Entries tagged 'windows-phone-7'
Three employee-created Windows Phone apps to check out
It’s awards season in the worlds of cinema and music, but what about in the world of geeks? Not to be outdone by Oscar and Grammy—and always stalking the latest celebrities around Microsoft, the JobsBlog crew tracked down three real award winners … the champs of Windows Phone’s employee-only application building content. We asked about the inspiration behind their winning masterpieces.
The trophy: Best appAnd the award goes to: Nikolai Faaland, Sr. Software Engineer, Bing Mobile
The app: Draw!, which includes a rich feature set that allows for finger drawing, special effects, and loading images from the phone or the camera
The inspiration: “I don’t typically write a lot of code on my own time.There’s a lot more to my life than code and work, so when I do it, there’s usually some specific thing in my own life that I want to accomplish.
Draw! started as an app for the Zune HD, because at the time the Zune didn’t have a drawing app and I wanted one just to entertain my kids. When Windows Phone 7 came out and I saw that I could use C# and Silverlight, I thought ‘that’ll be fun’ and so started working on it.
It’s still really for my kids. They’re the ones that asked for all the features and found all the bugs, and my big ‘yeah that was worth it’ moment came from my daughter taking the final version and playing quietly on the couch with it for an hour, running up to me now and again and happily showing me what she had done. That’s my inspiration.”Massive Microsoft Store opens in Seattle-area
Crowds packed Bellevue Square mall this morning as the seventh Microsoft Store (and the first on the company’s home turf) officially opened its doors.
The first 1,000 people into the store received VIP tickets to a Miley Cyrus concert at the store on Saturday. The next 1,000 got two general admission tickets to the show.
And in a surprise move later in the day, Dave Matthews took the stage for a special acoustic performance.
Windows Phone 7's Wonder Woman: KC Lemson
‘Softie in question: KC LemsonJob title: Lead Program Manager – Windows Phone 7 (Photos & Camera)
Congratulations on the Windows Phone 7 launch. Let's go back to the beginning. Tell me about your first experience with technology and communications.
That’d be 1988 - when I got into BBSing. The technology was just a means to an end. As a twelve-year-old, I was simply into meeting new people and keeping in touch with friends.But, as I got more and more into BBSing, I started playing around with the technology to see how it all worked. I was still just having fun, but I was definitely on the forefront of something new. I mean, I met my first boyfriend on-line and let me just say that in 1992 on-line dating wasn’t exactly mainstream.
Did you go on to study computer science or communications?
Interns win top prize for Windows Phone 7 app
Among all sorts of other fun, games, learning, work and play, Microsoft's 2010 Interns had the opportunity to partake in a number of competitions. Entertainment & Devices hosted a competition that pitted the best and the brightest against each other to design the best new Windows Phone 7 app.The 1st place winning team created a new app for the Windows Phone called, "Headliner." Check out video highlights Headliner below and then read on to hear insights from the winning team of José Arriaga Maldonado, Roger Pincombe, Aaron Schultz and Chris Cortes - in their own words.
Gizmodo on Windows Phone 7, Kin & Microsoft's role in cloud computing
While the iPhone 4 is grabbing headlines this week, reviews and commentary are less hyperventilating than for versions past. Major tech blog, Gizmodo, notes fierce competition including the coming strength of Windows Phone 7 and the "glimpse of the future" set forth by Microsoft's Kin phone.In its list of reasons NOT to buy an iPhone 4, Gizmodo says that Windows Phone 7 is "looking great." They go on to write, "Think about how you feel today, in terms of [iPhone] enthusiasm. Now try to imagine how you'll feel after... an entirely new OS—and accompanying, varied hardware—from Microsoft. Kind of tempers the magic, no?"
Regarding Microsoft's other mobile device, Kin, Gizmodo states that Kin users "glimpse the future of Microsoft, and without knowing it, the future of how we use gadgets." They argue that certain Kin features tell of Microsoft's advantage in cloud computing and explain, "Google, Apple and Microsoft are all run by people who understand, to varying degrees, that our data is moving online, and all of the companies want to be there when this finally happens, dutifully archiving, repurposing and serving all of your information. Microsoft is just two steps ahead."
Microsoft innovation back on top with Natal, Photosynth and more
Microsoft has ranked #1 in new technology patents for the third year in a row. Tech pundits, bloggers and Twitterers are abuzz with stories about how Microsoft is again leading the industry in innovation.Do you already know everything about Project Natal and the Cloud? Is Blaise Aguera y Arcas' jaw-dropping TED talk on augmented-reality Bing Maps and Photosynth last month's news?
Then check out some of the online chatter surrounding Window Phone 7 series handsets and Internet Explorer 9.