He says Communicator 5.0 will restore Netscape's market share by offering speed, a smaller size, services, support for standards, and chat functions. Netscape representatives would offer few specifics. XUL lets developers use common Web building languages rather than computer coding languages to create a browser's graphical user interface, including menu items, buttons, and the address bar. A key focus in the Millennium edition is on the ability to easily connect several computers in the home, company officials said. Beta 2 also sports the first implementation of Universal Plug and Play support and broader support for networking hardware, officials said.
Cost savings allow PC makers to charge less for a given system.
But for end users, the chip promises even lower entry-level pricing. Such PCs can be viewed as the equivalent of entry-level automobiles, which are relatively inexpensive, but meet all of the basic needs of the customer. Since going online himself three years ago, Greenfield has been amazed by the Internet's power and the mostly positive effect it has on people's lives, he said. Personally, I love the relaxing boredom that I enter into when I begin talking to distant relatives I've got nothing in common with anymore. I'm feeling, well, thankful.