Citizen Watch and IBM Research today announced
that they have started the research collaboration on Linux Watch technology
and jointly developed their first prototype, called “WatchPad” to further
explore a new type of personal information access devices for the pervasive
computing era.

IBM Research first demonstrated the Linux Watch last year, illustrating the
viability of the operating system across all platforms, from large
enterprise servers, to medium-sized and small servers, workstations,
desktop systems, laptops and the smallest intelligent devices.

Citizen Watch is the first company that decided to work with IBM Research
to enhance current features and develop new application technologies for
the intelligent watch. Citizen Watch will explore the possibility of
commercializing next generation watches as communication devices in the
future. IBM Research will support Citizen Watch with its expertise in
hardware and software, including system design, low power architecture,
reliable and flexible IT infrastructure for future pervasive computing and
communication applications.

Among the technologies Citizen Watch has developed for the WatchPad are
packaging design and component design including display and input device.
IBM Research has provided technologies including hardware architecture,
system design, and software, including Linux.

Two companies plan to collaborate with key universities by sharing the
WatchPad technology for joint research. By working with universities,
Citizen and IBM Research hope to accelerate progress in developing next
generation intelligent devices.

The following are either trademarks or registered of International Business
Machines Corporation in the United States or other countries or both: IBM,
WatchPad.
Linux is registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
All others are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective
companies.

Citizen/IBM’s Prototype — WatchPad
Fact Sheet

The watch contains a high speed, low power 32 bit MPU, 16 megabytes of
flash memory, and QVGA liquid crystal display. The watch has both
voice-enabled Bluetooth and infrared red wireless connectivities. Users
interact with the WatchPad through a touch panel, button, and modified
winding crown. In addition, accelerometer is embedded to study if arm
movement to become a potential input method.

Key application features and future research technologies:

• Wireless communications to be used as a pointing device to remotely
  operate presentation via a ThinkPad by using the winding crown switch,
  buttons, touch panel, and gesture using the accelerometer
• Bluetooth short-range wireless connectivity, allowing users to control
  various devices, such as laptop computers.
• Viewing email messages and calendar entries.
  – Bluetooth voice channel and the vibrator, allowing users to send voice
  commands to other computer and receive responses, paging, or alerts in
  voice or vibration. Text can be used as well.
• Fingerprint sensor to identify the watch’s owner, replacing password.

Key hardware feature:

• QVGA (320 x 240 dots) reflective monochrome liquid crystal display
• Modified winding crown switch and a button which can be operated by a
  thumb
• Bluetooth short range wireless connectivity (voice-enabled)
• Fingerprint sensor
• Accelerometer sensor switch acts according to arm movement
• Extended internal battery life
• A cradle which can accommodate standard AA
• Latest Linux kernel version 2.4 used as operating system,
  Microwindows for GUI. (Please reference the following URL for further information on
  Microwindows: http://embedded.contury.software.com/)

WatchPad specifications:
Hardware:
Size: 65mm#$B!_#(B46mm#$B!_#(B16mm
Weight: 43#$B#g#(B (without a wrist band)
CPU: High speed, low power 32 bit MPU (18-74 MHz)
Input devices: Touch panel, a winding crown switch, button
Display: 320 x 240 dots, monochrome liquid crystal display
Memory: Low power DRAM 8MB, flash memory 16MB
Interface: Bluetooth wireless technology (v1.1,
voice-enabled), IrDA (V1.2), RS232C (via a cradle)
Others: Speaker, microphone, vibrator, fingerprint
sensor, accelerator sensor
Power: Li-Ion battery
Cradle: RS232C, AC adapter, and AA batteries

Software:
Operating system: Linux kernel version 2.4
GUI: Microwindows
Bluetooth stack: IBM BlueDrekar (L2CAP, SDP, RFCOMM)

If you registered yourself or your machine on the Linix Counter
(http://counter.li.org), you need to check that your data is
up to date. We have been quietly cleaning up entries, so there are
not several entries with variant spellings and various abbreviations
for cities and towns, and sending test emails to the oldest
entries. We’ve determined that ~99,000 — more than half of the 180,000
registered- aren’t deliverable and these will be removed from
the Counter on the first of November.

Over the 7 years the Linux Counter has been online, the forms
have evolved to include more information, and many of those who
registered have moved to new ISPs. If you registered more than
2 years ago, please login and check your data. Pass the word
along! And volunteer to help!

We want to get this done before the Great Migration that should
be starting RealSoonNow(tm) 😉

http://counter.li.org/news/deletion.php
http://counter.li.org/organization/drop-people.php

Anonymous Reader writes, “Pansonic yesterday announced the SV-SD80, a new MP3 player that will be the smallest yet sold. To get an idea how truly tiny this portable is, compare the size of the player with the earbuds that come with it in the photo.

http://www.mp3newswire.net/stories/2001/panasonicm p3.html.”

An anonymous reader directs us to a story at eWeek that says Microsoft’s “Web-services middleware
meant to take the Microsoft .Net platform to the next level” is still two years away from delivery.

“The Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO) will join forces with the Open-Source Software Institute to study the Navy’s use of open-source software. During a brief ceremony yesterday, Rear Admiral Thomas Q. Donaldson, V, commander of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement
(CRADA) with the Open-Source Software Institute (OSSI), a (Mississippi-based) non-profit organization comprised of high-tech industry, government agency and academic entity representatives.”Open-source is a collective term for software whose license requires its source code, or internal blue print, to be open, extensible and freely distributed. The most well known open-source program is the Linux
operating system.

The CRADA will be administered through NAVOCEANO, which is based at the Stennis Space Center on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

The cooperative program is designed to promote the exchange of information between NAVOCEANO and OSSI. ?The CRADA?s goal is to produce a technical study and report concerning NAVOCEANO?s
current use of open-source software and to offer recommendations on additional open-source software solutions that can be incorporated into the Navy?s system,? said OSSI chairman, John Weathersby.

?This is an excellent opportunity for members of the open-source community to work with representatives of the Navy,? he continued. ?One of OSSI?s main goals is to foster cooperative relationships between
industry and the Department of Defense. We have found the leadership at NAVOCEANO to be very responsive and interested in potentially enhancing their systems? capabilities through the use of open
source software.?

NAVOCEANO?s (www.navo.navy.mil) primary mission is to collect and analyze data on the world?s oceans for the Navy and other Department of Defense agencies. As host to one of the world?s largest
supercomputing centers and the world?s largest oceanographic library, NAVOCEANO gathers information by airborne, surface and subsurface platforms deployed worldwide. The information is then provided as
a wide variety of products and services to the Joint Warfighters in all mission areas.

Several of the information gathering operations rely on Linux as a mission critical application.

?After an initial review, we found significant interest in the use of open-source software, particularly Linux, within some of our departments,? said NAVOCEANO chief information officer, John Lever. ?The Linux
systems we have in place perform very well. Through the CRADA, we will have the opportunity to review our current utilization of open-source applications and see if it?s prudent to implement similar solutions in
other areas.?

Its supporters tout Linux, the open-source variance of the UNIX operating system, as a superior alternative to proprietary systems such as Microsoft?s Windows operating system. Linux is known to be
extremely scalable, reliable, secure and cost effective.

The Open-Source Software Institute

The Open-Source Software Institute is a non-profit organization comprised of industry, government and academic representatives whose mission is to promote the development and implementation of
open-source software solutions within U.S. Federal and State government agencies and academic entities. For more information on OSSI, contact: John Weathersby at 662.236.1794, jmw@visioncreek.com.

Naval Oceanographic Office

The Naval Oceanographic Office, with approximately 1000 military and civilian personnel, acquires and analyzes global ocean and littoral data to provide specialized, mission-essential products and services for
the Navy’s fleet. For more information please visit http://www.navo.navy.mil.

We got this email from the folks at the Linux Counter: “If you registered yourself or your machine on the Liunx Counter
(http://counter.li.org), you need to check that your data is
uptodate. We have been quietly cleaning up entries, so there
are
not several entries with variant spellings and various
abbreviations
for cities and towns, and sending test emails to the oldest
entries. We’ve determined that ~99,000 – more than half of the
180,000
registered – aren’t deliverable and these will be removed from
the Counter on the first of November.”

Over the 7 years the Linux Counter has been online, the forms
have evolved to include more information, and many of those who
registered have moved to new ISPs.  If you registered more than
2 years ago, please login and check your data.  Pass the word
along!  And volunteer to help! 

We want to get this done before the Great Migration that should
be starting RealSoonNow(tm) ;-) 

http://counter.li.org/news/deletion.php 
http://counter.li.org/organization/drop-people.php

-- 
Henry White
Country Manager, US 
Linux Counter - http://counter.li.org

The Register: “Richard Clarke, America’s once and future Cyber-Security Czar, reckons it would make sense for the
gummint to develop a closed loop in cyberspace, imaginatively dubbed GOVNET, which, unlike the
Internet, stands a decent chance of actually being secured.”

BusinessWeek: “The new OS X operating system is a triumph, but Jobs & Co. need to keep its predecessor on life
support until Mac heads get the message

Has the Mac’s classic operating system become like Ole Betsy, a
beloved but aging workhorse that must now be put out to pasture?
If you ask me, this Ole Betsy has stayed around way past her prime.
Still, she ain’t a-going out to graze on the lower 40 acres any time
soon.”

BBC: “What if the terrorists were also
able to impact our
communications system, thus
hampering the rescue and
recovery efforts?” asked Ms
Benzel, vice president of computer
security firm Network Associates.

“What if the attackers were able to
compromise systems monitoring
the water supply for Manhattan? What if power to parts of the
northeast corridor could have been brought down through a
cyber-attack on key systems?”

LinuxDevices: Linux-powered wireless, an overview of Linux for embedded technology, and an update to the “Cool Devices” reference guide.