HP’s Satjiv Chahil says Evaluating Google Android for Netbooks, But Apple May Have the Coolest Netbook

April 5, 2009 Dave Ohara

I missed this WSJ article on Mar 30 by HP’s Satjiv Chahil.

Moving Android to netbooks will be an uphill effort because the software does not run popular PC programs. That is one reason that Windows now runs on the majority of the low-end laptops, even though early models used the Linux operating system.

But H-P, the largest maker of PCs and a major Windows partner, has programmers testing Android for a potential netbook, said people briefed on the matter, though they said the company hasn't decided yet whether to move ahead with the project.

"We want to assess the capability Android may have for the computer and communications industries, and so we are studying it," said Satjiv Chahil, a vice president of H-P's PC division.

The article discusses the ARM chip.

The notion of Android-based netbooks also could have sizeable repercussions for chip makers. Intel Corp., which helped popularize the term netbooks, has dominated the category with a microprocessor called Atom that can run software designed for PCs. Android, by contrast, is designed to work on chips that use processor designs licensed by ARM Holdings PLC.

ARM and licensees that make chips for cellphones—including Qualcomm Inc., Texas Instruments Inc. and Freescale Semiconductor Inc.—are betting that Android could help them move those products into the new netbook market, too.

But remembering when I used to work with Satjiv at Apple, got me thinking, can’t Apple use the ARM chip in Netbook?

Another big use of the ARM chip is the iPhone. What do you think? Don’t you think Steve Jobs and the Apple gang have a Netbook prototype based on the iPhone OS.

Imagine a Netbook with full day battery life, 3G network, keyboard, phone, wifi, and iPhone apps. This device could probably be always on like an iPhone. With a bluetooth headset you can leave the Apple Netbook in your carrycase.

What do you think?

Here is a blog entry on this iPhone netbook idea.

ARM Netbooks Could Make OS X the Mobile OS to Rule Them All

Tim Nash - 2009.02.24 (revised)

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Freescale and Qualcomm have already announced high-end ARM chips aimed at the netbook market. ARM chips are much cheaper and require a lot less power than Intel's Atom.

According to Freescale's marketing director, ARM netbooks should offer an 8 hour battery life. As the chips won't need a fan or heat sink, they can have a much thinner case, which should appeal to Apple's designers. It also makes sense to build them with flash memory, which again helps the battery life. Sample chips are available now, and volume production will start next quarter, so Apple could have its ARM netbook ready in time for the iPhone refresh.

iPod touch with a Keyboard

Look on these netbooks as a larger iPod touch with a hinged keyboard. At twice the length and width they would still fit into a large pocket. With a 7" screen the resolution would be 960 x 640 - four times the screen space of the iPod touch.

At $15 for Freescale's ARM chip in quantity, Apple should enjoy iPod profits rather than the usual thin PC or netbook margins. Freescale thinks Linux
netbook prices could be around $200 but, with a wide range of apps, Apple could charge as much as the Windows netbooks and start at $399. These could include more memory than ARM-based rivals, because Apple buys flash memory comparatively cheaply.

It is easy to see Apple's advantages when comparing with one of the top selling Amazon Windows-based netbooks, which typically sell for $300 to $400 - roughly the same price as the 32 GB iPod touch. Microsoft will soon be reducing support for Windows XP, although it will continue to be sold on netbooks.

Look at the rumors on this.

Apple Netbook Rumors

Apple Looking at OLED for New High End Netbook

SmartHouse's David Richards reports:

"As forecast 9 months ago on the SmartHouse web site Apple is close to launching a touch screen Netbook type computer according to new sources in Asia. We can also reveal that Apple has been exploring the use of flexible OLED display technology for both a screen and a keyboard....

"Insiders have told SmartHouse that Apple is using a new version of their PC software which includes a mix of iPhone and Mac Book capabilities and that recently they held discussions with Sony about licensing OLED technology into notebooks....

"...sources have told SmartHouse that Apple had a change of mind after they improved the capability of their touch screen software and because they had been able to get new patents that allows them to deliver new features to a 'small notebook'"

Link: Apple Looking at OLED for New High End Netbook

Wintek to Supply Touch Panels for Apple Netbook

DigiTimes Yvonne Yu reports:

"Taiwan-based Wintek will supply touch panels for Apple's new netbook, and shipments will start in the third quarter this year, according to a Chinese-language Commercial Times report.

"...Wintek added that no shipment schedule has been worked out yet, but shipments are likely to begin in the second half of the year.

"Quanta Computer will be the maker of Apple's new netbook, the Commercial Times report said...."

Link: Wintek to Supply Touch Panels for Apple Netbook, Says Paper (subscription required)

Apple Plans to Launch Netbook with Touch Screen

Dow Jones reports:

"Apple Inc. is planning to launch a netbook computer with a touch screen monitor as early as the second half of this year, two people close to the situation told Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday.

"The mini laptop computers will likely have monitor screens that are between 9.7-inches and 10-inches, one person, who declined to be named, said.

"Another person said other specifications and functions are still under evaluation...."

Link: Apple Plans to Launch Netbook with Touch Screen - Dow Jones Sources

'iPod Touch HD' Will Have 10" Screen

Silicon Valley Insider's Dan Frommer reports:

"More details about Apple's reportedly forthcoming Internet tablet, which we've been calling the 'iPod touch HD' for a few months: Dow Jones sources say Apple plans to sell 'a netbook computer with a touch screen monitor' with a screen between 9.7 inches and 10 inches. Dow Jones also reports that the device will launch 'as early as the second half of this year.'

"That's consistent with what we've read so far, and roughly consistent with what we think Apple should try to sell...."

Link: Apple's 'iPod Touch HD' Will Have 10-Inch Screen: Report

Scale Down Mac OS X or Scale Up iPhone OS?

ZDNet's Adrian Kingsley-Hughes says:

"DigiTimes is reporting that Taiwan-based Wintek will start supplying Apple with touch-sensitive panels during Q3 of this year for a new product - but what sort of product will that be?...

"The way I see it is that Apple has two ways it could go. The mainstream thinking is that Apple will go for a netbook of some sorts in order to take advantage of the current craze for netbooks....

"The alternative would be so form of scaled-up iPhone (either with without the phone part). An iTablet perhaps... likely to be powered by a tweaked version of the iPhone OS...."

Link: What Should Apple Do - Scale Down Mac OS X or Scale Up iPhone OS?

Apple's Netbook Will Be a Folding iPhone

Computerworld's Mike Elgan says:

"A rumor is circulating, based on Taiwanese newspapers that cover laptop and cell phone components and manufacturing, that Apple will ship some kind of touch-screen netbook this summer.

"The professional speculators are rallying around two distinct visions for this netbook. The first is a standard netbook with screen and keyboard. The second is essentially a tablet, which has been dubbed the 'iPod Touch HD.'

"I think both these visions are wrong, or both right, depending on how you look at it...."

Link: Apple's So-called Netbook Will Be a Folding iPhone

Why is this important to the data center audience? The more netbooks out there, the more data and apps will be in the data centers.

Speculating Cap and Trade’s Impact to Data Centers

April 5, 2009 Dave Ohara

ComputeWorld has an article on data centers and cap and trade.

Data centers brace for Obama's 'cap and trade' energy pricing plan

The president's proposed 'cap and trade' program on carbon emissions may have big implications for power-hungry IT facilities.

By Patrick Thibodeau

April 6, 2009 (Computerworld) Data centers are part of the greenhouse gas problem, and their operators may soon start paying to help fix it under President Barack Obama's proposed cap-and-trade energy plan.

The cap-and-trade scheme is designed to impose higher costs on power generators that don't use so-called clean energy sources. The government would cap overall carbon dioxide emissions and then auction off permits enabling companies to exceed the limits -- essentially adding an indirect tax on some forms of energy, such as coal-fired electricity.

Power bills likely would increase as utilities forced to buy the permits passed the added costs on to their customers. And over time, the pool of permits would decrease, sending electricity costs further upward unless generators switched to cleaner energy sources.

How’s this affect you? Who knows?

But there's no way to accurately gauge the potential impact of a cap-and-trade initiative. "Everything is depending on how they arrange these regulations," Deaderick said. "It could go a lot of different ways."

There is a sense of inevitability among analysts, though, that the White House and Congress eventually will agree on a new energy-pricing plan.

"Anticipating zero-carbon pricing... those days are gone," said Pat Concessi, an energy consultant at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.

The one thing you can count on is energy prices are not going to decrease.

And, people are going to learn to look at their data center power bills.

Two Different Views of Greening a Data Center

April 5, 2009 Dave Ohara

At Google’s Efficient Data Center Summit, there was a panel discussion on Best Practices. Panel members left to right: Ken Brill, James Hamilton, William Tschudi, and Olivier Sanche.

One of the questions for the panel members was on subject of green and sustainability.

Ken Brill gave a practical view of show me the money. Green is overhyped and a clear ROI needs to be established for projects.

Olivier Sanche starts by telling the story of his child telling him how the polar bears are drowning, then he thinks he is potentially building a data center that will have a bigger impact to global warming than any other action he has as an individual. Olivier tells his team we need to do the right thing, and how we impact the environment is part of the equation.

There were people in the audience nodding their heads as each of the panel members gave their comments, so is there a right answer? It depends on your view.

One indicator though of what resonated with more people was the number of times Olivier’s views were supported by other presenters during the rest of the event.

It is interesting that in some views it is risk taking to do the right thing for the environment when the financials may not be perfectly clear. Taking small steps to experiment with what does work and how well is a way to manage the risk versus saying no to green efforts.

Is building a Green Data Center a risk or the right thing to do?

Microsoft has their green data center press release.

Google had a their Efficient Data Center event.

eBay has Olivier Sanche speaking up to do the right thing.

Changing the Behavior of the Data Center System, Modular Construction

April 5, 2009 Dave Ohara

At Google’s data center event, I introduced Amazon’s James Hamilton to Skanska’s Jakob Carnemark as I knew these guys would have an interesting conversation discussing data center construction.

One of the ideas where we all connected was modular data center construction. Question, if I picked the right modular infrastructure deployment does it change the behavior of the data center system? A typical data center construction will project out 5 – 10 years to specify the required capacity, then take 2 – 3 years to design and build. But, in data centers who can forecast out 5 – 10 years, let alone 1 year accurately?

Too many people build data centers like fortresses.

Building a Stone Fortress

Text copyright © by Lise Hull
Photographs Copyright © by Jeffrey L. Thomas

Above: the West Gatehouse at Rhuddlan Castle

Even today, centuries after they were active in British history, castles demonstrate the majesty, power and wealth of their noble builders. By the end of the 12th century, stone castles became more elaborate, the obsession of several powerful personalities who felt pressure to prove their own value by constructing these towering piles. While Edward I used the stone fortress as an effective means of dominating a rebellious Welsh populace, and gave us several of the most impressive structures in the world, his fortresses also reinforced his status as a wealthy and privileged ruler. The Angevin kings, Henry II, Richard I, John and Henry III, collectively spent tens of thousands of pounds on their castles, in pursuit of reputations as men of incomparable authority, prosperity and quality. It is incredible that the monarchy could afford such building projects, for the financial coffers were limited; the kings were not individuals of unbounded wealth, as they wanted their subjects to believe.

And many data centers have the same human behavior from building fortresses. And, I use the fortress analogy in how a paranoid defense focus can drive issues to protect a person’s territory.

the obsession of several powerful personalities who felt pressure to prove their own value by constructing these towering piles

What happens if you sacrifice the fortress mindset for a modular data center build strategy?

Building capacity in 6 months in smaller power increments.

One good behavior change is application developers and enterprise architects will see a CapEx bill attached to major projects as data center capacity is increased to meet their needs.

It is easy to join in the group think to build the fortress to protect your IT silo. And, someone else pays the bill.

Could you imagine the look on SW architects/developers faces when they see the CapEx bill for one rack of 25 kW of data center infrastructure?

What is your CapEx for a kW of infrastructure?

Power Aware Computing and Systems Workshop (HotPower ‘09), Oct 10

April 5, 2009 Dave Ohara

On James Hamilton’s blog he mentions a power system workshop.

HotPower '09 Call for Papers

The HotPower ’09 workshop will be held on October 10^th at the same venue and right before the Symposium on Operating Systems Principles (SOSP 2009) at Big Sky Resort Montana. Hotpower recognizes that power is becoming a central issue in the design of all systems from embedded systems to servers for high-scale data centers.

From http://hotpower09.stanford.edu/:

Power is increasingly becoming a central issue in designing systems, from embedded systems to data centers. We do not understand energy and its tradeoff with performance and other metrics very well. This limits our ability to further extend the performance envelope without violating physical constraints related to batteries, power, heat generation, or cooling.

HotPower hopes to provide a forum in which to present the latest research and to debate directions, challenges, and novel ideas about building energy-efficient computing systems. In addition, researchers coming to these issues from fields such as computer architecture, systems and networking, measurement and modeling, language and compiler design, and embedded systems will gain the opportunity to interact with and learn from one another.

This looks like interesting, and I may want to try writing a submission paper and attend the conference. Here is a list of topics the event had.

Topics

Topics of interest related to energy-efficient computing include but are not limited to:

Instrumentation, measurement, and measurement studies

Energy and performance profiling, accounting

Metrics, benchmarks, interfaces

Principles of power management

Performance, energy and other resource trade-offs, energy complexity

Compiler optimization, application design

System-level optimization, cross-layer coordination

Load and resource modeling, management

Scheduling, run-time adaptation, feedback control

Processor, network, storage, hardware components and architecture

Reliability and power management

Application to multi-core, data center, and embedded systems