Day 2 Keynote is here! Watch and follow Microsoft’s Developer Conference Build 2017 live.
Day 1 was Amazing. Inelligent clouds and AI were everywhere in all conversations.
Today’s keynote event with Terry Myerson, Microsoft EVP Windows and devices group will start at 0830 PT. Time variation will mean 1530 GMT, 1630 WAT if you are in Lagos, 1830 EAT if you are in Nairobi and 1703 SAST if you are in Johannesburg.
Microsoft will use the event to address Windows developers through keynotes, announcements and technical sessions.
Day 2 Keynote Live stream.
The Spirit of Creativity lives in us all – Terry Myerson
Headlines from the day 2 event include following announcements:
Windows 10 next update is coming in the fall and is called the Windows 10 Fall creators Update.
Story Remix App – Story Remix will help you find inspiration and explore new ways to create great stories – coming in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, and its a really cool app. You don’t have to be a pro to make really cool Stuff
So many new features coming in the next Windows 10 Update. The feel and look will also be another talking point. Day 3 is going to have more technical deep dive sessions into announcements. What from the announcements got your attention, care to share?
The Surface Laptop is a real beauty. That’s the latest hardware addition to the Surface family of wowing devices.
At Microsoft’s May event in New York City targeted at educators and students, Microsoft introduced Windows 10 S. Microsoft says Windows 10 S is inspired by students and teachers. The Operating System experience is streamlined for simplicity, security and superior performance. As part of the creation of this new experience, the Surface Laptop was unveiled.
Microsoft sure knows how to listen and do things right. The reaction to the announcement of this device has been amazing.
We built Surface Laptop to do two things: refresh the classic laptop form factor that our customers, especially college students, have been asking for; and make a Surface that works seamlessly to showcase the best of Windows 10 S.
The result is the most personal and balanced Surface we’ve ever made. This Surface perfectly blends fabric and function, power and portability, beauty and performance. It does all of this without compromising on the things we know are important to higher education students: battery life, display quality, storage, and portability.
Let’s take a look at features and what powers the device.
It has the same premium feel we’ve come to know about the Microsoft Surface brand. It comes in four colours, Burgundy, Platinum, Cobalt Blue and Graphite Gold.
It comes in either the i5 or i7 variants of the 7th generation intel core processor. With RAM sizes from 4,8, and 16 GB. It sports solid state drives of 128, 256 and 512 GB. It weights about 1.25kgs. Microsoft says you can get up to 14.5 hours of battery life, well that’s based off on video playback. During the event Surface Chief Panay Panos said it has the highest battery life compared to all existing MacBook PC, also based on video playback.
It’s light and thin. It is Surface pen enabled. You can also use the Surface Dial with the device, just not on the screen. The screen is definitely touch.
You’ll need to understand that there’ll be some features that wouldn’t be available on a particular model. For example the i5 variant doesn’t have the iris scanner and doesn’t come in certain colours.
Even though the device comes with Windows 10 S installed you can upgrade it till 31/12 this year to Windows 10 Pro for free. Also after the free period you can for a reduced price of 42$.
You can pre-order the devices today and they start shipping on the 15th of June 2017.
The next big Windows 10 OS update, dubbed “The Creators Update” is rolling out. What does it offer and how do you get it if you haven’t been notified yet.
Microsoft’s new operating system update to Windows 10 started rolling out to the public on April 11th 2017 as announced. The update is designed to bring out the creator in you. In relation to Microsoft’s mission statement, it’s more like Microsoft is empowering each Windows user to achieve more by creating.
Microsoft is currently trickling out the update to users and advises you wait for it to hit your PC. It might take a while for this to happen, just as in the case of the anniversary update. This is to avoid and help solve some of the issues that come up during the update process. Alternatively if you have been an active Windows Insider then you’ve been using this update for sometime now. You can opt out now and be okay or better stay in and see what more will come in the next update as it continues. If you believe you are an IT pro, have an extra device to trial or can handle technical issues that come up during the upgrade, then you can trigger the Windows 10 creators update now using the Microsoft Update Assistant.
This is also a free upgrade if you purchased a new Windows 10 PC or upgraded from a Windows 7 or 8 PC when Microsoft allowed it. If not you’ll have to purchase it like as usual. I’m not sure if you can still validate it with your Windows 7 or 8 activation code if you are now stepping up to Windows 10. You can try and let us know how that works out for you, maybe Microsoft still has that door opened?
The Windows 10 Creators Update comes with a lot of tweaks to the feel and look of the OS. It also comes with some very notable features as well. Don’t forget that with the Windows Insider program, Microsoft is listening to how users want the OS to feel in helping them stay more productive. It also brings some under the hood improvements to performance, battery life, security, etc.
Paint goes 3D, Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) with Windows Mixed Reality, Game ? stream mode and Xbox ? play anywhere, Cortana gets better and makes you more productive, plus others are some of the new features in the update. I’ll try and detail out a summary.
Let your imagination take shape and find your inspiration. – In Paint 3D it’s a snap to create 3D objects from scratch or modify someone else’s creation. Easily change color, texture or turn a 2D picture into a 3D object with a click. When you’re ready, share to your favorite social sites or the Remix 3D community.
Immerse yourself in a new reality. – Windows Mixed Reality combines the thrill of virtual reality with the power to engage with and personalize your virtual surroundings. Stay tuned as we work with our partners to bring amazing and affordable experiences to market.
Cortana remembers so you don’t have to. – Cortana integrates with other apps within Windows to help you stay on track. Create, add to and access your Wunderlist lists from Cortana with voice or text.
Built-in broadcast gaming. – Watch and play alongside game broadcasters with Beam, the interactive livestreaming platform where you can interact with streamers in real-time.
Books now in Windows Store. – With Books in Windows Store and Microsoft Edge discover and read e-books from your favorite authors across the genres you love. Books is available across all Windows 10 devices.
Sleep better with blue light reduction. – Now reduce the blue light emitted from your screen at night – get your brain ready to power down for a good night’s sleep.
Say goodbye to tab chaos. – Microsoft Edge now allows review, grouping and saving web page tabs. Quickly find, manage and open tabs you set aside without leaving the page you’re on.
The quickest way to set ideas in motion. – Quickly access the Windows Ink Workspace to use Sticky Notes, Sketchpad, and Screen Sketch. Naturally create, capture and edit ideas at the speed of thought within Office.
Windows Hello, you are the password. – Windows Hello is the password-free sign-in that gives you the fastest, most secure way to unlock your Windows devices.
The best Windows ever for gaming. – Play great new Xbox games on Windows 10 in native 4K resolution. Stay connected to your gaming community with the Xbox app. And play where you want with in-home streaming and Xbox Play Anywhere.
Most comprehensive security. – As the most secure Windows ever built, Windows 10 delivers comprehensive protection – including anti-virus, firewall, Windows Defender and anti-phishing technologies – all delivered built-in at no extra cost to you.
So what do you think? Is your PC seeing the upgrade notification yet? Tell us what you think about the Windows 10 creators update in the comments. Share your experience thus far with us.
Get the Microsoft Update Assistant for PC here. Catch up on all the new features in the Windows 10 Creators Update here.
Microsoft Nigeria hosted bloggers from Nigeria to an interactive session on Empowering Digital Transformation.
The bloggers meetup event was to bring a familiarization of service solutions offered by Microsoft and the new updates coming with the Creators Update to the bloggers.
Digital Transformation is simply doing things differently and with ease.
The Creators Update is the next major update to the Microsoft Windows operating system. The Update is scheduled to start arriving first on new devices and then to the older devices from April 11th 2017. Also Microsoft has said that you can use the Microsoft Update Assistant to manually initiate the update from April 5th 2017. For Windows 10 Mobile devices the creators Update will start rolling out from the 25th of April.
The Creators Update will begin to roll out on April 11th. Like with the Anniversary Update we delivered last August, this update for Windows will proceed in phases.
For the those of you who are eager to get the Creators Update right away, you will be able to initiate the update manually, starting on April 5th, via Update Assistant. This option is intended for advanced users on devices running a licensed version of Windows 10.
We’ll iterate this process over a period of several months until all compatible devices running Windows 10 worldwide are offered the Creators Update. Windows Phone will follow the same phased approach, with rollout scheduled to begin April 25.
At the event Microsoft Nigeria shared updated statistics of Windows 10 since it’s launch.
There are currently over 400 million monthly active devices.
Over 135 Billion hours spent on Windows 10
Cortana has been asked over 5 Billion questions with over 1 Million daily queries.
10 Million of streamed Xbox one games to Windows 10 PCs.
On digital transformation and how Microsoft technology can help you achieve more, there was a presentation on what’s a digital business? Addressing bloggers on the topic there was an elaboration on How is the business being digitally transformed and How is the business model being digitally transformed. Speaking on the four pillars of Digital Transformation:
Join us watch the live stream event of Microsoft. Learn about Microsoft’s latest developer products and the Windows 10 Creators Update
Microsoft’s CVP of Windows Developer Platform, Kevin Gallo and the Windows engineering team will takes us on a tour of what’s new in the Windows 10 Creators Update. They’ll shows off new Windows capabilities and tooling and will share some news along the way.
Some of the subjects to be talked about include;
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Improve user engagement, creating app experiences that flow seamlessly from one device to the next, with Windows and Cortana Skills
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Simplify the process of building beautiful, natural-looking apps with Composition advances and XAML updates
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Optimize app submission to the Windows Store and make it easier for customers to find and buy your apps and games there
Other items on the agenda after the Keynote event include;
Improving user engagement with Windows and Cortana Skills
Building personal and productive apps with Composition and XAML updates
Using the Windows Store to enhance your app
Developer tools and updates
Speaker panel / Q&A
Excited to learn about the new improvements, let us know in the comments.
