Posted 11/10/09 at 09:08:56 AM by Pulkit Chandna

Microsoft on Monday released a software development kit (SDK) for Facebook, making it easier for Facebook app developers to tap into its portfolio of development technologies. The launch of the the Microsoft SDK for Facebook Platform is part of Microsoft's ongoing collaboration with Facebook, according to an announcement on the official SIlverlight blog.

The SDK contains all the necessary samples, controls, templates and help documentation to help developers hit their stride. Using the SDK, it is possible to develop Facebook apps in Silverlight, WPF, ASP.NET, ASP.NET MVC, and Windows Forms. The SDK can be downloaded for free here.

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Posted 09/11/09 at 05:16:41 PM by Jason Barry

At Microsoft’s annual meeting yesterday, the rumor-mill began churning out tweets claiming Microsoft’s Bing search engine will be getting some new features. From the tweets that were posted (they have since been deleted), it appears that the Bing maps will get some additional functionality including pictures and Silverlight integration.

Overall, it’s all speculation. Some of the information received points to a launch date as early as next Monday, others claim anytime this fall. Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet got in touch with a Microsoft spokesperson who said: “We’re very excited about some of the new Bing features set to roll out over the next few months, but have nothing to announce today.”

If you haven’t already, would you switch your primary search engine to Bing if it offered new features? If so, which features are important enough to make you switch?

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Posted 08/20/09 at 07:42:06 AM by Paul Lilly

Microsoft and Adobe have been duking it out on the desktop to become the definitive platform for rich media content, and now it looks like that fight is going mobile. We'll file this one under the rumor category, but BoyGeniusReport (BGR) says it has "pretty much confirmed" that Research in Motion is planning on integrating full Flash and Microsoft Silverlight support into the Blackberry browser.

You might be wondering how today's Blackberry devices can pull off the power needed for full Flash (not Flash Lite) and Silverlight support, and the answer is, they won't. BGR says we won't see either one until next summer when RIM will release more powerful handsets along with a major overhaul of the software.

The next summer release gives the competition plenty of time to catch up. As it stands, just a few Nokia devices boast Flash support, and Flash Lite at that, along with the HTC Hero. As for Silverlight, we don't know of any smartphone that supports the platform, but come next summer, we can't imagine Blackberry will be the only one.

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Posted 07/22/09 at 10:01:14 AM by Paul Lilly

Adobe this week anounced two open-source initiatives designed to help media companies and publishers build better Flash applications.

The first is the Open Source Media Framework (OSMF), which paves the way for more sophisticated media players to run Adobe Flash content. Formerly known as Strobe, the OSMF offers advanced playback and navigation controls, as well as plug-ins for advertising and tracking. It can also work with any kind of Flash content.

The other open-source project is the Text Layout Framework (TLF), which will help developers add advanced typography and font layouts to their Flash applications. When combined with the new text engine in Flash Player 10, TLF makes possible vertical and bidirectional text, flowing text around images, and multiple language support.

As Microsoft's Silverlight continues to gain traction and HTML 5 adding another dimension to the Web 2.0 war, don't be surprised to see an even bigger push from Adobe in expanding upon Flash's capabilities.

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Posted 02/12/09 at 01:30:00 PM by David Murphy

Novell's Mono Project released version 1.0 of Moonlight today, an open-source platform that allows Linux users to view Microsoft Silverlight-based content and applications.  Delivered as a Firefox extension, Moonlight comes alongside the release of the Microsoft Media Pack, a Firefox extension that gives Linux users access to Microsoft-endorsed media codecs. This opens up the door for playing all Silverlight-compatible media (including MP3, WMA, and WMV files).  According to Novel, Moonlight should work with all major Linux distributions, including openSUSE, Fedora, Red Hat, and Ubuntu.

But if you think that this is going to put a dent in Adobe Air's market share, you're in for a treat.  Click the jump to see just how much Adobe's runtime environment is winning the platform war against Microsoft's Silverlight!

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Posted 02/12/09 at 11:01:21 AM by Paul Lilly

Microsoft received considerable buzz over its Silverlight web browser plugin during the Beijing Olympics, in which NBC opted to use Silverlight rather than Adobe's Flash to stream its Olympics coverage. But it didn't take long for NBC to run back to Flash once the Olympics were over, taking the spotlight off of the Silverlight platform.

Silverlight is back in the news, this time for a new contest Microsoft has launched at serverquestcontest.com. The contest is being aimed at Silverlight game developers age 16 or older and living in the U.S. To enter, eligible developers must create a user profile on the site, download the Software Development Kit, and then use it to create an online game.

Participants can submit up to three entries, each of which must follow a set of strict guidelines. These include a file download size not larger than 4MB and total file size of less than 10MB, resolution of 800x430 or less, the game cannot include any upload file aspects nor can it require or allow any external communication, it must be developed in Silverlight 2.0 and submitted in object/binary code format, and finally the game must clearly indicate to others that it is governed by the Creative Commons license. Phew!

The contest runs through April 30, 2009 (11:59 PM PST), with a voting period to take place between May 1 and May 14. Winners will be announced May 25, 2009.

Any budding developers planning to enter?

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Posted 10/29/08 at 08:15:17 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Microsoft has joined forces with Akamai to provide a consummate high-definition video streaming experience for PCs. The two companies announced that Akamai will launch a beta version of its HD video streaming service christened AdaptiveEdge Streaming for Microsoft Silverlight in early 2009. The beta release will only be accessible to a few of Akamai’s own customers (content providers).

Windows Server 2008 and Microsoft Silverlight will form the skeletal base of the service. Akamai’s service will exploit Microsoft’s new Web server technology, called Internet Information Services 7.0 (IIS7.0) Smooth Streaming, which is aimed at delivering uninterrupted streaming videos – sans any buffering. “Smooth Streaming is an evolution of proven Silverlight technology that has powered global online events,” said Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of the .NET Developer Division at Microsoft, in a press release.

Microsoft clearly hopes that high-definition streaming video can help its Silverlight platform turn the tide and gain more traction. Of course, if Akamai’s service finds favor among providers, it will automatically endear Silverlight to all such content providers. The camaraderie between Microsoft and Akamai dates back to 1999, when the two first strung together a similar partnership.

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Posted 09/08/08 at 12:46:01 PM by Paul Lilly

NBC's fling with Microsoft's Silverlight platform appears to be over, at least for the time being. NBC had previously agreed to stream the Beijing Olympics to viewers using Silverlight instead of Flash to deliver the content, but now that the Olympics have wrapped up, NBC has turned back to Flash for this week's NFL season opener.

Even still, the short-term relationship can be viewed as a success for Microsoft, who managed to increase its install-base through the apparently time limited partnership. Overall download specifics were never disclosed, but we do know that at one point 1.5 million downloads were being registered per day, and according to a spokeswoman for Microsoft, at one point "more than 50 percent of the visitors to NBCOlympics.com on MSN already [had] Silverlight 2 installed." Having a large install base is important because it makes it easier for Microsoft to convince developers to use its platform.

And for Adobe, it means getting back a major partner, but not without a downside. While viewers were able to watch NFL games with Flash installed, reports have surfaced complaining of unwatchable video quality saddled with freeze frames, blurry action, and skipping back and forth while as the feeds tried to buffer.

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