14 DAY TRIAL // With Windows 8 in the pipeline, hardware makers have to make sure they are ready for the new OS, and it seems that NVIDIA is quite aware of this fact, given its new press release.
As far as software goes, NVIDIA, much like AMD, usually delivers a new graphics driver every month.
Now that the release of Microsoft's Windows 8 is approaching, however, the Santa Clara, California-based giant has to move quickly on other fronts as well.
This is because, in addition to its line of video boards, the company has the Tegra series of ARM SoC (system-on-chip) devices as well.
Since Windows 8 will have support for the ARM architecture, NVIDIA has to make sure its tablet platform is fully geared for when the software debuts.
To this end, as revealed in the newest press release on its part, the GPU and SoC maker launched the Windows 8 Developer Program.
"With its elegant user interface and support for tablets and notebooks using ARM-based processors, Windows 8 will bring a seismic shift to the industry," said Jeff Fisher, senior vice president of the PC Business Unit at NVIDIA.
"Our expertise in both ARM and x86 environments, and our intimate familiarity with the Windows code base, makes us uniquely qualified to support Windows 8 developers."
The program will give developers the tools and resources they need to make applications for the ARM and x86 devices that will adopt Windows 8.
"We're incredibly excited about the innovation that NVIDIA is bringing to Windows 8 PCs with their ARM processors, and how this will help reshape the PC industry in ways we're only starting to see," said Mike Angiulo, corporate vice president of Windows planning, hardware and PC ecosystem at Microsoft.
"Developers are at the forefront of this transition. Microsoft values NVIDIA's leadership in providing tools to the community."
In the short term, most of NVIDIA's focus will be on the quad-core Kal-El (Tegra 3) SoC.