There's been alarm expressed in certain quarters following reports like this one suggesting that Windows XP Service Pack 2 could break some existing applications. I wanted to counter this somewhat, or at least provide some potential remedies for those...

In this article, I'll describe how to use the Windows Media Format SDK to access the metadata embedded in Windows Media files for cataloguing purposes. Also included is two managed classes written in C# that vastly simplify the usage of this SDK. Download...

At Microsoft UK we run at least one free developer event a week on average, catering for all levels of skill from novice to expert. Over several years of delivering presentations at these events, I've built up an array of presentations on different aspects...

The one where Tim sells out to the marketing droids... OK, so this is more of a sales pitch than I would normally include in my blog, but I've heard a couple of people over the last week say that they thought TechEd was primarily aimed at IT Pros rather...

From time to time people ask me what it takes to get employed by Microsoft, usually after having been rebuffed by our recruitment consultants. It sometimes feels like no matter how many skills you have, it's impossible to get considered for a role. It...

I've just come across a nasty bug in some sample code (from us, I'm ashamed to say), that highlights the pitfalls of passing string buffers between managed and unmanaged code. To go back a step or two, I've been trying to create a small application...

I've managed to get my hands on a SPOT watch , which is the latest geek toy doing the rounds in Redmond. These watches can pull down Outlook appointments, instant messages, news updates and so on using MSN and some FM subcarrier technology. Unfortunately...

I love this site - I've been wanting to create something similar for a couple of years: Which countries in the world have you visited? Here's the link you can use to create your own "visited country" map. (Thanks to Paul Bartlett for the link.)

Following on from the discussion earlier in the month about Windows XP Service Pack 2 changes, we've now posted the first Release Candidate on the web for download. The good news is that it's available to everyone, MSDN subscriber or not, so you've now...

This is cool - don't know why I haven't come across it before... From the website: The World-Wide Media eXchange (WWMX) is a centralized index of digital photos, where photos are tagged by the geographic location where they were shot. It's an experimental...

I've been following the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity with great interest since they arrived on the surface of Mars. The complexities of managing two robots and the associated software from millions of miles away intrigue me, particularly the way...

We've just opened registrations for the new format UK technical roadshow , taking place between April and June in four locations across the country. This should be a pretty good event, actually - we've got three tracks running concurrently across two...

Dave Verwer asks the question that's on everyone's lips :-)

Thanks to Private Eye for pointing out this fantastic mission statement on the Lake Geneva Forum website. See how many words you can read before it blurs into incomprehensibility! Our Challenge: Providing a neutral platform of discourse to capture...

Rick describes this great story from the annals of the Word team. Have you ever come across a company like this before?

I've been scratching an itch - of the coding variety. For some while now, I've wanted to catalogue all the Windows Media files that I've (legally) ripped over the last year or so, but documentation on MSDN or the broader Internet was scant. So I've...