Microsoft updates embedded platforms for the Windows 7 era

Windows 7 has come to Microsoft's embedded platforms

Microsoft has announced availability of new Windows Embedded releases, including Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3, plus builds of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 for embedded applications.

At the Embedded Systems Conference (ESC) in Boston, Microsoft announced the release to manufacturing (RTM) of Windows Embedded Enterprise and Windows Embedded Server, and said that Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3 will be available to vendors from the first week in October.

Windows Embedded CE is Microsoft's platform for small devices, and the new release adds capabilities to help vendors build a better user experience, plus improved connectivity with Windows 7 PCs and cloud-based services, according to David Wurster, senior product manager of Microsoft's consumer team for Windows Embedded.

Integration of Microsoft's Silverlight application framework will make it easier for developers to code applications, for example reducing development time from weeks to just days, he said.

"By bringing Silverlight to CE, OEMs can create a great immersive experience, using the same basic design skills as Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) on the desktop," Wurster added.

Also included is Adobe Flash support and the browser is now optimised for variable screen sizes with the ability to pan and zoom.

For greater PC connectivity, CE 6.0 R3 supports Windows 7's Device Stage, which brings together all the features of a device into one screen. Developers will have tools to help them create a customised experience, said Wurster.

The new release also adds an improved connection manager to offload handling of communications, designed to deliver a more reliable connection to let devices make greater use of online and cloud-based services.

While CE forms the core code underlying Microsoft's Windows Mobile Smartphone platform, the two are very different products and current Windows Mobile releases are still based on CE 5.0 code.

Meanwhile, Windows Embedded Enterprise and Windows Embedded Server are versions of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 licensed for use in embedded applications.

The two should not be confused with Windows Embedded Standard 2011, which is a componentised and customisable version of Windows 7 Microsoft made available as a technical preview early in September.

With the RTM of these two versions, vendors can now go ahead and start building devices based on them, said Ashwin Kulkarni, senior product manager of the Windows Embedded team.

Both offer next-generation capabilities, such as secure communications via Microsoft's DirectAccess.

Windows Embedded Enterprise is expected to appear in bank ATMs, kiosks and other areas where "full application compatibility is required but customers are not worried about code footprint size," said Kulkarni.

It brings from Windows 7 the multi-touch user interface, which makes it easier for developers creating devices such as information kiosks.

Windows Embedded Server is more likely to be used by vendors building appliances for telecoms and unified messaging, according to Microsoft. It offers increased reliability through features such as the Server Core installation option that reduces the code footprint by eliminating the graphical user interface.