Windows Embedded for Point of Service

Take a look at the CRN article on Windows Embedded for Point of Service - I gave a demo of WEPOS at last weeks MGB conference, it's really neat to be able to show a RPOS device using a barcode scanner and showing failover by unplugging one barcode scanner and replacing it with another manufacturers scanner all without taking down the POS terminal or restarting any application or drivers - very cool.

The other really interesting thing about Windows Embedded for Point of Service (WEPOS) is the fact that it's based on Windows XP Pro SP2, this means that all Windows XP (desktop) management tools/utilities can be used with WEPOS, this includes Windows Update, SMS, SUS etc... - this means that the underlying O/S footprint is perhaps larger than a componentized operating system based on Windows XP Embedded SP2, and the boot options are typically limited (no support for EWF, booting from CD-ROM, Flash etc...), but you do get the advantage of simple install and management.

If you are interested in building Service Objects (the WEPOS name for peripheral drivers) for WEPOS then you may be interested in the POS for .NET SDK 1.0

More information about WEPOS can be found here and you can order an evaluation kit on CD here.

- Mike