News Release
VIA Enables New Worlds of Innovation, with Pioneering
Robotics, Internet Telephony and Much More on Show at
LinuxWorld Expo 2003
With its rich multimedia and connectivity features,
the ultra compact VIA EPIA Mini-ITX mainboard series
provides the most flexible x86 platform for enabling
the emergence of an exciting new generation of breakthrough
devices from independent Linux developers
San Francisco, Calif., August 4, 2003 - VIA Technologies,
Inc, a leading innovator and developer of silicon chip
technologies and PC platform solutions, today announced
an extensive line-up of distinctive new Linux-based
products from independent developers based on the compact
VIA EPIA Mini-ITX form factor will be demonstrated during
LinuxWorld Expo, Moscone Center in San Francisco on
August 5-7, 2003. Developers including Interact-TV,
Open Source Telecom Corporation, SRI International,
Mini-Box.com and Tonic Domains Corporation will demonstrate
a variety of home entertainment, server, Voice Over
IP, and robotics products at VIA's booth #1776. MythTV,
a well-known Open Source personal video recorder project,
will also be on display as part of VIA's "Totally
Connected Home" demos.
"The Open Source Movement is providing collaboration
and development of new products in areas where PCs typically
have not succeeded. We intend to open up more opportunities
for Linux developers by providing an open standard x86
platform that encourages forays into areas where one
would not expect to see a computer," said Richard
Brown, Associate Vice President of International Marketing
for VIA Technologies, Inc. "VIA's cool-running
processor, small form factor and high level of connectivity
and multimedia integration help bring sophisticated
functionality to connected devices in the workplace,
home, communities or schools. Together, the VIA EPIA
Mini-ITX platform and Linux combine for a new generation
of affordable connected breakthrough devices."
SRI International Centibots
Of all the exciting Linux developments on display at
VIA's booth, perhaps the most unique are the mapping
and tracking robots from SRI International's 'Centibots'
project, built largely from off-the-shelf components
including the low-profile, feature-rich VIA EPIA M10000
mainboard. SRI's Artificial Intelligence Center, one
of the world's major centers of research in artificial
intelligence, is using the robots to study distributed
robotics. As totally self-contained, untethered entities,
the robots can determine their own location, plan their
own path, process images they see, make decisions based
on a continually expanding knowledge base, and negotiate
with other robots when teamwork is required.
A highlight of the show will take place on Wednesday,
August 6 at 3:00pm, directly opposite the VIA booth
at the LinuxWorld Taste of Linux Theatre, where the
robots will be shown a Linux penguin doll and instructed
to find this "object of interest" hidden within
an obstacle course. Once the penguin has been hidden,
a preliminary mapping robot with laser range finders
will identify the configuration of the maze, followed
by a second wave of tracking robots that search for
the penguin while sharing information and communicating
with a command center over a wireless network. LinuxWorld
attendees are invited to the Taste of Linux Theatre
to cheer the robots on in their quest for the hidden
penguin. Experts from SRI International's Centibots
project will be on hand to answer questions.
Instant Entertainment
VIA will also showcase an embedded software suite that
enables PCs to boot instantly from ROM as highly capable
standalone entertainment and information resource devices
with built-in Internet access and MPEG playback functionality.
VIA believes that such software can help eliminate one
of the main obstacles to PCs succeeding in the consumer
electronics space: the comparatively long wait for a
system to boot-up before digital media playback or connectivity
can be accomplished. Also on display will be MythTV,
an Open Source PVR project running on a VIA EPIA M10000
based system.
Interact-TV Telly MC1000
Also being demonstrated is Interact-TV's Telly MC1000,
a Linux-based digital home entertainment center housed
in an attractive living-room stereo component-type enclosure
and based on the popular VIA EPIA M10000 mainboard.
It is designed to be customizable and expandable, combining
Internet, cable/satellite TV, digital audio/video, and
home networking features. Combining digital video recording
with a free electronic program guide service, Telly
lets users listen and/or burn CDs with a powerful juke
box feature, and view live TV, DVDs, digital photo slide
shows, or Internet information. True to the open nature
of Linux-based devices, consumers can augment and upgrade
their Telly unit with off-the-shelf computer hardware.
Mini-Box.com M100
Mini-Box.com will show the ultra tiny M-100, a quiet,
low profile, ultra-compact server that offers just about
every connectivity and multimedia option one could desire,
based on the VIA EPIA V-Series mainboard with a rich
feature set that includes a VIA C3 E-series processor
(EBGA package), integrated AGP graphics and audio, USB,
Ethernet networking, and floppy drive connector. When
booting from Compact Flash the M-100 runs embedded Linux
that fits in less than 16MB and can also boot other
operating systems from a 2.5" hard disk. Measuring
just 1.73" high x 7.8" wide x 8.6" deep,
the Mini-Box M-100 makes an ideal small footprint, low
profile, quiet system for space-constrained locations
requiring low power consumption and low noise levels.
Lightweight with an aluminum frame it weighs only 2.2
pounds, and features a 14-key customizable keypad and
a general purpose I/O port. The Mini-Box M-100 provides
visual feedback such as status messages on its built-in
backlit LCD, eliminating the need for a monitor in many
applications.
OSTEL Corporation SOHO-VR
For the home or small office, Open Source Telecom Corporation
(OSTEL) has integrated the VIA EPIA M10000 mainboard
into an advanced open source telephony server, SOHO-VR.
This Linux-based PBX with automatic call distribution
(ACD) includes web-based unified messaging, e-mail,
fax, and voicemail. Featuring web-based system administration,
the OSTEL system is a fax server, and uses the H.323
Open Source teleconferencing protocol for VoIP and serving
applications as well as offering interactive voice response
with text to speech conversion and speech recognition.
Tonic Domains Corporation Urlwitzer
The Urlwitzer™ from Tonic Domains Corporation will
show just how easy it is to transfer entire CD collections
to MP3. This music jukebox and digital storage appliance
with a convenient web-based control panel collects,
organizes and disseminates digital entertainment, leveraging
the AC'97 audio decoding standard on the VIA EPIA M10000
mainboard. The Urlwitzer™ encodes and categorizes CD
tracks and collects CD artist, album, and song title
information from the Internet for easy organization
while it rips the CDs to the hard drive. It automatically
configures to home networks, provides general network
storage for photos, videos and other digital media,
automatically backs up all home network computers and
even streams music over the Internet to designated remote
devices for enjoyment by users away from home. Also
shown is the "robot ripping" service that
uses a robotic arm to quickly rip whole collections
of CDs to hard disk.
About the VIA EPIA M10000 Mini-ITX Mainboard
The VIA EPIA M10000 Mini-ITX Mainboard is the second
generation 17cm x 17cm platform optimized for today's
killer digital video and audio applications, and is
compatible with Microsoft Windows 2K/ME/XP and a variety
of Linux-based operating systems. Featuring the new
1GHz VIA C3® processor that provides greater digital
media performance, and the VIA CLE266 chipset with an
embedded MPEG-2 decoder and the integrated UniChrome
2D/3D graphics core, the VIA EPIA M10000 platform provides
smooth DVD playback and a rich overall entertainment
experience.
With the sizable memory bandwidth of DDR266 SDRAM and
the high data transfer speeds of ATA/133, the VIA EPIA
M10000 ensures the high performance levels required
of today's most popular digital media and productivity
applications. The user's digital media experience is
further enhanced by support for 5.1 surround sound,
courtesy of the onboard VIA Vinyl Six-TRAC audio. The
latest in high-bandwidth connectivity is supported with
IEEE1394 and USB 2.0 connections provided, as well as
S-Video and RCA TV-Out (NTSC & PAL) and 10/100 Fast
Ethernet for seamless broadband connectivity. The VIA
EPIA M10000 also offers support for the latest LVDS
embedded LCD panels, has one PCI slot for expandability
options, and is compatible with a full range of Mini-ITX
chassis as well as FlexATX and MicroATX enclosures.
The VIA EPIA M10000 Mini-ITX mainboard is available
in volume for an estimated retail price of US$199 from
VIA's global distribution partners listed on VIA Arena
at: http://www.viaarena.com/?PageID=254.
For more information on the full range of VIA EPIA M-Series
Mini-ITX mainboards please visit:
www.viavpsd.com/product/epia_m_spec.jsp?motherboardId=81
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