Where does Windows CE fit into the Enterprise.
Q. The term "Enterprise Computing" is used a lot these days. What is it and why is Windows CE important to it?
Enterprise computing refers to the technology that goes into supporting the needs of employees, partners, and customers of large organizations. This includes systems that manage electronic data, computers that automate business processes, and the networking infrastructure that ties it all together. At Microsoft, we call this the "digital nervous system."
Obstacles to effective enterprise computing include keeping key information on paper, maintaining business systems where the same data needs to be entered more than once, and lacking connectivity between key business processes and data. One of the design goals for Windows CE was to provide rich connectivity so devices could easily communicate with each other, with desktop PCs, servers, and over the Internet. Devices powered by Windows CE can help people be more organized, make it easier to get data into the enterprise, and track the progress of an entire business process.
Q. Bill Gates has been talking about "information at your fingertips" for some time now. Why is that important to an enterprise.
Information is the lifeblood of an enterprise. Without easy access to the right information at the right time, an organization slowly dies.
Q. We saw the first H/PCs well over a year ago. Now we're seeing Palm-size PCs and Auto PCs. Why is this expansion important to Enterprise Computing?
No one device satisfies the diverse set of needs of people working with large organizations. Handheld PCs, Palm-size PCs, and Auto PCs have been designed to address different computing needs of mobile professionals. Handheld PCs, the smallest devices to sport a keyboard, can be useful for handling email, documents, and vertical business applications (e.g. the application making HMR's pharmaceutical sales reps more efficient(http://www.microsoft.com/windowsce/hpc/solutions/cs_hmr.htm). Palm-size PC's smaller size make it easy for someone to have their key information with them at all times while still having an easy way to input new data. Auto PCs provide a hands-free way to get directions, make calls, and be entertained while on the road. Auto PCs are also a business application platform within a vehicle.
Q. Windows CE now supports the development of "embedded systems." Why is this important to Enterprise Computing?
Sometimes it isn't feasible to create business solutions using off-the-shelf devices like the Palm-size PC or Handheld PC. The alternative is to develop a custom "embedded system" for a particular vertical business application. A point-of-purchase terminal or industrial controller are examples of this.
While the first Windows development efforts were aimed at personal computing, Windows CE was designed from the ground up to give an enterprise the flexibility needed to build the right device for the job. All the developer has to do is select the subset of features from the Windows CE operating system and complete the device with those user interface elements, applications, and other services needed by the specific type of business user. Embedded systems can be built, simulated, and debugged using a standard Windows NT-based desktop computer. This approach provides a cost-effective, flexible way for IT organizations or systems integrators to build custom devices that can tie into the existing corporate information system.
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