Window Azure provides a quick, easy, and—more importantly—powerful way for companies of any size to take advantage of cloud based services. While lots of companies are already moving their applications and services to Windows Azure, others still aren't quite sure how the cloud can help them and their business. I invited Steve Fox back to my show to help provide some insights on the broad features and capabilities of Windows Azure, and how its core services can play an important role in application development for many types of businesses. Some of the other resources we talk about are: Office 365 Windows Azure Starting Point Meet Windows Azure (June 7th, San Francisco) TechEd North America (June 11-14, Orlando) - SOLD OUT TechEd North America Sessions on Windows Azure TechEd North America Sessions by Steve Fox TechEd Europe (June 26-29, Amsterdam) TechEd Europe Sessions by Steve Fox TechEd Europe Sessions on Windows Azure Windows Azure Content on Channel 9

With every new version of Windows, there is a huge effort to make sure that applications that worked on the previous version continue to work as expected. For this episode, I've invited Chris Jackson (also known as the "App Compat Guy") to join me and share some details on not only what Microsoft is doing to ensure the highest level of compatibility from one version to the next, but also how developers, IT administrators, and even users can work through compatibility issues. In addition to talking about how application compatibility issues affect Windows applications, we touch on similar issues that befall web applications. Hopefully, the details discussed in this show will help you make sure that your applications continue to work on future versions of Windows and IE. Here are also some additional resources you might find useful: Application Compatibility Cookbooks:As Chris noted during the show, we regularly provide Application Compatibility Cookbooks to aid developers in understanding how to make sure both their existing and planned applications work properly on the next version of Windows. Here are links to the beta cookbook for Windows 8 as well as the ones we published for Windows 7 and Windows Vista: For Windows 8 Consumer Preview and Windows server 8 Beta For Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 RC2 For Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit 5.6The Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) version 5.6 contains the necessary tools and documentation to evaluate and mitigate application compatibility issues before deploying Windows 7®, Windows Vista®, a Windows Update, or a new version of Windows Internet Explorer® in your environment. Testing Application Compatibility for IE9 at MicrosoftThis downloadable document discusses the various issues that should be considered when preparing your web applications to run on IE9. Prepare Your Site for Web StandardsMSDN has prepared a set of documents and guideline

C++ has been around for what seems like forever. It might seem like it's taken a back seat to languages that provide better application isolation and better development throughput, but in truth it remains one of the most widely used languages in the world. In order to gain some better insights on how C++ measures up in a "managed" world, I've invited Herb Sutter, Program Manager for Visual Studio, to explain how C++ has evolved and how it remains a great choice for many modern day development tasks. And here are a few additional links to more information about C++ that will help you learn how to use it in your projects: TechEd PreConference Seminar: "C++ In Visual Studio 11: Modern Readable, Safe, Fast"Kate Gregory will be doing a day long intensive seminar at both TechEd North America (June 10th in Orlando) and TechEd Europe (June 25th in Amsterdam).You can register for TechEd North America here: https://northamerica.msteched.com/registrationAnd TechEd Europe here: https://register.europe.msteched.com GoingNative 2012This event was held back in February, and was streamed live throughout the world. It featured industry experts discussing the importance of C++ and its proper use in modern application development. All of the sessions are available for "on demand" viewing over on Channel 9.You can access all of the videos here: https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/GoingNative/GoingNative-2012 Sutter's MillIf you want to catch more of Herb Sutter and his thoughts on C++, you should check out his blog.You can find Herb's blog here: http://herbsutter.com/And specifically the "Elements of Modern C++ Style" reference that Herb refered to can be found here: http://herbsutter.com/elements-of-modern-c-style/ Welcome Back to C++ (Modern C++)For Visual Studio 11, MSDN has prepared details on the advancement and use of C++ which includes examples, reference

Windows Azure provides scalable data and processing resources for businesses of almost any size. Steve Fox and Paul Stubbs are going to be presenting a PreCon seminar at TechEd ("Windows Azure University Bootcamp: Advanced and Real-World"), so I invited them onto the show to discuss Windows Azure and provide some quick details on why you might want to pay attention to this technology. If you're planning on coming to TechEd in either North America or Europe, you might want to look into their PreCon seminar, as well as provide details in the discussion area below as to what you'd like to learn about Windows Azure. Here are some links to additional information you might find useful: TechEd North America PreCon Seminars (https://northamerica.msteched.com/preconferenceseminars) TechEd Europe PreCon Seminars (https://europe.msteched.com/PreCons#PRC10) Windowsazure.com (http://www.WindowsAzure.com)This is the Windows Azure portal, you can sign up and access your Windows Azure account here, as well as locate training material and informational resources. Cloud Cover show on Channel 9 (https://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Cloud+Cover)Steve Marx and Wad Wegner provide in depth information about how to utilize Windows Azure and details about various features, capabilities, as well as tips and tricks. Windows Azure Training Kit (https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=8396)The Windows Azure Training Kit is a comprehensive set of technical content to aid you in learning how to use Windows Azure for your projects. Learn Windows Azure (https://channel9.msdn.com/events/windowsazure/learn)Last December, Microsoft held a special one-day Windows Azure event for developers. You can watch the recorded sessions to catch up on what you missed. In our show, Steve highlighted the keynote presentation with Scott Guthrie which would definitely be worth watching. Windows Azure on Channel 9 (https://channel9.msdn.com/Tags/azure)Here is a link to all of

Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2012 adds several new and exciting features which will radically change how software can be deployed to users in businesses of various sizes. Johan Arwidmark and Kent Agerlund will be presenting a day-long PreConference seminar at TechEd (both in North America and Europe) which will take users through a very detailed examination of how to leverage the capabilities of Configuration Manager. I was able to meet up with them recently to discuss Configuration Manager and learn about why it is an important technology to help businesses manage software deployment on their network. Here are some additional links which you might find useful: TechEd North America PreCon Seminars - June 10th (https://northamerica.msteched.com/preconferenceseminars) TechEd Europe PreCon Seminars - June 25th (https://europe.msteched.com/PreCons#PRC04) Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/server-cloud/system-center/configuration-manager-2012.aspx)You can find more details and information about the upcoming release of Configuration Manager here, as well as download a Release Candidate version of the software. TechNet Coverage of System Center Configuration Manager (https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg682129.aspx)Here you will find technical documentation and information about how to use Configuration Manager Deployment Research (http://www.deploymentresearch.com/)Johan Arwidmark's site where he shares insights and details about deployment and migration technologies. CoreTech (http://blog.coretech.dk/author/kea/)This is Kent Agerlund's blog that he mentioned on the show, and where he focuses on how to use Configuration Manager.

Windows Phone "Mango" includes a lot of cool, exciting new features that users will be showing to all of their friends. Of course, there are some features so behind the scenes that users will never really be aware of them—but developers will. One such new feature is the addition of "SQL Compact" to the Windows Phone Platform. In this episode of The Knowledge Chamber, my guest is Sean McKenna from the Windows Phone Platform team. Sean shows us SQL Compact in action on the phone and discusses how it provides a better way for data driven applications to access their information stores. Here are some links to additional information: Local Database for Windows PhoneThis is the starting point in the MSDN Developer Library for the various topics that cover database development on Windows Phone "Mango." Local Database Overview for Windows PhoneA quick introduction to the architecture and usage of SQL Compact and Linq To SQL for Windows Phone "Mango" application developers. LINQ to SQL Support for Windows PhoneA quick overview of the features that LINQ to SQL on Windows Phone supports. How to: Create a Local Database Application for Windows PhoneThis coding demo shows how to create a single-page to-do list application using SQL Compact. How to: Create a Local Database Application with MVVM for Windows PhoneThis coding demo shows how to create a multi-page to-do list application that relies on SQL Compact for a local database using the "Model-View-ViewModel" pattern.

The Windows Phone interface has been designed to make it as easy as possible for users to get to the information they need in the applications they use. In the upcoming release of Windows Phone, codenamed "Mango," there are improvements that will allow developers to provide a richer integration in the home-screen experience. In today's episode of The Knowledge Chamber, my guest is Thomas Fennel, who is responsible for Push Notifications as well as the Live Tile support that developers will be using on Windows Phone Mango. He provides a quick demo of some of the features that application developers can now access, as well as discussing some of the details that developers need to consider when they set up their apps to use these features. Here are some links to additional information on the topics discussed in this episode: Windows Phone Development DocumentationThe overall developer documentation on MSDN has been updated to include details on developing applications for "Mango." Push NotificationsThis is a direct link to the section of the documentation that provides details on Push Notification functionality and how to use it in your applications. Tiles for Windows PhoneThis is the section of the online documentation that will help you better understand what Live Tiles are as well as the API that lets your application utilize them. MIX11: Enhanced Phone Notifications and Tiles for Windows PhoneLast April, Thomas did a presentation at MIX where he talked about Push Notifications and Tiles. You can get more technical details in this nearly hour-long presentation than we could get into our short episode.

"Mango" is the code name for the upcoming release of the Windows Phone application platform. As you've no doubt read in countless other locations, there are lots of new features and capabilities being added in "Mango" which will benefit both users as well as application developers. In this episode, I meet with Peter Torr, from the Windows Phone Application Platform Team to specifically focus on the new multi-tasking support that "Mango" will enable. Peter also shares a few details on his favorite feature of "Mango"—its ability to organize your contacts together in "groups," which makes it easier for you to keep track of, and interact with, the people important to you. You can find more information about Multi-Tasking on Windows Phone "Mango" here: Peter Torr's BlogPeter focuses on a few different things on his blog, but has recently posted a few entries specifically dealing with supporting background agents, alarms, and notifications that "Mango" makes available. Windows Phone "Mango" Training CourseMSDN has published a training kit for Windows Phone developers that will help them get up to speed with some of the new features in Windows Phone "Mango." Multi-Tasking and Application Switching for Windows PhoneEarlier this year, Peter had a presentation at TechEd North America where he also talked about the new multi-tasking capabilities of Windows Phone "Mango." Multi-Tasking in "Mango": Part II Using Background AgentsAt MIX11, Peter also presented on how developers can make use of background agents in their applications, and why. Multi-Tasking in "Mango": Part IPeter's MIX11 presentation was "Part II" of multi-tasking, here is "Part I," by Darin Miller, which covers multi-tasking in general. Windows Phone Team BlogWhile not specifically focused on developer issues in general, or multi-tasking specifically, the Windows Phone Tea

Windows Phone has proven to be a popular platform for developing a wide variety of applications. Clint Rutkas joins us on this episode to explain what "Coding4Fun" is, and how they help provide cool tools, apps, and resources to aid people in their development projects. In addition to talking in general about developing applications for Windows Phone, Clint also demonstrates "Where's My Car," a Windows Phone application that was developed as part of Coding4Fun. A new version of "Where's My Car" has now been uploaded to the Windows Phone Marketplace, fixing the little bug that we discussed in this episode, so if you have Windows Phone be sure to download the app, check it out, and then post your review. Here are some additional links you might find useful: Windows Phone Development ToolsSilverlight Toolkit Coding4Fun Tools Where's My Car (you need the Zune software installed for this link) Arian Kulp's website (Author of "Where's My Car")

Andrew Clinick, Lead Program Manager for Windows Phone Developer Platform joins us today to discuss some of the features and capabilities that get him excited about helping developers build great applications for Windows Phone. He also takes a little time to share with us one of the apps that he regularly uses on his own phone – “TuneIn Radio”. Here are a few links you might find handy that were touched upon during this interview: TuneIn Radio for Windows Phone 7OneBusAway for Widows Phone 7OneBusAway on Codeplex And to help you develop your own applications for Windows Phone 7: Windows Phone Developer Hub MIX11 Conference (April 12-14 2011, Las Vegas)