DrawPad
Author: SimzzDev DrawPad is a simple drawing app. You can change brush height, width, and color. You can erase strokes easily. You can even choose your own background image, and then save your creation. Download now
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DrawPad is one of those entertainment apps that never gets old. It was created and put into the marketplace by a student. When I first downloaded this app I played around on it for almost twenty minutes because it was so entertaining. The premise of the app is simply drawing or writing with your finger. You can start off with the basic white background, or you can upload/ take pictures and draw on top of the photo. That’s where the fun comes in. You can take pictures of your friends, draw funny things on the photo and then save or send the photo to someone. There is so much flexibility in what you can do with this app, and that is why I enjoy it so much. One can change the width and color of the pen stroke, change the background, and send the photos or drawings to anyone. This app is truly one of a kind, and as I said earlier, the work of a student.
Go to the Windows Phone app-a-thon site and create an app for your favorite things. The first 1000 students to enter the competition will win an Xbox 360 game, and the student who publishes the most apps will win a Windows Phone 7.These prizes are cool and exciting, but you will be even more thrilled when you see that people from around the world are downloading the app you created. And you never know, maybe your app will be featured in the next Windows Phone Student App of the week blog! Creating apps have never been easier then right now. Microsoft is giving you all of the tools to be able to do it, and all you have to do is utilize this opportunity. I believe all of you out there have the capability to create an app like this one. Take a few minutes to check out t http://wpstudentapp.com/. If nothing else, at least download this app and see how fun and easy a student app can be. Have a great week and remember to check back here next week for the latest edition of Student App of the Week.
-Devon
August is almost to an end and that means it’s come time again to announce the Tech Student of the Month! This month, we are highlighting Phillip Huff who is the creator of an independent game development studio called Stony Studios. Phillip is about to begin his sophomore year at Stony Brook University, located on Long Island, with plans to double major in Computer Science and Philosophy. He is the brain behind the fun and explosive new Windows Phone game called Ion Reaction and although he is new to Windows Phone development, Phillip has learned the ropes quickly and fully intends to explore the mobile platform in the future.
Phillip always had a seeming flair for technology. During middle school he played “Escape Velocity,” a single-player RPG computer game series, which offered players the ability to create personalized plug-ins that would modify the game in terms of graphics, resources, and overall game-play. Phillip quickly found a knack experimenting with his own modifications and was able to build an understanding of high level software development concepts. Soon after, he was known at school for being able to program his graphing calculator to do anything! He taught himself to run frame-by-frame movies on his calculator by uploading picture files and buffering the frames in sets of ten to form a running sequence.
Philip’s reputation became known even among the faculty, who sought him out to work on volunteer web design projects involving hand-written HTML. He learned everything about web design from a helpful site called W3 Schools and by means of trial and error. Phillip also had the opportunity to work with robotics programming through a local business that sought to teach students about graphic programming. He and his friend were given a Roomba-esque robot and were told to explore the API in order to understand how it responded to various movements. This gave him the opportunity to work with C++ and become familiar with object-oriented programming. Although Phillip had no formal training prior to college, his innate curiosity about programming and willingness to learn provided a great foundation in preparation for Stony Brook University’s computer science program.
Philip is only a sophomore at Stony Brook but he has already found great success on campus. One of his computer science class assignments was deemed the best out of a class of 150 students! These project-based courses have allowed Phillip to explore different areas of programming and discover new points of interest. He got into Windows Phone development during the spring of freshman year with the help of Microsoft’s DreamSpark program, a program that provides free professional-level developer and design tools to students and educators.
As a Windows Phone owner (LG Quantum), he found the platform interesting and decided to learn more by finding helpful resources around the web. One of the primary resources he used for reference was the Microsoft Windows Phone Development Library, an extensive online library of resources available for Windows Phone developers at any level. He learned how to use C# and XNA Game Studio in order to program his first Windows Phone 7 app Ion Reaction, a multi-mode game consisting of explosive chain reactions. Ion Reaction was released less than a month ago and has already seen a good amount of downloads and exposure.
In regards to future plans, Phillip intends to continue developing for the Windows Phone platform. He is already working on a new app inspired by Escape Velocity and is in the process of flushing out details for updates on Ion Reaction. An idea in the works is integrating Ion Reaction with Cloud technologies to enable a Global Leaderboard for high-ranking scores. As for now, his biggest priority is to finish out his education and develop his current skill-sets.
Phillip expects to graduate from Stony Brook University in 2014 and hopes to teach programming in the future. We’re excited to see what else he has to offer the Windows Phone Marketplace and the rest of the tech world. We wish him the best of luck in future projects and endeavors!
Stay connected with Phillip on Twitter: @StonyStudios
Join our Microsoft Tech Student community on Facebook and tell us your story!
Read the June Tech Student Profile on Andrew Zurek
The old adage “knowledge is power” is an agreed upon theorem in our society. With the increasing tuition hikes on students, the barrier to entry in formal education can send the wrong message that only those with a lot of money can be educated, ergo “power is power”. Can this still be as true in 2011 as it was in the Middle Ages? Luckily, there are many organizations now that will help students with loans, grants and scholarships.
I’d like to take a moment to outline some truly free money for students. Here is the list of some of our favorite scholarship and grant opportunities:
The Gates Millennium Scholars Program (GMS) GMS will select 1,000 talented students each year to receive a good-through-graduation scholarship to use at any college or university of their choice. Gates Millennium Scholars receive personal and professional development through our leadership programs along with academic support throughout their college career.
Microsoft Imagine Cup ($3 Million total over the next 3 years) Microsoft Corp. recently announced the winners of the ninth annual Microsoft World-Wide Imagine Cup, the world’s premier student technology competition, honoring student innovations that address global problems such as improving road and fire safety, eradicating poverty, and creating a more sustainable environment. The company also unveiled plans to launch a three-year, $3 million competitive grant program to help recipients realize their vision of solving the world’s toughest problems. Start the process by signing up here U.S or Worldwide
The College JumpStart Scholarship Fund ($1500): The College JumpStart Scholarship is available to high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors; and current college students. To be considered for this award, you must be committed to going to school and be able express your goals for getting a higher education.
The Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship ($1000): is open to ninth through twelfth grade high school students, college students, and graduate students who are legal U.S. residents. Students not currently in school must plan to enroll in a higher education program within 12 months. You must submit a 250 - word personal statement to be considered for this award. The award may be used for tuition, room and board, books, or any related educational expense.
The E-Waste Drive Campaign Scholarship ($10,000) is available to students ages 25 and under who are U.S. citizens. In order to qualify for this award, you must run a drive to collect e-waste, deliver the e-waste to your local Best Buy store, and fill out a report back form.
There also options for distinct groups:
Regional- http://bit.ly/r5c8tp
Ethnicity- http://bit.ly/n0Jx9R
Disability- http://bit.ly/qknUyM
Military- http://bit.ly/pVblss
Other great sites to check out:
www.scholarships.com and www.fastweb.com
Free Dictionary
Author: Jared B Drake Dictionary and Thesaurus to help you while you’re on the go. Simple and Quick And its FREE!!!!!!! A simple web browser with a home page of dictionary.com Download now
This dictionary app although similar to other dictionary apps, has one main difference, it was created by a student! This app at it’s core is just a link, and here’s why. One begins using this app by typing in a word they want to look up. The user then clicks dictionary or thesaurus and he or she will be linked to another website where the results are shown. The user is given a lot of information about the word, such as figure of speech, pronunciation, definition, etc. I liked this app a lot because it allowed me to search for words without having to go online. Its much simpler to just click on the app and let it connect me to the correct website. Since the app connects one to such well known websites as Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com, one knows that the information they are receiving is accurate. I personally tested the app out by searching for definitions of numerous words and comparing the definitions I was given to definitions in a paper dictionary I have. The results of the app were as good if not better then the definitions in the paper dictionary. I would definitely recommend that anyone looking for a good dictionary app download this app because it is very high quality and at the same time free!
This App is the Student app of the week! However, you could be the one to create the app that becomes next weeks app of the week. It’s easy to get involved! Just go to the Windows App-a-thon site for details or check out the 4 easy steps below to create an app and be entered in the running for prizes:
1. Register with App Hub
2. Download free tools
3. Build and Submit your app
4. Enter the student App-a-thon
How did you decide your college major: throw darts at a list, take a quiz online, pick the kiosk with the coolest pens at orientation, or maybe you knew what you wanted to be since the beginning? However you decided and whatever direction you’re headed*, Microsoft has some free software, trials, discounts and resources to help you get through school with flying colors. Check out the major-specific solutions/offers below:
Art Majors: Creating 3D art, anime-style graphics, layers, and interesting photo effects will no longer cost you an arm and a leg: http://bit.ly/artmajors
Astronomy: Bringing together imagery from the best ground and space-based telescopes in the world and combining it with 3D navigation, this software will help you enjoy the cosmos like never before: http://bit.ly/Astronomymajors
Biology: a library of commonly-used bioinformatics functions is at your fingertips: http://bit.ly/biologymajors
Business: Your first step toward the CEO office should be the best operating system available. You don’t live in the 90s and neither should your computer: http://bit.ly/Businessmajors
Computer Science: Servers, Dev kits and more! This bundle of over 20 free licenses packs a punch: http://bit.ly/CSmajors
Education (K-12): You love kids, but worry what you’d say when you actually get in front of them to be a teacher one day?! Everything from lesson plans, software and discounts for your noble cause: http://bit.ly/Educationmajors
English: Did Oedipus kill his father or find out his uncle put poison in his ear? Make sure you keep your literature straight and organized- we wouldn’t want you develop a complex ;) http://bit.ly/Englishmajors
Game Design: XNA, Kodu Lab- we’re big fans of game designers around here and want you to be set up with all the free tools you need to make the next big game: http://bit.ly/GameDesignsmajors
Political Science: So you need to present the arguments for and against raising the debt ceiling by next Monday! We’ll help you look like you know what you’re talking about: http://bit.ly/PoliScimajors
Psychology: The human condition in college is notes, notes, notes, notes- be prepared: http://bit.ly/Psychmajors
Mathematics: Pre-algebra, Algebra, Trigonometry, Physics, Chemistry, and Calculus ring a bell? You’ll be glad you have this study buddy: http://bit.ly/Mathmajors
Theater Arts/Broadcast Journalism: “There ain’t no business like show business” – start honing your skills now with this handy program: http://bit.ly/Theatermajors
*Not all college majors are represented