LiveSide - News blog : Mix 07

Dev.live.com updated to include Silverlight, new APIs

Kip Kniskern — Tue, 01 May 2007 01:28:47 GMT

Lots going on at Mix07, with Silverlight, and the Silverlight Streaming by Windows Live alpha. Chris posted on the Silverlight website, and just now the dev.live.com site has been updated to include Silverlight, as well as the new Spaces controls, an updated Virtual Earth/Live Maps interactive SDK, and more.

We'll have lots more of course, but for right now take a peek at http://dev.live.com

Mix 07 Set to begin: what to expect

Kip Kniskern — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 22:38:00 GMT

Mix 07, the Microsoft sponsored web developers conference in Las Vegas begins with registration tonight and the Ray Ozzie/Scott Guthrie keynote set for 9:30 PDT tomorrow (Monday April 30). So what to expect? Well lots of news and in depth coverage of a whole new set of APIs (application programming interfaces, a way for programmers to request services from a computer system or program that would otherwise be unavailable to them). New APIs have been announced for Virtual Earth/Live Maps, and for Spaces, and expect more to come from Live.com, Messenger, and others.

The big non-Windows Live news will of course be around Silverlight, formerly called WPF/e (Windows Presentation Foundation/everywhere), but Windows Live will be featured prominently, as well.

The Ray Ozzie keynote will be webcast live on Monday morning, we'll be watching and have a full report:

Ray Ozzie Keynote at MIX07
April 30, 2007
9:30 a.m. PDT / 12:30 p.m. EDT
In an address from Las Vegas at the MIX07 Web conference, Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie and Developer division General Manager Scott Guthrie will discuss the full breadth of Microsoft’s developer vision and roadmap for Silverlight, Microsoft’s cross-platform application for delivering the next generation of media experiences.
View Live Webcast:

100K
300K
500K

In addition, many of the sessions will be webcast as well, you can check out the particulars at http://visitmix.com

Spaces API news at Mix, says CNET

Kip Kniskern — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 01:41:24 GMT

Mix07 starts on Sunday, and with a Ray Ozzie keynote, and lots more Windows Live news, some kind of understanding of what's coming in Windows Live Wave 2 should begin to emerge.

Some of this news is starting to filter out already, and CNET posted today on some news about Spaces APIs, saying that Microsoft "plans to detail more generous business terms for partners to use its Live online services and to open up new application programming interfaces for Windows Live Spaces." According to CNET:

The company will allow outside developers--which can be at commercial enterprises--to build mash-up applications that generate up to one million unique user visits at their sites per month for free. Beyond that, Microsoft will charge 25 cents per user per year or look to establish a business relationship where it can deliver online ads to those sites, company executives said.
In addition, Microsoft will provide APIs to photos or contact information for its Windows Live Spaces users if they give permission. Windows Live Spaces is Microsoft's social networking site where people can post blogs, share photos and other information.

In addition, it looks as though there will be some API news forthcoming about Messenger. CNET describes a new set of features being introduced by Match.com, where users there can send messages, using Messenger, without giving away contact information, using previously unreleased Messenger APIs. According to John Richards, director of product management for Microsoft's Windows Live Platform, "Microsoft will offer the ability to let other sites integrate presence information through Windows Live Messenger within 90 days"

Developing Windows Live: An emerging Windows Live Platform

Kip Kniskern — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 14:42:06 GMT

What is Windows Live? Well it isn't Shopping anymore, or WiFi, but what one thing it very well may turn out to be is a developer's platform, according to a recent article in Redmond Developer News. Getting 3rd party developers to create their own applications on top of Windows Live web services will help push the Windows Live initiative "over the top", Redmond Developer News attributes Microsoft as saying.

Microsoft is expected to unveil details about its developer story at Mix07, but Adam Sohn, director of worldwide sales and marketing for Microsoft's online services group, talked with Redmond Developer News about their plans.

Sohn said that Microsoft is working to present a more cohesive architecture for its emerging Live Services businesses - to provide a "one stop shop", a framework built on top of Windows Live APIs. These APIs fall into 2 main categories within the framework: infrastructure, and applications.

Infrastructure	Applications
identity	IM
relationships	search
advertising	Spaces
domains	mail/calendar
storage	classifieds (expo)
	mapping

The announcement of the Windows Live SDK, although in its current form only links up the current Windows Live services APIs, is an early indication of what's to come. Obviously some very basic parts of the framework are missing (Calendar, storage) and there's a lot of work to do in other areas to even complete the current set of applications (even naming them has been a challenge).

Developing an architecture around Microsoft's Live services has been and will be a big part of what happens in this coming year and beyond. It may be why Ray Ozzie has been so silent lately. We may find out as early as his keynote at Mix07.