CEDIA Marks General Availability of Lifeware Media Center Edition, Preview of New High-End Control Products From Exceptional Innovation.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The 2005 CEDIA Expo marks the general availability of Lifeware: Media Center Edition, the much-anticipated home control solution that merges control of lighting, audio, climate, camera and security systems into the same Media Center experience as digital music, television, movies, pictures and more.

"When we talk about a 'digital lifestyle,' we are talking about a comprehensive experience -- one that gives you control of all of your digital media and your home systems in a direct, consistent way from anywhere on a home network," said Seale Moorer, founder of Exceptional Innovation. "It shouldn't be limited by the brand of control system you have or the type of display. It should just work, and the only way to make it work is with a deep commitment to standards-based technology."

With Lifeware, integrators finally have a solution that allows them to offer more options to their customers. Lifeware currently controls systems by companies such as Act, Aprilaire, Axis, DSC, GE, Global Cache, Honeywell, Intermatic, LiteTouch, Lutron, MechoShade, Netstreams, OnQ, Panasonic, RCS, Russound, Techniku, Vantage, Vaux and Z-wave products, with more on the way.

"Lifeware is leading the way in delivering Microsoft's vision of devices, PCs and Internet services communicating together over the network," said Harish Naidu, general manager of Windows Networking at Microsoft Corp. "Exceptional Innovation is a strategic partner and trailblazer in bringing Web Services-enabled products to the market, and we are pleased with the innovative solutions it offers our customers."

The key to Lifeware's flexibility is its use of Web Services, a worldwide-standard technology that is quickly dominating the computing landscape. By implementing Web Services on Devices, Lifeware makes the integration of disparate systems, as well as the interaction between software and devices, swift and direct.

"Because we can expose products to our software as Web Services, we can quickly and easily integrate and control them," said Eric Eichensehr, Exceptional Innovation co-founder and head of development. "We support the adoption of Web Services in as many ways as we can because they are the key to taking all of these great products that are out there and bringing them together in a Lifeware network to create a tremendous user experience."

To further the standards-based vision of digital living, Exceptional Innovation will preview LifeLink at CEDIA -- a Web Service on Devices enabling module that can be added to a vendor's control system to make it instantly appear as a standard Web Service Device. The innovative product is intended to speed the adoption of Web Services on Devices, and is available as an external dongle, as an embedded chipset, or as a software-only package integrated directly on to the vendor's board.

Exceptional Innovation will also preview two new high-end control products at CEDIA:

LifeController is a dedicated system controller preloaded with Life/ware software and the Microsoft Windows XP Embedded Operating System. A robust, powerful in-home server designed specifically for appliance-like "always-on" functionality, LifeController will come in both structured cable box and AV rack-mount form factors in order to fit a variety of environments.

LifeTouch is a family of all-digital, high-definition, full-function touch screens for use in Lifeware-equipped home control networks. Available in 8.9- and 12.1-inch models, these low-profile touch screens fill an important niche for a high-definition, in-wall touch panel to manage a digital home. The screens run Windows XP Embedded and feature a 2GHz Intel Premium M processor, 1Gigabyte DDR RAM and a 40 Gigabyte, 7200 RPM industrial-grade hard-drive.

Residential Electronics Professionals can experience the Lifeware solution at Exceptional Innovation's CEDIA booth (2006-Sagamore Ballroom) or in Introduction to Lifeware training sessions set for September 9 and 10.

Images of Exceptional Innovation products are available at http://www.exceptionalinnovation.com.

About Exceptional Innovation

Based in Columbus, Ohio, Exceptional Innovation is led by software industry professionals with extensive experience with distributed computing based on open standards and open architecture. Exceptional Innovation combines Microsoft development expertise with years of home automation experience to deliver simple, seamless, life-enhancing solutions for the digital home.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Where Lifeware appears with a forward slash, the forward slash should be a pipe symbol.