The new middleware control lets PC makers or consumers hide-but not remove-access to five Microsoft middleware programs: Internet Explorer,, Windows Messenger, Outlook Express and Microsoft's version of the Java Virtual machine. MusicMatch estimates that about 25 percent of its customers use Windows XP. The software is available from the company's Web site. MusicMatch, which makes programs for creating and organizing digital music, said version 7.2 of its software will work with the new middleware control. RealNetworks said an upcoming version of its RealOne media player will register with the middleware control, but existing versions will not. Microsoft does not have a tendency to contact us and tell us how to do things.' 'If we need to register (in Windows XP in) a new way, we will find out how to do that. 'We have to do some work,' Opera CEO Jon S. People who use the Opera browser also may have to wait for an update to that program to support the new middleware control. AOL Time Warner is currently testing and, both of which are expected to support the new middleware feature. Weinstein said consumers will have to wait for future releases of the company's software to use the middleware control. Other than that, he added, existing versions of AOL's software will work with Windows XP and Service Pack 1. That's largely because 'the software code (from Microsoft) was not made available to any software developer until a couple of months ago,' he said. And software makers, such as America Online, say that the only way to do that is either to update existing software or wait for their new releases.ĪOL's current software will not work with the new middleware control, company spokesman Andrew Weinstein said.

Developers of software programs for Windows XP must 'register' middleware with the updated OS to use the new middleware control, according to Microsoft. Consumers may find that the new middleware control has little effect on middleware already installed on their PCs, however.

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