One of the things that me and my colleagues are charged with is helping create ROCK STAR developers for the Windows Phone platform. We know there are a lot of developers out there who are either working on an app but are stuck for various reasons or have a great idea but need the motivation to get started.
I’m happy to announce that we have scheduled a number of Windows Phone Accelerator Labs coming to Columbus, Minneapolis, Chicago and Dallas. The purpose of these FREE 3-day developer retreats is to give you an opportunity to work on your Windows Phone app with experts on hand to help you build, test and deploy your apps into the Windows Phone Marketplace. You will get hands-on technical assistance and developer phones for testing.
These labs are targeted for specific individuals who are currently working on apps and need assistance. Seating is very limited and we will qualify attendees through an application process.
Success will be measured with you submitting your app(s) to the Marketplace at the end of the lab.
Prerequisites
You should come prepared with your own development machine with the developer tools already installed. You can review the AppHub where you can learn about application features, understand common task for Apps and register and load your App.
Lab Locations/Dates
| Columbus, OH |
11/15 – 11/17 |
Apply |
| Minneapolis, MN |
11/29 – 12/1 |
Apply |
| Chicago, IL |
12/6 – 12/8 |
Apply |
| Dallas, TX |
12/13 – 12/15 |
Apply |
UPDATE: We’ve added another Boot Camp to take place in Chicago on November 18th! Register at http://aka.ms/wpchicago.
Last year, my team ran a series of boot camps to introduce the ins-and-outs of developing Windows Phone applications to the masses. In honor of the upcoming release of Windows Phone 7.5, I’m happy to announce a new round of events taking place to lay down the new development features in Windows Phone 7.5. These boot camps are a free, full-day learning environment to help you become a Rock Star developer on Windows Phone.
We kick this round of boot camps off with a special 2-day event in Austin, TX on October 3-4. The first day will be our standard boot camp, where as the 2nd day will be a full hands-on lab learning opportunity with experts on hand to help you along the way. We’ll follow up with events in Dallas (Oct. 11), Columbus, OH (Oct. 12), Minneapolis (Nov. 10) and Chicago (Nov. 18).
Get more details for each city at:
For additional cities across the US, check out http://msdnevents.com.
As part of the upcoming Chicago Ideas Week, I am excited to be leading a discussion on opportunities for Mobile Developers on Windows Phone. Here are the details…
Start Something! Bring your apps to life on Windows Phone
Do you have the next million dollar idea that you just can’t find the time to finish? Do you already have an app for Android and iPhone that you want to expand into new markets? Windows Phone is here – and with it comes a new world of opportunity for passionate, creative developers. Windows Phone gives you the power to build complex, robust applications using consistent hardware specs, a comprehensive development toolkit, and the all-new, full-service Marketplace for selling your apps.
Date & Time: Tuesday, Oct 11th; 5:30pm-7:30pm
Location:
Tribeca Flashpoint Academy Stage at the Merchandise Mart
222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza
20th floor Chicago Illinois 60654
Map
Registration: http://aka.ms/ciwphone
Visual Studio 2010 will ship on April 12th. We will be celebrating this HUGE release with a number of LIVE launch events taking place around the US as well as the World. The theme for this launch event is “Life Runs on Code”. We will have sessions covering Application Lifecycle Management, SharePoint 2010 and Office 2010 development, Windows, Web as well as the recently announced Windows Phone 7 development all with Visual Studio 2010.
One of the first launch events will be taking place in Chicago on April 29th. I will be presenting the Web and Windows Phone 7 sessions in Chicago. We hope to see you there!
What: Visual Studio 2010 Launch (Chicago)
Where: Chicago Marriott Oak Brook, 1401 W. 22nd Street, Oak Brook, IL (map)
When: Thursday, April 29th, 2010
Register
These events are happening all over the US, for other cities, visit the Launch site. We are also hosting a number of smaller launch events. You can find a city near you by visiting MSDN Events.
With the excitement over the Windows Phone 7 Series, developers are chomping at the bit to start building apps. Although were a few months away from releasing Windows Phone 7 Series to the world, now is a good time as any to start ramping up our developer muscle to build amazing applications targeting the new Windows Phone.
I’m happy to announce the first (which I’m sure there will be many) Windows Phone DevCamp coming to Chicago on April 10th.
This DevCamp will start the day off by providing a walk through of the the development tools including Visual Studio and Expression Blend. From there, attendees will break off into groups to hash out their phone applications. At the end of the day, each team will be given an opportunity to showcase their ideas.
Who: Developers, Designers, Mobile Enthusiasts and Entrepreneurs
What: Windows Phone 7 DevCamp
When: Saturday, April 10, 2010 @ 8:30am – ? (map)
Where: ITA, 200 S. Wacker, Chicago, IL.
Register Here
Dave Bost is a Technical Evangelist for Microsoft and co-host of the Thirsty Developer Podcast.
