Asus appears to have launched its new software download center for Eee PC users. The site has over 3,400 free Liinux applications including games, media players, and office applications. There’s just one problem. There doesn’t appear to be any easy way to install these programs on a current generation Eee PC.

Each program has a handy little “install” button next to it. But what happens when you click install is your computer attempts to download a file with a CNR extension. CNR stands for “click n run,” and it’s a file type designed for the Linspire Linux operating system. The idea is that you can click a file on a web page to download and install applications in Linux just as easily as you would in Windows. No need to type anything into a command line (or fire up a separate application like Synaptic).

But right now, Xandros doesn’t support CNR. And if you’ve got an Eee PC running Linux, it’s runnning Xandros (unless you installed your favorite Linux distro all by your lonesome). So what gives? Well, Xandros bought Linspire a little while back, so it’s possible that future versions of the Xandros OS will support CNR. And it’s possible that a software update could be pushed out to Xandros and Eee PC users fairly soon that will let them take advantage of the Eee PC Download center. But I have no idea why the site went live a few days ago when it’s pretty much  useless at the moment.

[via Engadget and EeeUser Forums]

Acer, Asus, and MSI may have been busy making headlines this week, but not everything is about hardware. Microsoft and Xandros both made moves this week that could have a major impact on the low cost ultraportable laptop market:

• Microsoft softens its stance on Windows XP for low cost computers: While Microsoft may have stopped selling Windows XP directly to consumers on June 30th, there are still a few ways to get the operating system. You can buy a pricey new computer with Windows Vista or Business and pay for downgrade rights. Or you can pick up a cheap laptop. Vista doesn’t run that well on machines with tiny hard drives (or solid state disks) and little RAM. So Microsoft is keeping XP alive for a few more years for companies like Asus and MSI to install on tiny laptops. This week Microsoft eased its definition of low-cost computers a bit, so now computer makers can install XP on systems with 14 inch monitors or 160GB hard drives.
• Xandros buys Linspire: In other operating system news, Xandros, makers of the Linux-based operating system that Asus uses on the Eee PC (although Asus customizes the heck out of it), has purchased Linspire, the company formerly known as Lindows. While Linspire never really caught on as the Windows XP-replacement it aimed to be, the software is easy to use and includes the ability to run many Windows applications out of the box. Perhaps future Eee PC models will take advantage of some of the better features of Linspire.