Category: Microsoft

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Microsoft

WinRT, a replacement for Win32

Duct tape makes the world go 'round!Paul Thurrott: “Microsoft has an unfortunately inaccurate high-level diagram showing the relation between WinRT and the environments its replacing (which are shown as IE, Win32, and .NET). But the important thing to note is that there’s the NT kernel and then, right on top of it (like Win32) is WinRT. This WinRT has an application model and three boxes of capabilities that are expressed by APIs (Communications & Data, Graphics & Media, and Devices & Printing). “Above” WinRT is the two sets of presentation layer/programming language couples: XAML and various high level programming languages (C#, VB, and so on) and HTML/CSS and JavaScript, respectively. (DirectX is left out, but this sits on top of WinRT too.)”

In an earlier post, Windows 8 Speculation, I had diagrammed some options for WinRT. It looks like Microsoft went with the middle choice, making WinRT a peer to Win32. This is a very good thing.

Now I’m pretty excited to see what the API’s look like.

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Apple Design Microsoft Mobile

Is Microsoft the new DEC?

MSDN: “Apple sold 15 million iPads in the first nine months, while the Microsoft tablet has flailed around for a decade. Why? Because Apple realizes what Microsoft does not: the true laptop form factor is an entirely different device, not a smaller PC. It requires a completely different design approach, much closer to a phone than to a PC. I’m watching my 8-year-old daughter play with my father’s iPad as I write these words. She loves it, far more than her PC at home. I wouldn’t write a novel on one, but my daughter prefers it for kaleidoscope art and pony races. “Toys,” sneered one current Microsoft employee. That’s exactly what Ken Olsen used to say about PCs.”

Sneer all you want at that “Toy” iPad, it’s taken you to the woodshed and laid a whoopin’ on you.

Microsoft will recover, don’t write them off. There once was a company called Apple that lost its way, now look where they are.

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Business Microsoft

On Windows 8

Wired: “They were told that all their experience, all their knowledge and every program they have written in the past would be useless on Windows 8.”

I think there’s been a lot of undue FUD surrounding the little demo of the new Windows 8 shell Microsoft released. I saw the demo and my first reaction was, “Hey, they’re learning from their mobile experience.” Then I instantly thought, “Wait, is this a shell on top of a shell? Is this Microsoft Bob all over again? Reminds me of Active Desktop.” Yes, those thoughts crossed my mind. I hope this isn’t a shell on top of a shell. I hope they find a way, like Apple, to meld it into the desktop experience. I can’t imagine it would be a shell on a shell. That just doesn’t make a lick of sense and would be confusing to users. I say Microsoft will do the right thing and make it work for both novices and experts alike, it will be a part of the shell. Steven Sinofsky is a smart guy.

The other thing I call BS on is developers believing Microsoft is going to abandon .Net or FORCE them to create applications in HTML. Do you think Visio, Word, Excel, or even Visual Studio will be rewritten in HTML? I think not. I’ve heard Microsoft is making a push back into C and C++. Bravo. Embrace the computer I say. In the last 10 years Microsoft has made great strides on .Net, I can’t see them abandoning that. It’s basically a development path for the masses as well as a way for Professional Developers to accelerate time to market. Microsoft has always been very good about maintaining backward compatibility. I don’t think developers should worry too much.

I’d reserve judgement of Windows 8 until we see Release Candidate bits. If the new shell is still a shell within a shell, then I’d worry a bit.

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Microsoft

Windows Jumps the Shark

Within Windows: “In Windows 8, Ribbon usage is accelerating again, and Microsoft’s next major OS will include this UI in the most visible of all possible places, Windows Explorer. In early builds of Windows 8, this Ribbon UI is only half-finished and, frankly, of dubious value. In fact, based on the divergent ways in which various related UI elements are repeated around the window frame, we get the idea that the use of the Ribbon in Explorer is, in fact, quite controversial inside the halls of Microsoft’s Redmond campus.”

I honestly hope this is an April Fools joke, but somehow I don’t think it is. I’m one of those curmudgeons that thinks the Ribbon is hideous and one of the worst things Microsoft ever did to Office.

Good thing I like keyboard shortcuts.

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Microsoft

Microsoft’s Future

TECHi: “What we are left with is a company that has no concrete plans for competing in the mobile industry. Microsoft has a smartphone platform, but they have no way to connect it to a tablet or desktop computer. They also have no operating system that is capable of competing on a tablet device — trust me, Windows 7 isn’t the solution.”

Don’t write Microsoft off as dead just yet. They still have a solid foundation, in the Windows Kernel, on which to build, and their new mobile OS isn’t so bad. Remember, back before Apple bought NeXT everybody had written them off, 11 years later we were given the iPhone, not to mention iTunes, the iPod, and OS X.

They’re definitely down, but not out.

Categories
Microsoft Mobile

Microsoft won bidding war

Microsoft Cash Cow.Computer World: “IDG News Service – Nokia on Sunday hinted that Microsoft essentially won a bidding war against Google to supply software to the world’s largest handset maker and that the software giant agreed to pay “billions” of dollars for the privilege.”

That explains a lot.

I was preparing to write a post based on some tweets by Robert Scoble. I thought Nokia had kind of lost their minds based on those tweets. They definitely have the talent to make Android do what they want, it would take time to do it, but they could do it. If Microsoft is supplying them custom builds of Windows Phone that will take time as well.

Microsoft has essentially bought a hardware company to help push Windows Phone 7. Not bad, not bad at all. If this works, and Nokia can patch up the disaster this deal caused internally, it could help push Windows Phone into competition with the iPhone and Android.

It could happen.

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Microsoft

Windows Phone

Justin Williams: “Windows Phone 7 doesn’t inherit any of that legacy and really is a whole new experience. It’s so different, in fact, that it doesn’t feel like anything ‘Windows’ I’ve ever used before. Microsoft might have done themselves some
favors by giving it a whole new naming scheme away from the Windows brand.”

A wreathed gas lamp in the snow.A pretty fair review from a man that develops for Mac and iOS. As a developer it’s interesting to see how Justin feels about Visual Studio. It’s how I feel about Xcode. Xcode is super nice, but I just can’t get used to Interface Builder. He also had some words to share about his attempt at Android development, not stellar, but I wouldn’t expect that from someone that’s used to using great tools to do their job. Both Microsoft and Apple provide superior development tools. Android is going to be a bit more work, more hackerish.

On Android: “Truth be told, I had fun with the Windows Phone SDK. Whereas the Android tools and APIs frustrated me to no end, I had little trouble picking up Windows Phone and translating many of the paradigms and lessons I’ve learned on the Apple platform to Microsoft’s.”

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Microsoft Mobile

Windows Phone 7, new direction?

Hello Kin!CNN Money: “As a result, Microsoft opted to scrap its mobile operating system entirely, giving it a new name, a unique look and some compelling features that differentiate it from the competition.”

Good luck.

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Business Microsoft

If you can’t be ’em, sue ’em

AHHHHHH!Wired: “On Friday, Microsoft joined the ring, with a suit leveled at Motorola’s Android-based smart phones, filed in the International Trade Commission and the federal court in the Western District of Washington. The suit charges Motorola with infringing on its patents related to “synchronizing email, calendars and contacts, scheduling meetings, and notifying applications of changes in signal strength and battery power.” (See the statement from Microsoft’s in-house IP lawyer Horacio Gutierrez below.)”

Categories
Apple Microsoft

iPhone Funeral

Daring Fireball: “Microsoft has never been cool, has never had good taste, but their lack of cool and lack of taste are spiraling out of control.”

I’m not exactly sure why Microsoft would target the iPhone? Apple has, what, 6% of the mobile market? They’re also limited to AT&T as a carrier.

John is right, the bigger threat is Android with all the OEM deals. Actually, the biggest threat of all is Microsoft. They haven’t exactly done so well in the mobile market lately. Hopefully they don’t pull another KIN.