Todd Anglin's blog

How to Pick Your Platform: Silverlight, Metro, or HTML5

Todd Anglin — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 18:00:00 GMT

While Windows 8 is ushering in an exciting new model for Windows development called "Metro style apps" that run a new "unified" Windows Runtime (WinRT), it's not necessarily the right choice for all new Windows software development. In fact, there are a lot scenarios where it's not a good choice.

In this over-simplified decision tree, I try to provide some crude logic for how to pick between your platform options. Clearly, there are many nuances not covered in this tree, but I'll work on expanding the "logic" to make it more bullet proof in the coming weeks.

The first decision is the most important, though: Do you need to continue building apps that work in Windows 7?

If your answer to this question is "Yes," Metro style apps and WinRT should not be on your radar. These are Windows 8 only technologies, and there will be no backport layer that will let you run Metro apps on Windows 7.

That means any project that has as a requirement "Support Windows 7 clients," should only be considering WPF, Silverlight, WinForms, and "web" technologies (HTML/JavaScript + their server-side counterparts, like ASP.NET). It's that simple.

IF, however, you want to put apps on the Windows Tablets that will start shipping late next year, and IF you accept that these apps will only run in that Windows 8 Metro environment, then you should start digging-in to and learning WinRT.

For everyone else, don't lose sight of reality. And reality in a Windows 7 world (that will still work in a Windows 8 world) means Silverlight, WPF, and HTML5. (And, of course, Telerik is already armed with all of the tools you need for today's reality, and we're preparing tools for tomorrow's Metro option.)

Still Missing In Action at BUILD (Day 2)

Todd Anglin — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 00:05:00 GMT

Yesterday I summarized a few important topics that were auspiciously missing at Microsoft's BUILD conference after the first day of sessions and keynotes. Now as Day 2 nears its end, I thought I'd revisit some of yesterday's observations and see if those topics are still missing. With both keynotes now done, it's pretty safe to assume missing topics now aren't going to get much attention at BUILD 2011.

Not Missing Anymore
A few things that were missing yesterday did make appearances today:

WPF
Half of the existing XAML story started to pop-up today. While it didn't make the keynotes, Soma and ScottGu talked about WPF and pending improvements coming in .NET 4.5 during Channel 9 interviews. So rest easier. WPF is not dead and not stagnent. It's evolving along with .NET.
ASP.NET
While I didn't list ASP.NET yesterday, the astute commenters pointed-out that ASP.NET didn't show-up yesterday. That changed today, along with the appearance of ScottGu during the keynote. Lots of ASP.NET MVC demo love shown today, so again, rest easy ASP.NET (MVC) developers.
Steve Ballmer
Steve was almost a no-show again today, but in what was one of the bigger "surprises" of the week, Ballmer showed-up at the end of the keynote to finally lend the needed "weight" to Microsoft's announcements this week. (Meanwhile, no Steven Sinofsky today.)

Still Notably Missing

While a few things did show-up today, many important topics are still missing in action:

Silverlight
WPF showed-up today, but Silverlight is still painfully absent. True, Silverlight 5 is still coming and Silverlight will continue to work in Win8 via (non-Metro) IE10. But little is being said about what happens after SL5...
Partners
The only partner to make a keynote "appearance" in 2 days of keynotes was Viper SmartStart, and even this was via Microsoft proxies (and it didn't really involve Win8). It's plain to see that the Microsoft Win8 "cone-of-silence" reached far and wide, but hopefully Microsoft re-engages partners more deeply now that the Win8 cat is out of the bag.
Windows Phone
Still no focused Windows Phone talk today. Ultimately, it's only disappointing because it means the rumored idea of writing one app for Windows Phone, Windows Tablet, and maybe even Xbox is still just that: rumor. WinPhone does get some session coverage this week, but no major announcements or changes to the story.
Nokia
If there is any hardware device vendor you'd expect Microsoft to be working super closely with for both phones and tablets, you'd probably think Nokia. Unfortunately, not only did Nokia have no presence at BUILD, but the Developer Preview hardware was delivered by Samsung, not Nokia. Sure, Nokia is probably heads-down on making successful WinPhones, but an exciting Nokia device would have really helped put the BUILD enthusiasm over the top.
Guidance
There is a LOT of new stuff for developers this week, but at the same time, none of the old stuff is obsolete. You can still use the WPF and Silverlight you know and love in Windows 8, side-by-side with the new WinRT model. When should you use one or the other? What type of XAML is Microsoft going to evolve long term? That's up to you to figure-out this week. Fortunately, when it comes to tools, Telerik is prepared to support any future path you choose. And we're already starting to help you with guidance, too, with posts like this from Telerik EVP Doug Seven on Silverlight and WPF.

And, of course, all of the other things I listed yesterday remain MIA: Office in Metro, acknowledgement of XAML for older versions of Windows, plug-ins for immersive IE, shipping timelines, and Xbox.

Answers and Questions

For all of the answers BUILD provided to long running summer questions, it also created many more. Additional answers will continue to flow from info shared during BUILD this week, but this is just the beginning to a long journey.

Windows 8 and the related Metro style apps are in Developer Preview today. We are many months away from BUILD technologies even being officially available, let alone broadly deployed.

So, take a deep breath! Remember that this is a future focused conference. Your world does not change.

Over the next few weeks and months, Telerik will work hard to help you understand the Windows 8 information, but we will also help you continue to focus on the here-and-now. You have software to write, you need tools, and that doesn't change while Win8 continues to bake. Stay tuned to Telerik and we'll help you be successful today and tomorrow.

BUILD Day 2 Keynote: What You Need to Know

Todd Anglin — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:54:00 GMT

With the California sun now rising in the sky, it's time for another fresh day of BUILD and the all important Day 2 keynote. Like yesterday, rather than compete with the live video stream, I've real-time condensed today's keynote in to the key moments you need to get the overall jist of what Microsoft shared. This isn't a blow-by-blow blog of the keynote, but if you spend 5 minutes reviewing this post, you'll know what you need to know from the second BUILD keynote.

Key Keynote Moments

Windows 8 Tablet Distraction
Not explicitly said or part of the keynote, it's worth noting that much of the audience seems to be distracted by their shiny new Win8 tablets this morning.
Devices + Cloud
Here is one of the "missing" elements from Day 1: extended talk about the cloud. In the opening of Day 2, Microsoft spent some time talking about building apps for Windows devices (Phone, Tablet) that are deeply connected to the cloud (Azure services). But not much Azure really demoed until much later in the keynote.
Visual Studio 11 Features
As part of Jason Zander's demo of building apps with the cloud, a handful of VS2011 features were introduced, like a new and improved image editor, new baked-in power tools, and improved debugging tools for working with DirectX. (He'll cover way more of VS2011 in his sessions today- find the session recordings.) VS2011 Developer Preview will be available today, along with Windows Azure SDK Toolkit.
Scott Guthrie returns to the stage in trademark red polo
Scott may now be CVP for Server & Tools, but he's still rocking the ASP.NET demos people have made him popular. Scott showed-off some cool new tooling for ASP.NET MVC 4, such as a "design view" for ASP.NET MVC, auto-minification of CSS and JS, and async features from .NET 4.5. If you missed ASP.NET or .NET 4.5 talk on Day 1, this covers it.
OSX and iPhone emulator take the stage
Small moment, but it stands out. As part of demonstrating some of the new things in ASP.NET 4.5, like jQuery Mobile, ScottGu did the unthinkable and showed the iPhone emulator running on a Mac. Good to see Microsoft acknowledging the world around them today.
TFS running on Azure as a service
Like TFS? Good for you. Microsoft showed more today of TFS running in the cloud on Azure. Formally called, Team Foundation Service running on Azure.
Something for Windows IT Pros
It's easy to forget as a developer that there are non-developers at BUILD. Microsoft addressed this crowd today with demos of new Virtual Machine Management tools and other Win8 server features. But I doubt you're an IT Pro if you're reading this blog...
Windows Azure Credential Service
Nice easy way to log-in using popular identity providers (Facebook, Google, Live, etc.) with just a few lines of code (seems to require WinRT). Makes single-sign-on across Windows 8 devices "fluid" process.
Viper car security device connected to the cloud
What makes this demo interesting is that it's the FIRST in two-days that involves an external Microsoft product. No partner on stage, but an external company nonetheless. Demo showed how the car device can send data to the Azure cloud and then visualize on the web and Phone.
West Coast Customs CEO takes the stage
Microsoft is going to (read: not done yet) build a car with West Coast Customs. It will be part of the TV show, so watch for it in the future.
[THE SURPRISE] Steve Ballmer takes the stage!
Just when everyone thought the Day 2 keynote was over, Steve Ballmer shows-up and takes the stage. Probably the biggest surprise so far of BUILD! Steve spent about 20 minutes reinforcing the Microsoft big picture for Windows 8, Azure (cloud), and Phone. Steve brought a much needed sense of "reality" to everything being talked about at BUILD, acknowledging that MSFT has a lot of work ahead of it to make Phone and Win8 successful. Good way to end the keynotes.

Who Was On Stage?

Unlike Day 1, where Sinofsky more-or-less ran the entire keynote, today was a revolving door of presenters. For your easy reference, here's who we saw:

Satya Nadella, President, Server & Tools Biz
(Bob Muglia's replacement and former head of Bing)
Jason Zander, Corporate Vice President, Visual Studio
(Kind of ScottGu's replacement in DevDiv)
SPECIAL NOTE: You can see an exclusive post-keynote Telerik interview with Jason Zander talking more about the announcements discussed today!
Scott Guthrie, CVP, Server & Tools Biz (Azure)
Bryon Surace, System Center Virtual Machine Manager
John Shewchuk, Technical Fellow
Jeff Sandquist, Senior Director Developer Relations + Dan Fernandez, Evangelist
Ryan Friedlinghaus, CEO, West Coast Customs
Steve Ballmer, CEO, Microsoft

Final Thoughts & Reactions

If all of the talk about a new "bold" version of Windows was making your head spin, today's keynote was like Advil, reminding developers that all of the things they've loved about the evolution of Microsoft's server technology and tooling (.NET, Visual Studio, Azure, Win Server) are still happening. While Windows 8 is cool and introduces some interesting new concepts, if you're in an environment locked-in to Win7 (or older), you may have felt a bit left-out on Tuesday. After today's keynote, you should feel better, with familiar faces like ASP.NET, jQuery, and even Windows 7 taking the stage.

Now, off to the overloaded schedule of individual sessions to learn more, get more reactions, and ask important questions.

BUILD Day 1: What wasn't said?

Todd Anglin — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 01:27:00 GMT

Silence speaks volumes. While there is coverage ad nauseum about what Microsoft did say at today's opening keynote and following sessions, there is much less attention on what's not being said. True, there is another keynote scheduled for tomorrow, and presumably many additional topics will be covered (like tooling and ALM), but certain important topics are conspicuously absent from the Day 1 conversations.

The Missing Topics

Silverlight and WPF?
It's clear after today that Metro style XAML apps are Microsoft's vision of the future, but what does that mean for the future of Silverlight and WPF? Of course, SL and WPF as we know them now will continue to run in Windows 8, but will they continue to evolve? Microsoft is risking another WinForms-like messaging challenge by choosing to mostly ignore Silverlight/WPF rather than address them head-on.
Xbox & Phone
One of the more extreme things rumored to make an appearance at BUILD was Xbox integration with with the new Windows Runtime. Or more broadly, a story that tied Windows desktop, tablet, phone, and Xbox together with one model. Unfortunately, both Phone and Xbox are no-shows so far, so it's all PC and tablets with Win8 right now.
Shipping Timeline
While not entirely unaddressed, the "there is no target date" for shipping Windows 8 message is a bit unsettling, too. Heading-in to BUILD, there was a lingering rumor that Windows 8 would be near or at beta now, with a possible goal of shipping Windows 8 tablets for this holiday season (or very shortly there after). Instead, with a pre-beta Developer Preview delivered, we're left to assume Windows 8 many not be fully ready for RTM until mid- to late-2012. So while everything being talked about this week is cool, it's almost a year away from GA. Which is a bummer, especially as other tablets march on.
Expression Web
One of the more interesting tooling demos in the keynote was a new version of Expression Blend that targets HTML and CSS design. What wasn't mentioned is how this expanded Blend focus impacts the existing "web product" in the Expression suite (Expression Web). Is Expression Web replaced by the new Blend? Pushed in to a smaller corner for the remaining Front Page-like dev fans? Mums the word for now.
Office Apps for WinRT
Given how important Office is to Windows (it's the 2nd major financial pillar at Microsoft), its absence, even as a simple preview, is also noticeably missing at BUILD. I guess the Win8 "cone of silence" extended fully to the Office team and they haven't had a chance to build Office versions for Win8 yet. Office will most definitely find its way to WinRT (Sinofsky is an Office alum, after tall), but its absence this week only signals a longer road to RTM ahead. Can you really ship Win8 without Metro Office apps?
Plug-ins in Immersive IE
We know HTML5 is a first class citizen in Win8, but how does Silverlight carryover to the new Metro version of Internet Explorer? Early demos of immersive suggests it doesn't. In fact, no plug-ins work in the immersive IE. Plug-ins do work in the "classic" view IE9/10, but if you thought you could run a Silverlight app in Metro-mode via the browser, think again. No Flash. No Silverlight.
Older Versions of Windows
What older versions of Windows? If you are at BUILD, apparently there are no older versions of Windows. Everything related to WinRT and Metro are Windows 8 only. There will be no backport of the new runtime for Windows 7. It makes sense, but does that signal a future of multiple app implementations if you want to support Windows 8 + Windows 7 (and older) + other platforms?
Steve Ballmer
Quick: Your company is about to introduce a "bold" new "reimagination" of the your flagship product. Who do you send to introduce this product to the world? Of course you send the directly responsible VP, but don't you also send your CEO to make an appearance? Under any other circumstance perhaps Balmer's absence at BUILD is a non-issue. But given the long running rumor of Sinofsky as CEO-in-waiting, no Balmer makes this feel even more like the Sinofsky Show.

Don't get me wrong. There were some great and exciting announcements today. I covered some in my original keynote blog post, and the press and thoroughly covered the rest. It's easy to look at what was said and report it.

But it's just as important to step back and reflect on what we were not "supposed" to think about in the face of the flashy demos and free tablets. What do you think? Are all of these non issues? Are there other important topics missing in the BUILD conversation so far?

Top 10 Moments from BUILD Day 1 Keynote

Todd Anglin — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:00:00 GMT

When a keynote is being streamed live to the interwebs, there's really little point in live blogging. Back when I first started Telerik Watch, live streaming events were very rare, so live blogs made more sense.

That said, if you're like me, sometimes you don't have time to suffer through a 90 minute event just to catch the few bits of interesting news. What you really want is a summary that tells you everything you need to know to capture the overall jist and important news in a few short minutes.

Thus, this post.

Rather than bring you blow-by-blow typed updates as the BUILD Day 1 keynote unfolds, I instead provide an "instant summary" for your easy digestion. I present the "Top 10 Moments" of the first BUILD 2011 keynote (in chronological order).

Top 10 Moments (from my point of view)

Windows 7 usage is now greater than Windows XP: Good (small, but genuine) applause from crowd. And good to know on the eve of Win8 that the WinXP anchor is dissolving.
Core performance of Windows 8 will be solid (focused on fundamentals): First big applause of the keynote. Sinofsky showing-off the performance of Win8 dev preview, consuming nearly half the memory of an equiv Windows 7 setup.
Picture Password: This "Windows Shake" demo of Windows 8. Unlock your (touch) PC by tapping and swiping on a picture.
Sinofsky takes another dig at Chrome: "I can't imagine anything better than a 'chrome-free' browsing experience." Haha. Ha.
You Pick the Language you want to build your apps (XAML Lives!): XAML fans breath a sigh of relief. New Windows Runtime (WinRT) introduced to support Metro apps that use XAML OR HTML + JavaScript/.NET/Native Code. Unified runtime.
Expression Blend for HTML & CSS: Huge positive reaction for a new version of Blend that will support HTML and CSS editing.
Windows Store with easy deployment tools from Visual Studio: One-click deployment of HTML (and XAML) apps to Windows Store from Visual Studio. Transparent app review process. Microsoft will share app approval review tools so everyone can check their own apps before uploading. Windows Store app is built using HTML + JS.
Metrofication of Silverlight XAML apps: A new namespace redirects, a handful of build forking for new Win8 APIs, and Silverlight runs natively in new Win8 native XAML. Bringing Silverlight to native Win8 XAML is going to be (at least by keynote demo claims) easy. Same for Windows Phone - one line code change.
Lightning fast Windows 8 cold boot demos & power management: People loved watching PCs of various specs boot in less than 10 seconds. Big rig booted near instantly. Lesser machines booted closer to 10 seconds. All machines have new "Connected Standby" mode that does an impressive job sipping power when in standby mode (similar to what the iPad does to last forever on standby).
Windows 8 tablet giveaway. The BIG moment: As expected, Microsoft announced the giveaway of the Samsung Windows Developer Preview PC, to which the audience provided the expected cheers. Includes Intel Core i5, 1 year of free AT&T 3G, Wacom digitizer, dock with USB port, and on and on...Loaded with Win8 Developer Preview.
[BONUS] Sinofsky shows Windows 8 in normal "professional" use (keyboard/mouse): Sexy new task manager, using mouse and keyboard, new control panel (metrofied), one-click PC refresh and reset. Gives a good 20 or 30 minute overview of using Windows through a range of scenarios. This is really what you might consider the "everything else" section of the keynote (multi-monitor support, Explorer changes, updated magnifier, and so on).
[BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE] Sync and Live Apps for Metro Windows: The Windows Live apps you know now rewritten in HTML and JavaScript for Metro with some Windows Live syncing to manage your settings and preferences. Expanded and more useful SkyDrive for accessing files remotely via Live.
[WHY NOT, ONE MORE] College Interns wrote all of the demo apps for Win8 Preview: All of the demo apps in Windows 8 were created by Microsoft's college interns. 17 teams, 2 to 3 devs per team, 10 weeks. Microsoft is trying to appeal to the college developer in a big way.

Release Path: Preview (today). Beta. RC. RTM. Then GA. Driving by quality, not by date, so no official release date today. Developer Preview will be "managed" by Microsoft and updated during preview phase. Preview build available tonight at http://dev.windows.com.

Final Thoughts and Reactions

What can I say? They keynote largely delivered on expected announcements and was in-line with well established rumor.
XAML survives and thrives (stop worrying)
HTML/JS are added as new dev models with new and improved tooling (Blend/VS)
WinRT provides a new unified API for JS/.NET/Native code apps
Metro styling is everywhere and Metro apps are 1st class experience (but not only experience)
Win8 hardware is cool and power savvy (and equally ARM and x86 friendly)
All BUILD attendees get a Developer Preview tablet

Nothing really came-in as surprising, but Windows 8 features and hardware definitely showed very well. The opening of the keynote was a little rough, but Microsoft found its groove and delivered some exciting news that I think developers are eager to dig-in to.

Of course, Telerik was already well prepared for today's news. We've been preparing all summer for this and we are already prepared to deliver the tools you need for today and tomorrow. Learn more about Telerik's commitment on Telerik.com.

What was missing today?

Azure
Office (no Metro Word...yet...)
LightSwitch
Silverlight the plug-in (mostly)
Partners!
In-depth look at new Win8 tools or app runtime

We'll probably get a lot of that tomorrow morning. For now, it's off to sessions and lunch to see how everyone feels about the keynote. What did you think of today's keynote? Are there other "top" moments from the morning?

The Impact of Windows 8

Todd Anglin — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 08:51:55 GMT

(This article is a re-post from the Telerik Watch blog by Todd Anglin)

By now, you've no doubt seen the first preview of Microsoft's follow-up to the hit Windows 7 release (if not, take five minutes and check-out the video on YouTube - don't worry, it's "official" and not a leak). Windows 8 finally has a name and a face, and we finally have a (public) glimpse of where Microsoft is driving the modern OS experience. The preview does not dive deep or provide the full story for Windows 8 (expect more details as Microsoft marches towards the September Windows 8 "BUILD" conference), but it does highlight some interesting facets of Microsoft's plan you should start to think about as a developer.

Win8 Preview Summary

For in-depth analysis of the the live D9 Windows 8 preview, and analysis of the follow-up preview in the aforementioned YouTube video, Windows "super fan" Paul Thurott has your ticket. Microsoft RD and long-time Microsoft insider Andrew Brust also has some interesting commentary on RDN. I'll leave the reporting to the reporters, and simply highlight some of the bigger revelations to come out of this week's news so we're all on the same page:

Windows codenamed "Windows 8" will not ship this fall (no surprise)
Win8 will offer a new Windows Phone 7 like "Start" experience (tile view)
- Further, according to the D9 Q&A, it will not be something that can be turned-off. (We'll see about that…)
Win8 will still offer "full Windows" (aka Explorer) to run "real apps"
- Also according to D9 Q&A, OEMs will not be able to prevent/hide access to "full Windows." (We'll see about that…)
The new Win8 experience will feature HTML5/JavaScript "app" experiences
- Sinofsky has not ruled-out Silverlight, though. He defended Silverlight at D9, so we'll just have to wait and see how that mixes with this story…
Win8 is fully embracing Metro UI theme and touch input

Look Past the Hype

Understandably, a lot of people are very excited by this week's Windows 8 preview. What's being shown is very new (for Windows), and uncharacteristically bold for Microsoft. It's amazing how many people seemed to need this preview to avoid full-out Microsoft depression.

It's important to remember, however, that this is not the first of Windows 8 we've seen. Active industry watchers have been leaking bits-and-pieces of Windows 8 for the better part of the the last year (much to Microsoft's displeasure). From those leaks and other information shared by Microsoft in that period, we also know this about Windows 8:

It's being built to run on Intel, AMD and (most importantly) ARM chips
It won't require any additional horsepower beyond Win7 (in some cases, less)
It will likely integrate (to some degree) with WebCams/Kinect
It may feature more integration with Xbox/Xbox Live/Xbox Avatars
It definitely will feature more native integration with social media (twitter, Facebook)
It will feature direct integration with a Windows (App) Store (confirmed this week)
It will likely feature a renewed cloud integration story (based on Azure)
It will focus on delivering super fast start-up, sleep, and wake times
It will likely use the Ribbon UI throughout Windows Explorer
It will offer native support for mounting ISOs (finally!)

Those last two items are small, but important. Mounting ISOs or using Explorer are features that only matter when you're still using "traditional" Windows. The new "Start experience" getting the attention this week is cool, sure, but Microsoft is not forgetting, abandoning, or even stalling "traditional" Windows evolution. This is still Windows at the end of the day, the OS powering millions of business machines, and that core experience will continue to incrementally improve with Win8.

What Microsoft is showing now is a recognition that it needs to do something dramatic to re-win the hearts and minds of Windows consumers. It needs something to stem the flood of computing happening increasingly on non-Windows devices. It's an important piece of Window's future, but not the only piece.

The Gloves Are Off

What many observers are failing to key-in on with these Windows 8 details is that this is the first time, in a long time, that Microsoft is evolving Windows without the anti-trust consent decree settlement hanging over their heads. In 2002, to avoid splitting the company, Microsoft settled it's long anti-trust battle with the government, agreeing to a number of constraints that have limited Window's ability to evolve aggressively. Those limits expired last month, so now Microsoft, in a landscape where Windows is clearly no longer a monopoly, is freer to make some aggressive moves.

Like what?

Well, the limits imposed in 2002 essentially said that Microsoft could not exclude competitors from Windows, and conversely, that it must make Windows interoperate with non-Microsoft software. The net effect has been that it is difficult for Microsoft to build vertically integrated solutions because doing so could be perceived as excluding competitors.

With that regulation now a footnote in the history books, Microsoft can theoretically pursue vertically integrated strategies that have made rivals Apple and (to a lesser degree) Google very successful over the last 10 years. For example:

Maybe Microsoft will introduce tighter integration between Windows Phone, Windows "Slate" (or Tablet or Pad or whatever), and Windows PC.
Microsoft should finally be able to add features to Windows that have been conspicuously missing (like mounting ISOs, and maybe a native PDF reader, or more robust unzipping tools).
Microsoft might finally start shipping Windows with more of its "core experience" software pre-installed or embedded, like Live Writer (which I'm using now), Zune media experiences, or maybe even Silverlight. And let's not forget that $8.5 billion Skype purchase. We can virtually count on that playing some role in Microsoft's evolving Windows strategy.

Whatever the case, Microsoft is finally free to boldly create experiences that are "better with Microsoft" rather than always creating vanilla solutions designed to support everyone equally.

Bottom Line Windows 8 Impact

With the hype stripped away, and the full perspective in focus, what is the bottom line impact of the Windows 8 news up to this point? What is the real value in this week's very early preview? I think there are a few important takeaways:

Windows 8 is being designed for a multi form-factor world There is a reason most of the demos of Windows 8 so far have been on touch-enabled, ARM-powered, "ultra mobile" devices. Microsoft is making it clear that Win8 is not a "PC" operating system with some device "layers" added last minute. Instead, Microsoft is showing that at its core, Win8 is being designed for different form-factors, processors, and input models. If nothing else, this week's preview plainly signals how Microsoft will bring Windows to tablets, and phones (maybe even replacing what we know as Windows Phone 7 today), while carrying traditional PCs in to the future.
Windows 8 is a renewed push to bring more people in to the Microsoft developer ranks In 2000, Microsoft introduced a brand new way to develop for Windows called .NET. At the time, Java was starting to takeover the Enterprise, and Microsoft needed a language to bring Java developers in to its camp and help reinforce its position in corporate computing. Now, roughly a decade later, Microsoft is watching consumer computing drive the success of phones and tablets, and they're eyeing the HTML5 push by powerful competitors, like Google. Making HTML5 and JavaScript a core part of the Windows 8 strategy does for Microsoft what .NET did 11 years ago. It makes the Microsoft platform appealing to developers with "non-Microsoft" skill sets, and potentially represents the next explosion in Microsoft developer community.
Windows 8 will be significant, but not life changing (and that's good) Yes, Windows 8 will deliver some significant new experiences, it will embrace some new developer languages, and it will extend the reach of Microsoft to the new era of computing devices. But at the end of the day, it's Windows under the hood. Your apps will still run. Silverlight will still run. WinForms will still run. The changes coming to Windows 8 help propel Windows in to the future of computing, but they don't equate to a Windows reboot. Windows 8 is about new opportunities, not about changing the way things are done.

Don't get lost in the emotional buzz of this week's preview. Enjoy it for what it is- an early preview- but then turn to level-heads and facts to see how this all fits the bigger picture. As long-time Microsoft partners, and experts in providing solutions for Microsoft developers, you can be sure Telerik is at the front of the Windows 8 process and you can turn to us to provide our informed analysis of Microsoft's directions.

Until then, have fun with the Windows 8 preview and start planning your travel for Anaheim in September!

Free JustCode, JustMock licenses tomorrow

Todd Anglin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:17:08 GMT

[Cross-posted from TelerikWatch.com]

Sometimes people use the saying “Everyone’s a winner,” when in fact everyone is not a winner. If you join us tomorrow for the JustCode, JustMock and OpenAccess ORM webinar, though, you will be a winner! Everyone is truly a winner tomorrow because everyone that attends the Q2 2010 What’s New webinar will get free licenses for both JustCode and JustMock, Telerik’s powerful Visual Studio productivity tools. That’s $500 worth of software just for attending the live webinar event!

To get your complimentary licenses, register now for the webinar, and then join us tomorrow, July 22nd at 11:00 AM Eastern. You must attend the live event to get your license.

If you’ve never worked with JustCode or JustMock, this is your lucky week. Both tools can save you tons of time while coding or testing in Visual Studio, especially with the new features in Q2 2010. JustCode, for instance, includes a built-in Unit Test Runner and powerful solution-wide code analysis, while JustMock makes it easy to mock anything (including LinqToSql or EntityFramework). Don’t miss your one chance to get these tools pro-bono! Clear your calendar and we’ll see you at 11:00 AM.

[UPDATE: The emails with license codes for JustCode and JustMock have been sent. Check your inbox for your code and enjoy the complimentary software!]

Working with OpenAccess in Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2

Todd Anglin — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 23:59:31 GMT

If you’re like me, the end of the year represents a time when most other projects are starting to wind down and you finally have a chance to get back to testing some of those “fun” Microsoft betas. Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 is probably at the top of the stack. Microsoft’s next major update to the flagship IDE is getting very close to RTM, so now is a great time to start checking-out the tool.

What you should be pleased to know is that almost all of Telerik’s developer tools already offer a lot of support for VS 2010- even as a beta! That truth extends to OpenAccess ORM. If you install the latest release of OpenAccess (2009.3.1119), you’ll discover that it effortlessly adds the expected design-time menus, wizards, and tools to VS 2010 that you need to work with your favorite Telerik ORM.

There is one “gotcha” in the current OpenAccess release, though, that you’ll want to handle if you decide to do .NET 3.5 or .NET 2.0 development in VS 2010.

Described in this forum thread, the problem relates to the version of the .NET framework that the OpenAccess assembly enhancer references when you build your project. With the current OpenAccess build, the enhancer will always reference the new .NET 4.0 framework assemblies by default, creating a problem that will likely break the builds of projects consuming your OpenAccess-enhanced assembly (I noticed this in my own projects when IntelliSense started reporting missing assembly references to assemblies I definitely had referenced).

Fortunately, the workaround is fairly easy. In the project properties for your class library containing persistent classes (the project that needs to be “enhanced” by OpenAccess), simply add this string (including quotes) to the “Post-build” actions on the project Build tab:

"c:\programs files\telerik\openaccess orm\sdk\venhance.exe" "-assembly:$(TargetPath)"

If you’ve installed OpenAccess to a non-default location (or if you’re on a 64-bit machine), make sure you update the path to “venhance.exe.” This will “manually” initiate the enhancing process and eliminate the unnecessary references to .NET 4. We also have to remember to “turn-off” the auto-enhancing that normally occurs during a build. To do that, simply:

Select your project, press F4 to open the properties window, and then set “Enhance” to “False.”

You’re now ready to use OpenAccess without issue in VS 2010 with .NET 3.5 and 2.0. The only other “tweak” you may need to make to your project is changing when the post-build event occurs. Depending on the type of project consuming OpenAccess-enhanced assemblies in Visual Studio, different behaviors will cause unexpected results. For instance, if you’re working on a web project, and you do the typical “Right-click > View in browser” on an ASP.NET page, Visual Studio will do a quick build of your solution. Depending on how the post-build event is configured for your OpenAccess project, this can lead to confusing “No enhanced assemblies found” run-time errors.

The “error proof” setup that I’ve decided to use is to set the post-build event to “Always.” It’s not the most efficient configuration (because the enhancer always runs on every build), but it has so far given me an environment where I don’t get any unexpected errors.

I hope this helps you remain productive as you start using OpenAccess in Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2. The OpenAccess Team is also, of course, working on addressing these issues for future builds (builds after 2009.3.1203), so eventually none of these steps will be required. This is an easy workaround in the mean time and it is good exposure to how the OpenAccess enhancing process works that should make you an even smarter (and more capable of troubleshooting problems) developer.

Telerik Q2 2009 Release Week Webinars

Todd Anglin — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:32:18 GMT

[Cross posted from Telerik Watch]

Smell that? That's a freshly baked release from Telerik that's just about ready to "officially" launch. The Q2 2009 release is one of the biggest releases in Telerik's history, again delivering simultaneous updates to all 7 Telerik product lines at one time. An update of this scale is bound to have lots new and interesting stuff, and we can't wait to put it in your hands so you can start playing with it. The official launch of Q2 2009 is Monday, July 6th, and to help you jump-off with the new bits and maximize your productivity with the Telerik tools, we'll be running another release "Webinar Week."
But before I reveal the schedule for the Webinar Week, let me tell you about the prizes!
There will be two ways to win prizes during the Q2 Webinar Week:

Every webinar will award 1 or 2 (depending on the products covered) individual product suite licenses to the people that attend the live event. All you have to do to enter is show-up to the live event and you will be in the pool for a randomly selected winner at the conclusion of the webinar (winners will be notified via email, so don't register with a spam address unless you don't care to claim your prize).
For every live webinar you attend during the webinar week, you will also be entered in the drawing for the Webinar Week Grand Prize: a Telerik Premium Collection license (valued at $1300) and a pass to the 2009 PNP Summit (a $1900 value)! The more webinars you attend live, the better your odds are at winning the prize valued at over $3000.

Plus, to get things kicked-off with a bang, we will be giving away a Premium Collection license to the winner of the first live webinar drawing (instead of a individual suite license), so you definitely don't want to miss the live events.

Now for the schedule. Things get kicked-off on Tuesday, July 7th and run through the end of the week. Webinars will be held everyday at 11:00 AM Eastern Time and all will be recorded for Telerik TV on-demand viewing. The topics covered will be:

Tuesday, July 7th - Q2 2009: What's New?
Join me for a general overview of the Q2 release and high-level intro to what's new
PRIZE: 1 Premium Bundle Collection license
Register for webinar now
Wednesday, July 8th - RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX and WinForms
Join me again for a more in-depth look at what's new in the RadControls for WinForms and ASP.NET AJAX
PRIZE:1 RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX license, 1 RadControls for WinForms license
Register for webinar now
Thursday, July 9th - OpenAccess ORM
Join Telerik DE Gabe Sumner for a closer look at what's new in Telerik OpenAccess ORM
PRIZE: 1 OpenAccess ORM license
Register for webinar now
Friday, July 10th - RadControls for Silverlight / WPF
Join Telerik DE Evan Hutnick for a closer look at what's new in the RadControls for Silverlight and the RadControls for WPF
PRIZE: 1 RadControls for Silverlight license, 1 RadControls for WPF license
Register for webinar now

Registration links for the webinars will be available very soon, so be sure to register early to save your seat. The Q2 2009 Webinar Week is the best way to get started with the Telerik Q2 2009 release, and with all the great prizes to go around, you definitely don't want to miss these free events. We'll see you live next week!

Gracefully degrade RadChart for Silverlight in ASP.NET

Todd Anglin — Fri, 22 May 2009 03:18:38 GMT

In a recent webinar, I showed an example of how you can build a superior user experience in an ASP.NET website by using RadChart for Silverlight. The Telerik Silverlight chart has animations, rich rendering, and is much more visual appealing than the “static” RadChart for ASP.NET. But while the Silverlight chart is a great way to enhance data visualizations in your ASP.NET site, how do you handle users that don’t have Silverlight installed?

One approach is to implement “graceful degradation.” Graceful degradation is an important and familiar principle in web design, and essentially it means this: if you build features into your site that take advantage of the latest and greatest technologies (like Silverlight), make sure you have some mechanism to provide an alternative experience for those users not living on the cutting edge. In our case, that means if Silverlight is not installed, we still want to display a chart, it just wont have the bells and whistles Silverlight offers. Specifically, we want our site to automatically display a RadChart for ASP.NET (which is simply an image generated on the server and sent to the client, so it works on all browsers) if Silverlight is not available.

SIVLERLIGHT’S “NOSCRIPT” TAG

Similar to the HTML <noscript> tag, which is used to display content only when JavaScript is not available, the ASP.NET Silverlight control has a handy template called the “PluginNotInstalledTemplate.” Any content you place inside of this template will be automatically displayed to the user if Silverlight is not installed. If you do not specify any content for this template, Microsoft will display the “Install Silverlight” image by default.

<asp:Silverlight ID="xamlChart" runat="server" Source="~/ClientBin/RadChartControl.xap"

        MinimumVersion="2.0.31005.0">

    <PluginNotInstalledTemplate>

        <!-- Any content can be placed here, including ServerControls -->

    </PluginNotInstalledTemplate>

</asp:Silverlight>

If you are not using an ASPX page to host your Silverlight, you can accomplish a similar feat in raw HTML by adding any content you want between the opening and closing Silverlight HTML <object> tags, like this:

<object data="data:application/x-silverlight," type="application/x-silverlight-2"

   width="100%" height="100%">

   <param name="source" value="ClientBin/RadChartControl.xap"/>

   <!-- Your HTML content here will be displayed if Silverlight is missing -->

</object>

We’ll focus primarily on the ASP.NET experience, though, since it is obviously required for our RadChart “graceful degrade” scenario.

ENABLING THE GRACEFUL DEGRADE

While many people are aware of the PluginNotInstalledTemplate, not as many seem to be aware of the fact that you can include ServerControls in this template. That means we can include a RadChart for ASP.NET AJAX in our plug-in template and easily configure it, just as we would on any other ASP.NET page.

<asp:Silverlight ID="xamlChart" runat="server" Source="~/ClientBin/RadChartControl.xap"

        MinimumVersion="2.0.31005.0">

    <PluginNotInstalledTemplate>

        <!--RadChart for ASP.NET to display if Silverlight not available-->

        <telerik:RadChart ID="RadChart1" runat="server" AutoLayout="true" Skin="Black">

            <Series>

                <telerik:ChartSeries Name="Series 1">

                </telerik:ChartSeries>

            </Series>

        </telerik:RadChart>

    </PluginNotInstalledTemplate>

</asp:Silverlight>

Then, in the code behind of our ASP.NET page (or UserControl, depending on your implementation), we simply bind and render the chart when the page loads.

protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)

    //Bind the RadChart to enable "graceful degredation"

    //Get the RadChart from the Silverlight PluginNotInstalledTemplate

    var chart = xamlChart.FindControl(RadChart1.ID) as RadChart;

    if(chart != null)

        //Configure and bind your RadChart (example settings)

        chart.ChartTitle.TextBlock.Text = ChartTitle;

        chart.Width = new Unit(Width);

        chart.Height = new Unit(Height);

        chart.DataSource = JsonData.FromJSON<List<CategorySalesFor1997>>();

        chart.DataBind();

And that’s it. With this simple setup, you can display the Silverlight RadChart when Silverlight is available and the ASP.NET chart image when it’s not. This same principle can be applied to other Silverlight/ASP.NET controls, such as RadUpload, so this is not something that only works with RadChart.

THE RESULTS

When implemented correctly, the end result is seamless for your users. If an user has Silverlight installed, they will see the RadChart for Silverlight, like this:

If they do not have Silverlight installed, they will automatically see the more accessible RadChart for ASP.NET AJAX, like this:

I hope this technique helps you effectively leverage Silverlight in your ASP.NET projects without worrying about leaving your non-Silverlight users behind!

Telerik Web Mail Demo on Azure

Todd Anglin — Wed, 20 May 2009 04:09:56 GMT

I recently showed you how to get started working with the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX on Azure. It’s really a lot easier than you might think. If you missed the first two posts (and the follow-up videos), here they are for quick reference:

RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX on Azure

Deploying RadControls to Azure

Azure Videos on Telerik TV

Today, I updated the live running Telerik demo on Azure to feature the complete Telerik Web Mail demo! That means you can now see almost all of the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX running live on the Azure Cloud. Included in the demo are RadGrid, RadEditor, RadSplitter, RadMenu, RadAjax, RadTreeView, RadCombobox, RadScheduler, RadCalendar, RadWindow, RadSkinManager, RadStyleSheetManager, RadScriptManager, and RadPanelBar. This should be full “proof” that you’re ready to go if you want to build new applications for the Azure cloud with the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX.

But what if you’re thinking about porting an existing app built with the RadControls to the cloud in the future? Fortunately, as the new live demo proves, that’s easy, too. The Web Mail application running on Azure is the exact same source as the app running off the cloud. The only change I’ve made- that is still a work in progress- is changing the way data access works (since I can’t run SQL Express on the Azure cloud…yet). Currently the app is using “dummy data” and XML data, but soon it will be wired-up to a external WCF service layer that will return database data to the cloud app. And whenever SQL Data Services for Azure makes table-based storage available, the demo will feature even more cloud integration.

There are a few features and pages (such as the Contacts page) that don’t currently fully function as a result of these data binding changes, but for the most part, you can interact with the app as normal and see the RadControls functioning correctly. So whether the cloud is for you or not, Telerik is here and ready to support your cloud UI development efforts!

View the Web Mail demo running live on the Azure cloud

Azure videos now on Telerik TV

Todd Anglin — Fri, 08 May 2009 04:55:00 GMT

If you followed my posts last week, you learned that the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX are “cloud ready.” You can take the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX that you know and love today and confidently use them in Cloud Service applications that target the Microsoft Azure cloud environment. In case you missed those posts, you can catch-up now:

RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX on Azure

Deploying RadControls to Azure

I’m happy to relay that the videos that are related to these blog posts are now both available on Telerik TV for your immediate viewing pleasure. Each video illustrates the concepts defined in the blog posts, and together they should give you a complete overview of how you start, build, and deploy an ASP.NET application to the cloud with the RadControls. Both videos also check-in at less than 10 minutes, so they should be easy to digest- quick and to the point. Check the videos out at the following links:

Getting Started with RadControls in Azure

Deploying to the Azure Cloud

I hope you enjoy these additional resources. Also, don’t forget that there is a “live” app running in the cloud at http://telerik.cloudapp.net that shows some RadControls running live on Azure. That app will be updated very soon to include even more of the RadControls, so check back soon to see an expanded demo running in the cloud.

Enjoy.

Designing N-Tier Applications with OpenAccess ORM

Todd Anglin — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:15:00 GMT

A very important question recently crossed my inbox, and it essentially asked:

“Can you design and build Enterprise-grade n-tier applications with OpenAccess? Or does it force you violate principles of good multi-tier application design to make the ORM features work?”

It was a great question and I was surprised to find that there is not more info in the online docs to address this. So, to help everyone benefit from this question’s answer, here are some details about building n-tier applications with OpenAccess.

WHAT DOES GOOD N-TIER ARCHITECTURE LOOK LIKE WITH OPENACCESS?

Let me preface this discussion by saying there is no “absolute” right or wrong way to architect an application. The approach highlighted here is just one way that will help you build applications that use OpenAccess with clean separation of concerns and respect for principles of multi-tiered application design. With that out of the way, a “typical” multi-tier app built with OpenAccess should look something like this:

Entities (or Model): Contains your persistent classes; Project is “OpenAccess Enabled” to define Persistent Classes (PCs) and includes DB mapping info in the config file. The persistent classes in this project can be created via the Forward or Reverse Mapping OpenAccess wizards.
Data Layer (Optional): Optional, in my opinion, since the actual “data plumbing” will be handled “automatically” inside OA. I prefer to skip this layer, but it can be used for storing your LINQ queries and returning data to your business layer, if desired (and if you don’t want LINQ in your business layer).
Business Layer: Provides “Repository” (or “Manager”) classes that define operations on model (such as FindAll, FindById, Insert, etc.). Acquires ObjectScope used to manipulate objects in the database. “OA Enabled” to consume PCs, which adds ObjectScopeProvider to project (but does not add mapping info to project)
Service Layer (Optional): To build an app that is ready for client-oriented technology (like Silverlight and ASP.NET AJAX 4.0), it is usually smart to build a service layer on top of your business logic. The service layer consumes your business layer “data manager” classes and exposes the operations as service endpoints.
Presentation Layer: Consumes business layer repositories (if no service layer) or consumes services. The presentation layer can be completely ignorant of OpenAccess and it has no need to be “OA Enabled.”

The project linking would look some like this:

Presentation consumes Services consumes Business consumes Data (if present) consumes Model

The only time you might “break” this direct inheritance tree is if you want to re-use your model classes in your other tiers for easier data binding (i.e. I want to bind to return a List<ModelType> vs. some intermediate class type). Still, in that case, you’re only using the class model for binding- you’re not doing any data access outside of your data access tier. Here is the same architecture in picture:

WHAT PROJECTS NEED TO BE OPENACCESS ENABLED?

One of the bigger points of confusion when it comes to using OpenAccess in n-tier applications seems to be which layers require you to run the “OpenAccess Enable” wizards. To be clear, there are two types of OpenAccess enabling provided by the wizard in Visual Studio:

1. Project Defines Persistent Classes: Adds configuration info to App.Config containing DB mappings, Adds refs to OA assemblies

2. Project Consumes Persistent Classes/Connects to DB: Adds references to OA assemblies, Adds ObjectScopeProvider class (for help managing ObjectScope), Adds connection info to project configuration file

In general, the only layers that need OA enabling are your model (where your persistent classes are defined) and your Data or Business layer (or whichever layer you’re using to actually execute queries against the DB).Other layers, like your Presentation layer, do not need to be enabled. And in all cases, when you run the wizard, you’re not adding references to other projects in your solution- just to the OpenAccess assemblies.

I hope that helps clear-up the general approach to using OpenAccess to build n-tier applications. OpenAccess is definitely powerful enough and flexible enough to handle Enterprise architectures, so it’s usually just a matter of understanding how and not if OpenAccess can do what you want.

Web 2.0 font sizes with RadInput

Todd Anglin — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 22:52:10 GMT

If you’ve spent much time visiting “web 2.0” sites, you know that large font sizes are totally “in vogue” for data entry forms. Not only are they easy for all audiences to read, but they also imply a certain level of simplicity on a website. In fact, there are even some UX experts suggesting larger font sizes are better now that high-resolution monitors are the norm and not the exception.

If you’ve got a “beautifully designed” web 2.0-style site, though, and you’re working with RadInput, you know that the default skins “force” their own font size. What do you do if you want the powerful real-time input validation of RadInput and your big web 2.0 fonts?

Fortunately, the problem is easy to solve with a very slightly customized RadInput skin (which is available at the bottom of this post). Essentially, the custom skin just removes the CSS “font-size” declarations from the RadInput Default skin, enabling your RadInput controls (which includes textboxes configured with RadInputManager) to inherit the font-size from your site’s main CSS definition. The effect transforms a form with RadInput from this:

To a form with RadInput’s inheriting the larger page font size:

Now you can take advantage of all the power RadInput and RadInputManager provide without disrupting your “web 2.0” look and feel. To use the custom skin (again, provided below), you simply need to follow these steps:

Copy the “Input.Basic.css” and “Input” folder in the attached ZIP to your App_Themes folder
Make sure your page is configured to use the Theme containing your custom skin (via the Page-level Theme property)
On your RadInput or RadInputManager controls, set EnabledEmbeddedSkins to False and set the Skin property to “Basic”

And that’s it! I hope you enjoy the custom skin and I hope this helps those of you working with “web 2.0” designs better leverage RadInput.

Download custom skin “Basic” for RadInput

Deploying RadControls to Azure

Todd Anglin — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 21:47:35 GMT

In the first part of this short series covering the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX in the cloud, I showed you how you could quickly (and easily) start a new Azure Cloud Service project, add the RadControls, and then debug the project locally. The next step, of course, is taking that locally built and debugged project and deploying it to the “real” cloud fabric, hosted by Microsoft in their data center (not yet data centers…). That is where the rubber meets the proverbial road and we find out if the Telerik RadControls are really “cloud ready.”

HOW DO YOU DEPLOY TO AZURE?

Assuming you’ve built a new cloud service application (using the VS template) and you’ve debugged it locally and everything is working, you only need to complete these steps to deploy your app to the cloud:

In Visual Studio, right-click on the “Roles” project (not the “Web” project that has your .aspx files) and select “Publish…”
Visual Studio will now build and package your project for Azure
- IMPORTANT NOTES:
- 1) You must use the context menu to Publish the project. The Publish option from the Build menu does not perform the correct actions.
- 2) The Publish step bundles all files required to deploy your project to Azure, including the RadControls assembly
Once the project is done publishing, VS will automatically launch your default browser and direct it to the Azure Developer Portal. VS will also automatically open the folder that contains the two files produced by the Publish action: YourProjectName.cspkg and YourProjectName.cscfg
Log-in to Azure and (assuming you have a CTP token) create a New “Hosted Services” Project
After you’ve given the project a name and description, click the “Deploy…” button under the “Staging” cube icon
Upload your .cspkg and .cscfg files via the provided form
Wait for an unknown length of time (could be as short as seconds or as long as 30 minutes) for project to “Deploy”
Once the “Deploy” step is done, you need to click on the “Run” button to start your Azure “server” instance
Wait for an unknown length of time (could be seconds, could be much longer) for project to start
When project starts, you’ll see “WebRole” and a message indicating that the state is “Initializing”
Continue to wait
When the state finally changes from “Initializing” to “Started” (with a green icon), your Cloud Service site is ready for viewing
Click on the temporary staging link and see your project running live on the cloud!

Assuming you’ve done everything correctly and you’ve patiently waited on all of Azure’s seemingly endless processes to complete the processing, you’ll have a site running live on the cloud with the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX providing their familiar rich-UI.

HOW ‘BOUT THE GOTCHAS?

There really aren’t any new gotchas here. The only thing that may surprise you is the waiting. You really do have to have some patience to deploy a project to Azure (at least during the CTP), so be prepared to wait for ten minutes or more for some Azure processes to finish. Otherwise, things are very straight forward. Visual Studio packages your files and configuration. Azure consumes those packages directly. You click buttons and your site runs (in theory).

I NEED VISUAL PROOF

For those of you hoping to “see it to believe it,” I’ve got you covered. I have created two videos (so far) that cover both creating and deploying a simple “app” with the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX to Azure. Both videos will be on Telerik TV soon and I’ll be sure to add links to this post when they’re ready. Until then, have fun playing with Azure and don’t be afraid to use your RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX as you tackle the cloud!