It's not easy to make it as an app developer. That's the key takeaway from the latest State of the Developer Nation report from Vision Mobile, pulling together data from more than 10,000 mobile developers (including some of you) across 137 countries. With that many developers they were able to get a broad view of what's popular and (more importantly) what's successful in making great...
![Microsoft to hold one big IT conference in May 2015 as they replace TechEd [Update]](https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/styles/w250h188crop/public/field/image/2014/07/microsoft-itconference.jpg)
Microsoft has announced it will hold one conference for IT professionals in May 2015 that will combine the content in the company's previous TechEd, SharePoint, Project, Lync and Exchange events. The announcement didn't offer much in the way of details, other than the conference will be held May 4-8 in Chicago. More information about the conference will be revealed sometime in...
Microsoft is changing up how developers get resources for Windows Phone and Windows 8. In fact, they're actually merging developer resources for Windows and Windows Phone. That's not all, they're adding twenty one new payout markets and highlighting the new Kinect for Windows 2.0 SDK. Details on all changes below. New unified developer resource for Windows Phone and Windows 8 Wanted...
Starting with Windows Phone 8.1 users can select a background wallpaper for their Start screen. The trick only works with apps that have a transparent Live Tile, which has resulted in a massive push by fans for more apps with those see-through Tiles. But like all things in life, sometimes it goes too far. For instance, many people have – rightly – complained that they liked those '...
Internet Explorer is getting a dev channel! Like Google's Chrome browser, those interested in trying out the latest bleeding-edge features in Internet Explorer will now have a developer version that they can use. The Internet Explorer Developer Channel offers numerous updates to the F12 developer tools, allowing those coding for the web to test their stuff on the latest and greatest...
Vserv.mobi, the global mobile advertising exchange, has shared an interesting infographic that puts together the milestones and elements of the journey of Windows Phone platform across the globe. The company has been helping Windows Phone developers monetize across emerging markets and the number of requests on the exchange, especially for the Windows platform, grew by 18.2X last year...
Telerik, the company behind a number of popular developer tools for mobile platforms like Windows Phone, are making their suite of UI controls for Windows platforms completely free for the next four days in honor of TechEd 2014. This includes controls for both Windows Phone and Windows 8. The company is also working on a new set of tools to support Microsoft's new Windows Universal...
We wish Adobe had more apps out there for Windows Phone. They’ve had Adobe Reader out for a long time and today just released a new app. Sorry, it’s not Photoshop or Lightroom for your phone. Instead it’s an app called PhoneGap Developer. Surprise. It’s aimed squarely at any Windows Phone developer using PhoneGap to make apps. PhoneGap is a mobile development framework that Adobe...
Last summer we told you boys and girls about this really great video series up on Channel 9. The series was called ‘Windows Phone 8 Development for Absolute Beginners’. It was an 11+ hour series that taught absolute beginners how to develop for Windows Phone 8. Now there’s a sequel up on Channel 9 that will do the same for Windows Phone 8.1. Bob Tabor, Larry Lieberman and Matthias...
We’re very excited to see what developers can do by integrating their apps with Cortana. It’s a very promising future for those on Windows Phone 8.1. One developer has already started to play around with Cortana. Matt Cavanagh, a guy from South Africa who is well-known in the Windows Phone developer scene, has hooked up Cortana to control his lights. Check the video after the break...
It was just this weekend that Microsoft unified pricing tiers to help make universal apps easier, and today they've opened the floodgates to developers and are now accepting Windows Phone 8.1 and universal apps for review. As a refresher, universal apps take advantage of new frameworks in Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 to allow developers to build apps once and deploy them across...
We’re still recovering from Microsoft’s //BUILD/ conference from last week. Build 2014 was the event that Microsoft finally showed us Windows Phone 8.1 for the first time publically. It was also full of information for developers throughout the week at all the various sessions. Microsoft has compiled a really handy recap of the event last week. Need to catch up and digest all the info...
We've heard of the past successes of the Windows Phone App Studio, but today Microsoft is announcing an update. The number 1 question has apparently been; what about Windows apps? Folks asking that need worry no longer and say hello to the unified Windows App Studio. The beta release is available to download from today and allows you the ability to create a universal project resulting...
Hot on the heels of Microsoft officially announcing Windows Phone 8.1, the SDK Development Tools are now available for download. The Windows Phone emulator has also been updated to handle Windows Phone 8.1. All which in preparation for the eventual release of the Windows Phone 8.1 SDK. The Windows Phone 8.1 development tools are included with Visual Studio 2013. If you already have...
Here’s some potential good news for a handful of ambitious developers. Google has released over 50 Google APIs for .NET. Google quietly made the announcement last week on their developer blog. The release of the Google APIs Client Library for .NET should hopefully produce some nice Windows Phone and Windows 8 apps that tie into Google’s services. Some services you can look forward to...
A week from now we’ll be packing our bags and getting ready to head to San Francisco. This is where Microsoft’s 2014 Build conference will take place. The focus is on developers and upcoming product innovation Microsoft is making for them. We’ll see what Microsoft has in store not just for developers, but consumers as well, when they unveil Window Phone 8.1. Not only will developers be...
In-App Purchases are extremely common in mobile apps and games these days. As an AT&T customer, I have the option of paying for Windows Phone IAPs by credit card, carrier billing, or Microsoft account. People with different carriers or living in other countries might not have access to those same payment methods. And you normally couldn’t use carrier billing for Windows 8 purchases...
Here’s some stellar news for Windows Phone developers. Microsoft is rumored to buy software development company Xamarin. Microsoft and Xamarin have always had a cozy relationship. Last November the two tightened their marketing and technical ties with a new partnership deal. Xamarin is a popular tool because it allows developers to create Android and iOS applications uses C#, the...
Developing a Windows Phone app is half the battle. It can be argued that it’s just as hard to get exposure and market your app to get downloads and users. Which is why we think it’s cool when developers make apps that are aimed at helping other developers. We recently covered App Promo. An app that combined your app logo with its Windows Phone Store link in a QR code. Today we’re going...
Advertising platform for Windows and Windows Phone, AdDuplex has launched a new sweepstake initiative where the company will give away three Windows Phones to developers each month. This deal will last throughout 2014, so there's plenty of time to get involved and earn your own smartphone. It's a perfect time to be building apps for the platform. The initiative is aimed at helping...