Month: December 2015

Microsoft in 2016

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Cloud Doug Berger, director of hardware, devices and experiences at Microsoft Research NExT, predicts 2016 will bring the 'successful and large-scale inclusion of specialized compute acceleration in the cloud.' This will enable advancements in bioinformatics, big data workloads and high-performance computing, he wrote. Cloud connections with quantum computers could enable researchers to find solutions for problems that today's computers cannot solve, said Krysta Svore, senior researcher at Microsoft Research NExT. As an example, she cited the simulation of physical scientific systems to more efficiently create artificial fertilizer. Hsiao-Wuen Hon, corporate vice president of Microsoft Research Asia, he says he thinks 2016 will be the year Web streaming surpasses TV broadcasting. 'More people in China will watch the Olympics through the Web than through TV,' he said of next year's Rio games. (Image: Soleg/iStockPhoto)

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As we’re getting ready to say goodbye to 2015 and Microsoft’s year of transition, we’re also trying to look ahead at what we can expect from Microsoft in 2016. Information Week has quite a few ideas of big things that may be on the horizon. We’re looking forward to seeing what the future holds from Microsoft’s hardware advances and research gains!

  • Windows 10 upgrades
  • Surface growing in power and popularity
  • Microsoft Wearables improvements including changes for the Microsoft Band 2 fitness band and HoloLens
  • Surface Phone
  • Cloud connections with quantum computers
  • Innovative and improved computer security
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Health sensors evolving to monitor metabolic rate

Learn more about these Microsoft predictions for 2016.

What’s Ahead for Windows 10 in 2016

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What’s ahead for Windows 10 in 2016? 2016 will mark the first full year for Microsoft’s operating system. Here’s a list of exciting things ahead for Windows 10 in the new year.

  • Windows 10 begins automatically installing on machines running Windows 7 and 8.1
  • Microsoft Edge extensions
  • Windows 10 blurs the virtual and real world
  • More security for enterprise
  • Testers get sneak peeks at even earlier builds
  • Cortana helps users with a wider range of tasks inside Windows 10
  • Windows 10 runs a desktop OS from a phone
  • Free upgrade expires July  29, 2016 and users will have to buy a Windows 10 license
  • PC makers sell new machines with Windows 10, rather than Windows 7 or 8.1, at the end of October 2016
  • Windows 10 Surface Hub arrives

Learn more about what you can expect for Windows 10 in the year ahead.

Office 365 Planner

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The Officer 365 Planner preview has started to roll out to First Release customers. Planner is a new Office 365 experience that makes it easy to organize teamwork and group tasks. Planner’s simple, visual layout allows users to create plans, organize and assign work, share files, chat with coworkers, and get updates on progress. Managers can create a dashboard and whenever someone makes a strategic change, group members receive a notification.

The difference between Planner and other collaboration tools is that Planner is primarily organized based on visual cues. Manager no longer have to send a group email outlining team assignments. With Planner, managers simply drag and drop responsibilities into team members’ columns. The cues are represented by items called “Cards,” “Charts” and “Buckets,” that feature previews of whatever success measures have been established for a given project.

Learn more about Office 365 Planner and see answers to some Frequently Asked Questions.

CLCC Keynote Speakers

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Have you had a chance to review the Agenda for the Cengage Learning Computing Conference? The schedule is jam packed with breakout sessions, labs, and exciting keynote speakers! Here are the keynote speakers who will be presenting April 4-6, 2016.

Monday, April 4: Rob Curtin, Microsoft’s Director Higher Education, Worldwide Public Sector

Corinne Hoisington

Tuesday, April 5: Corinne Hoisington, Professor at Central Virginia Community College, Computer Software Consultant, and Cengage Learning Author

Caleb Harper

Wednesday, April 6: Caleb Harper, Principal Investigator/Director of the Open Agriculture Initiative at MIT Media Lab and National Geographic Explorer

Register for the 21st annual Cengage Learning Computing Conference.

PowerPoint Designer and Morph

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PowerPoint has two new tools that make it easy to build presentations with amazing layouts and animated transitions. PowerPoint Designer and Morph work for you by automating the creation of slides, animations, and presentations: Designer provides design ideas for your slides by using cloud intelligence to analyze over 12,000 graphic blueprints and Morph creates cinematic motion by seamlessly animating between your slides.

Learn more about these exciting new PowerPoint features.

Register for the Cengage Learning Computing Conference

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21st Annual Cengage Learning Computing Conference April 4-6, 2016 Orlando Florida

WHAT:
The Cengage Learning Computing Conference is a two-day professional development event for Computing educators. Attendees will get the latest and greatest happenings in technology, learn about Microsoft from the Microsoft product team and find out the best ways to apply this information to their courses. This year marks our 21st year hosting this event.

WHEN:
April 4th – April 6th, 2016

WHERE:
Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
1751 Hotel Plaza Boulevard
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

REGISTER:
Registration is now open!

GET IN ON THE CONVERSATION:
There is none other like Microsoft®, and they have launched new products and made some fun new changes. Are you as excited as we are? Let us know your favorite new features. What changes are you most excited to share with students? What topics do you really want to learn about from our experts at the Conference? We’ll be sharing some of our favorite and exciting updates and changes. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

We encourage you to share in the fun and post using the hashtag #21CLCC