June, 2011

The U.S. Kodu Cup surprised us. As Brad Gibson, a senior program manager with Microsoft Research observed:

“These kids, frankly, did things in Kodu that I hadn’t thought of before. Kids had zombies and fantasy worlds, monsters and infective diseases, mythical heroes – there was just this incredible variety. On one hand you say, ‘Hey, they’re kids, you expect a lot of imagination.’ But when you see the depth of gameplay and the richness of the stories they created, I think many of these kids could be on their way to being world-class game designers.”

So without any further ado, onto the winners.

Grand Prize Winner (9-12 year olds category) - Hannah Wyman

Hannah is 10 years old and lives in Leominster, Massachusetts. Her game is called Toxic, and players collect coins and hearts while solving puzzles to help save the environment. In Hannah’s own words: “My game is about how the environment is getting polluted, and we need to help shut the factories down and cause less pollution.

First Prize Winner (13-17 year olds category) - Jacen Sherman

Jacen is 15 years old and lives in Silver Spring, Maryland. His game is called The Vortex. It’s a beautiful looking game which opens with the world under nuclear attack. While humanity has found a way to “upload” itself to a virtual world and launch into space to avoid extinction, one of the creators of this virtual world wasn’t able to make it into the virtual world on time. Out of anger, she unleashed a virus – Vira X – which the player must defeat. Jacen was inspired both by the programming experience, and by the movie Tron.

First Prize Winner (9-12 year olds category) - David Gardiner

David is 9 years old and lives in Leominster, Massachusetts - clearly a future hotbed of games development! David, draws comics about aliens and he took part in the competition following encouragement from his teacher. His game is called Alien Attack where the Galactaliens are trying to take over the world and you have to stop them.  It is a delightfully whimsical world with fish swimming in a bowl-less pond, flowers growing in strange places and enemies, and submarines bobbing in what looks like a floating island of lava.

The grand prize winner receives $5,000 for themselves and their respective school, as well as a trip to the Microsoft Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals in New York. The Imagine Cup is a global technology competition for students in over 100 countries. The grand prize winner also wins a Toshiba Windows laptop, Microsoft Office Professional 2010 and an Xbox 360 console with a Kinect sensor.

The first prize winners receive a Toshiba Windows laptop with Microsoft Office Home & Student.

Kodu Judging

The consensus among the members of our judging committee was that the creativity demonstrated by all the entries in this first U.S. Kodu Cup competition was outstanding. When you combine that creativity with the hard work and dedication evidenced in all the submitted games, choosing the winners was a very difficult process.

On behalf of all the judges we’d like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate everyone who took part in the competition. Well done!

You can read more about the winners on the Microsoft News Center.

More information on Kodu and STEM education

A note on sensible, safer gaming.

Microsoft is committed to helping families enjoy video games and online media in ways that are safer, healthier and more balanced. As part of this commitment we have created Get Game Smart.

GetGameSmart.com brings the most current parental controls tools, expert tips and resources together online, including the latest information on updated Xbox 360 Family Settings. This website offers a variety of resources in one place where parents and caregivers can find valuable information to make educated decisions about balanced media use. The site helps parents and kids to work together on fun activities and quizzes that will improve their knowledge about gaming and online safety, and help them create household agreements for media use ...along with easy ways to enforce them! GetGameSmart.com also provides tips and information from the nation's leading experts and organizations, and features its own blog to provide families with up-to-date information on the latest video game and Internet safety topics. The Get Game Smart program is a new approach to helping parents and their children get on the same page about making smart media choices.

Microsoft is proud to have led the effort to create and build in safety measures that enable parents to choose the right games, content and online access settings for their families. Xbox was the first video game and entertainment system on the market with built-in parental control systems. Virtually all of Microsoft's consumer products- Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE, Windows 7, Zune and MSN/Windows Live - feature family safety features.

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By William Jansen, CSS Community Program Manager, EMEA, Microsoft

In 2008, Freena Eijffinger’s brother was diagnosed with Asperger’s Disorder, a form of autism. It had taken more than seven years for the doctors to diagnose him, and that left Freena curious as to why it had taken so long. She did a bit of research and discovered that all diagnostics were still being carried out manually and without any computerization. This was mainly because regular vertical monitors interfere with direct communication, and the limited motor skills of Asperger sufferers make the computer mouse a poor tool for any diagnostic activities. When she first became acquainted with the Surface technology, which requires neither a monitor nor a mouse, she knew exactly what she had to do—raise funds to develop software on the Surface platform to change the lives of children with autism worldwide.

Her Surface activities soon got the attention of Microsoft Netherlands, who named her a “Surface-evangelist.” Freena has since been a frequently invited speaker at conferences such as DevDays, TechEd EMEA, DotNed, HealthValley, TEDxWomen, and CodeCamp as well as at other industry-specific healthcare and educational conventions. Together with Dennis Vroegop she taught Surface development at a university college in the Netherlands.

In early 2010 Freena entered a program for entrepreneurs sponsored by the Dutch government and TNO – The leading independent research organization in the Netherlands, known as SBIR (Small Business Innovation & Research). She was awarded €25,000 to do an attainability analysis and to develop four demo-applications that could be used to prove the value of her project to the autism branch of healthcare. When the Microsoft Surface team heard about her project, they donated a Surface developer unit. Following a review of the results from Freena’s research, TNO invested an additional €300,000 in her and her company Autitouch to develop applications to support diagnostics and treatment of autism worldwide.

In 2009, Dennis Vroegop, a Microsoft Surface Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and DotNed chairman, learned of Freena’s progress with Surface as well as her thoughts on its possible applications, and he asked to lend a hand.

“Developing for Surface is just like any other piece of software,” according to Dennis. “You have to have a design, skilled developers and designers, and of course a lot of passion.” Building on Freena’s design, Dennis drew up the functional specifications for the Surface applications. “When that was done, we set up a Team Foundation Server to hold all the project resources and then started working on the actual software,” Dennis added. (Pictured above left: Dennis Vroegop, Surface MVP from the Netherlands, and Freena Eiffinger, CEO of Autitouch)

The actual development has been completed in about 150 hoursand the applications will be released later this month, then a six-month scientific research project will begin in collaboration with the psychology department of the VU University Amsterdam for validation. A group of 60 kids – 30 diagnosed with autism and 30 without autism – will be tested using the applications. The goal is to show that with the help of the Autitouch applications, pre-diagnostics can be made possible, which will considerably shorten the diagnosis time for children with disorders such as autism. Other benefits will be improved and faster data mining and reporting, better quality observation and increased objectivity on the part of the diagnosing professional. All data will be unlocked through Microsoft’s Azure platform and Microsoft HealthVault, enabling autism experts around the world to gain better insight into autism as a disorder.

During the validation phase, experts will start to test the systems functionality and ease of use. So far the trial runs have gone extremely well-the patients have responded very well to the system.

We are extremely positive about the rest of the project. When the validation is done and we are ready to deliver to the actual intended users we won't sit back and relax: there is so much more to be done in this field and we're looking forward to the next phases!

For more information on Autitouch – visit www.autitouch.com

For more information on Microsoft’s Citizenship effort please visit: Microsoft.com/Citizenship

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Jean-Philippe Courtois, President, Microsoft International

Storytelling is a time-honored tradition in communities and cultures around the globe. However in today’s world, getting the best stories to break through the “noise” can sometimes be a challenge, considering all the digital means we now have to share information.

In my job, I come across great stories all the time as I travel to roughly 40 countries a year and meet our customers, partners and all the people whose lives are impacted by our technology. I am always very encouraged to see the positive impact technology is having in these communities, and am constantly looking for ways to spread the word on these great stories.

That is one of the reasons I am very proud to blog about our Local Impact Map.  It’s an online application that brings these stories to life, and shows how technology is making a difference in communities everywhere.  It uses the latest Bing Maps technology to enable you to navigate the globe in seconds and find local stories that might be of interest to you. We now have catalogued 1,400 stories from more than 100 countries on the map. To celebrate the launch of the new version of the Local Impact Map, I would like to share three great stories with you: 

Story #1: A program in Africa helps young women gain IT skills through mentoring and local community support to complete their educational journey. In partnership with Microsoft, the Global Give Back Circle implemented IT Labs to assist these girls with valuable programming, web design, and productivity tools such as Office. Read more about this inspiring program.

Story #2: Parents want their children to use computers for all of the amazing learning opportunities that technology can enable, but want to ensure that their kids stay safe online. In Japan, we worked with a nonprofit organization to host an after-school club for the youth in the community, and help them learn about computer safety through games. Check out the story.

Story #3: In Russia, our employees came together to volunteer their time and provide assistance for a local boarding school for blind children. The team provided new hardware for a computer lab and training for the teachers. This is one of the many examples showcasing our employees giving back to our neighbors around the world.

As you explore the Local Impact Map, what is your favorite story and what inspires you?

Please share with us below in the comments, on Twitter, or post it on our Facebook wall. We look forward to hearing how you tell the story. 

 Jean-Philippe Courtois leads global sales, marketing and services for Microsoft International, a territory that spans over 100 subsidiaries operating in over 240 countries outside the United States and Canada. As president of Microsoft International, Courtois drives strategic planning, global operations and key growth initiatives in developed and emerging markets. Outside of Microsoft, Courtois is administrator for PlaNet Finance and Microsoft's official representative at the Institut Montaigne. He has served as co-chairman of the World Economic Forum's Global Digital Divide Initiative Task Force and on the European Commission Information and Communication Technology task force. In 2009, he also served as an EU Ambassador for the Year of Creativity and Innovation, and in 2011 he was named as one of "Tech's Top 25" by The Wall Street Journal Europe. A French national, Courtois obtained his diplôme des études commerciales supérieures (DECS) from the Ecole Superieure de Commerce, Nice (CERAM/Skema).

By: Chris Cortez - MajGen, USMC (Ret.), General Manager, Microsoft Strategic Operations, Americas and Asia Pacific

Cross posted from the FutureFed Blog

Today, I was proud to represent both my country and my employer, Microsoft, by standing in support of military families at “Joining Forces: Launching the Military Spouse Employment Partnership” which took place at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. Joining Forces is a program First Lady Michelle Obama and Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden launched in April to support the “force behind the forces.” A key focus is improving job opportunities for military spouses.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Hiring Our Heroes initiative hosts Dr. Jill Biden – co-chair of the White House’s Joining Forces initiative – and the Department of Defense to launch the Military Spouse Employment Partnership (MSEP) with Deborah Mullen and Kevin Schmiegel. (Photo by Ian Wagreich / © U.S. Chamber of Commerce)

Today’s event was a powerful and meaningful display of commitment. We heard Dr. Biden and Dr. Clifford Stanley, the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, reinforce the significance of supporting military spouses.

The Defense Department acknowledges that finding employment is a huge challenge for many military spouses. Currently, military spouses face an unemployment rate of 28 percent – nearly three times the national average. What’s worse, they earn an average of 25 percent less than civilian spouses. The President’s Strengthening Our Military Families (PSD-9) report, signed last January, identified increasing opportunities for private-sector and Federal careers for military spouses as an important national goal.

As her husband, Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, watched from the audience, Debbie Mullen noted to a packed room of military and business leaders that of all the causes on which the First and Second Ladies of this country could focus, they have chosen military families. That alone brings together critical backing for the Military Spouse Employment Partnership (MSEP) Program launched today.

MSEP will directly connect military spouses with organizations specifically looking to hire them. The program expands the Army Spouse Employment Partnership (ASEP), which had 57 corporate partners, to all the branches of the military, adding 15 new corporate partners today. Microsoft is proud to stand as one of these partners to build on the success that ASEP has had in hiring more than 100,000 military spouses since its 2003 launch.

Our participation in this partnership underscores Microsoft’s commitment to veterans and their families. Our Military2Microsoft program assists U.S. veterans and those serving in the National Guard and Reserve to transition and find job opportunities within Microsoft. This program incorporates a variety of resources online to help make the job search experience easier for military talent. Last year, we launched Microsoft Elevate America Veterans initiative, to provide U.S. veterans and their spouses with the skills and resources they need to successfully find civilian employment.

As we showcased this past Memorial Day on the Microsoft Unlimited Potential Blog, veterans are successfully participating in the program to advance their careers and improve their quality of life. It’s stories like these that remind us how essential this support is, and it’s why in 2010, we committed to providing $2 million in cash and up to $6 million in software and training to organizations working directly with veterans in local communities across the country over the following two years. Microsoft’s participation in MSEP continues this tradition.

For photos from today’s event, visit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce “Hiring Our Heroes” Flickr page.

For more information on MSEP and how to get involved, please visit :

Military One Source: http://www.militaryonesource.com/MOS.aspx

News on the Initiative: http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=64438

Author’s Note: Reporting from the U.S. Imagine Cup finals in April we asked- are  social entrepreneurs the new heroes? The response was overwhelmingly positive so we thought we’d share some more stories of the students preparing for the Imagine Cup worldwide finals in New York this July.

Today is World Refugee Day-a day where we recognize the current reality of more than 43 million people displaced by war, conflict, and human rights abuse. Earlier today we heard from the UNHCR on their global efforts helping more than 36 million refugees worldwide.

This challenge has inspired a number of Imagine Cup contestants this year including Team Hawk from the American University of Iraq-Sulaimani (AUI-S), winners of the Iraq Imagine Cup competition.  The team consists of Choman Jalal, Kosar Osman and Enji Issa with Dr. David Cook acting as the team mentor.

We had the pleasure to hear from Choman Jalal who told us an inspiring story of how Team Hawk came up with their award winning concept to help refugees:

The Imagine Cup competition challenges students to use technology to address the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, so what specifically directed your focus on helping refugees?

Close to the AUI-S campus there is a refugee camp called Qawala. University faculty and students have been helping the refugees there in a number of ways for some time. There are various fund raising activities and donations going on throughout the year for these displaced people. These activities do not involve technologies but rather activities such as clothes collections, fund raising events and classes and entertainment organized and run by the students for the refugee children. We wondered what could we do with technology that would really help.

How did you decide on where to focus your efforts?

The concept came from talking through ideas with Dr. David Cook who is a faculty member and became the team mentor.  For several years before he came to Iraq he had worked in Namibia and helped with charitable work through the Rotary Club. He shared a story about someone he had met in Zimbabwe. Many years ago he had taught a Nun who had asked for help. She was desperate to help refugees in the North of Zimbabwe to register for aid quickly so that food and medical supplies would be allowed to reach them. Her request was for a Landover equipped with a generator to drive a computer which she wanted to use to get registration details to the government agencies quickly. In those days mobile phones were not very well developed and almost unheard of in the under developed areas of the world. That story inspired us. We believed we could do much better with modern technologies.

Can you tell us about your project?

We decided to develop a mobile phone based application which would help refugees register for aid quickly and efficiently. The idea works as an application for a Windows phone which is connected via wireless 3G to the internet where the data is stored for interpretation and access by those who need it. This will provide a mobile means for NGO’s to enter data relevant to the welfare and educational needs of refugees. In addition, this project will automate registration and hence speed up  access to welfare  for refugees.

So, what is next?

The excitement is building as we prepare to showcase Iraqi student achievements in July at the Imagine Cup world finals in New York City., to the world. Will we win? Of course!

Team Hawk is, like many of the finalists for this year Imagine Cup, a great example of the next generation of social entrepreneurs. Now here is where you come in! These students along with the other 123 teams heading to the Worldwide Finals in New York City, have worked hard to develop concepts that will hopefully make change for the future of the world as we know it, and you have the opportunity to VOTE for your favorite. That’s right, the Imagine Cup People’s Choice Award is open for you to vote on your favorite project. Who has your vote??

p.s. The People’s Choice Award winning team will receive a prize of USD $10,000. The prize will be awarded onsite at the Imagine Cup 2011 Worldwide Finals in New York City on July 13, 2011, so VOTE VOTE VOTE!