Gates Opens Comdex Show

Published: Tuesday, November 14, 2000

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Steering clear of present battles, Microsoft founder Bill Gates used his annual keynote at the Computer Dealer Expo to show off a futuristic ``tablet'' computer and some near-term enhancements to his company's Office software for businesses.

Gates, who recently gave up the chief executive post to assume the more nebulous title of ``chief software architect,'' also spoke at length on Sunday about his company's ''.Net'' strategy, which envisions using open Internet standards rather than Windows-type operatings systems as a unifying platform for software on all types of devices.

Gates did not address Microsoft Corp.'s epic antitrust clash with the U.S. government, which has convinced a federal court to break the company into smaller pieces to end its Windows-based monopoly on the software market. Microsoft's appeal of the decision is slated to be argued early next year.

Gates also stayed away from financial concerns such as Microsoft's battered stock price or an apparent slowdown in computer sales that may hurt Windows revenues.

Instead, he focused mainly on the state of the industry and innovations of the future, stressing his company's vision in a Web-centric world.

The ``tablet PC'' that he demonstrated, not expected to reach the market until 2002, is a bit of a cross between a handheld computer and a laptop.

As the name might suggest, the three-pound device is the size of a legal pad. Unlike a laptop computer, it does not open and close like a clam.

``It is a PC you can take anywhere with the simplicity of a pen and paper,'' Frank Shaw, a Microsoft official, said before the presentation.

Gates also demonstrated some enhancements to the best-selling Office suite of business software, due on the market this spring. One feature called ``smart tags'' allows users to embed links in various types of documents to other sources of information, both on the Internet or locally, without having to open other programs. A law firm, for example, might use the tags in a legal document to provide an easy link to related cases.

Another new Office feature, Gates said, would finally bring speech-activated capabilities to common computer tasks. Office users will be able to dictate information or navigate through menus verbally.