AllLinuxDevices: Weekly Roundup: November 8, 2000

In this issue:

• The Big Story Of The Week
• Community Notes
• The Week That Was
• Coming Up

The Big Story Of The
Week:

Indrema Developer Network Launches, CEO Gildred Clarifies
Certification and Copy Protection Goals

Linux-based game console maker Indrema revealed a little more
about their plans this week with a webcast and a followup
teleconference announcing the launch of their Indrema Developer
Network website, which features the first release of their
developer kit.

There weren’t a lot of surprises, but there was one subtle
change:

Indrema’s previously announced fee structure for developers used
to center around the notion that there would be no royalties at
all, and the certification fees involved would be charged to
for-profit game developers. With Monday’s announcements, that
changed subtly. Free software developers will now pay a
certification fee (a nominal amount, described as a “token” by a
representative who couldn’t provide hard numbers) to get their
games released for the system, and for-profit developers will pay a
certification fee and royalties on each title.

The other interesting bit out of the announcements came from
solid information on Indrema’s approach to copy protection: they’ll
be using it, and they won’t budge on that. More on that
tomorrow.

Some related press releases were also sent out along with the
site launch:

• 
  Indrema and Metrowerks to Produce CodeWarrior Tools For the Indrema
  Entertainment System

• 
  Indrema and Metro Link Collaborate on Open Source Multimedia
  Initiatives

Community Notes
Two sites caught our attention this week:

• 
  Community: MobiliX.org – A New Site Dedicated to Mobile Linux
  Users
  “MobiliX.org is a new site for mobile Linux. The maintainers have
  provided links to numerous documents and sites centered around the
  use of Linux on handhelds, laptops, and other mobile computing
  devices.”
• 
  Community: Hack-a-NIC (Hacking the ThinkNIC Internet
  Appliance)
  “Part of the fun of consumer systems is hacking them: from the TiVo
  to the i-opener, hackers have delved into the guts of their
  previously sealed boxes and figured out what makes them tick. The
  ThinkNIC, produced by an Oracle spinoff, is the latest to succumb
  to prying fingers…”

The Week That Was
In addition to Indrema’s announcements, Transmeta figured heavily
in the news. Between defections from partners who have withdrawn
plans to use Crusoe in upcoming projects, and an IPO that did
fairly well despite all that, here’s a collection of the stories we
had:

• 
  The Register: Intel claimed to have squeezed IBM to dump
  Transmeta
  “IBM’s decision to dump its planned Crusoe-based ThinkPad 240 had
  nothing to do with benchmarks, and everything to do with Intel,
  according to sources close to Transmeta. Quanta, which was to build
  the machines, was surprised when the project was abruptly
  cancelled; one Transmeta partner who declined to be named told The
  Register: “It was on schedule, fully functional, and IBM were very
  happy with it.”
• 
  The Register: Desperate Dell begging Transmeta for a Crusoe
  deal?
  “Dell’s cosy relationship with Intel, and a little carelessness
  with secret files, is causing the company serious grief with
  Transmeta, a usually reliable source alleges. “Dell has been
  calling Transmeta every week for the last two months,” he says, but
  Transmeta won’t return the calls.”
• 
  Transmeta’s Crusoe not ready for mainstream – Gartner
  “Kevin Knox, senior analyst at Gartner, said: “The two major
  advantages Crusoe has are that it goes into a small system and its
  power savings. But the question is exactly how much power does it
  save? An extra hour would not be enough to justify moving away from
  Intel, but three to four would be worth it.”
• 
  Transmeta shares soar despite Crusoe doubts
  “Trading in Transmeta shares began at $21 on Tuesday and closed at
  $45.25 – putting a $5.7bn valuation on the Intel contender.
  Transmeta had already sold 13 million shares at $21 to
  institutional investors on Monday, beefing up its coffers by
  $273m.”

Coming Up
COMDEX is next week, and we’ll be there, too. There are lots of
Linux devices getting ready to hit the market, and we’ll provide as
many hands-on looks as we can.

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