Lifeboat thrown to notebook users

By Alun Williams

Posted on 13 Feb 2003 at 15:44

The Chief Technology Officer of IBM's PC Division, Brian Connors, was in London today briefing journalists on IBM's vision for the PC (see IBM lays out the future for idle computers).

Also at the event, Michael Vanover demoed forthcoming IBM emergency recovery software for ThinkPads. (Vanover was the architect of IBM recent work on embedded security - IBM aims to reduce lifetime cost of PC.)

Dubbed Lifeboat, it is an emergency data recovery system for IBM's notebook users. With the ability to establish periodic restore points, it preserves data right up until the point of system failure.

The first stage involves data recovery - Lifeboat gives quick access to lost data of all sorts, such as data files or bookmarks - and provision is made for recovery of the machine. For example, your immediate priority may to be to rescue a spreadsheet for an imminent meeting, but further support would be available for re-configuring your machine.

Initially there will be an offering for Win98, 2K and XP based machines, but Vanover stressed the platform-neutral nature of the work. Rather, the work is processor-oriented. Specifically, it takes advantage of Intel processor-level technology.

Unfortunately, however, the system is unlikely to be available for another year. It is envisaged that it will not be sold as a commercial product in itself. Bundled with IBM ThinkPads, it will be an 'added value' feature for the IBM machines.