Hasta La Gadget!

For the past couple of weeks, Microsoft has dominated headlines. First it was the launch of Windows 8 and Microsoft Surface on October 26, then it was the launch of Windows Phone 8 on October 29, all leading up to the kick off of Microsoft Build on October 30. For four days last week, Microsoft invited folks to check out everything the new Windows has to offer in all of its forms, and if you happened to miss some it, then you might like to know that Microsoft has posted all sorts of videos from Build 2012 online.

All of the videos can be found at Microsoft’s Channel 9 page. There you can watch videos from the first three days of the event (Microsoft says video from day four is coming soon), including the keynotes from the first two days. If you’re at a loss for a place to start, we’d recommend beginning with one of those videos. Steve Ballmer’s keynote address on day one sets the stage for the whole event as he revels in Windows 8′s early success – the new operating system sold 4 million copies in the weekend after it launched.

In all, there are 8 different videos to watch over at Channel 9. If you’d like, you can also download them directly from the site and keep them forever. As we stated above, videos from day four aren’t yet available, but considering how quickly Microsoft put up videos from the first three days, they should be coming shortly.

Now that the festivities have ended, Microsoft has its work cut out for it. Not only does it need to sell as many people as possible on Windows 8, but it also needs to do the same for Windows Phone 8. Getting Windows Phone 8 to catch on will be especially difficult given the immense popularity of both Android and (to a lesser extent) iOS. We’ll see if Microsoft and its partners can turn Windows Phone 8 into a success soon enough, but for now, we’ll just sit back and watch some of the sessions from Build 2012.

Microsoft Build 2012 videos now available online is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It happens all the time — someone misspoke. During an address at Build yesterday, a Microsoft employee told a crowd that the company has taken to calling its apps “Windows 8 Store Applications.” Turns out that’s not quite right — the proper terminology is the slightly more elegant “Windows Store apps,” as per a note from a Redmond spokesperson. So there you go. No more Metro, no more “Windows 8 Store applications” — just plain, old “Windows Store apps.”

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

Microsoft: we misspoke, actually, they’re ‘Windows Store apps’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 12:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While Steve Ballmer from Microsoft was up on stage sharing new details and talking about Windows 8 here in Seattle for their Build developers event, the folks from Twitter posted a quickie update on the status of an official Twitter app for Windows 8. With the new and beautiful OS available now, rest assured knowing that you’ll be Tweeting away with ease very soon.

Obviously a dedicated Twitter “App” for Windows 8 isn’t completely needed, but they offer dedicated apps for almost every other platform — so it only makes sense. Add in the fact that in just a few short days over 4 million people have already upgraded to Windows 8, now is the perfect time to develop a beautifully crafted new app that nicely sits on the side of Windows 8.

Aside from owning TweetDeck, the social network has never offered a dedicated Windows PC application, but that will finally be changing with Windows 8. Unfortunately we don’t know much at this point, with the social site bird lovers only stating that their new application for Windows 8 was being built and that we can expect them to share it with us in the “months ahead.”

It looks like we’ll still be waiting awhile. With Windows 8 being readily available today and updated to as we speak, I’m already wondering why they didn’t jump on a dedicated app sooner and have it ready at launch like many others. It’s worth noting that this official app is being built from the ground up, so you’ll be able to enjoy it on Windows 8 PC’s, as well as RT tablets and more. Stay tuned for more details from the Twittersphere!

Twitter outs official Windows 8 app coming in the “months ahead” is written by Cory Gunther & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

How amped is Microsoft to get developers into the Windows Phone 8 Store? The company announced today at Build that it’s lowering developer registration to $8 — that’s down from $99. Got to get in there quick, however — that price is only good for the next eight days. Seems to be some kind of theme here, no?

Update: Looks like the discount situation is a little more involved than just that. According to Microsoft, “You’ll be charged $99 USD or equivalent in your local currency, and we’ll refund the difference in the next 30 to 45 days.” Ninety-two percent discounts don’t just happen overnight, after all.

Filed under: Mobile, Microsoft

Microsoft drops Windows Phone Store developer registration to $8 for eight days originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There’s plenty of excitement surrounding the release of Windows 8 here at Build. The general consensus around the operating system, however, holds that the key to the OS’s success is all about the apps, and CEO Steve Ballmer had no shortage of news on that front. The green-polo-shirted exec made mention of an official tweet from Twitter, noting the service’s development plans for a Windows 8 app coming “in the months ahead.” Also on the slate is Dropbox — the popular storage service has an app “coming soon,” according to Microsoft’s own official blog. ESPN got a little face time at the event, showing off an app that’ll deliver news, scores and video to Windows 8 users. Paypal, meanwhile, took the opportunity to talk up an API that’ll bring its commerce services to Windows Store apps. More info on the new apps can be found in the source link below.

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

Microsoft talks up Dropbox, Twitter, ESPN and PayPal for Window 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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