windows NT Server network operating system. Wolfpack
is based on open specifications, industry-standard hardware, and the
ease-of-use customers have come to expect from Microsoft products.
This limited technical beta will test cluster configurations planned
for certification by the 6 early adopter system vendors: Compaq,
Digital, HP, IBM, NCR, and Tandem. Microsoft IS on track for
delivering clustering technology in the first half of 1997. This beta
of Wolfpack includes high-availability and easier manageability of
any well-designed Windows NT Server application. The beta
also provides support for cluster-aware applications that call on the
Wolfpack API to achieve faster restart and higher cluster scalability
by spreading the workload over more than one machine in the cluster.
* ACPI Support and OnNow Power Management for Windows NT
ACPI is one of the three interfaces that enable operating system-
directed
power management and the OnNow design initiative. ACPI provides
the interface between the operating system and the hardware on the
motherboard of a PC as well as specifying a device Plug and Play
configuration interface for buses and devices on the motherboard
not covered by another industry-standard configuration interface.
Designers should note that ACPI and OnNow have implications
for all facets of a system - chip sets, motherboards, system
buses, BIOS, and peripheral devices. PC 97 requires only the
D0 (On) and D3 (Off) power states; devices, when commanded
by the driver, must have a mode in which the device powers
down completely, with no need to retain any context, as this is
the device driver's responsibility. Also, PC 97 recommends that
class-specific low power states (D1 and/or D2) be implemented
so that energy can be conserved without completely powering
down the device and so that the device is still partly functional.
For information and resources about OnNow and ACPI, see the
article "Developing Devices for OnNow and PC 97" at
http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pcfuture/onnowdev.htm and
a whitepaper that provides technical direction for new OnNow
extensions to Win32 APIs in Memphis at
http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pcfuture/onnowapp.htm.
Call to Action: Case Studies Requested
This is a reminder to you all that we are seeking compelling case
studies highlighting your application's solution for a large or
well-known company. We are currently working on case
study development with Omtool and Network Imaging
Corporation. Case studies are one way for Logo'd partners to
achieve Platinum status with Microsoft and receive additional
co-marketing benefits. We'd like to help you take advantage
of the press contacts Microsoft has with vertical and top-tier
publications to get your case study published. To be included,
your case study must meet the following criteria:
-- Application must run on Windows NT, Windows 95, or BackOffice
-- Solution for a Fortune 1000, unusual, or well-known company
-- New case study, never published
-- Discussion of the benefits to your customer including
quantifiable data
One or more key Microsoft messages that should be included are:
-- Benefits of Win32
-- Solution's contribution to reduction in total cost of ownership
-- Internet/intranet implications
-- Value-added solutions for a mixed environment.
To get involved, submit your case study, or a proposal for a case
study, to me at a-franl@microsoft.com by January 20th. Not all
submissions can be taken, but we'll make our best effort to
accommodate everyone!
Thanks,
Doyoung Rhee
(02) 531-4628 , dyrhee@microsoft.com