The Best Internet Programs/BESTINTERNET.bin/w95info/mobile/mobile.txt

Text File | 1995-05-21 | 13.1 KB | 311 lines

MOBILE COMPUTING

WINDOWS(R) 95 MOBILE COMPUTING DESIGN GOALS

    Windows 95 is the first mainstream operating system
designed with the Portable PC user in mind.  The goal of
mobile computing support in Windows 95 is to help everyone
unlock the potential of portable PCs, by being aware of
the special require-ments and demands of mobile computing.
By 1995, portable PCs (notebooks, laptops, etc.) are
forecasted to comprise over 25% of all new computer
systems sold - Windows 95 has been designed to reduce
the costs of supporting portable PC users, and to make
those users more productive when they're mobile.
Windows 95's mobile computing support extends to more
than just traditional portable PC users,  however.
As more and more companies experiment with telecommuting
features like Dial Up Networking and remote fax and
email will become increasingly important.

    The explosion in portable PC sales prompted careful
examination of the tasks that mobile computer users were
doing with their machines, and what those machines
looked like.  The answers are interesting:  mobile
computer users are doing the same tasks away from the
desk as they are in their offices.  At the same time,
the mobile computing environment is unique.  Many
assumptions about desktop computing do not hold true:
mobile users usually have no direct network access,
have a dynamic, ever-changing computer configuration,
and face new problems like a limited power supply.
These findings present something of a dichotomy:
although the desktop computing environment and the
mobile computing environment are radically different,
the computing tasks that users want to accomplish
are very much the same.


MAJOR FEATURE AREAS

    Clearly, the scope of mobile computing extends far
beyond emerging technologies like PDAs, wireless, or
the Pen - it is about enabling users today to be as
productive away from their desks as they are in their
offices, and about making it easy and cost-effective
to support these users.  Windows 95 approaches mobile
computing support in three ways:  by helping to get
the most out of portable computing hardware like
notebook PCs; by helping portable computer users stay
in touch through electronic mail, fax, and remote
network access; and by helping users stay organized
while on the road with features like the Briefcase
and Deferred Printing.

*Get the most out of your Portable Computer Hardware*
    Windows 95 provides features that extend the life
of existing portable computers,  as well as new
functionality that advances the state of the art
when used with new portable PCs.  Integrated disk
compression dramatically increases the available
storage on portable PCs.  New APIs enable applications
to be battery-aware.  New 32-bit PCMCIA support
eliminates the hassles currently associated with
PCMCIA devices.  Docking stations and port replicators
are fully supported through the Plug and Play
initiative - multiple-boot configuration schemes are
a thing of the past.

*Keep in Touch*
    Windows 95 includes completely redesigned remote
network access,  electronic mail, and fax features.
Using Dial-Up Networking in Windows 95,  you can
connect to any Windows NT server, NetWare Connect
server, Shiva NetModem or LanRover,  many Internet
service providers and Unix servers, and many other
types of machines.  Dial-Up networking in Windows 95
works the same way as networking over a physical
cable (except for speed, of course).  The Microsoft
Exchange client gives you the ability to send and
receive electronic mail and faxes while on the road.
You can retrieve all of your new messages and fax
documents into one "universal inbox", as well as
work very efficiently with electronic mail servers
via Header Download and other optimizations.

*Stay Organized while on the Road*
    Windows 95 includes new features that enable
users of portable computers to stay organized when
they travel.  The Briefcase takes care of file
synchronization problems:  simply copy files from
your desktop PC or network into the Briefcase,
and Windows 95 takes care of keeping all of your
information up to date.  Deferred Printing support
manages print jobs you create while on the road,
and Direct Cable Connect makes it easy to exchange
files between two PCs.

    To the greatest extent possible,  Windows 95
provides all the ease-of-use, power, and "connectedness"
of a desktop PC, even though the computer in question
may be far away from a desk: in the next city, on the
other coast, or 30,000 feet in the air!  On the bottom
line, customers enjoy increased mobile user productivity
and dramatically reduced support costs.


KEY FEATURES & BENEFITS

*Get the Most out of your Portable PC Hardware*

Battery Monitor     Most new portable computers support
            Advanced Power Management (APM) Version 1.1.
            Windows 95 fully supports APM 1.1,  and
            provides a visual indication of the system's
            power status, right on the task bar.

Power Management APIs    Now applications can help conserve your
            portable PC's batteries.  Windows 95
            provides power management APIs which make
            the information provided by APM 1.1
            available to applications.  So now,
            programs can turn off disk-intensive
            background operations and make other
            adjustments to maximize battery life.

Integrated Disk     Windows 95 includes the latest version of
Compression        integrated DriveSpace disk compression.
            This proven technology,  first introduced in
            MS-DOS 6.22,  extends the useful life of
            portable computers that are running short of
            disk space.  DriveSpace compression is
            completely transparent and fully integrated
            into the Windows 95 operating system.  All
            you see is many extra megabytes of disk
            space!

PCMCIA support        Windows 95 includes state-of-the-art "hot
            swapping" support for all major PCMCIA cards
            and sockets.  PCMCIA is supported as part
            of the Plug-and-Play technology built into
            the product, meaning that the system will
            automatically detect the cards and sockets
            available on the PC, on configure itself
            accordingly - even "on the fly".  Real-mode
            drivers and card/socket services are a
            thing of the past.

Hot Docking and     One of the recent major technological advances
Multiple         in portable PCs is hot docking and "smart"
Configurations        docking stations.  One of the major
            disadvantages of docking stations today is
            the hassle involved in inserting and removing
            the computer!  To successfully implement a
            docking station, the user must manually
            create multiple-configuration startup files,
            and fully shut down and reboot the computer
            whenever it is going to be moved in to or
            out of the dock.  Windows 95 eliminates both
            of these problems: the system automatically
            configures itself for docked and un-docked
            configurations,  and (with proper hardware
            support) can switch between them without
            rebooting or suspending the machine.

"Soft Suspend"         Many notebook computers feature "suspend"
            modes that enable the computer to run in a
            very low power mode for extended periods
            of time.  On most machines, invoking suspend
            mode involves manually manipulating some
            small button on the computer's case.
            Windows 95 replaces this with an option on
            the Start menu, and adds support for
            powering down and resetting peripheral
            devices as part of the suspend cycle.

File Viewers        Mobile computer users may not have the disk
            space or processor power to run all the same
            applications that they (or their co-workers)
            run on their desktop machines. Windows 95
            provides a set of viewers for many popular
            application file formats.  The viewers
            enable users to examine files that
            they've received in email or downloaded
            from the network without having the source
            application installed on their machine.


*Keep in Touch*

Remote Access Wizard    Simplifies the process of setting up a
            connection to a remote computer or network.
            The Remote Access Wizard asks for the
            appropriate communications device, telephone
            number, and other connection information,
            then handles the process of dialing and
            connecting to the remote computer.
            Connections can be saved and re-established
            with a simple double-click.

Microsoft At Work(TM)    Microsoft At Work Fax support integrates the
Fax Support        ability to send and receive faxes into the
            Microsoft Exchange client included with
            Windows 95.  Instead of learning how to use a
            separate fax utility,  users can send fax
            documents in the same way that they send an
            email message.  The At Work subsystem takes
            care of rendering the document and interacting
            with the fax modem.

Remote Mail        Electronic mail has not adapted well to the
            mobile environment.  Most electronic mail
            packages expect a fast,  persistent connection
            to the network postoffice.  The "Remote Mail"
            packages available today require a proprietary
            protocol, and work with only one mail system.
            The Microsoft Exchange client in Windows 95
            includes extended functionality to support
            mobile users.  Remote Mail will implicitly
            create a network connection using Remote
            Network Access.  Users can download just the
            headers for new messages, select the items
            they wish to read, and then retrieve only
            the requested data.

Implicit Connections    If the system cannot access a requested
            network resource (such as a file folder)
            because no physical network connection
            exists, it will automatically establish a
            remote network access connection.  All the
            user needs to do is supply a password.

Multiple protocol     Windows 95 uses PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol)
support            as its default protocol for remote network
            access.  This industry-standard protocol
            enables access to a wide variety of systems,
            including Windows NT servers, other
            Windows 95 machines, and the Internet.
            Windows 95 also supports the NetWare Connect
            protocol, SLIP (Serial Line Internet
            Protocol), and Windows for Workgroups-style
            RAS (remote access service) protocol.

Unimodem drivers    Windows 95 includes a "universal" modem
            driver, which offers base-level support for
            virtually all popular modems (modem vendors
            can add a hardware-specific driver layer
            to take advantages of the special features
            of their devices).  The Unimodem
            architecture greatly enhances the quality
            and ease of development of new modem drivers.

Improved serial     Enhancements to the core of Windows 95 enable
port drivers        the system to handle much higher serial-line
            data rates.  Windows 95 will easily keep
            pace as advancements in modems, ISDN, and
            other technologies push data rates to
            28.8kbps and beyond.


*Stay Organized on the Road*

Briefcase        One of the problems unique to mobile
            computing is file synchronization.  The
            typical scenario is: the user copies some
            files from the network server onto their
            portable,  takes the portable on the road
            and edits the files, then, upon reconnecting
            to the network, manually compares the file
            time stamps on their local machine to those
            on the server to determine which files are
            current.  This process is tedious and error
            prone - and often results in multiple
            conflicting versions of documents.  The
            Briefcase in Windows 95 solves these
            problems.  Files added to the Briefcase on
            a mobile computer automatically maintain
            their association with the original files
            on a desktop computer or network.  When
            re-connecting to the network or desktop PC,
            the briefcase automatically figures out
            which files are the most current, and
            brings everything up-to-date.

Deferred Printing    Few mobile computer users carry a printer when
            they travel.  If output is desired, options
            are few (sending a fax to yourself or using a
            sticky note to remember which files to print
            are common solutions).  Windows 95 provides
            deferred printing.  Go ahead and create print
            jobs as you normally do.  If no printer is
            available at the moment,  Windows 95 stores
            your output, and automatically prints it the
            next time you have access to a printer.
            This is a great example of how Windows 95
            creates a desktop-like environment in a
            mobile setting.

Direct Cable Connect    Nearly 75% of all portable PC owners also use
            a desktop PC.  Transferring files between
            one's desktop machine and one's portable has
            often involved purchasing a costly network
            card for the portable, or else using an
            overly complex utility to transfer files via
            a serial or parallel cable.  Windows 95's
            Direct Cable Connect (DCC) utility simplifies
            the file transfer process by providing
            a simple, integrated interface for connecting
            the two machines.  DCC even enables a
            portable to access the network via using the
            desktop PC.