Microsoft Corp. this week
announced a future enhancement for the Windows operating system designed to
optimize performance of multimedia content on the Web, as well as DVD and
CD-ROM titles.
According to Microsoft, Chrome will offer users with high-performance Windows
98 and Windows NT 5.0 PCs the benefits of rich, interactive DVD, CD-ROM, and
Web-based multimedia content.
Chrome DVD titles will provide users with enhanced content that adds to and
is synchronized with the DVD video. Visitors to Web sites with multimedia
content will experience much higher performance when viewing
Chrome-enhanced content. Download times will be reduced and the display
will be optimized for the underlying Windows PC hardware.
Using XML, Web developers will be able to easily describe and deliver
multimedia content and dynamically manipulate this content using simple
scripting techniques. Developers can also publish the same Chrome multimedia
content on DVD, CD-ROM, and the Web, which enables them to leverage the
development process without writing medium-specific content.
Microsoft has stated that it expects the full Chrome feature set to be
available in the first quarter of 1999 to Windows98 and Windows NT 5.0
users who are running Pentium II 350 MHz-class or better systems with AGP.
For additional information on Chrome and XML, visit the Microsoft Web site.
