Software giant Microsoft has said it rejected plans to develop a dual-boot iteration of Windows XP to run on One Laptop per Child XO machines, and instead is developing a version of XP specifically for the XO.

Microsoft said it had considered developing a version of XP with One Laptop per Child (OLPC) that would enable the user to choose to boot up either XP or OLPC's Fedora-based Sugar operating system, but admitted on Friday it had rejected the idea in favour of developing an XP-only iteration.

The Friday announcement came after OLPC founder Nicholas Negroponte said on Tuesday that Microsoft and the not-for-profit foundation were developing a dual-boot system.

"While we have investigated the possibility in the past, Microsoft is not developing dual-boot Windows XP support for OLPC's XO laptop," a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement. "As we announced in December, Microsoft plans to publish formal design guidelines early this year that will assist flash-based device manufacturers in designing machines that enable a high-quality Windows experience. Our current goal remains to provide a high-quality Windows experience on the XO device."

Microsoft added that it is planning limited field trials this month of Windows XP for the XO laptop. Continue At Source

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