Today is Day 2 of PDC09, and attendees were given a nice “treat.” During this morning’s keynote, Windows and Windows Live Division President Steven Sinofsky took the stage and announced that all attendees* of this year’s PDC will be given an Acer Aspire 1420P Convertible Tablet PC. This is being done to show our gratitude for the support we received by PDC attendees in the development process of Windows 7. This PC enables developers to leverage many of the unique Windows 7 capabilities including multitouch – which I will talk about further down in this post.

This laptop promotion is the result of a collaborative effort with Acer, whom we worked closely with to have these laptops ready for PDC. This PC is not yet available in the US (Acer has not yet announced pricing and availability for this PC) so that makes this “PDC Edition” of the laptop exclusive to PDC attendees.

 

The Aspire 1420P PDC Edition comes with the following specs:

• Windows 7 Ultimate x64
• Processor: Intel Celeron CPU SU2300 @ 1.2GHz
• Memory: 2GB (Supports up to 8GB)
• Display: 11.6” Widescreen |1366x768 Resolution
• Graphics: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
• Network: 10/100/1000 Ethernet | Intel Wi-Fi Link 1000 802.11b/g/Draft-N
• Mobile Broadband: 3G
• Storage: 250GB

For a more complete and detailed list of specs, click here.

The Aspire 1420P comes with 3 USB ports, 1 HDMI port for connecting to HDTVs and monitors, a VGA port, Ethernet port, and a headphone and microphone jack. The laptop features a unique design with a metallic textured design just above the keyboard and a metal hinge for converting the laptop into Tablet mode. Its design is essentially a small laptop with Tablet PC features. It’s slim, light, and has a small footprint – making it easy to carry around. This laptop features a CTRL+ALT+DEL button and a Flip 3D button. Also, the Aspire 1420P uses the Windows 7 Sensor and Location Platform to adjust the screen depending on which way you hold the PC (in Tablet mode). For example: if you’re holding it a landscape position, the screen will display in landscape for you. Vice versa if you hold it in a portrait position.

   

We worked with Acer to image the laptops with some great software – including the beta release of Office 2010.

• Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta
• Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7
• Windows Live Essentials
• Windows Virtual PC with Windows XP Mode
• Microsoft Security Essentials
• Corel Paint it! touch

Because the Aspire 1420P supports Windows Touch, we’ve included the Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7 as well as Corel Paint it! touch.

Corel Paint it! touch allows you to use your fingers to draw and paint. You can also turn your photos into paintings too.

One application I’ve written about recently is Amazon’s Kindle for PC. Amazon has released Kindle for PC and it works great on this laptop. You can download the beta of Kindle for PC today here. You can use multitouch gestures to move from page to page on the Kindle book you are reading. You can also zoom in and out with ease. For more on the Kindle for PC app, check out my demo video here on this post. In Tablet mode, reading books with Kindle for PC is very nice.

The Aspire 1420P also sports Mobile Broadband. With Windows 7, using Mobile Broadband is easier than ever before. Windows 7 will automatically detect if a Mobile Broadband connection is available (after inserting your SIM card).

You can choose to connect to the Mobile Broadband connection where you will be required enter subscription details from your mobile carrier. No need to mess with 3^rd party Mobile Broadband connection utilities.

Not only can you use multitouch with the Aspire 1420P, you can also use it as a Tablet. The Aspire 1420P is perfect for writing down notes using Microsoft OneNote 2010 (my favorite Office app).

Overall, this PC will be great for all the developers attending PDC to experience many of Windows 7’s new features and to be able to develop with those features in mind.

* This promotion is for full-conference attendees who are onsite at PDC. It is not available to Microsoft attendees, members of the media, government employees, staff, speakers, crew, volunteers, day pass attendees, guests, or Workshop-only attendees.

Today’s launch is something Corel’s software teams have been looking forward to for many months. Windows 7 and Windows Touch are the most exciting things we’ve seen in computing for a long time.

To coincide with the launch of Windows 7, Corel has released two all-new products that re-invent the typical menu-driven user experience, offering consumers more expressive and interactive creative environments. Engaging and dramatically different UI designs let users get the most out of Windows 7 by providing a more natural way of interacting with your PC. It’s all about removing barriers to creativity. Nothing gets between you and your inspiration.

Windows Touch has given our software teams the opportunity to push the limits of user experience. Sometimes computing can feel a bit detached – you sit at your computer, input info with your keyboard and mouse, and see the results displayed on screen. But with our new interface designs and Windows Touch, the computing experience gets an entirely new personal dimension, solidifying the PC’s place as the creative hub of the home.

Watch the video called “A new kind of software” at www.corel.com/windows7 to see Corel’s user experience designer, Jennifer Fraser, explain how Windows 7 and Windows Touch impacted our software design. Jennifer discusses how this amazing new OS offered Corel’s development team the opportunity to offer new experiences that foster creativity and build stronger connections between users and their content, whether it’s a painting, family snapshot or home movie. Jennifer explains our overall approach to designing consumer creative products and gives a quick glimpse at two of our new Windows Touch-enabled products, Corel Digital Studio 2010 and Corel Paint it! Touch, which was announced today.

With our long history of working closely with Microsoft, particularly around the introductions of new operating systems, we speak from experience when we say that they’ve really got it right with Windows 7. This new platform offers unprecedented power and stability, enabling Corel to deliver products that help customers create, connect and interact with their home PC in ways never before possible.

Joe Roberts
Executive Vice President – Products

Hi, Mark Rogers here. I run the Software Ecosystem Team here at Microsoft. Building on Mike’s recent post on overall ecosystem readiness, I wanted give you a quick update on our progress helping developers get ready to serve the hundreds of millions of users of Windows with our next release.

We listened carefully to our partners on every continent, except maybe Antarctica, and overhauled our online content and tools for Windows 7. Millions of developers have been visiting the Windows Developer Center to take advantage of code samples, white papers, and tools. The team recently released the Windows 7 RC Training Kit for developers- which includes presentations, hands-on labs, and demos. Al Gillen recently released a whitepaper on Windows 7 and why developers should be considering this product now.

I also wanted to take a moment and highlight a new contest for developers called the Windows 7 Code Contest. The Windows 7 Code Contest is a worldwide contest recognizing and rewarding professional and hobbyist developers for applications showing off the features in Windows 7. Developers can prepare to innovate and Code to the Power of Windows 7! To sign up, developers can go here: www.Code7Contest.com. We made it easy to submit with short videos and submissions are already flowing in - I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

It’s exciting to see that, even before Windows 7 ships, we’re seeing software partners deliver products that are better with Windows 7 by taking advantage of new features. Here are a few examples.

Windows Touch and multi-touch features provide a natural, intuitive way for users to interact with PCs. Companies such as Roxio, Corel, and Cegid are all enabling Windows Touch in their applications. Roxio has been developing a range of applications and services designed for Windows 7 that use the full capabilities of our platform. Personally - my favorite is Roxio PhotoShow Touch. Here is what Michael Demeyer, Vice President of Corporate Products from Sonic Solutions, says about Windows 7 and Windows Touch:

We’re seeing new opportunities combining the power of online services with new features in Windows 7 such as Windows Touch. Our new PhotoShow Touch application on Windows 7 allows us to create an immersive and engaging experience for creating and editing slideshows with the touch of a finger. The new technology in Windows 7 has enabled us to shorten our time to market and expand our business as customers experience our new software first hand.

On the commercial side, we have Cegid Group who is integrating the desktop functionality, new functions, features, and gadgets of Windows 7 with its Cegid Business ERP product lines. Cegid takes advantage of the new Jump Lists, Search functions, and Windows Touch to connect people and information throughout the enterprise. ­Pierre Dianteill, Director of Marketing at Cegid Group, talks about early integration of Windows 7 in their products:

Cegid and Microsoft have a profound and long standing partnership providing both enterprise applications and vertical solutions to our mutual customers, world-wide. Cegid is a Microsoft Gold Partner and a consistent early adopter of Microsoft technologies. The early integration of Windows 7 within the Cegid Business ERP product lines demonstrates our on-going commitment to offer Microsoft based solutions delivering business value and competitive advantage to our customers.

Corel is taking advantage of new features in Windows 7 to deliver new and exciting ways for consumers to interact with creative software. New products in the works will support the newest features of Windows 7. Joe Roberts, Executive Vice President of Products at Corel, discusses bringing people closer to their content with Corel products and Windows 7:

Looking at the Windows 7 Release Candidate, one thing is absolutely clear -- Microsoft has it right. With the introduction of Windows Touch technology, Corel has the opportunity to design an entirely new generation of consumer graphics and digital media applications that will enable users to create in more personal and exciting ways. We believe the user should always be at the center of the creative process. With the hands-on capabilities in Windows 7, we're now able to foster more natural, connected interactions between people and their content, whether it is a favorite photo, video or digital painting.

Sensor and Location API’s in Windows 7 offer a platform for using sensor devices, such as light sensors or GPS sensors, to create environmental or location awareness in programs. FullArmor delivered a software-plus-services offering called PolicyPortal which utilized Windows Azure services for scale, and used sensor APIs in Windows 7 for location based tracking for theft deterrence and management, reducing hardware requirements and training, which directly reduced the cost of deploying the solution. Here is what Danny Kim, CTO of FullArmor, has to say about their products and Windows 7:

Our goal with Windows 7 is to help our customers reduce costs and extend the Windows platform to provide greater value. Our solution, PolicyPortal, is a service that runs on Windows Azure to manage laptops running all flavors of Windows Client, including Windows 7. We believe the combination of PolicyPortal on Windows Azure, and Windows 7 is a great combination to lower costs for our customers while increasing functionality.

Software and hardware companies are also taking advantage of Shell Integration to be more discoverable, informative and interactive. Nuance is leveraging new technology in Windows 7 to revolutionizing the way people scan, search, edit and store paper. Windows 7 lets Nuance make scanning easy and accessible – just a click away within Windows Explorer. Nuance PDF Converter lets us make converting from paper or PDF into Microsoft Office formats as easy as a single click with Jump Lists, and makes it possible to search and find scanned documents as easy and as integrated as searching your Microsoft Office files. Here is what Robert Weideman, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Nuance’s Document Imaging Division, says:

Since 1999, Nuance and Microsoft have partnered to help users and organizations overcome barriers to productivity cause by paper. With Windows 7 we have dramatically magnified the benefits of that partnership, to the benefit of all users. Scanning has never been so easy, converting documents never so valuable, and the user experience never so compelling.  The combination of Nuance imaging applications on Windows 7 will make everyone believe in the Green Office.

The best part of my job is seeing all the new investment in Windows 7! There are many other partners getting ready for Windows 7 - please visit www.readyset7.com to learn more or simply see what they are saying here.