Windows Vista Team Blog : Windows Vista, .NET Framework 3.0

Small Software Developers: Get Flying with Windows Vista

James Senior — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 21:02:00 GMT

Project codename "Glidepath" is an Evangelism initiative targeted at helping MicroISVs get started and be successful with a focus on Windows Vista.

Project Glidepath includes a free software factory add-in for Visual Studio 2005 that delivers, via RSS, guidance, content, code samples, step-by-step instructions and even custom tools that help MicroISVs take full advantage of Windows Vista including .NET 3.0 (WPF, WCF, WF, and CardSpace) as well as many non-technical aspects of being a MicroISV.

Project Glidepath also features the Windows Vista Spotlight highlighting MicroISV applications available worldwide that are compatible with Windows Vista.

Full information plus community forums and a blog are available via www.projectglidepath.net

James’ Go Do: Create some of your own WOW!

Microsoft's Biggest Launch Ever Has Begun

Nick White — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 00:50:00 GMT

Today's multi-product launch has shaped up to the biggest ever in the history of Microsoft product launches. CEO Steve Ballmer appeared at NASDAQ headquarters in New York City to announce the Business Value Launch of Windows Vista, 2007 Office System and Exchange Server 2007 and we were able to experience the event first-hand.

Before the press conference, Steve Ballmer turned up at NASDAQ to "press the button" to open the day's trading on the exchange. Here are some shots of him as shown on the NASDAQ's huge display screen in Times Square in NYC.

At the press conference immediately following, Steve highlighted how Windows Vista, 2007 Office System and Exchange Server 2007 will help companies seeking to run "people-ready" businesses. With Windows Vista and 2007 Office System, users now have tools that will help them do their jobs more efficiently. In part, this means finding the right information at the right time -- usually right now. Further, both Windows Vista and 2007 Office System offer "live previews" of the potential changes a user could make to documents, spreadsheets and presentations so s/he can quickly tell whether a given change works for that document or not. In other words, no longer must you rely so extensively on the Undo function.

Rather than blow our own horn, we had customers tell the story at this event. For instance, Interknowlogy and the Scripps Research Institute talked about a new application they designed together that takes advantage of the .NET 3.0 Framework running on Windows Vista in conjunction with SharePoint 2007, in Scripps' efforts to detect and fight cancer. Their application literally allows you to drag a Word Document "onto" a hi-res graphic of a specific protein molecule, thereby combining the two documents and uploading them to SharePoint 2007. Anyone using the application can then browse to that protein molecule and see the associated Word document.

Now that businesses have access to Windows Vista and 2007 Office System, we've only just begun. I've said it before and I'll say it again: when it comes to the consumer market launch of these two products, stay on your toes and keep reading this blog, as we've got some amazing things in store for you between now and the end of January!

New York Times Reader Download Now Available to All

Nick White — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 22:57:00 GMT

As a follow-up to last week's post on the WinFX version of the New York Times Reader, I've learned that the link allowing access to non-MS and non-NYT emails addresses is finally live -- phew! Go here to see NYT's "First Look" page on the Reader, which will lead you to this page, where it's necessary to pre-register in order to gain access to the download. (Unless you're already an NYT subscriber, that is.)

Check out the New York Times Reader for Windows Vista

Nick White — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 13:47:00 GMT

You may have read about the Times Reader back in April when it was previewed at the American Society of Newspaper Editors convention. It’s now available for download to Windows Vista beta users! The Times Reader enhances the onscreen reading experience through Windows Presentation Foundation, Microsoft’s advanced display technology in Windows Vista. As readers change font or window size, the text dynamically redraws to optimize both readability and on-screen layout. With WPF, the Times Reader can completely replicate the "look" of the print version of the NY Times, including fonts, typeface and layout, much more closely than its Web site now does.

It’s very cool; here are some hi-res screen shots.