G8 Summit Deploys Tablet PCs, Advanced Software To Assist Dialogue Among World Leaders

SEA ISLAND, Ga., June 7, 2004 — Out with sticky notes and staff scrambling about. In with clipboard-sized Tablet PCs and the latest communications software.



Barry Bennett, Communications Director of the G8 Summit, displays the Motion Computing Tablet PC. Sea Island, Georgia, June 7, 2004. Click image for high-res version.

When the G8 Summit convenes here this week, world leaders and their staffs will interact in a manner befitting the 21st century — relying on state-of-the-art Tablet PC hardware and cutting-edge software for “digital” note taking, online collaboration, and rapid, secure information transfer.

The G8 Summit is an informal forum for leaders of the world’s major industrial nations to discuss international issues. Until now, summit participants often relied on sticky notes and staff runners as a means of communications. Now the summit organizers are providing Motion Computing® Tablet PCs running Microsoft® Windows®
XP Tablet PC Edition and Microsoft Office OneNote (TM) and equipped with software developed by Groove Networks, among others, to accelerate communication among the world leaders’ staffs.

“Our goal is to apply technology strategically to make this the most constructive and productive summit in the event’s 30-year history,” said Prescott M. Caballero, deputy chief information officer of the G8 Summit Planning Organization. “Over the last several months, we’ve evaluated a number of technology options and were very impressed with the combination of slate Tablet PCs designed by Motion Computing, the secure, peer-to-peer communications capabilities of software from Groove Networks, Microsoft Office OneNote digital note-taking software from Microsoft, and screen-sharing software from RealVNC. The use of these tools already has cut preparation time by as much as 50 percent, and we expect these tools will help facilitate more productive dialogue among the summit participants this week.”

Integral to the new process are specially trained staff members — called sherpas — from each participating country.

For example, a world leader’s sherpa can quietly take notes during a session with a digital pen, underline text to flag a need for information, transmit the automatically encrypted notes over a security-enhanced peer-to-peer network to researchers and policy staff located in a remote research room, and quickly and unobtrusively receive an answer to the query. After the summit, each country will remove its Tablet PC hard drives for transit home.

From Motion Computing

Motion Computing’s widely acclaimed M1300 Tablet PCs will be the hardware mainstay for the summit’s collaborative environment and the primary means for each world leader’s sherpa staffer to quickly communicate with policy staff and researchers. Thin and light, the M1300s feature a bright 12.1-inch display, an advanced Intel ultra-low voltage processor and biometric security.

“The G8 Summit planning committee needed a mobile computing solution that would let the world leaders and their staffs communicate faster and more reliably than ever,” said Scott Eckert, Motion’s CEO. “Motion delivered on these requirements in a great example of Tablet PC versatility and people using our systems in new ways and places.”

From Groove Networks

Groove Workspace v2.5 virtual office software is being used to ensure secure, two-way dialogue among sherpas, staffers and researchers. The software is used by various government agencies worldwide, including the U.S. Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security for ultra-secure, inter-agency collaboration, information sharing and decision-making.

“The Summit Organizing Committee had to assure each participating country that the conversation and information moving across their individual peer-to-peer networks is secure,” said David Fowler, senior vice president of marketing and business development, Groove Networks. “Groove software allowed them to meet this requirement because of its military-grade security, and its ability to support communication without the need for a central server, that could introduce trust issues.”

From Microsoft

G8 sherpas will use Microsoft Office OneNote 2003 on Motion Tablet PCs to capture and organize notes digitally during the summit, which they will share in real time with their assistants through shared-session technology. OneNote takes advantage of unique digital inking features in the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition operating system to combine the freedom and flexibility of paper notes with the efficiency and power of digital organizational tools. The combination of OneNote with the Tablet PC’s pen and ink functionality allows you to be more productive anywhere you need to take notes.

“The Tablet PC is about enabling people to use the power of their mobile PC in new places and in new ways” said Bill Mitchell, vice president of the Windows Mobile (TM) Platforms Division at Microsoft Corp. “The innovative use of technology at the G8 Summit is a great example of how the Tablet PC along with Microsoft OneNote can replace less efficient paper processes to streamline the way people interact and work together.”

For more information on the Tablet PC, visit http://www.microsoft.com/tabletpc/ . For more information on Microsoft OneNote, visit http://www.microsoft.com/onenote/ .

About Motion Computing

Motion Computing — a mobile computing and wireless communications leader in vertical markets such as healthcare, field force automation, government and education — combines world-class innovation and industry experience. Motion’s Tablet PCs and related ultramobile products enable people to use computers in new ways and places. Marketed through an experienced international reseller network and directly through its Web site, each Motion product is built to customer specifications. The company’s M1300 and M1400 Tablet PCs and accessories are designed for users who need a combination of true mobility, power and versatility. http://www.motioncomputing.com/

About Groove Networks

Headquartered in Beverly, Mass., Groove Networks Inc. offers virtual office software that allows teams of people to work together securely over a network as if they were in the same room. Groove software helps organizations, large and small, save money, time and eliminate travel by offering both a desktop application for instant teamwork, and a set of customizable, open collaboration capabilities that enhance the utility and value of existing solutions. For more information about Groove Networks, visit http://www.groove.net .

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Microsoft, Windows, OneNote and Windows Mobile are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

All product and company names herein may be trademarks of their registered owners.

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