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Microsoft to reveal Windows code

WASHINGTON AUG. 5. Microsoft Corp. is disclosing more technical information about its Windows operating system products in order to comply with a Federal antitrust settlement that has yet to be approved by a judge, the company announced on Monday.

"Microsoft is obligated as a company to continue to move forward to meet our obligations under the agreement, even as we are waiting for a final decision,'' Microsoft general counsel, Brad Smith, said.

The technical information will help software makers write programs that work as well with Windows as Microsoft's own products do.

Some of the technical data will be released online this month for free, while other information — data designed for large "server'' computers that run networks — will require a licensing fee.

The disclosures came along with other previously scheduled moves to comply with the settlement. Microsoft will finish work on a new update to Windows this month that will allow computer users to hide some functions of Windows, like the media player, Web browser or mail program.

That concession was made to calm Federal concerns that Microsoft's overwhelming market share in the personal computer operating system market allows it to promote its own software more heavily, giving it an unfair advantage over competing software makers.

Some critics, such as RealNetworks, AOL and the nine state attorneys general who are still suing Microsoft, say that provision and other portions of the Federal deal don't go far enough to keep Microsoft from dominating the industry.

The states want far stricter penalties, including some that would require broader technical disclosures, put Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web browser into the public domain and force Microsoft to let companies translate its Office productivity software to use on other operating systems. — AP

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