The Game option is unusual as it allows you to play simple games in the UEFI that you load from CD in the limbo before the OS loads. This is similar to the Asus' Express Gate system, which allows you to use instant messengers and look at photos without booting your OS, so we asked Iain Bristow, who looks after the marketing of PC components at Asus UK, about the company's plans for UEFI
It even has... er... games
"We do plan on using it someday," he said, "but we’re not in a hurry. Currently, we aren’t seeing any huge improvements to end users [in implementing EFI].
"EFI’s major benefit is within its programming structure. It’s really good for the guys doing the designs, but to the end users everything that is available within EFI at this moment, we can do with Express Gate. We’ve been debating a GUI Bios for a long time, and we’ve done it before – currently it’s not that important to an end user, so we’ll focus on producing strong Bios."
Those are fair points, so we put a few questions to Richard Stewart, Marketing Manager at MSI UK. Yes, he admitted, at a simple level, EFI is just a 'pretty' Bios. "At this stage, the MSI Click Bios is just a tool to show what the future holds. As you click through it, you'll just notice all the 'legacy' menus and almost the same options but in a clickable format. You can, however, see new options such as language selection.
The Utilities section is more useful
"This is the next-generation Bios structure that moves away from the 25-year-old or more Assembly-based design into a new, very user friendly interface where you can even use a mouse. As development becomes more widespread we hope that within the UEFI framework we can activate the LAN (as an example), which would potentially mean the use of IM software, browsers, media players all available OS independent.
COMMENTS
@Leo Waldock
Wow... this is the first article on any Register site I've started but could not finish. By page 2 I had to quit reading and ask what you problem with command line interfaces are? Did a keyboard beat you up when you were younger? Did a tab key kill your dog?
The hatred that you showed for the traditional BIOS interface, keyboard input and not capitalizing BIOS (it is an initialism you know?) makes me wonder if you have enough years under your belt to speak on this kind of topic.
efiGL, efiIPv6, efiMobileIP, efiGPS
with support for pixel/vertex/whatever else shaders, with Clippy The EFI Assistant, with JavaEFI(TM) edition for 3rd party applets support, with EFI indexing service ("The one that is supposed to make finding [options in EFI BIOS] quicker, that is controlled by interaction with a cartoon dog that you thought you had turned off") and embedded audio/video player with DRM support for even richier, nicier, beefier luser sexperience...
Graphical system setup?
Hmm... OK, I'll admit that some of it was CLI (I.E. the *configure command), but not all of it. The system - the Acorn Archimedes.
Pulling the computer out of the 1980's indeed! Heh!
Killing independent mobo-manufacturers
"Bios and in comes UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) in its place."
Which just "happens" to be riddled with Intel & MS patents. How about killing competition in yet another sector?
It's totally irrelevant what's UEFI is at technical level, it's important who defines it (at will): Intel/MS. Easy way to kill indepedent mobo-manufacturers: You don't sell licence to them or ask a ridiculous price.
Yet another trick from dirty tricks department and most of the commenters buy it at face value. That's sad, tactics should be very easily seen with half brain.
It's all about money
"EFI’s major benefit is within its programming structure"
No, it's major benefit is money. For Intel, of course. I fail to see what are the benefits for MSI, unless Intel pays them to act as a sock puppet in this matter ... like some nice deep discount for bridge circuits, to a loyal customer, eh?
