Microsoft Robotic Studio RTMs

Microsoft has released-to-manufacture Microsoft Robotics Studio (via Dan Fernandez).

\<a href="http://www.knowing.net/images/MicrosoftRoboticStudioRTMs_BA78/image02.png"" atomicselection="true">We got a Roomba as an early Christmas present and I gotta' tell you, it's won over my extremely-skeptical wife. My least favorite chore is sweeping our long …

more ...

What Happens When You Drink A Coke

\<a href="http://www.knowing.net/images/WhatHappensWhenYouDrinkACoke_B318/image06.png"" atomicselection="true">John Montgomery points to this interesting article on the physical effects of Coca Cola. (Short version: you get a sugar spike, one more potent than you could stand if the taste of sugar wasn't cut by the …

more ...

Implementing Dataflow with Threads

Here's a scholarly, but clearly written, article on a generalized algorithm for implementing dataflow using shared memory. Dataflow is a very intuitive calculation model (think "spreadsheet"). When I saw this paper I thought "Wasn't it known that dataflow could be automatically parallelized?" but maybe not. One way or the other …

more ...

You had me at 'autonomous blimp'

Sadly, it sounds all artsy-fartsy with the blimps moving towards sound or somesuch. Sigh. If your autonomous blimps can detect and move towards sound, at least let paint the target with a laser sighting device to instill an appropriate feeling of dread.

\<a href="http://www.knowing.net/images/Youhadmeatautonomousblimp …

more ...

PDC '07: October 2-5, Los Angeles

Microsoft just announced that the next PDC will be held October 2 - 5 in Los Angeles. Forecast calls for lingering late-season wildfires and a chance of LINQ...

more ...

XNA First Impressions

I spent about an hour last night playing with the release of XNA Game Studio. My first impression is that someone at Microsoft needs to contract me to write some tutorials! Heh heh heh.

Actually, I'm greatly looking forward to incorporating XNA into a series of articles I'm pitching on …

more ...

Alan Z. Calls Shenanigans On Office Open XML

Alan Zeichick brands ECMA a "vendor-driven standards body" and decries "the competitive aspects of turning one company's impossible-to-implement spec into an industry standard." I'm a little more sanguine about ECMA, but only because I'm skeptical that standards (or open source) have nearly the importance they're generally accorded. (I'm well aware …

more ...

I'm not entirely happy about this...

Rock Star
You scored 94%!
Link: The BASIC classic rock Test

more ...

Or you could get 'em Ruby and a snowboard

\<a href="http://www.c-jump.com/"" atomicselection="true">

Where's the LHS on 6-x;? And does that say "parent friendly" under the "x++"?

more ...

Hopes for Jon Udell's Tenure At Microsoft

I imagine that every single person who reads this blog other than my sister (Hi Donna!) knows who Jon Udell is and knows that he is joining Microsoft. In the small world of "people who make their living by writing about software development," Jon is clearly the leading light on …

more ...