World Wide Events

Just a heads up to all who are using the World Wide Events control; the web service that provides the control with events data will be down over the weekend due to a scheduled release.  Both the basic control and the enhanced control with integrated maps will be affected.  Things should be back to normal on October 9.

We now have map integration with the events control - http://lab.msdn.microsoft.com/v20/MapEvents.aspx.  This feature allows you to view the event location on a Microsoft Live Virtual Earth map.  Open the event description and scroll over the push pin.  This will open the map to the right.  You can zoom in/out and scroll the map up/down and left/right from within the map interface. 

 

Imagine the number of steps involved in looking up the location of this event in an online map engine.  The idea behind this feature is to assist the user in discovering the location of the event without having to leave the confines of the page.  This feature acts as a quick visual cue to the user; the event is either located nearby or requires some travel time.  This helps in the ease and efficiency of event discoverability.

 

There are some known issues.  Event locations for all 10 languages are not always found.  Map data must be available from Live in order to render a location.  Asian locations are the most challenging. 

 

As always, let us know what you think. 

Stay tuned... we will soon be releasing some interesting mapping functionality via local.live.com.  More to come...

The World Wide Events control is now live.  Try out the control and let us know what you think.  We are interested in understanding how the experience resonates with you.  If there are things you don't like or areas where we can improve, let us know - http://lab.msdn.microsoft.com/v20/Events.aspx.

 

 

"We can believe that we know where the world should go. But unless we're in touch with our customers, our model of the world can diverge from reality. There's no substitute for innovation, of course, but innovation is no substitute for being in touch, either."


                                                                        Steve Ballmer

Welcome to the World Wide Events blog.  The above quote is a favorite of mine.  It exemplifies what I think our Labs experience should be about. 

We have been working hard to deliver a new way of navigating/discovering events information.  The experience will showcase some of the things we are thinking about.  But, we want your feedback to help us build a better product. 

In the coming weeks we will reveal... stay tuned...