Local news from Microsoft in Chicago

Microsoft Imagine Cup – Student Innovation in Chicago

mschicago — Fri, 10 May 2013 16:37:00 GMT

Once again, Microsoft's flagship student technology competition, Imagine Cup, is bringing together student innovators from around the world. And this year, Microsoft is re-imagining the competition to be a springboard for budding entrepreneurs as much as it is a student technology competition. The U.S. Imagine Cup Finals will be run as a Demo Day, where the top 10 U.S. teams will pitch their solutions to investors, entrepreneurs, and technology professionals for a chance to win cash prizes in the competition categories of Games, Innovation, and World Citizenship.

While studying abroad in Peru, team members of Project SAM from University of Chicago uncovered inefficiencies with foreign health clinics and decided to take matters into their own hands. Working together, Team Project SAM developed a mobile application that would streamline health clinic’s inventory and provide real-time updates to suppliers via text. The team garnered support from the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship, which is part of the university’s business school.

Leading up to this year’s U.S. Imagine Cup Finals Demo Day, Microsoft has hosted a set of programs to help student teams create successful businesses, including a virtual accelerator and a Startup Boot Camp in Silicon Valley.

During Demo Day, Microsoft will also unveil the U.S. National Team traveling to St. Petersburg, Russia, to represent the U.S. at the Worldwide Imagine Cup Finals on July 8-11.

The event will also be streamed live via: https://www.facebook.com/usimaginecup, so be sure to track Team ProjectSAM's progress throughout the Demo Day.

To learn more about the competition, please visit the official Imagine Cup website at: http://www.imaginecup.com or visit the virtual pressroom at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/events/imaginecup/Default.aspx.

2013 Microsoft Imagine Cup U.S. Finalists Announced

mschicago — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:36:39 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 teamsin the categories of Games, Innovation and World Citizenship.

The list of finalists include:

Project SAM, from the University of Chicago, who developed a mobile application on Windows Phone 8 that provides real-time health information to health clinics.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Can’t make it to the ballpark to see the Cubs and White Sox? Download the MLB.TV app on Windows 8

mschicago — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:19:03 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

mschicago — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:48:32 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.

Windows 8 App Can Personalize Your Ride

mschicago — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 18:56:00 GMT

By: Leilani Garrett, Collaboration Solutions Sales Specialist, Microsoft

There’s something incredible about getting a shiny new bike all tricked out just the way you want: a supple leather saddle, the perfect brass bell and a paint color that gleefully shouts your name.

Michael Salvatore, co-owner of Heritage Bicycles with his wife Melissa, launched his unique take on selling two-wheelers on Chicago’s north side a year ago. The store is part vintage coffee house and part bike shop. It offers custom bicycles crafted by local artisans. Shoppers choose from three classic styles complemented by a dizzying array of bells and whistles. It’s an exhilarating, albeit daunting process.

Enter Chris Kaufield, a Microsoft manager, coffee snob/bike geek, and inspired technology tinkerer. To make the process considerably less daunting, he built a simple yet powerful app using Windows 8, Microsoft’s reimagined operating system optimized for touch. Once developed, the app can be used across any Windows 8 device.

The sleek application gives shoppers a stunning preview of any bike they can imagine. It lets them pick from more than 250 paint options, dozens of leather saddles, fenders, hand grips and more. The bike’s frame, displayed on the brilliant touch screen, morphs with each swipe of a finger. Unable to decide between a banana seat and something more traditional? No problem. Swapping saddles, grips and colors is fast and fluid, simple and intuitive. The client’s dream bike comes to life on the screen, and a shiny take-away printout boosts anticipation.

Salvatore reports increased sales and enhanced customer satisfaction since deploying the app.

Excited, I decided to ditch my 12-year-old production bike and up my game. The new app made it easy and “Zora” is now parked in my garage.

Visit Heritage Bicycles to check out the app for yourself! Interested in writing a custom Windows app for your business? Get started here: http://www.windowsstore.com/

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

mschicago — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 15:46:31 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

mschicago — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 15:00:27 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 Oakbrook Center, 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

mschicago — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:07:39 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

mschicago — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 14:10:00 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 fact, check out why Chicago Sun-Times' Andy Ihnatko calls the Surface Pro “as powerful as a desktop and as ultraportable as an ultrabook.”

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 Pro for yourself! Visit your local Microsoft store in Oakbrook for a demo or click here to learn more about the features and benefits.

A Look Back: Microsoft Launches YouthSpark in Chicago

mschicago — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 19:40:00 GMT

The future for Chicago area youth got a bit brighter last week with the launch of Microsoft’s YouthSpark initiative. A packed room of local government, education, and non-profit leaders joined Microsoft executives to learn how YouthSpark, through new education and training programs, will create opportunities for youth in today’s economy.

The Brookings Institution shared some compelling and revealing data about the state of local youth education and employment. This data stated that job openings in the Chicago area demand higher levels of education than currently achieved by local youth. This led to a spirited panel discussion featuring speakers from the City of Chicago, Harold Washington College, City Year of Chicago, Brookings Institution and Microsoft. Each focused on solutions to bridge the current skills gap in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) industries, and each touched on how Microsoft’s YouthSpark program is an important local resource to prepare students for the future, gain the necessary skills and education, and secure long-term employment.

Be sure to check back for future blog posts on this topic, as well as examples of individuals who are being positively impacted by YouthSpark. We look forward to sharing their stories.