Windows Live SDK

The Windows Live Platform puts a deeper level of control into developers' hands by offering access to the core services and data through open, easily accessible APIs. Now you can build applications and mashups that combine your innovation with the power of Windows Live services and social relationships..

Visit http://dev.live.com to know more about other services and developer offerings from Windows Live.

& check this for more information about Windows Live SDK

Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR)

Adobe® AIR™, formerly code-named Apollo, is a cross-operating system runtime that allows developers to use their existing web development skills to build and deploy rich Internet applications to the desktop.

Download Adobe AIR

Windows Live SkyDrive

Microsoft is offering you 500MB free space to upload & share your files, also including some other features like :: getting back to recently visited files, Thumbnail images, dragging & dropping ur files & embedding you stuff anywhere with html links..

In my opinion, It looks professional than any other files sharing website.. Try it..

Read it

I wrote that post on my other blog & thought to put a link for it here

Re-think...

I am an MSP

I've just received a mail from a while from Mohammed Wahby (Reponsible for Academia programs at Microsoft) with an invitation to Microsoft Student Partners & now I am officially one of Microsoft Student partners (known as MSP)..

What is MSP?

The Microsoft Student Partner program consists of the brightest and most innovative student developers and technology enthusiasts from universities around the world.

As a Microsoft Student Partner you will get a set of global benefits:

• Welcome Kit will include the following:
• Certificate of Recognition
• Microsoft Recruiting Opportunities
• MSDN Premium Subscriptions
• Access to Worldwide Microsoft Student Partners Website
• Invitation to local Microsoft Events
• Latest Products Training
  & more...
  

I really wish to make good use of this & help in spreading knowledge... I wish to make sth really different in my last year at FCIS.. Dreaming of Leaving Footprints in FCIS...

MS Internship.. The End

4th of September, The closing ceremony of Microsoft Internship 2007..
Started by the early morning in one of Microsoft rooms where all the teams started to get ready to show off their projects.. The ideas every team got was really so nice & innovative.. The EMS team had his T-Shirts & a big banner printed.. QAlert team made really innovative ideas (I liked that invitations & evaluation cards guyz) & finally our team with a small banner hanged form the ceiling & our T-shirts with our project name & our names written on it with ink (we have it now filled with looots of signatures)..

Anyway, By 3:00 pm.. The event started with all Microsoft employees, our instructors from different companies (ITWorx, Link.net, OMS.. ) & We -presenting our projects-.. & it ended up with Kareem Ramadan (General Manager of Microsoft Egypt) giving us our certificates..
It was really gr888 experience, gr888 team spirit (reminded me of INETA days) & a gr8 company..
This is a picture for all the teams members with Kareem Ramadan & our supervisors..

so, That was the end of Microsoft Internship 2007.. I'll miss those days & I'll miss the challenging & team spirits we all had..

I like to end up with some points..
1- If you are a 2nd year student going to your 3rd year, I really recommend trying to get a place in MS internship 2008 next year in shaa Allah.. (Contact me at that time if u need help)

2- What I liked most about that internship.. well, actually 'Technical experience' can be easily got when u start working or maybe a couple of days in any company can let u now how things go in real life, But that internship was really unique cause it gave me sth I really needed which is "Community".. I was able to meet many of the special IT-guyz in Egypt from big companies like ITWorx, Link.net.... & of course Microsoft.. (that's why I liked the fact that our instructors weren't from MS) & not only that, but it was enough for me that I knew those who were with me in the internship... Another thing I liked was that this was a perfect chance for anyone to improve his 'soft skills', presenting & talking in front of expert people is an wonderful chance that made a big difference to all of us (I think)..

3- What makes a company like Microsoft different is that they know "how" to make things.. so maybe that's sth to be learned from a big company like that.. Always follow a "win2win" strategy...

4- Thank Allah that I had that opportunity.. & Thanks to everyone who commented on my first post & encouraged me to go (u helped in making that difference) :)

So, That's the end of my long post & two-months Internship..
c u next post in shaa Allah..

MS Internship.. (3)

We were back again to Microsoft to start our 2nd month (start working on our projects)..
That day we had a meeting with Mohammed Karam (from ITWorx) explaining to us how things will go..
Well, They wanted to make a simulation for us for a real working environment, so they were going to divide us into teams randomly , assign projects randomly & assign supervisors randomly too.. (In real life you don't choose those you're gonna work with ;) or the project u gonna work on )
Another thing that they mentioned & I really liked, they considered that its non-ethical for any companies to let its trainees work on real project for the company & get profit from that (Actually all companies in Egypt does so).. so, the projects we will be working on will not be sold in the market, they are just for us as a trainees..
Anyway, We were divided to teams & assigned different projects.. The projects ideas were really challenging.. Our projects supervisors were from ITWorx stuff too (btw that company is really a company to respect)..
We started working on our projects during all that month, it was really a gr8 experience, gr8 team & gr8 supervisors really..
Our Last day at Microsoft was 28th of August, the next day we went to ITWorx to make a presentation about our project in front of some of the ITWorx crew & Today 3/9 is our final presentation there too in shaa Allah..
Tomorrow -in shaa Allah- is the closing ceremony at Microsoft, we will be showing our projects & there will be lots of things that I will narrate in the next post in shaa Allah ;)

MS Internship.. (2)

Well, I'll be continuing on the previous post..
After the assessment test (which I heard was done that way due to confusion between management internship & ours) but anyway we started to understand more how the internship will go..
MS believes that other internships are not done in the right way (actually they are absolutely right), as trainees come to the company & as usual the company either handles them any trivial work to do or they involve them in real projects & in both cases, the trainee has to depend on himself to learn & gain the experience..
So, According to the previous things.. MS internship was divided to 2 months.. The first month we will be attending sessions made specially for us & the second one will be a project we will be working on..
In the 1st month, They choose the topics of the sessions so that they cover the things that we all don't take in college & in the same time, are so much needed when u enter & work in the market.. The start of the sessions was very nice, it started with "Time management" course driven to us by Logic (one of the biggest management consulting companies in egypt - people who goes to zedny knows that ;) ).. It was really one of the most sessions that I liked (I'll leave talking about it in a separate post).. then we switched to different topics :: networking (infrastructure & core structure) , MSF , VSTS, Testing, Business intelligence, MOF... & more

Another thing, the sessions were "not" given to us by people from Microsoft, they were given to us by people from MS partners.. Logic, Link.net & OMS.. that's wt I remember now.. maybe anyone will think this is a bad thing, actually this is from the things I really liked in that internship (I'll tell u why later)

Anyway, The 1st month passed & It was nice, one did learn new things & esp I got to know the people I am taking the internship with more.. btw, we are about 20-23 persons from different universities.. 90% from us are going to their last year in college.. It was really so nice to know such people, its one of the best things that I gained from that internship..

To be continued in shaa Allah...