Atlanta

Microsoft Participates on Panel to Discuss CRM Best Practices

msatlanta — Wed, 08 May 2013 20:40:01 GMT

Next week, the Technology Association of Georgia is hosting a panel to discuss customer relationship management (CRM) best practices.

Michael Thomas, a CRM customer success manager at Microsoft, will be participating on the panel, and is well known within in the industry for his understanding of CRM and social CRM strategies. Other panelists include Aidoo Osei, Firethorn Mobile and Ken Wyckoff, Stratix.

Together, the panelists will provide audience members with an understanding of how CRM tools and strategies can streamline the lead generation and sales process. After attending the event, attendees will understand how to execute a CRM strategy, the best way to deploy the solution and how to choose the right fit and pricing levels.

The event is on Wednesday, May 15 from 7:30 – 9 a.m., located at Aixall Corporation (map).

Admission is free for members and $20 for non-members. Register to attend the event here.

Help us Celebrate Georgia STEM Day!

msatlanta — Thu, 02 May 2013 19:48:42 GMT

This Friday, Microsoft Atlanta is proud to sponsor the first annual Georgia STEM Day. TAG Education Collaborative, the Technology Association of Georgia’s charitable organization dedicated to preparing the next-generation workforce, has organized the first statewide celebration of science, technology, engineering and math education on May 3, 2013.

Governor Nathan Deal issued a proclamation that designated Georgia STEM Day with the purpose of promoting STEM education and careers to K-12 students to help Georgia meet the growing demands of an increasingly technical marketplace.

Microsoft is excited to continue spreading the awareness of STEM in conjunction with its YouthSpark program.

2013 Microsoft Imagine Cup U.S. Finalists Announced

msatlanta — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:32:27 GMT

The world’s coolest student technology competition just announced who is making it to the next round! Microsoft just unveiled the 10 teams who will compete in the 11^th annual Imagine Cup U.S. Finals Demo Day on May 13 in Silicon Valley.

Each of the top teams will pitch their business to investors, as well as members of the press and the startup community. Prizes will be presented to the best teams in the categories of Games, Innovation and World Citizenship.

The list of finalists include:

Lost Spectrum, University of Houston/ University of Texas

Chroma Tales: The team developed a fast-paced 2D action game on Windows Phone 8 where each level lasts approximately five seconds. Each player’s mission is to restore color to the world.

Kinect PT, University of Virginia

Vitrunetics: The team built an application that allows doctors to administer and receive real-time feedback on physical therapy exercises that are performed by patients at home using Microsoft’s Xbox with Kinect.

Team DePauwsome, DePauw University

WeAssist: The team developed a Windows Phone 8 app that allows a user to share their location and share a message in an emergency. WeAssist also has an optional location tracking service called WeFind, which runs in the background and uploads the user’s location history to the cloud.

Team SwagFace, Rice University

FaceFun: The team developed an innovative facial recognition game for Windows Phone 8, where players mimic amusing, famous and funny faces using their smartphone and win points.

Team Poli`ahu, University of Hawaii at Hilo

Help Me Help: The team developed an application that aides the community in times of need by utilizing the smartphone’s camera and location capabilities to get images and locations of hazards as they are introduced.

The Miracle Workers, Harvard University/ Winona State University

Cloud Monitor: The team developed a baby monitor app for Windows Phone 8 that tracks respiration, heartbeat and body movement of an infant. In case of an emergency, the application sends an alert to parents on their smartphone. Parents are also
able to check the live streaming of baby's vital signs in on their phone.

Gigaloth, University of Colorado

Produce Wars: The team developed an "Angry Birds" style physics game evolved with dynamic platform and puzzle elements for young children.

Project SAM, University of Chicago

Project SAM: The team developed a mobile application that streamlines a health clinic’s inventory and provides real-time updates to suppliers via text.

Pitch, Boston University

Pitch: Using Windows 8 and a Windows Azure backend server, the team created an account-less yet secure system for creating meetings, in which documents of any file type can be quickly and easily shared with all meeting members.

Skyline Studios, University of Houston

Zipline Hero: The team developed a puzzle-action platform game where the player uses the touch screen input to rescue animals.

The team that will represent the U.S. at the Worldwide finals in St. Petersburg, Russia July 8-11, will also be unveiled at the U.S. Finals.

Please continue to follow the U.S. Imagine Cup finalists via the official Facebook page, which will include live streaming throughout the competition.

YouthSpark Comes Alive in Atlanta

msatlanta — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:29:00 GMT

By: Marietta Davis, General Manager, Microsoft’s Greater Southeast District

Today, Microsoft Atlanta, along with Morehouse College, is hosting a YouthSpark Connections event in Atlanta. I am excited to take part in the conversation with prominent leaders from education, government and civic community to discuss new research by the Brookings Institution on the youth opportunity gap in Atlanta – and more importantly, what we can do about it.

The new Brookings research is arresting--one in four 16 to 24 year olds are not in school and have no more than a high school diploma. Of that group, nearly half are also unemployed – more than 80,000 young people in total.

With this research in mind, leaders from Microsoft and national non-profits such as Year Up and Youth Village, along with leaders from Georgia State Schools, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Atlanta City Council, will share ideas and provide examples about how they are addressing challenges facing Atlanta’s young people.

The findings show that we must expose young people to math, science, and technology to prepare them for the future and bridge this opportunity gap. To address this gap, we unveiled our YouthSpark initiative--a commitment to create 50 million opportunities for young people in the U.S. And I am even
more pleased to announce what this means for our community in particular:

Microsoft YouthSpark is a companywide initiative to create opportunities for 300 million youth worldwide, including 50 million young people in the United States
Microsoft donated more than $8.2 million in software and other donations in Atlanta in 2012
Also in 2012, Microsoft employees in Georgia volunteered 2,818 hours
In Atlanta, Microsoft has served 830 nonprofits with our programs
Microsoft’s YouthSpark partners in Georgia include:
- Boys and Girls Club of America
- Year Up
- Youth Village
- Toys for Tots
- North Fulton Community Charities Food Drive

And we’re not done there. Today we announced a new education alliance agreement with Morehouse College. This alliance will give Morehouse students access to new technology, mentorship, career opportunities, and new experiences, ones they cannot get in the classroom.

In addition to this new alliance, we unveiled a $7.5 million donation in software and technology to Youth Villages, one of the leading non-profits focused on bettering the lives of foster children. With a major campus in the Atlanta area, and others in North Carolina, New Mexico, Oregon, Massachusetts, and West Virginia, Youth Villages is uniquely positioned to help foster children get the technology training they need to be successful in school and in the job market.

I look forward to hearing what our panel shares about their experiences with the youth opportunity divide and the strides we all are making to bridge the gap. For the YouthSpark panel discussion, we will be hosting:

Lenny Springs, US Department of Education, Senior Advisor, Federal Student Aid
Dr. John Barge, Georgia State School Superintendent
Wes Moore, Youth Advocate and Author
LaDarrius White, Morehouse College, Senior
Lindsey Craft, Strategic Accounts Manager, Microsoft Education

Through my work as a board member on several youth and educational nonprofit organizations in the Atlanta area, I have witnessed firsthand the impact these programs have on our children. There are so many amazing organizations and tools for students to be a part of. You can learn more and get involved here.

Can’t make it to the ballpark to see the Braves? Download the MLB.TV app on Windows 8

msatlanta — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:21:33 GMT

Grilled hot dogs, the smell of fresh roasted peanuts, and that glorious crack of a Louisville slugger hitting the ball out of the park- baseball season is upon us! Between work and busy schedules, it’s not always easy to make it to the ballpark to relish the baseball experience. Never fear, Microsoft has you covered with the new MLB.TV app, which is now available on Windows 8.

With MLB.TV on Windows 8, MLB.TV Premium subscribers have access to every out-of-market MLB game LIVE or on demand in HD. Subscribers can watch either the home or away broadcast feed as well as several different audio-only streams of games. You can view player stats and match-ups from MLB.com and get the latest scores from games delivered right to your Start screen via live tile! Not an MLB.TV Premium subscriber? Don’t worry, you can still enjoy all the latest game scores and watch the MLB.TV Free Game of the Day.

Be sure to download MLB.TV on Windows 8 today from the Windows Store today!

Freeing your files means freeing yourself

msatlanta — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:54:11 GMT

We’ve all thought it – “I could be so much more productive if I were (insert cool place i.e., local coffee shop, mall, park bench, my living room in fuzzy slippers) instead of handcuffed to my desk or in the midst of yet another meeting.”

Fret not. Microsoft has an app for that, and it’s in the new Office. It’s called Skydrive, this pretty cool video tells you all you need to know. Even better, it’s all free for students for an entire 3 months using SkyDrive.

SkyDrive allows you to work with others across platforms, devices, and Office versions to write papers, prepare presentations, create spreadsheets, and take notes. Multiple people in different places can work on the same document, at the same time. Share only what you want and set the rest to remain private.

SkyDrive is perfect for working together with classmates, co-workers and friends. Just visit SkyDrive.com to share any file with anyone you choose. Your friends can use free Office Web Apps to view the document and make quick edits—even if they don’t have Office installed.

And best yet, gone are the days of unformatted bullets and mixed up fonts. Office Web Apps are designed to preserve your document’s formatting, which means your friends will be able to view the work you share just the way you intended. They’ll also be able to make changes without messing up the overall look.

Download Office 365 and SkyDrive today. Spring is here. Free yourself.

Software price looks too good to be true? It probably is

msatlanta — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 15:36:54 GMT

“I hate finding good deals,” – said No One Ever. Even if the bargain-priced shirt has loose stitch, or the recently-reduced loaf of bread is near the end of its prime, you’re saving money, and who doesn’t love saving a buck or two? Of course, some products are safe bets for a bargain basement deal, but software for your PC isn’t one of them. Illegal software may save you money at purchase, but it exposes everything on your computer to cyber-threats like identity theft, data loss and system crashes.

To learn more about software piracy, Microsoft and IDC recently surveyed more than 2,000 consumers and found that people will waste $22 billion and 1.5 billion hours dealing with security issues from counterfeit software in 2013. Also, 1 in 3 PCs with counterfeit software will be infected by malware in 2013. Think of what’s housed on your computer and what could potentially be stolen: personal photos and videos, confidential documents and passwords – all of that information and more is potentially up for grabs when you install pirated software.

So how can you tell if the software you purchase is legit or not? Microsoft’s www.howtotell.com website walks you through the indicators of properly licensed products including the correct labels, packaging, hardware embossing and more for both PCs and Xbox so you can buy with confidence.

Remember, if the software deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Keep your personal information and PC/home network safe by using genuine software products.

Win a Trip to the NCAA Finals by Demoing MSN for Windows 8

msatlanta — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 14:52:00 GMT

Live for NCAA basketball? Who doesn't! MSN for Windows 8, with its totally re-imaged interface, is the perfect resource for fans to stay up-to-date with the latest scores and schedules throughout the tournament season, without having to click through multiple websites.

If you haven’t tried MSN for Windows 8, take a break from March Madness and head to the Microsoft store in the Lenox Square Mall, where a retail store associate will guide you through the new interface including its interactive touch features and design elements. Visit a store before March 24 and you’ll receive a voucher for $25 off a purchase of $75 or more and have the chance to win a trip to the basketball championships in Atlanta this April. Not able to make it into the store? You can still enter for a chance to win here.

Whether you’re a sports fan or not, check out the new MSN to get the latest on the topics that interest you the most, including news, entertainment, money, sports, health, living and more. For more information on the new MSN for Windows 8 experience, visit http://allnew.msn.com.

Turn Big Data Into Big Insights

msatlanta — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:04:13 GMT

This is the ‘golden era’ of insight. The world holds twice as many bytes of data as there are liters in the ocean, and with the right technology tools, we are now able to replace hunches with insight and action.

Think comparing utility costs with meteorological data to spot trends and inefficiencies. Or compare ambulance GPS information with hospital records on patient outcomes to determine the correlation between response time and survival. This is all currently possible.

Big data isn’t new. But in the past, high costs and technology limitations have constrained access to data storage infrastructure and the tools needed to handle a large amount of data. This is finally starting to change, and with sensors, GPS devices, mobile phones, and social media data, we have a steady stream of data just waiting to be examined and used to help improve our lives.

The availability of tools to help organizations use information in new ways is expanding, and Microsoft is helping people harvest the enormous benefits of big data. This is where the potential for true innovation lies.

Learn more about the big data explosion and how it’s changing the world around us here.

Surface Windows 8 Pro: see more, share more and do more

msatlanta — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 14:53:00 GMT

Have you checked out the Surface Pro yet? Now’s a great time to do so, with reporters and tech elites giving it high praise.

In a nutshell, Surface Pro is a beautiful, powerful device that is simplifying how we do things. With this device, there’s no need to choose between a tablet and a PC.

Test out the Surface Profor yourself! Visit your local Microsoft Store in Atlanta for a demo or click here to learn more about the features and benefits.