embeddedSPARK Challenge 2011 Finalist!

Yesterday evening contest finalists have been announced. I’m very glad to be one of them: KitchenPal entered the final round! Many thanks to the people who helped me to obtain this result: Anna, Alice, Antony.

Congratulations to the other two finalists and… see you soon in Redmond, Seattle.

Working on Phone 7

While waiting for the EmbeddedSpark 2011 Challenge results, in the last two weeks I started working on two Windows Phone 7 applications, just to put in practice what I learned during the Windows Phone 7 workshops I attended last month. One will help you with car fuel management, while the other one is for Italian people who like playing SuperEnalotto lottery. Here some preview screenshots:

The applications will be available on Marketplace for free, soon.

embeddedSPARK Challenge 2011 – Round 2

Here we are! Finally, after more than three months of hard work, KitchenPal prototype and its Mobile companion apps are ready.

You can see them at the official challenge entry page.

This time I made it. It's been hard but really fun and interesting. Results will come soon…

Windows Phone 7 Workshops

Microsoft Innovation Center Torino - ISMB organized in March and April a series of events dedicated to the new Windows Phone 7 platform. An introductory day to the platform at the beginning of March, two Hands-on-Lab days on March 22-23 and a Windows Phone 7 Proof-of-Concept on April 19-20.  All the events were conducted by two expert speakers from DevLeap, Luca Regnicoli and Katia Egiziano. I had the possibility to attend to all the events: very interesting and technically exceptional.

The last event was the most interesting one and consisted of a two-day instructor-led workshop aimed to create a real-world skeleton for a Windows Phone 7 app, with the help of Luca and Katia. Some companies participated at the event and proposed a couple of ideas/architectures to be implemented.

Katia assisted each of us with practical user interface design and suggested how/when to use Panorama and Pivot controls, how to create compelling, usable and good-looking views with Blend, marked the importance of Metro interface principles (typography, motion, content not chrome, honesty) and showed us sample UIs she made for ThinkAhead Phone 7 applications.

Luca, instead, helped with development issues, suggestions, practical problems and taught us the basics for a real-world, modular, loosely-coupled N-layered architecture: the key concept for successful applications!

Really interesting. If you have a chance to follow such kind of events, don’t miss them!

Embedded Sparks 2011 - First round winners

Embedded Sparks 2011 Challenge first round winners have been announced last week. I’m very happy that my KitchenPal idea is one of them also this year! I’ve already started to work on it in my spare time, I hope this year to be able to compete to the second round. Congratulations to all the other participants!

Windows Azure Proof-of-Concept

After a three-day introductory workshop about the Windows Azure Platform organized by Microsoft at the end of 2010, last week I attended a Windows Azure Proof-of-Concept event at the Microsoft Innovation Center - ISMB here in Turin. It consisted of a two-day instructor-led workshop (speaker, Roberto Brunetti from DevLeap) aimed to create a complete solution from scratch with the purpose to highlight the nature and benefits of the Windows Azure platform.

Some companies participated at the event and proposed a couple of ideas/architectures which have been merged in a single, layered, multi-platform application with the help of Roberto:

• a web site, hosted on Windows Azure (WebRole)
  • back-end based on Windows Azure Storage and/or a web service
• a web service hosted on Windows Azure
  • back-end based on Windows Azure Storage
  • active collaboration with a WorkerRole service
• a web service hosted on an on-premise IIS server
  • back-end based on Windows Azure Storage and/or a web service
  • active collaboration with a WorkerRole service on Windows Azure
• a desktop / embedded client application, which works with cloud data and features
  • directly on Windows Azure (Storage / Queue / SQLAzure) and/or via a web service
• n-tier architecture (data access, business logic, UI, services)
• unit testing

Software architecture has been deeply analyzed (even tough it was a two-day workshop only) and the solution has been designed following the best practices and guidelines. The key concept was that adopting a good n-tier, modular, loosely-coupled and testable architecture, it is relatively easy to extend system functionalities or handle new technologies/platforms following the natural IT evolution.

Really interesting. If you have a chance to follow such kind of events, don’t miss them!

embeddedSPARK 2011 Challenge

Microsoft organizes the third edition of its international hobbyist competition for Embedded enthusiasts. The embeddedSPARK 2011 Challenge challenges you to “Experience Embedded” and to share your experience with the rest of the world. Think new, or reinvent, the way people interact with embedded devices. Create an embedded solution that seamlessly connects with PCs, media, online content, and data. Use the tools and technologies provided by the upcoming Windows Embedded Compact 7 to you make your vision a reality through rich, animated device user interfaces and connected experiences to productivity applications and the world of Windows.

Also this year I proposed an idea: KitchenPal.

How do YOU experience embedded?

First round ends on January 30th. You still have some time to submit you 3-pages summary and get a chance to win:

1. an Embedded device equipped with Windows Embedded Compact 7 (75 round-one winners)
2. a trip to Microsoft (Redmond) for a Major Embedded Event in June (top 3 finalists)
3. The 1st prize winner will receive a cash prize of $15,000; second prize winner will receive a cash prize of $5,000; third prize winner will receive a cash prize of $1,000.

Good luck!