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Canonical refines mobile Ubuntu Linux

Ubuntu Mobile and Embedded Edition will permit multimedia and power management on Intel's minitablet PC platform.

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Ubuntu backer Canonical has pinned down some broad feature lists for its upcoming version of Linux for smaller mobile devices.

At the Computex trade show in Taiwan, the company announced particulars of a mobile version of Linux, Ubuntu Mobile and Embedded Edition. The first full release of the software, which will permit video, sound and full-featured Internet browsing, is due to arrive in October, Canonical said.

The software is geared for use on Intel's Mobile Internet Device platform--minitablet PCs using low-power processors and tiny keyboards. Intel announced the Ubuntu MID work, as well as a similar partnership with Red Flag Linux, at its Intel Developer Forum in Beijing in April.

"Ubuntu Mobile and Embedded edition is expected to deliver fast boot and resume times, and reside in a small memory and disk footprint," Canonical said in a statement.

Ubuntu Chief Technology Officer Matt Zimmerman announced the mobile software effort in May on an Ubuntu mailing list.

"It is clear that new types of devices--small, handheld, graphical tablets which are Internet-enabled--are going to change the way we communicate and collaborate. These devices place new demands on open-source software and require innovative graphical interfaces, improved power management and better responsiveness," Zimmerman said.

Canonical's Ubuntu competes with other versions of Linux such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Novell's Suse Linux Enterprise Server, but it's been climbing in popularity.