From: l...@microsoft.com
Newsgroups: comp.os.ms-windows.announce
Subject: Windows Hardware Engineering Conference
Message-ID: <1993Feb04.025851.125.comp.os.ms-windows.announce@pitt.edu>
Date: 3 Feb 93 18:57:14 GMT
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[FYI. sorry for the late posting, i just got an ASCII copy of this
mailing yesterday.]
Second Annual Windows(tm) Hardware Engineering Conference
A Conference for PC and PC Component Engineers
March 1-3, 1993
San Jose, CA
$495 Early Registration
$645 after February 7
REGISTER BY PHONE BEFORE FEBRUARY 5 TO RECEIVE EARLY REGISTRATION
DISCOUNT, OR FAX YOUR INTENT TO PARTICIPATE BY FEBRUARY 7.
Register by telephone:
1-800-421-6338 (in U.S. or Canada) or 1-415-543-5847
7:30a.m. to 5:30p.m., Pacific Standard Time
or Register by Fax:
1-415-543-6044 (credit card orders only; please fax us your phone number
so our operators may return your call and complete your registration)
Dear Hardware Innovator:
As a key industry professional responsible for PC design, you're
constantly expected to improve performance and features while reducing
costs, but it's tough to do this alone.
It's difficult to make consistent progress toward performance, feature and
cost objectives when you're forced to deal with rigid and often inflexible
standards.
Even with the new flexibility and freedom provided by Microsoft(r)
Windows, design creativity is hampered and growth in the PC market is
unnecessarily limited by the legacy of the past.
And at the same time, it's difficult to get detailed information on the
newest technical proposals and vendor components that are designed for
Windows.
We must grow the PC market. To do this, we must improve functionality and
ease of use. And to do that, we need cooperation, collaboration and an
exchange of technical information. Many of you tell us this.
That's why Microsoft Corporation and cosponsors National Semiconductor
Corporation and Ziff-Davis Publishing Company are hosting the Second
Annual 1993 Windows Hardware Engineering Conference. We invite you to
attend this year's Conference. The intensive three-day event will
include:
o recommendations for advancing PC architectures
o technical proposals for extending existing subsystem standards
o specific recommendations for getting the most out of your hardware design
o detailed breakouts by industry leaders
o a technical exhibition of new component technologies
In an effort to deliver the technical information that you have asked for,
the 1993 Microsoft Windows Hardware Engineering Conference and exhibition
will feature specific design recommendations for building state-of-the-art
Windows-based PCs and proposals for advancing existing subsystems
standards. Breakouts will begin with seven kickoff breakouts that will
consider design and implementation issues in key technology areas. Design
recommendations will be presented in these kickoff sessions together with
specifications, and in some cases, sample designs and working prototypes.
In the breakout sessions, presenting vendors will discuss design
philosophies or advanced implementation issues for their components.
Our top engineers are working with key component technology vendors to
implement sample designs which will be distributed to attendees. Engineers
will leave the conference with clear "to do" list and the information
needed to advance the architecture of Windows-based PCs.
Reflecting the high technical focus, the agenda will feature fewer
high-level general sessions and longer, 60-minute technical breakouts.
Panel discussions for key topic areas, moderated by industry experts, will
spur discussion of the merits of new proposals and competing architectural
approaches. Given the demand for a forum for advancing PC hardware
designs, we are doubling the scale of the program planned for March 1993.
If you are responsible for PC system or subsystem engineering, chip design
or component engineering, you will find this conference of major value as
you plan and develop hardware for the Windows-based PC market. Here are
some of the items being planned for delivery at this year's event:
o a proposal to enhance ISA cards to improve user setup and integration...
o methods to enhance display performance, a critical contributor to users'
perception of your system's responsiveness in running windows and
Windows-based applications, including a demonstration of a local
bus implementation incorporating a specialized graphics accelerator...
o presentations on the various high-performance local buses, including a
discussion of their software impact...
o details of Microsoft's new Modular Windows...
o sample designs for a high-performance SCSI storage subsystem (presented
by NCR), an integrated motherboard Ethernet interface (National
Semiconductor), an advanced display subsystem (S3), a new local bus
design (AMI), an advanced audio subsystem (Cirrus Logic), a compact,
low-voltage PC design suitable for portable systems (AMD)...
o ...and much more.
Breakouts will cover topics on buses (including I/O and local bus
questions); chip sets; CPUs; displays; networking; communications
technologies; and storage issues. Here's a preview of the kickoff
breakouts and some of the topics that vendor breakouts will consider:
Bus: overview of I/O bus and local bus designs and cost issues and
presentation of PCI local bus-based system design issues including BIOS
implications. Vendor breakout topics include the VL bus, extensions to
ISA cards, and the PCMCIA standard and related components.
High Integration System Technology: overview of highly integrated system
chip sets which target various market segments and featuring a "Green PC"
design, and an upgradable Windows(TM) PC design. Vendor breakout topics
include chip sets supporting the Extended Capabilities Port (ECP)
bi-directional parallel port, multiprocessing, and power management.
Display: display acceleration philosophies and a local-bus design
incorporating a linear frame buffer accelerator based on display
performance sensitivity analysis. Cost-effective display performance
gains available through the application of selective hardware coprocessing
will be reviewed. Vendor breakouts will describe alternative approaches
to achieving display performance and flexibility.
Mobile and Companion Computing: technologies for portable systems and the
new class of personal companion devices. Vendor breakouts will cover
integrated chip set solutions, power management, display technology,
input devices and other topics.
Multimedia: audio implementations for Windows, as well as designs suitable
for consumer and office markets using Microsoft Video for Windows. An
advanced audio subsystem design will be presented. In breakout sessions
details of the Modular Windows system and demonstrations of an early
consumer-targeted system. Vendor breakouts will also focus on components
available for audio, video, and Modular Windows-based platforms.
Networking/Communications: a compact single-chip design providing Ethernet
connectivity. Flexible preinstallation of Microsoft Windows for
Workgroups with peer-to-peer client connectivity will be discussed. Vendor
breakout topics include designs for wireless and FDDI communication media.
Storage: enhanced storage solutions for Windows based on an embedded SCSI
subsystem for Windows NT and future versions of Windows on MS-DOS. Cost
and performance implications of SCSI motherboard implementations will be
reviews and system integration alternatives discussed. Vendor breakouts:
to cover integration and cost/performance trade-offs of the latest SCSI
components and subsystems.
Breakout Presenters Include:
National Semiconductor Standard Microsystems
Texas Instruments Advanced Micro Devices
Hewlett Packard Motorola
Corollary Philips
Cirrus Logic Intel
Phoenix Technologies, Ltd. ISA
LSI Logic Adaptec
DPT Future Domain
Emulex Bus Logic
Cyrix MIPS Technologies, Inc.
Digital Western Digital
Analog Devices ESS Technology
Microsoft C-Cube Microsystems
Crystal VLSI
ATI Binar Graphics
SGS-Thomson Tseng Labs
Weitek Matrox
Trident S3
Opti American Megatrends
NCR
The Windows Hardware Engineering Conference is an industry event.
Increasing the performance, usability and features of PCs requires advances
in both software and hardware. Based on direct input from systems and
component engineers like yourself, Microsoft is committed to greater
architectural leadership for the benefit of the user and overall market.
Microsoft has teamed up with key hardware vendors to produce the keynotes
and kickoff breakouts, and the agenda will feature a wide range of
component vendors. The Conference will conclude with panel discussions
for the topic areas defined above, moderated by leading industry observers
such as microprocessor expert Michael Slater, storage veteran Jim Porter,
display authority Jon Peddie, and multimedia observer Robert Aston.
Agenda
(All times are tentative and subject to change)
DAY ONE: Monday March 1, 1993
8:30am Welcome, Agenda Introduction
8:40am Microsoft Plenary: Evolving the PC to Improve the User Experience
9:55am National Semiconductor, Keynote: PC Architecture Directions
10:55am Coffee Break
11:15am Bus Kickoff
12:25pm Lunch
1:25pm A. Display Kickoff, B. Networking Kickoff
2:40pm A. Storage Kickoff, B. High Integration, System Technology Kickoff
3:55pm A. Multimedia Kickoff, B. Mobile & Companion Computing Kickoff
5:00pm Trade Show (5:00pm - 9:00pm)
7:00pm Reception (7:00pm - 9:00pm)
DAY TWO: Tuesday March 2, 1993
8:30am Microsoft Keynote: Software/Hardware Directions (Paul Maritz)
9:35pm Coffee Break
9:55pm Breakout 1 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
11:05am Breakout 2 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
12:15pm Lunch
1:15pm Breakout 3 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
2:25pm Breakout 4 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
3:35pm Breakout 5 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
4:45pm Breakout 6 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
5:45pm Trade Show (5:45pm - 9:15pm)
7:00pm Reception (7:00pm - 9:15pm)
DAY THREE: Wednesday March 2, 1993
8:30am Breakout 7 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
9:40am Breakout 8 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
10:40am Coffee Break
11:00am Breakout 9 (6 separate tracks from which to choose)
12:10pm Lunch
1:10pm A. Bus/Display Panel, B. Networking, High Integration & Mobile
Computing Panel
2:10pm A. Multimedia Panel, B. Storage Panel
3:10pm Windows Performance: Measurement and Enhancement
4:10pm General Session: A Futurist's Vision of Windows-based PCs
(Dr. John Hennessy)
5:10pm End of Conference
The 1993 component vendor exhibition will deliver even more of the
information you need. In 1992, 35 vendors participated -- major companies
such as Intel, AMD, MIPS and Chips & Technologies as well as new,
innovative players including S3, C-Cube Microsystems, Media Vision and
Wacom. This year, 60 independent hardware vendors from around the world
are expected to exhibit and present breakouts. following the success of
the 1992 event, vendors are planning to send their best engineers to staff
their booths. In short, the 1993 Conference will put you in direct
contact with the minds and machines that are shaping the future of the PC.
Vendors contracted to Exhibit
Adaptec SMC
Motorola Creative Labs
AMD STAC
Nanao Cyrix Corp.
American Megatrends TDK Electronics
National Semiconductor DPT
Analog Devices Texas Instruments
NCR Emulex
ATI Technologies Trident Microsystems
Oak Technology ESS Technology
Binar Graphics Tseng Labs
Opti Future Domain
Brooktree Corporation Weitek
Philips Hewlett Packard
C-Cube Microsystems WACOM
Proxima IIT
Chips and Technologies Western Digital
S3 Intel
Cirrus Logic Ziff David Publishing Corp.
SGS-Thomson Matrox
Corollary Zoran
Here are the opportunities presented to you at this event:
o Hear about software changes coming in 1993 that will impact your
hardware
o See sample designs and get system and subsystem specifications
o Participate in dialogs on proposed extensions to existing PC standards
o Discuss specific proposals for advances to the architecture of
Windows-based PCs
o Get access to technical experts and answers to your technical and
strategy questions
o Learn about new approaches to better synthesizing hardware and software
into PC systems, in the sole conference of its type
o See all the leading Windows-targeted component vendors and compare
their products and strategies in one place
Still wondering if you should attend? The importance of supporting Windows
is clear -- over 50% of all new PCs sold today are used with Windows. In
fact, more than one million copies of this operating system ship each
month. In addition, Windows lets you innovate and add value in hardware,
all transparently to Windows-based applications. Finally, this event will
provide you the opportunity to comment on the evolution of our industry's
products.
You should leave this event with the information needed to make your PCs
easier to use, easier to set up and easier to upgrade as well as better
equipped to deliver rich peripherals and cost-effective performance.
Whatever your current design focus, you'll find new directions, new
answers and new insight at the Second Annual 1993 Microsoft Windows
Hardware Engineering Conference.