“…Microsoft UPnP is all about Windows, and it will add UPnP
support into all its future Windows releases, starting with Windows
Millennium Edition. This past week Intel also said it will release
a UPnP development kit – in this case for Linux. The kit will allow
Linux device makers to develop a control interface for UPnP, so
that a device can locate and interact with other UPnP-enabled
devices – even if they are Windows-based.”
“This is a smart move, since Linux is claiming a big share of
the Internet access device market. Intel expects the major
Linux distributors, such as Red Hat, Caldera, SuSE and TurboLinux,
to build its technology into future distributions and that the
first Linux-based UPnP-enabled devices could hit the market by late
this year.“
“Not everyone thinks that the standards are preventing people
from enjoying a wired home. Microsoft’s “digital diva” and consumer
advocate Stacey Elliott, who was visiting Microsoft’s wired loft in
New York last week, thinks there are more basic problems standing
in the way.”
“Although consumers are interested in technology, the flood
jargon about “ISPs,” “USBs” and “URLs” can hinder their efforts of
getting involved,” says Elliott. “There are two types of digital
divide: economic and literacy.”