Microsoft officially announced that a new Kinect for Windows device will be released on February 1st along with a commercial license for using the Kinect SDK. This new device shouldn't be seen as simply a toy any more than a computer mouse is a toy.

I posted an article today on Codeguru, "Kinect for Windows: A New Interface for Your Apps." In this article, I touch on the licensing, show a bit of code, and more. Using a few lines of code, You'll see how little code is needed to start integrating with a Kinect!

Rather than my repeating everything here, take a look at the article! Click now!

It is New Year's Eve, which is a great time to look back. I recently had a discussion with a few people about an interesting topic. Have you heard of Next Generation Web Services (NGWS)?

If you search for Next Generation Web Services, you'll find a number of results, but if you want to see one of the first uses of this term, then go to www.Wikipedia.com and search for it there. Interestingly, when I just did this, I landed on the .NET Framework page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGWS). You'll see on that page, that NGWS was an original name for the .NET Framework prior to its release.

I had the pleasure of working with Christoph Wille and several people at Microsoft to product the first book on the C# programming language, Presenting C#, which published in July of 2000 over a decade ago. It published just in time to make it to the beta announcement that summer in Orlando, Florida.

One of the challenges of that book was getting Microsoft to nail down the name of the framework that would be used with C#. You'll find that they settled on NGWS. For several days, as we put final touches on the book, I recall conversations with Microsoft o whether the name would be COM++, NGWS, or some other name. They settled on NGWS only to change it once again a few days later -- but after the book had gone to the printer.

While the .NET Framework has retained its name since July of 2000, the framework itself has changed quite a bit in the past decade. Not only has it increased on size and scope, it has split into a number of focused platforms targeting embedded systems, mobile systems, and more.

As we move into 2012, it will be interesting to see how the .NET Framework continues to evolve. With the release of public betas for Windows 8 and a push for a paradigm change to Metro-styled applications, it seems like we could be headed for the next generation of applications and services. While these aren't like to be built on anything called NGWS, the question will be how much of the .NET Framework will be used for these. HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS gain value, but it does seem like .NET is here to be used as well.

The Developer's Toolkit is an infographic that shows the top tools being used by developers. The information based in this infographic is based on a survey of 500 developers around the world that was conducted by BestVendor. More importantly, this survey targeted developers in companies with less than 100 people.

In reviewing these statistics, I see a few things that seem questionable. Regardless, it is always interesting to see numbers. Do you think the rankings are accurate? Do you see things that seem to be missing?

At Microsoft Build, Microsoft released a developer preview of Windows 8. There are a variety of pre-beta downloads you can grab today if you want to check out the preview of Windows today. In addition to including the next version of Windows, you also get a chance to see Visual Studio 11 Express for Windows 8 Developer Preview.

If you do download the Windows 8 Developer Preview, be aware that the file sizes are large. The 4.8 GB download of the English 64-bit (x64) tools is bigger than a standard DVD. This means you need a large format DVD or to build a bootable thumb drive. I did a bootable thumb drive, which was relatively easy to create and even easier to install from.

I noticed there is also a 32-bit (x86) version available now as well. I've not downloaded it, but at 2.8 GB, it should be a bit easier to work with than the 64 bit version.

Do you want to see Windows 8? You can download it from the following link. It is pre-beta software, so only install it on a machine with nothing important already on it.

Windows 8 Developer Preview downloads

Lots of different people have written for Codeguru, Developer.com, and our other sites. It is great to see some of these writers expand their efforts into books and other project.

Chuck Connell has published a book called Beautiful Software, which focuses on what makes good software. Chuck dives into a number of topics within software design, the management of software projects, and the field of software engineering. This is not your standard computer book that is big and bulky, but rather is more like a short novel with chapters on various topics that make for a much more interesting read. In fact, some of the chapters you can find as articles online. Even so, Beautiful Software provides a collection of articles that make for an interesting read. You can find some of Chuck's articles on developer.com by clicking here.

Rob Bogue has written a number of articles for us as well. While Rob has been involved in several books including The SharePoint Shepherd's Guide for End Users, he recently has expanded and released a video called The Psychology of SharePoint Adoption and Engagement.

These are just two projects that some of our writers have recently done. If you get a chance, check them out!

A larger clickpad could make it possible to use multi-touch without having a multi-touch screen. This embedded video below shows the Synaptics ClickPad experience on Windows 8. In many scenarios, this approach makes a lot more sense than touching the screen itself. For example, I have to stretch to touch my screen. My keyboard, is "at my finger tips!"

You get a good view of the multi-touch capability about a minute and 15 seconds into the video when they draw with five fingers at once. At about 2 minutes and 28 seconds, you see two images being manipulated at the same time with multi-touch as well.

I wrote most of this blog entry prior to the news of Steve Job's passing and thus held off posting it. Jobs made a huge impact on the computing industry and his impact will continue to be felt for a long time. His work with Pixar and NeXT computing were amazing and they pale next to what he did with Apple. I remember looking over a coworker's shoulder at a demo of the Next system and thinking it was very cool. That was back in the days when we were also seeing demos of things like new versions of OS/2 and having a different reaction.

* * *

What is the future of Apple Computer? Steve handed over the reins of leadership. As such, there is a chance that the standard operating procedures could change.

On a seemingly unrelated note, I've looked at and played with the Windows 8 preview, and as I've talked to a number of other developers, there is an interesting question that comes to mind.

Is Windows 8 Apple's Chance to take over the desktop operating system market?

In the past, Apple has stayed extremely focused by producing what is perceived to be high-quality systems that come at a premium price. It's received a lot of press, but its overall market share has remained relatively low. Some might say this is intentionally on Apple's part.

But the world has changed.

First, Apple has everyone's attention more so than ever with the iPhone and iPad. While they've been taken seriously, now the company has nearly everyone watching as well.

Second, Steve left the company. I didn't know him, but it seems that tight control reigned at Apple and many reports confirm this. Its seemed focused on its niche in the computer area, and it played strongly in that area. Now there is new leadership. Is that new leadership willing to make changes that could elevate the company to the next level, but at a risk?

Third, Apple's computers are now running on some of the same hardware technology as Windows computers. More importantly, some people believe that Apple computers can run Windows better than some of the computers designed for Windows as the primary operating system.

Fourth, Microsoft has shown a preview of its next version of Windows and it has some radical changes with the Metro interface. Is it so radical that enterprises will shy away? Will end users shy away?

The Metro interface to Windows 8 is different enough that people will need to make a decision about upgrading. The switch is big. While Windows 7 applications reporting do work, the question is how well they will work. Will they work any better than they would on a Mac? Just asking that question indicates that there is some parity between deciding whether to go to Windows 8 or with something else, like an Apple computer.

If you are already walking around with an iPhone or an iPad, then having a computer that integrates with them, or that is at least related, seems like a short leap. The big reason many people avoid Apple computers is price. They come at a premium

So what if Apple released a new version of the Mac software that it licenses to hardware vendors in the same way Microsoft licenses Windows? Or, sticking with it standard operating procedure, what if they built their own computers, but again, kept them at the same price point as a Windows machine? If price were taken out of the equation when comparing machines, would people switch? 

With the level of change in Windows 8, is there a big possibility that people would switch? Giving an equal price, emphasizing that Windows still runs, and in many cases better, and highlighting the Apple quality perception are all marketing points that could work. Would that be enough to make inroads into taking market share? Corporate America already lets Macs onto many of their networks.

It seems daunting to try to displace Microsoft as the dominant vendor of desktop operating systems, but displacement of the dominant player has been done in other areas. Microsoft has knocked out numerous companies that dominated markets. According to reports, Microsoft is losing share in the browser space it dominated. Microsoft is on a downward trend elsewhere,  too. The last stats I saw show they are losing share in the mobile space as well when you look at Windows Mobile 6.5 combined with Windows Phone 7.

Is now the time that a company such as Apple could come in and have a chance to work towards a majority share in the operating system space as well?

What do you think?

We have launched a new area on Developer.com. Our Android Development Center is now live. Check it out at http://www.developer.com/ws/android.  Let us know if you like what we've done.

Microsoft Build was the coming out party for Windows 8 development. While there I took a few pictures with my phone. Here are just a few of them I thought worth sharing. Yes, they are primarly slide presentations, but I figured that information was more interesting than seeing people!

The slide that was most interesting:

A closer look at the part that mentions Metro and the WinRT APIs:

And the Metro API breakout:

Of course, building Metro apps, requires Metro controls. Here are the ones coming:

That's just a few of the slides. Hopefully the information is useful.

While some might question it, in general, developers are good at heart. In fact, the developer community can be extremely caring. The growth of Give Camps over the last few years is just one indication of the way developers are giving back to their communities.

A give camp is a week-end event where developers and other professionals donate their time in order to build solutions for non-profit organizations. Generally, working in small teams, each team will work to build a complete system or solution for a local charity over the course of about 48 hours.

The event is generally non-stop for the entire week-end. Developers and others arrive on Friday afternoon and go home on Sunday afternoon. Often sponsors help to cover the cost of food so that the teams can focus on the solutions being built without leaving the building. In fact, most of the volunteers bring sleeping bags and crash for a few hours here and there at the location. The lack of leaving at the end of the day is what helps give the events their name.

Over the course of the last few years, it is estimated that millions of dollars worth of code have been generated during the Give Camp events and hundreds of charities have received solutions. It most cases, the solutions are handed over to the charities at the end of the week-end ready to go. The objective is to have the solution completed and as maintenance free as possible. In nearly every case, a representative from the charity is also attending the Give Camp as well to not only provide guidance, but to also learn about the solution that is built.

Last year I was involved in a limited capacity with our first Give Camp in Indianapolis, Indy Give Camp. This event helped a number of charities including The Marion County Commission on Youth, the Haven Youth Center, Shepherd's Center of Hamilton County, NuAfrica, Inc., The Tina Marie Arens Foundation, Autism Advocates of Indiana, and several more. Developers spent the entire week-end using a variety of different tools and technologies. The types of solutions varied as much as the charities. In some cases it was a simple website using Drupal, in others it was something more complex. Each charity's solution was built for that charity based on the need, the skills of the team members, and the time available.

This year, Indy Give Camp is the week-end of October 14-16, just one week before the national Give Camp that is happening on October 21-23, 2011. You might have noticed the announcements for the National Give Camp on this site, which we were happy to freely promote. During the national campaign, fifteen different cities will be having Give Camps for charities in their areas. Those cities are:

• Charlotte, NC
• Cincinnati, OH
• Colorado Springs, CO
• Dallas, TX
• Deerfield Beach, FL
• Grand Rapids, MI
• Johnson City (Tri Cities), TN
• London, UK
• Orlando, FL
• Memphis, TN
• Nashville, TN
• St. Louis, MO
• Seattle, WA
• Tampa Bay, FL

What is amazing is that in the course of two week-ends in October of this year, over a hundred charities will receive technology solutions that will help them better serve their communities. This will be a direct result of volunteers.

While Give Camps require sponsors and charities, the other critical factor are the volunteers. This includes developers, DBAs, architects, designers, and more. The more volunteers in this regard, the more that can be accomplished. For our Indianapolis event, the number of charities that are helped is directly related to the number of volunteers that provide their time. For every few people that volunteer their week-end, another charity can often be helped.

If you are in any of the cities listed above, and can spare 48 hours to hang out with a bunch of techies, then I suggest volunteering. You can find links to the different Give Camps on the national site at www.GiveCamp.org. I know for the Indianapolis event, one of our biggest needs this year is for more developers. You won't get paid cash, but you will earn a lot of goodwill. Plus, you'll help prove that developers really are good at heart.