If you are using the Smart Device Framework in your software then why not take up Neil’s offer of free publicity in an upcoming webcast.
Chris and Neil will be giving a webcast next Wednesday, and you can submit your Logo or Screenshots of your app to Neil for a quick showcase of all the cool things people are doing with OpenNETCF code. Full details here:-
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032254427&Culture=en-US
Chris has announced our Coding Competition on his blog. This is a chance to win some cool prizes including a Smartphone Dev Kit, Visual Studio, Pocket PC, Compact Framework books and more!
Looking forward to seeing the cool entries we are anticipating!
This months chat with the Visual Studio for Devices team is due to start in just under half an hour, logon here and bring your tricky questions for the product team members.
Full details along with other online chats are listed at MSDN.
Its been a few days since Tech Ed in Amsterdam finished, and I’d intended to post a few of the highlights from the conference:-
Keynote
During the Keynote every delegate was given a handmade drum and encouraged to play along. This was certainly the most unusual conference idea I’ve ever witnessed. James Pratt and Steve Lombardi graced the stage in Smartphone and Pocket PC costumes to give their demonstration, hats off for them to be able to write and run code with their arms in a polystyrene suit!
Visual Studio now has a new tier of products. The Express lineup represents the entry level products for individual languages (C#, VB.NET, C++) and Web Developer. Also Sql Server Express replaces MSDE as a free database engine based on the Sql Server engine. These products are aimed at learners, hobbyists and academics who want a quick and simple tool to get started with learning managed development, and provide a stepping stone up to more full featured products. The Express products won’t include the ability to developer with the Compact Framework (See a feature comparison here – http://lab.msdn.microsoft.com/vs2005/productinfo/productline/default.aspx)
Mappoint
Mappoint Location Server which was presented at MDC in San Francisco eariler in the year has been released in Europe. There are a couple of plugins for european operators including O2, with more hoped to follow in due course. Also the Mappoint web service will be getting a couple more mapping providers soon to add coverage for Greece and Australia. Steve Lombardi also indicated that they were looking to increase coverage in Asia and Eastern Europe. Another feature which will be added to Mappoint at some time in a future release is the ability to plot walking directions (currently the system plots routes based on driving), this means it will plot routes that can go the wrong way down one-way roads and take shortcuts through parks etc.
Windows Mobile
Neil Enns gave a great talk on POOM which revealed some of the features due in the next version of Windows Mobile to the COM object model. Neil even had handouts printed with the API showing these new interfaces. Probably the most important feature described was the ability to add custom fields right into the POOM store.
Robert Levy demonstrated separately some code using the Managed POOM APIs which will be in the future platform. This includes the functionality we know and love from POOM along with the ability to send Email and SMS messages. Along with managed POOM there will be managed APIs for Telephony, Configuration and Camera.
Ask The Experts
We got a number of comments on the Tablet PC booth that there wasn’t an area for Windows Mobile or .NETCF developer questions. This was a shame considering the conference included an MDC strand. We actually had the biggest Ask The Experts booth for Tablet PC, but there were no other mobility topics covered. The only Smart Device was a 10ft long radio controlled airship teathered to the Visual Studio booth, which I thought was really cool π
Windows Mobile Pavillion
On the Windows Mobile pavillion there were a number of interesting devices on show. Sprint were showing the Voq and its associated developer kit. Orange had a couple of C500 devices, which are incredibly small and include Bluetooth and a camera and are running Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition. Motorola had both the MPx220 smartphone, which has a 1.3 megapixel camera with flash and Bluetooth, and the MPx device which is a Pocket PC Phone Edition which can be opened in both portrait and landscape orientations. This is an incredibly versatile device which is much smaller in real life than you might imagine, however more bulky than a smartphone device. Tom Tom were demonstrating the Smartphone version of their Navigator product which is due for release in September. There will be an update to the SDK to add support for this version. Details on functionality have not be released yet and the device at the show was running a rolling demo, not a working version.
Bags and Goodies
The conference bag was gigantic, a bright orange PVC affair which made delegates look like paper-boys. Thankfully during the keynote we were given instructions on how to wear the bag, given as a spoof of an airplane safety announcment. Now that electronic copies of all the slides, demos, sdks etc are readily available I wonder why it is necessary to carry quite that weight of stuff around. Personally I’d rather have a few DVD-ROMs with all of the content on. However I thought including the Compact Framework pocket guide was a really neat way of introducing delegates to managed development for devices.
Venue and Transport
The venue was enormous and one of these exhibition centres which is like a maze inside. Mind you there are some advantages in getting lost in some of the quieter areas, there is generally more snack food left! Transport to and from Schipol airport was provided for all attendees along with a travel pass for the entire week for all delegates. This allowed unlimited use of the metro, tram and bus system around Amsterdam.
I’ve been invited to help out on the Tablet PC Ask-The-Experts booth at Tech-Ed Europe. This promises to be a pretty cool conference with some great mobility content. I’m definately looking forward to it!
In the last couple of weeks I’ve been down to Microsoft’s UK headquarters in Reading as a member of the judging panel for this interesting Tablet PC competition.
Entrants were given the ability to purchase a subsidised Tablet PC and develop an application which they felt was perfect for the Tablet PC platform. The first week we looked over many entries aimed at a whole range of vertical markets, this was reduced to a shortlist of 10 entrants who came in this week to give a short presentation to the panel and get a chance to explain their projects in more detail and demonstrate some of the Tablet PC specific features.
There can be only one winner of course, they will receive the chance to travel to Microsoft’s HQ in Redmond and meet with the Tablet PC team. I can’t tell you who that is yet as it will be announced at the Tablet PC event in Heathrow next Tuesday. It was a really interesting experience to see the range of things people are planning to use Tablet applications for.
I intended to post this slightly more in advance but have been travelling around all this week, please excuse me π
Chat Date: June 10th
10:00am – 11:00am Pacific Time
1:00pm – 2:00pm P.M. Eastern time
17:00 – 18:00 GMT/BST
Description: You know them from the newsgroups! You love them for their
immense knowledge! Please join these amazing Microsoft MVPs in this live
chat regarding the .NET Compact Framework and the Smart Device Programming
features of VS.NET. The .NET Compact Framework is a subset of the .NET
Framework designed to allow .NET developer to target smart devices. The
Smart Device Programming features of VS.NET allow embedded developers to
target devices running the Compact Framework.
To join this chat, please visit:
http://communities2.microsoft.com/home/chatroom.aspx?siteid=34000070
Coming up tomorrow, the latest MSDN web chat with the .NETCF and Visual Studio for Devices team. Below are the details from MSDN:-
Smart Device Programming with Visual Studio .NET 2003
So what’s that ‘Smart Device Application’ project type is all about? Please join the members of the .NET Compact Framework and Visual Studio product groups in this live chat regarding the .NET Compact Framework and the Smart Device Programming features of VS.NET. Please come prepared to ask the tough questions!
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James Pratt (Mobile Devices team) will be hosting a developer chat later today covering all aspects of development for Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition. Full description below:-
Mobile Devices Developer web chat
Are you developing applications for Pocket PCs or Smartphones? Have questions about how to code for mobile devices? Come get the answers from Microsoft!
April 27, 2004
3:00 – 4:00 P.M. Pacific time
6:00 – 7:00 P.M. Eastern time
22:00 – 23:00 GMT
Add to Outlook CalendarTell a FriendSo its been two weeks since MDC in San Francisco, in which time I’ve been back to the UK and then out to Seattle for the MVP summit. Today the article I wrote summarising the event has gone live on Pocket PC Thoughts and you can view it here:-
http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/articles.php?action=expand,26374
Its difficult to cover everything because there were multiple tracks running simultaneously and I also spent some time helping out in the Hands-On labs and Ask the Experts area. However hopefully I’ve managed to cover all the major points raised at the event, though of course I’d love to hear your feedback!
In The Hand Ltd 