Simplified Wireless Networking
For wireless technologies, Microsoft is primarily focusing on the 802.11 standard, which the company sees as the high grow technology in this market. But 802.11 under previous versions of Windows is a nightmare, with poor user interfaces, security issues, and high failure rates. "We tried to solve these problems in Windows XP," says Tim Moore, the Group Product Manager for Networking at Microsoft. "Enterprises are deploying 802.11 or planning on it, and of course you see it in airports and other public spaces, as seen by the recent Starbucks deal." (Microsoft recently signed a deal with the popular coffee chain to supply wireless Internet access to its retail stores). "Prices have gone down for the home as well, but for this release, the focus was business users, not home users," Moore added.

Windows XP simplifies wireless networking by providing "zero configuration" for 802.11 devices. You plug in the card and Windows XP automatically scans for an available network. If you switch networks, say by walking from one coverage area to another, the device will be reconfigured on the fly, automatically. "There's no rebooting, even when switching networks," Moore told me. "The user doesn't have to do anything." This feature will not be enabled in the Beta 2 release of Windows XP, but Moore says it will be fully functional soon thereafter.

One of the primary complaints about 802.11 concerns security: Microsoft solves this by implementing 802.11X, which supports user and machine authentication using Radius over existing 802.11 networks. And 802.11X security can be integrated directly into Active Directory, giving users a single logon capability. To the user, network access is automatic and instant, all without any need to manually configure anything.