Stripped-down XP Heads for South America

Brazil is to be the next country where Microsoft launches its Windows XP Starter Edition software. The software giant has confirmed that the programme will be extended tomorrow to the South American country - which is a supported of open-source software.

XP Starter Edition is already offered in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand and is set to be launched in Russia and India later this year. It has a number of limitations over the full version of the software - among them a lower maximum screen resolution and limits on the number of programs which can be run at a time. It was launched in a bid to crack down on piracy and get more people using genuine versions of Windows.

At the moment, the software is not available off-the-shelf, but comes pre-installed on PCs. It has previously been reported that Brazil's government was looking for a wholesale move to Linux-based systems - but Microsoft said it was unaware of being out of the running for government contracts in the country.

View: Microsoft