MSDN Flash - Volume 17, Number 10: May 20, 2013

Top Stories

The New Windows Dev Center
Building for Windows? Everything you need is right here. It's easier than ever to find the content, samples, and downloads you need to develop great apps that stand out from the crowd.

Leading LightSwitch: Hello, Colors
Find out how you can use LightSwitch to add some color to your mobile apps to make them more visually appealing.

Reimagine SharePoint Development
Visit the new Reimagine SharePoint Development site for resources about migrating SharePoint solutions to the cloud app model for SharePoint. Learn the new way to customize SharePoint solutions. Check back often as they will be rolling out new content over time as well. Explore the new site: reimaginespdev.com.

Your Featured Content

Common Techniques in Responsive Web Design
This third in a series of articles about responsive web design explores techniques for designing and implementing layouts that respond to the context of a user's device.

Interested in making money with your app?
The Microsoft Advertising SDK for Windows 8 gives you the opportunity to experiment with the advertising capabilities in Windows Store applications and provide feedback on the experiences. For additional monetization tips for apps, join App Builder.

Using Windows Azure to Build Back-End Services for Windows 8 Apps - Adding Push Notifications
In part 5 of their series, Peter Laudati, Brian Hitney, and Andrew Duthie show us how to quickly add the ability to implement push notifications for the GameLeader Service using Azure Mobile Services. Check out the full article.

Just Released from Microsoft Press: Supplement to Inside the Microsoft Build Engine
Extend your knowledge of MSBuild and learn what's new in Visual Studio 2012 for MSBuild and Team Foundation Build. Gain a fresh cookbook of examples to help you get productive with UI changes, batching, Team Foundation Server, offline apps, database publishing, and other essential topics.

App Builder Virtual Summit Available on Demand
Get tips on Windows and Windows Phone from top app developers. Whether you're an iOS, Android, or Windows developer, this event offers the perfect opportunity to make headway on your apps.

Windows Store App Template to Live Data in 3 Easy Steps
Technical Evangelist G. Andrew Duthie demonstrates how, in 3 easy steps, you can replace the sample data in the Windows Store JavaScript Grid app template with live data from the Meetup.com API.

Windows 8 Hands-on Training: The Windows Store APIs in C#
May 21, 9:00 A.M. Pacific Time, online
Microsoft Technical Evangelist Adam Grocholski will run through how to detect whether your app is running as a trial version, how to simulate purchases and in-app purchases, and how to retrieve licensing information. Join App Builder for even more Windows 8 app building tools and resources.

Quality Enablement Series #2 - Create and Manage Automated Tests with Visual Studio 2012
May 21, 2013, 10:00 A.M - 11:30 A.M. Pacific Time
Learn about test automation and quality enablement using Microsoft and open source tools to cover the foundation of your testing stack, and learn about using SpecFlow, a tool that can help us translate human-readable specifications into executable automated tests. See more webcasts.

Windows Store Shopping App Framework Webinar
Looking for a complete Windows Store client app to integrate with your existing ecommerce system? This presentation offers free access to and explanation of a functional Windows 8 client app built by Tallan to turn Microsoft's Shopping Ideabook into a working example.

Storage Your Way with Windows Azure
Windows Azure is truly open for developers. Store data using relational SQL databases, NoSQL table stores, and unstructured blob stores. When you want to mine data, hook up to the available Apache Hadoop service. Try Windows Azure free for 90 days to experience the most open cloud platform.

Still Time to Register for C# Jump Start: May 23
Get an accelerated overview of advanced Windows Store app development using C#, plus prep for Microsoft exam 70-485, a requirement for the Windows Store Apps Using C# certification. Register now, and catch up on the two previous C# Jump Start courses, available on demand.

Windows 8 UX Design Jump Start Now on MVA
Discover new features of Windows 8 so you can design apps that engage your audience more deeply in new and creative ways. Learn from Microsoft's Chris Mayo and Big Nerd Ranch's Brandy Porter the ins and outs of designing better UX for Windows 8.

Port Your iOS and Android Apps - New Content Available Now on App Builder
Sign up for App Builder and select "Port an Existing App to Windows" to access special resources, tools, and support to help you take your existing apps to the Windows platform. Once your app is published, fill out the form at App Builder Keep the Cash.

Tour of New Features: Visual Studio 2012 Update 1 and Update 2
May 29, 2013, 10:00 A.M. - 11:30 A.M. Pacific Time
The Visual Studio Team has moved into a quarterly update model, which provides users the opportunity to take advantage of new features sooner than in previous release milestones. Plus, we're giving away one brand-new Jawbone JAMBOX Wireless Bluetooth Speaker, valued at over US$150.

CodeProject's Azure Cloud Challenge Using SQL on Azure
CodeProject is running a series of challenges with great prizes; you can enter one or all. The 3rd challenge: Use SQL on Azure. Add data to season the mix or use it as a backup recovery solution. It's not just about data access.