Vista's SideShow coming to Windows Mobile devices?

Word on the street (er, internet) is that Microsoft's oft-ignored Vista component, SideShow, could be making its official way to your favorite Windows Mobile-flavored device before long. If you'll recall, SideShow acts as a kind of mini-OS which is distributed to devices separate from a PC, such as remotes or external displays on laptops, and can be used to access information like contacts, maps, calendar appointments, and e-mail messages in a low-power, always-on state. Apparently, in a new SDK beta which the SideShow team "showed" off recently, features like a UI designed for portrait QVGA displays, a universal driver that supports USB and Bluetooth communication, and new Bluetooth menu commands have led some folks to speculate that the system could be coming to mobile devices sometime soon. Of course, this all unconfirmed rumor at this point, so don't feel compelled to believe it.

[Via the::unwired]

[sinerasis @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:02PM]

So this is the "I don't want to actually run Vista-Vista?"

[Mark @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:08PM]

No, this would be the "I don't want to run Windows Mobile" Windows Mobile.

[nh5 @ Nov 23rd 2007 9:13PM]

me!

[Addy Osmani @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:04PM]

This would be a big step forward for SideShow...which, let's face it, has been nothing more than a side-show for microsoft in terms of people using it. I would be interested in seeing how this would work with WinMo 5 and 6 systems.

I would love to be able to have my multiple Windows Mobile devices interact with Vista more - imagine being able to switch your widgets or video to "Pocket Mode" and move them around with you. That'd be kinda neat.

My one problem with this rumor is just how well current devices would be able to use SideShow. Would this essentially be like remote desktop for single SideShow applications?.

[AzrealJG @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:09PM]

They've actually had this capability for going on two years now. The SideShow team has been using PocketPC devices to demonstrate SideShow for ages. It's just never been in a state to release to the public (only implementing specific features needed for this or that demo).

The Sideshow team has been talking about cleaning it up and releasing it since before Vista's RTM, it's nice to see it's actually getting closer to a reality.

[Mark @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:10PM]

My money is on this only being available for WM6.

I wish MS would make Windows Mobile useful for more than spreadsheets and stuff - everything in Windows Mobile is so half-assed, its only through the monumental bungling of Palm OS that Windows Mobile has been able to achieve any market share.

Just about everything in WM is a half-usable tech demo, so that its a good platform for third-party developers - and this is by MS's own admission.

[Erwos @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:23PM]

The Sideshow team has already confirmed a release for WM5 and WM6, actually. There's no need for speculation.

http://forums.microsoft.com/MSDN/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=1645102&SiteID=1

Of course, this was back in May, so who knows what's really going to happen.

[Mark @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:11PM]

Being able to control Windows Media Player from your Smartphone would be money.

[UnnDunn @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:52PM]

I use Salling Clicker (google it) with my Moto MPx220 to do that. Works like a charm. Uses Bluetooth.

[L.Rawlins @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:54PM]

I can already control Windows Media Player... and Windows itself, with my K800i smartphone. All you need is the 'Bluetooth HID Profile' in your weapon of choice in order to do so.

Unsurprisingly, it doesn't work with iTunes, but then 'A2DP' doesn't work very well with iTunes either.

[holycow @ Nov 23rd 2007 5:03PM]

My W800i used to work with iTunes flawlessly... but worked better with Media Player

[KarlW @ Nov 23rd 2007 5:37PM]

Better than flawlessly? Sweet.

If there is a universal BT driver, I'd be interested in creating a sideshow client for the K800i.

[Jaxim @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:24PM]

I always thought that it would be great if the Zune could act as a Vista Sideshow gadget. You could use the Zune as a remote control for your media center. You could view thumbnails of videos on the Zune and select the thumbnails of the videos you want to view thru media center. Maybe you could even choose to download the video to your Zune all without wires.

[willyboy @ Nov 24th 2007 12:34PM]

You would need to plug it in.

[Jaxim @ Nov 24th 2007 12:43PM]

why would you need to plug it in? The Zune has wifi? It could download the thumbnails wirelessly (or when it syncs). It can download video previews of your Media Center content wirelessly too. It would be the perfect convergence device of 2 of Microsoft's products: Zune and Vista/Media Center.

[Ypoknons @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:24PM]

It'd better.

[ginnal @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:38PM]

This seems exceptionally pointless.

[dext3r @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:47PM]

Man, I've been looking at SideShow development for awhile now. I've been trying to code something up for my Nintendo DS that would allow it to act as a SideShow device, but I cant find any code examples of how to do SideShow data over TCP/IP. Does anyone have a link to this new SDK?

[Teague @ Dec 9th 2007 1:28PM]

You can certainly do a tcp/ip connection to your device. There is in fact a sample SideShow driver included in the Vista WDK that would be a good starting point. I would reccomend using PnPX for the device enumeration of your tcp/ip device, if possible. The rest of the work is just writing socket code and implementing a few UMDF and SideShow DDI callbacks.

[DanFunky @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:48PM]

My guess is this will be standard in WM6.1

[Trevor @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:51PM]

I hope they'll support older WM devices -- don't see why you'd need new OS to support it.

[debugy2k @ Nov 23rd 2007 4:52PM]

SideShow for the laptops IS a NON-REMOVABLE PDA for the laptop...lol

[vincent argento @ Nov 23rd 2007 5:08PM]

Vista?

[Generic @ Nov 23rd 2007 5:15PM]

SideShow was supposed to be a control mechanism that bypasses turning the whole computer on. What now, can I control my cellphone while it is off too?

If it is only an interface similarity then I get it but otherwise what is the point behind this. Would only be a true SideShow if it controls the PC the same way the original SideShow did. Which means we will probably see PCs and cellphones bundled together but the truth is that this is very unlikely.

On the other hand this would be what the iPhone doesn't have, eh!

[Ricardo @ Nov 23rd 2007 5:16PM]

Maybe it's time I ditch my Linux phone and buy a Windows one.

[Andrew @ Nov 23rd 2007 6:32PM]

Am I the only one who read the headline as "Vista's SlideShow coming to Windows Mobile"... when I first saw it in the RSS reader? So I thought it was an announcement of Vista for mobile devices, properly titled given its expected performance on such hardware.

[adrain @ Nov 23rd 2007 6:51PM]

as long as i can downgrade back to windows mobile, should it suck for example.

[Taylor @ Nov 23rd 2007 11:40PM]

This will be a program that runs in windows mobile, not a new OS. Sideshow lets you run vista gadgets on a separate device, to do things like check your e-mail, browse pictures, or change tracks playing on your desktop PC.
-Taylor

[AndrewNeo @ Nov 23rd 2007 7:56PM]

Finally! I'm sure it'll only work with WM5 and not 4 :(

[Seawolf @ Nov 23rd 2007 9:47PM]

Sideshow is worthless on desktops.

[charles lowe @ Nov 23rd 2007 10:21PM]

cool contest

[gregf @ Nov 23rd 2007 10:38PM]

nice!

[dB1483 @ Nov 24th 2007 1:27AM]

SLIDE IT TO ME

[w00t @ Nov 24th 2007 1:46AM]

Hrmm looks similar to the function of a PSP's media player

...except it's got that signature windowsy ugliness

Windows Mobile has fantastic features on paper, you can do everything, the trouble is you can do everything with poor user experience.

The iPhone has fantastic user experience except it's heavily limited by the lack of an 'ecosystem' comprising of the thousands of 3rd party apps. I know it has Installer.app but the applications are really buggy and the choice is limited.

This may be solved in years to come giving WinMo a solid contender though :)

[Jennifer @ Nov 24th 2007 5:22AM]

This is a really awesome gift! pick me!

[tamoghno @ Nov 24th 2007 11:21AM]

will we get sideshow on a "second screen" of our "vista" powered mobile !

[pp12302 @ Nov 24th 2007 11:40AM]

Nice looking jeep.

[Dean @ Nov 26th 2007 1:52PM]

Ugly....

[Proglopthius Muke @ Dec 22nd 2007 5:31PM]

"Similar to the PSP's media player" -- how so? My PSP plays media from the "desktop" in the sense that it seems not to open other apps to display content, but there is no desktop in the traditional sense: no drag-and-drop, no hierarchical folder access. And it doesn't interact with new and legacy OS systems, either -- for the moment, Sony devices are notoriously adverse to open environments (barring homebrew). Clearly, an imbedded web browser, picture viewer, media player and music player are not the same as customizable and separately updated apps. The Vista Mobile solution is about transparency between systems; the PSP's is about enforcing restrictions, removing unnecessary steps, and enhancing the minimalist aesthetic of a single device-oriented OS.

In order to achieve the kind of convergence Microsoft is looking for, Sony would have to drop their control-freak approach to every media format they create -- a tough proposition when you're dragging record, movie and game companies alongside your product development teams.