Adam Kinney posts tagged with 'windows vista'

Silverlight Sidebar Gadgets on Windows Vista 64-bit edition

Adam Kinney — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 23:03:00 GMT

At this time (version 2 Beta 1), in the life of Silverlight there is no 64-bit support. I'm not certain if or when 64-bit support will appear, but I don't think Vista 64-bit users should go without Silverlight. And the good news is they don't have to.

In most cases, running Silverlight applications should not be an issue. IE7 and Firefox run in 32-bit mode by default allowing Silverlight to run as expected.

A different scenario which needs some attention is Sidebar Gadgets that use Silverlight. The Windows Sidebar application (sidebar.exe) runs by default in 64-bit mode and in order to use a Silverlight-based gadget you need to run sidebar.exe in 32-bit mode.

You can do this simply by closing the default Sidebar and navigating to C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Sidebar and double-clicking sidebar.exe. Now you can successfully run the new Channel 9 gadget or Xbox Friends Watch in your sidebar and enjoy knowing what the latest C9 video or or when your Xbox friends are online.

If you're happy with the results, you can make sure the 32-bit version of Sidebar is added to your system startup by following the step below:

If you are still running the 64-bit Sidebar, right-click the Sidebar and select Properties.
Uncheck the Start Sidebar when Windows starts option and hit OK
Open C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Sidebar in Windows Explorer
Right-click sidebar.exe and select Copy
Right-click the Windows Orb and select Explore
In Windows Explorer navigate to the folder entitled ..Programs/Startup
Right-click in the folder and select Paste Shortcut

Looking for a Windows '7' Evangelist

Adam Kinney — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:24:00 GMT

Tim posted today about the new opening for a Windows '7' evangelist. And he's not looking for just any old Windows '7' evangelist, but the Windows '7' Evangelist (at this point in time).

It's pretty interesting to think about when you read his description about the role:

Windows is one of the most complex and sophisticated pieces of software in existence, and since it's about the most widely-used piece of software on the planet, it's a pretty exciting project to be working on.
I've got a once-in-a-lifetime open position on my team that I'm currently trying to fill - a Technical Evangelist for the next Windows client release. In fact, the Technical Evangelist at this point in time. This is an extremely challenging, high-profile senior role, with tremendous reach and influence across the organization. Not only will you be the first to see what's coming down the pipeline, but you'll actually have an influence in setting the agenda for Windows development. This isn't just any software gig - it's one of those career-defining roles that puts you at the heart of the software revolution. In years to come, you'll be able to look back with pride and say, "I was part of that".

I think that says a lot. I look forward to seeing who ends up getting the job. I don't think there's much left to do here but plop down a giant Windows logo.

Windows Client team hatches the Shell Blog

Adam Kinney — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:50:00 GMT

Last week the Windows Client team launched shell: revealed, a new blog covering their work on the core user interface of Windows. Which has definitely become a hot topic with the advent of Windows Vista upon us.

The home page is interesting as any home page that tries to bubble up a lot of content is (I especially like the Recent Interviews links that point to Channel 9), but if you dig down to the actually Shell Blog you can see they already have a number of interesting posts. Vinny Pasceri has an interesting post setting the record straight in Windows UI terminology and Ed Averett talks about managing your default applications, something I still have troubles with. I know I've run the Set Programs Access and Defaults program without effect before, or maybe not all applications adhere to the program, hmm... anyways looking foward to user-based defaults in Windows Vista.

Sidebar gadget dev on Windows Vista RC1

Adam Kinney — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 20:17:00 GMT

I just noticed that the new documentation for developing Sidebar gadgets on Windows Vista RC1 is up and live on MSDN - Object Model Reference Dev Overview. I'm looking forward to working on some gadgets for Channel 9 and 10. A mini application using simple languages like JavaScript and HTML, and there are few limits to what the UI can look like (no browser chrome), should be fun.

Vista Speech Recognition Screencast

Adam Kinney — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 17:50:00 GMT

Long Zheng has created an awesome screencast demonstrating how you can run Windows Vista with only the power of your voice. Five minutes of him navigating through applications, adding text and even drawing in MS Paint. Keep your eye open for the mousegrid, which allows you to denote a point on your screen by choosing from grid blocks that reduce in size the closer you get to your target.

Windows Vista Tablet Screencast

Adam Kinney — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 17:47:00 GMT

Long Zheng posted some nice simple Windows Vista screencasts a few days ago. I have Vista running on a laptop but not on a Tablet PC, so obviously the one that caught my eyes was the one focused on the improvements made for the Tablet. Definitely worth a watch if you use a Tablet today. Lots of fun features in there like Pen Flicks (setup box pictured below) and of course it "Pops out like a ninja!"