The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona opened on Monday, setting the stage
for the next round in the battle of mobile operating systems. Microsoft unveiled
the next version of its operating system for mobile phones, Windows Phone 7
Series, featuring a move away from applications and towards functions. Microsoft
CEO Steve Ballmer opened a news conference Monday, saying that . "We want more
consistency in the hardware platform and in the user experience.” To make the
interface more personal, Microsoft is counting on a checkerboard of customizable
"live tiles" that can update automatically with information from the phone or
the Internet. Microsoft plans to release a software development kit (SDK) to
enable network operators and third parties to add new services and applications
to the phones. Microsoft is under pressure to convince developers to stick with
its mobile OS, and faces tough competition from Google Android and the Symbian
platform, among other rivals.

Meanwhile, twenty-four mobile network operators have formed the Wholesale
Applications Community to avoid fragmenting the apps market and to give
developers one point of entry to all the members. The GSM Association announced
on Monday that operators will now start working on uniting their existing
developer communities, so developers will be able to go to one place to get
their applications distributed instead of having to go through multiple
application approval processes. The community will also start working on a
common development standard that should be ready within the next 12 months. The
standard will be independent of phone type and operating system, according to
the members.

One of the two new smartphones with Google's Android mobile operating system
that High Tech Computer (HTC) plans to start selling in March isn't officially
billed as an update to Google’s Nexus One, but its design is similar and it
offers improvements over the Google phone. The similarity is no big surprise
considering HTC built Nexus One for Google. The HTC Desire, as the handset is
called, carries specifications nearly identical to the Nexus One, with a few key
changes. One improvement in the HTC Desire is the use of an optical joystick as
an alternative to using the touchscreen.

In other news, Staples the office supplies retailers with 1,872 stores in
North America, is expanding its IT services capabilities in a move that will
take it right inside the data center.Staples offers a variety of laptops and
desktop computers in its stores, and has been working to expand it service
capabilities. In 2006, Staples bought Thrive Networks, a managed services
provider, and in 2008 it acquired Corporate Express, a supplier of office
products to businesses and institutions,. Staples new unit, Staples Technology
Solutions, is the combined entity of those two groups, said company
officials.
And those are the top headlines from IDG News Service IT news
update. This is Marc Ferranti in he New York Bureau. Join us again later for
more news from the world of technology

Owner Article of blogs.computerworld.com