Microware Systems Corp, the Des Moines, Iowa-based company responsible for the OS-9 and David real-time operating systems, has had a good week. First it announced – as we suspected all along (CI No 2,988) – that its DavidLite system software had been chosen as the operating system for Zenith Electronic Corp’s $1bn set-top box contract with Americast (CI No 2,984). And then it revealed that its OS-9 software would be the technical underpinnings of Corel Corp’s Corel Office for Java small footprint office applets (CI No 2,924). Zenith is still being secretive about the hardware it will be fielding for the Americast programming venture, for which it will be supplying some 3 million boxes, but timescales are said to be so tight that ports to new platforms are out of the question. That narrows the target hardware down to Motorola 68000, PowerPC or Intel x86-based systems. Microware is currently working on new ports to Acorn’s ARM, Silicon Graphics’ MIPS chip and Hitachi’s SH, but none of these are involved in the Americast deal. David – based on OS-9 – stands for Digital Audio.Video Interactive Decoder. DavidLite is specifically optimized for digital broadcast environments with limited interactivity – but because of its upward compatibility with David, it can be adapted through the full spectrum of networks targeted by Americast, including wireless cable, hybrid fiber-coax, switched digital video and direct broadcast satellite. Meanwhile Corel Corp has chosen Microware’s OS -9 system software for use in their Corel Office for Java-based products, and Microware, in turn, will license Corel’s Application Framework so that it can offer the Corel office products as part of its own offerings. The idea is that manufacturers of consumer electronics products such as personal digital assistants and network computers, will be able to incorporate cross-platform compatibility into low-cost Internet-enabled devices. Last week Corel announced a preview of Corel Office for Java , including Java versions of WordPerfect, Quattro Pro and Chart, downloadable from its Web site. http.www. corel.com
