Microsoft has officially announced that Windows XP is coming to the OLPC XO with trial runs beginning as early as June. This comes after months of discussion and speculation of when the move would happen. The operating system has been specially modified to run on the computer and support its ebook reading mode, writing pad and camera. And according to the press release, the plan is to have both Windows and Linux running on the machines, to let users decide what’s best.
The price increase for the OLPC loaded with XP will be about $3 on top of the $200 price tag. Users who want a dual boot version to the OLPC will pay $7 extra. The XP operating system will come preloaded on an additional 2GB flash chip, offering 3GB of storage space total (1.5 usable after OS install).
After months of opposition by Bill Gates, talks of the joint venture began at CES 2008, where both men were attending. Widespread distribution of the machines is expected to happen in August or September. Check out the video demo below. [Microsoft and NY Times]
Ah — we’d know that backside anywhere. If you were super-duper stoked about the forthcoming HTC Touch Diamond, you might want to sit down. Apparently, High Tech Computer Corp. has already sent this beauty over to the FCC, where a room is currently filled with men in white coats meticulously judging the above label placement. Regardless, this might bode well for a US release of the company’s latest and greatest… don’t you think? While you ponder that brainteaser, feel free to truck over to the FCC’s site and get all the information you could possibly want about the Diamond’s RF exposure.
Hey, do you guys want to hear our AT&T impression? It’s pretty awesome. Okay, okay, here it goes: “Great news, we’re offering free WiFi to iPhone users! Wait, no we’re not. Yes we are! Oh, no, wait, cancel that.” Pretty spot-on, right? Sadly, it looks like we might need something else to rag on shortly, since an AT&T spokesman started clearing the air with the New York Times late last week. The bottom line — for the moment, anyway — is that AT&T has “long planned” to offer up its WiFi hotspots as a free value-add for the iPhone and all of the other WiFi-equipped devices in its arsenal, but that the brief enabling of the feature thus far and the mention on AT&T’s site were results of human error, and the company isn’t prepared at this point to commit to an actual launch date or details on how the service will work. Hey, at least we know we’re not just suffering from some brutal hallucinations now.
It’s been a controversialdecision, but it looks like the OLPC XO has completed its transition from revolutionary education project to just another tinyWindowslaptop with a useless keyboard — albeit one with a pleasantly whimsical design. Yep, it’s official: Microsoft and OLPC just put out a joint press release saying that XP-loaded XOs will be available starting in August or September. Users will get all the regular functionality of XP, but Microsoft’s spent over a year developing specialized drivers for the XO’s various features like e-book mode, the writing pad, and camera. (We’re pretty certain that doesn’t include mesh networking, but WiFi is supported.) XP is too big for the built-in 1GB flash chip, so it’ll come preloaded on a 2GB SD card, leaving just about 1.5GB free total for apps and media. It seems like Microsoft is thrilled about this partnership, but it’s a not going to make NickNeg’s search for new vision at the top any easier. As for Sugar? You’ll still be able to get it, but we have a sinking feeling about its future. Demo video after the break.
Rest assured, this won’t be the firstorlast time you hear of insects and mammals being used as inspiration for robotic creatures. Nevertheless, a recent MIT mechanical engineering course saw students craft bots that could handle “beaver-like tasks” such as “knocking down trees and gathering food in the form of street hockey balls” while fending off competitors in 45-second rounds. Separately, the EU-funded SPARK endeavor is seeking to “develop a new robot control architecture for roving robots inspired by the principles governing the behavior of living systems and based on the concept of self-organization.” There’s plenty more material to make your skin crawl in the read links below, just don’t feed the mechs, okay?
The Intel Atom-based UMPCs are finally rolling out, but not all of them are as inexpensive as we’d hoped. Fujitsu—never known for their budget systems—has announced their latest UMPC featuring a 5.6-inch rotating (touchscreen?), “3.5G” wireless and GPS. The catch? It’s $1,300 in Taiwan. Even with the extras and the Fujitsu name, that’s just way more than we want to spend on a 5.6-inch lappie with that feature set. Then again, at 1.3lbs, it’s about a pound lighter than the original Eee. And that counts for something. [Digitimes via CrunchGear]
RINGBO put a song in our hearts the other day, and now that we’ve pretended to sit in its little robotic seat, we can assure you that the experience is just as magical as the video makes it out to be. In case you’re curious, the bumper-mounted IR sensors work great for stopping Junior from knocking over another vase, and the controls really couldn’t be simpler. We heard a price somewhere in the ballpark of a few hundred dollars, but there’s really no telling until it lands Stateside for reals. Check out our best approximation of the original music video after the break — and be amazed.
The reason that the official Indiana Jones Fedora is available on Think Geek is that only geeks think that they can pull off wearing a fedora in the year 2008. The only fedora you (us) nerds should stick to is Red Hat’s version, leaving Indiana Jones’ to the still handsome but greying Harrison Ford. If you really do want to pick up your own version for some down-home sexy play, it’s $99. Everything’s in stock except for X-Large and XX-Large, further proving our point that only overweight nerds will buy and wear this outdoors. [Think Geek]
Ever wanted to know more about the lovely, sweet, sexy, funny, and absolutely adorable* Addy Dugdale, Associate Editor, Disco Queen, and Pop Culture Smartypants At Large in Gizmodo? Then head to Born Rich and read her Cool Geek of the Week interview. Stay tuned for a Conan O’Brienesque “ADELAIDE! Seeeeecrets” segment soon. [Born Rich—*Full Disclosure: yes, she’s my wife]
Ruth Amos, an 18-year-old student from the UK, has come up with a simple and ingenious device for helping the elderly hobble their way up stairs with as little chance of hip-breakage as possible. Dubbed the StairSteady, it’s essentially a bar that one can hold onto as they walk up the stairs, moving up or down with them while they move and keeping them steady. It’s a bit pricey at $642 due to the absolutely worthless US dollar, but that’s a lot cheaper than a hip replacement. Kudos, Ruth. [BBC via Popgadget]
Microsoft has officially announced that Windows XP is coming to the OLPC XO with trial runs beginning as early as June. This comes after months of discussion and speculation of when the move would happen. The operating system has been specially modified to run on the computer and support its ebook reading mode, writing pad and camera. And according to the press release, the plan is to have both Windows and Linux running on the machines, to let users decide what’s best.
Rest assured, this won’t be the 
The Intel 
The reason that the official Indiana Jones Fedora is available on Think Geek is that only geeks think that they can pull off wearing a fedora in the year 2008. The only fedora you (us) nerds should stick to is Red Hat’s version, leaving Indiana Jones’ to the still handsome but greying Harrison Ford. If you really do want to pick up your own version for some down-home sexy play, it’s $99. Everything’s in stock except for X-Large and XX-Large, further proving our point that only overweight nerds will buy and wear this outdoors. [
Ever wanted to know more about the lovely, sweet, sexy, funny, and absolutely adorable* Addy Dugdale, Associate Editor, Disco Queen, and Pop Culture Smartypants At Large in Gizmodo? Then head to Born Rich and read her Cool Geek of the Week interview. Stay tuned for a Conan O’Brienesque “ADELAIDE! Seeeeecrets” segment soon. [
Ruth Amos, an 18-year-old student from the UK, has come up with a simple and ingenious device for helping the elderly hobble their way up stairs with as little chance of hip-breakage as possible. Dubbed the StairSteady, it’s essentially a bar that one can hold onto as they walk up the stairs, moving up or down with them while they move and keeping them steady. It’s a bit pricey at $642 due to the absolutely worthless US dollar, but that’s a lot cheaper than a hip replacement. Kudos, Ruth. [
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