Asus and Microsoft are making it official: Windows XP is coming soon to an Eee PC near you. Or rather, a preloaded version of Windows XP. Asus has been shipping Windows drivers and installation instructions since day one. But now the two companies plan to begin selling computers with XP already installed. This comes as a surprise to no one, but Blogeee appears to have received official confirmation.

While the Linux version of the Eee PC comes with OpenOffice.org for creating and editing office documents, Pidgin for chat, and Firefox for web browsing, the XP version will include Microsoft software like Internet Explorer, Windows Live Messenger, and Microsoft Works. That's right, MS Works, the forgotten cousin of MS Office that nobody likes, talks to, or will be seen near at parties.

It's not entirely clear from the article whether Asus will continue to ship units with Xandros Linux or what the addition of XP will do to the base price. But judging by the pictures Engadget has been snapping at CeBIT, it looks like Asus is committed to releasing new computers running both operating systems.

Update: Here's the official press release from Asus.