If you take a look back to the Top 10 Reasons to use Windows Home Server, you can see that I have gone over the majority of these points.  In this post, I am going to share a little more about items 4 and 6: libraries and user accounts.

Windows Home Server’s integration with Windows 7 libraries is one of my personal favorite features. I have 4 computers at home that hold hundreds of pictures. I love being able to share my photos with friends and family, but unfortunately before Windows Home Server, I could never find what I was looking for! It would take me up to an hour to look through all 4 computers and all of the picture folders on each PC to find a specific set of photos.

With Windows Home Server as your media server, your digital memories will be kept in a central location so that you can access what you want from any computer on the network. Integration with Windows 7 libraries means that your Windows Home Server will automatically add and store your digital memories in the libraries. This enables you to quickly access what you want from any computer on the network and save time by having all your things in one place.

*Screen shot of Pictures Library. Notice pictures in this location are from “My pictures”, “Public Pictures”, and all pictures on the home server.

Windows Home Server users, Grant and David, saw the benefits to having all of his content located in Shared Folders and stated:

• · “I am now backing up six computers in my home and moved all my music and video data to the home server where it can be shared with the Xbox 360 and other computers in the house. Before, we had this content everywhere.” –Grant
• · “After installing Windows Home Server and moving all existing data to the Windows Home Server, management of the data is simplified and i no longer has to worry about moving data to new hard disk nor backing up of data” -David

Although libraries store and centralize all of your digital content, you may still want to keep particular items private, or not edited and changed by other users on your network. To increase protection on all of your important content, Windows Home Server allows you to create up to 10 user accounts. Windows Home Server gives you the ability to change which Shared Folders users have access to by either allowing “read/write” access, “read only” or “no access”.

As you can see from the image above, prominent blogger, Terry Walsh and his wife, have easily set up their user accounts. For a step by step in how to set up user accounts, you can visit Terry's blog.

To learn more about Windows Home Server along with libraries and user accounts, please visit the Windows Home Server Web site.

-Nicole

I am glad to announce that today we shipped a new version of the Windows API Code Pack – version 1.0.1. This is not a major version with a lot of new features, but rather a minor version focused on fixing bugs, improving performance, adding demos and few features updates (new wrappers…)

But before we dive into this new version of the Windows Code Pack let’s better understand what this Windows API Code Pack is all about.

Windows 7 offers new features like the taskbar, libraries, and the Sensor and Location platform, to name a few. These features enable new scenarios and create new opportunities for developers to make their applications shine on Windows 7. All these great features are exposed via the Win32 native API. Currently there is no “Windows 7” namespace in the .NET Framework, and no easy way to use these features from managed code applications. To help managed code developers access them, we released version 1.0 of the Windows API Code Pack for the .NET Framework in August (just after Windows 7 RTM).

The Windows API Code Pack is a free, managed Source Code Library provided by Microsoft as is. You should consider this library as if you wrote it yourself, as if it is your own code. It is a great starting point and provides a really good and solid solution for managed code developers. It covers a lot of the new Windows 7 features as well as some more fundamental core features from the Windows Vista timeframe. You may think of the Windows API Code Pack as the closest thing to an “official” managed API for Windows. But you need to remember that it’s not a product with 24x7 technical support available from Microsoft Customer Service and Support. We believe it is a great solution, and that the codebase is very solid and high quality.

Our goal with the code pack is to enable managed code developers to take advantage of Windows APIs that are not part of the .NET Framework. We feel that as a shared source that is separate from the .NET runtime libraries, the Windows API Code Pack provides an optimal compromise between the Microsoft Win32 managed wrapper, short time-to-market -we released the Windows API Code Pack just a month after the Win7 RTM, and we ship full source code of the library.

The Windows API Code Pack includes a great deal of managed API for Windows (7). For example:

• Extensive integration with the Windows Shell namespace, with support for the Windows Shell property system, providing control like explorer browser and access to Windows Libraries
• A completely 100% feature parity with the native Taskbar API including (but not limited to) JumpLists, Icon Overlay, Progress bar, Thumbnail, custom switcher, Thumbnail Button, etc…
• Windows Task Dialogs , other controls
• Support for Direct3D 11.0 and DXGI 1.0/1.1 APIs
• Support for the Sensor Platform APIs
• Extended Linguistic Services APIs
• Windows Restart Manager
• Power APIs
• And many other features

Each technology represented in the Windows API Code Pack has multiple demos and examples (including source) in C# and VB. We are planning on releasing updates to the Windows API Code Pack roughly every three months. We will be investing mainly in stability (meaning fixing bugs), fundamentals, testing and documentation, as well as new feature support (based on customer feedback).

You may ask yourself, “Why isn't the Windows API Code Pack part of the .NET Framework?”

We ship open source code that we might bring into the runtime sometime in the future, if we feel it's sufficiently core to the entire framework to be worth the size increase. Remember the .NET Framework runs on both Windows Vista and Windows XP. However, Windows 7 is here now, and we want to enable you to access this set of free, open source library sooner rather than later. We’re shipping this library in a community-supported form and, as you can see, we intend to keep updating it. While this version (1.0.1) is a minor release, we are planning on another release in the next few months. In the meantime, you get the best of both worlds in a package that you can use as a whole or in parts without restriction.

Another question you may ask is, “Will .NET 4 replace the need to use the Windows API Code pack?”

When .NET 4 ships, you will be able to use its Windows 7 features such as Taskbar and multitouch integration with WPF, DirectWrite support, and the location API via the Devices namespace. Continue to access other features such as libraries, Restart Manager, and Sensors via the Windows API Code Pack.

Last but not least, we are looking for feedback from the community – that is you the .NET developer using this library to write managed code applications for Windows 7. On the Windows API Code Pack site, you can ask questions, provide feedback, report bugs, and follow open bugs. Your input is critical for the continuation of this library, so please send us your feedback and questions.

To learn more about how to use the Windows API Code Pack check the Windows 7 Training on Channel 9

Windows 7 is now available to the public and anyone can buy and install Windows 7, whether for a new computer or an existing one. Soon, people from around the world will run your applications on Windows 7. They will expect the application to work and to feel as though it is a native Windows 7 application that takes advantage of new Windows 7 features and technologies like the Taskbar, libraries, touch, and sensors.

As Windows 7 approached GA, we continued to release new developer content to help you get up to speed with the new operating system. Now that it's here, Windows 7 GA is a great “excuse” for us to give you a quick update on all the Windows 7 developer content that is available to help you learn how to write a great Windows 7 application.

Below is a list of locations where you can find Windows 7 developer content.

Updated Windows 7 Training Kit – (Download it now)

To help you get your application onto Windows 7 as soon as possible, we updated the Windows 7 Training Kit for Developers. You can still find all the previous topics such as Taskbar, Sensor and Location, Libraries and Shell, Multitouch, Ribbon, etc. New to the kit are labs that work with VS2010 and use the new MFC improvements in VS2010 (download VS2010). We also added VB to all of our managed solutions – truly, no developer is left behind.

 

Windows 7 Online Training on Channel 9 Learning Center

Let’s assume you are interested in learning about Windows 7 libraries, or how to add some cool Taskbar functionality to your application, but you don’t want to download the entire training kit. Well with the Windows 7 Online Training Kit located on the Channel 9 Learning Center, you have immediate access to all Windows 7 learning units individually. Each learning unit (like the Taskbar) includes a few hands-on-labs and related videos. This gives you quick and easy access to most of our training material. For the rest of the content, like PowerPoint presentations and additional demos, you will have to download the Windows 7 Training Kit for Developers. The following image shows part of the managed code hands-on-lab for the Taskbar.

As always, the Windows 7 Topic Area on Channel 9 still features specific Windows 7 videos and screencasts. Over the past few weeks, we created new videos that I am sure you will find exciting and helpful, including a new Mark Russinovich video. As a friendly reminder, the last video Mark did, “Mark Russinovich: Inside Windows 7, was a Channel 9 blockbuster. If you haven't already viewed it, I highly recommend it, and make sure you see Mark’s new video Mark Russinovich: Inside Windows 7 Redux. Don’t forget to stay up-to-date with other topics:

• Using Windows 7 – Contains consumer- and user-related videos such as how to install Windows 7 and how to set up a home group network
• Programming Windows 7 – I don’t really need to explain what goes here, right?
• Last but not least, “Under the Hood” –Covers deep architectural Windows concepts

MSDN Developer Center

The MSDN Developer Center also received a “Windows 7 GA refresh” and now sports a new look and much improved functionality. The MSDN Developer Center includes a lot of Windows 7 material that extends the training content on available on Channel 9. You can think of the MSDN Developer Center as a hub for the Windows 7 content that will give you a great head start as you develop applications that will shine on Windows 7. You can find information about specific topics, review different programming models, learn about the developer tools that you can use, watch videos, and read blogs.

A New Book for Windows 7 Developers

Among the other things that you will find on the MSDN Developer Center, is a list of recommended Windows 7 books for developers. It turns out that over the past few months, I’ve been busy writing a Windows 7 book with three amazing co-authors: Laurence Moroney, Sasha Goldshtein, and Alon Fliess. Together, we wrote Introducing Windows 7 for Developers. It covers most of the exciting Windows 7 features like the Taskbar, Libraries, Sensor and Location, Multitouch (including new WPF 4 support with VS2010), and even Silverlight out of

browser (including touch :). As far as I know, this is the first Windows 7 developer book, and I hope you will find it useful. Mark Russinovich found this book helpful while integrating Windows 7 features with the Sysinternals tools and he wrote the foreword for this book.

I hope this list will help get you on your way to writing amazing Windows 7 applications.

The Professional Developers Conference (PDC) is the one event that all developers who use any Microsoft technologies must attend at least once in their professional careers. It’s the flagship event for developers, offering the most comprehensive, future-looking, technically deep, densely-packed set of sessions from Microsoft speakers you can find anywhere. This year’s PDC is no exception and you can expect it to be a very exciting event.

My first PDC was PDC08, held last November at the LA Convention Center. As one of the people at Microsoft who work on Windows 7, I was fortunate enough to be in the loop regarding Windows 7 @ PDC08, and was able to contribute (even if only in a small way) to one of the keynote. During the Day 2 keynote,

Steven Sinofsky presented Windows 7 to the world and for the first time people outside of Microsoft saw the new Taskbar, the Windows Ribbon, and witnessed a live multitouch demo. Attendees received a 160G hard drive (makes you wonder what they'll get this year…) with Windows 7 build 6800 (does anyone remember this build number?). The Windows team presented a lot of its technologies in a series of impressive sessions. And since then, through the different versions of Windows--Beta, RC, and RTM--we continued to push new content to help developers ramp up and get ready for Windows 7.

Windows 7 will become “Generally Available” (GA) to the public on October 22^nd, exactly two weeks from today, and this year’s PDC takes place right after Windows 7 GA. With the pre-release veil of secrecy lifted, during this year's PDC we can dive deep (very deep) into Windows 7 to extend our understanding of how Windows 7 works and, even more importantly, how developers can take advantage of all the great new improvements and features Windows 7 has to offer.

To start with, on the day before PDC09 starts, there is a FREE Windows 7 (seminar) Boot Camp led by top Microsoft Windows experts like Mark Russinovich, Landy Wang, and Arun Kishan. Then, during the PDC proper, we’ll have several deep-dive Windows 7 sessions.

So here is the first set of Windows 7 sessions that we are announcing:

This first one is probably my favorite topic (I am a geek, what can I say). What could be more important than performance, especially as it relates to Windows 7 and applications running on Windows 7? This has to be a MUST Attend session for any developer who writes any software (native or .NET) for Windows (and not just Windows 7) – this is truly a unique opportunity.

Optimizing for Performance with the Windows Performance Toolkit

The Windows team uses the Windows Performance Toolkit (WPT) to optimize the Windows OS. Come and see how the Windows Performance team used the WPT throughout the Windows 7 development cycle to optimize for customer scenarios and how you can leverage many of its features and capabilities to help you build faster applications on Windows. This session will present case studies that demonstrate how you can use the toolkit to pinpoint areas for improvement in your application and provide you with some best practices to follow in order to create applications with optimum performance.

The next two sessions are also personal favorites (you can’t blame me for loving Windows 7), as I think these technologies represent new levels of user interaction and adaptive user interfaces:

Building Sensor- and Location-aware Applications with Windows 7 and .NET

How many times have you thought to yourself, “My application would be so much better if it knew where the user was?” With Windows 7 and.NET Framework 4.0, you now have the tools at your fingertips to location-enable your applications. Based on the new Location platform for Windows 7, the location API in .NET Framework 4.0 provides a single, consistent API to get you your latitude and longitude regardless of the underlying technology that acquired it—allowing you to focus on creating exciting, differentiated location-aware applications.

Windows Touch Deep Dive

Windows provides applications with a default experience for gestures and touch interaction. This provides applications that you want to go beyond that basic experience with a powerful platform to build upon. This session is targeted at developers interested in building touch-optimized experiences. We’ll look closely at some of the more powerful portions of the Touch platform, like manipulation and inertia processors, as well as cover real-world problems that developers have encountered and overcome. Come help build the next generation of user experiences!

Another highly recommended session is the Windows Ribbon session. Before you dismiss the Ribbon, I suggest you take a second look and read between the lines of the Windows Ribbon native API. There is a lot of very interesting software architecture in the current API that provides a glimpse into tomorrow’s “commanding framework.”

Windows Ribbon Technical Deep Dive

This talk will cover some of the more subtle and complex aspects of ribbon implementation, like designing a great gallery (a critical task for any ribbon), adding an outspace MRU, etc. We will draw from specific experiences with Windows Live and other partners and spread the learning that those teams amassed as Windows Ribbon guinea pigs.

A lot has been said about the update to the Windows 7 graphics stack. This stack plays a major role in the performance improvements Windows 7 offers. You, as a developer, can tap into that user experience and start enjoying a rich and modern graphic framework that pushes GPUs to their limits.

Modern 3D Graphics Using Windows 7 & Direct3D 11 Hardware

Dig deep into the capabilities of Direct3D 11 and Windows 7to gain practical knowledge that will help you push graphics to the limit. Learn about the new tessellation stage in Direct3D 11, which enables an unprecedented level of rendering quality by dynamically generating geometry on the GPU. In addition, see how the multi-core improvements in the Direct3D 11 runtime can help you scale your application to take full advantage of all of the cores on a machine. Finally, take a peek at the power of DirectCompute (the hardware-accelerated general purpose computing technology) in a graphics application context.

Advanced Graphics Functionality Using DirectX

The number of PC configurations is exploding. With both netbooks and high-end desktop systems using the latest in graphics hardware, creating an application that can target all of these systems is getting harder every year. Join us as we explore the many options available in Windows 7 to facilitate graphics development across all kinds of hardware configurations, from low-end integrated GPUs to top of the line discrete GPUs. Learn about Direct3D 10 Level 9, which enables Direct3D 10 applications to run on pretty much every computer in the market today. Check out WARP, our new software rasterizer that lets your application use high-quality graphics even when there’s no graphics card. Finally, learn about Direct2D, DirectWrite, WIC, and the interoperability of Windows 7 technologies for making slick, high-quality graphics for your applications of the future.

The last session for today’s post, but most certainly not the least, is about the Windows API Code Pack for the Microsoft .NET framework. This is a framework that I have a personal interest in and I often blog about. With Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4, .NET developers have an easier life. Nonetheless, there are still a great number of valuable Windows APIs that are NOT in the framework. This Open Source library provides a good intermediate solution.

Developing with the Windows API Code Pack for .NET Framework

The Windows API Code Pack for Microsoft .NET Framework provides a source code library that you can use to access some new Windows 7 features (and some existing features of older versions of the Windows operating system) from managed code. These Windows features are not available to developers today in the .NET Framework. This session will show you how to access features like taskbar integration, JumpLists, libraries, the sensor platform, Direct2D, and more.

Have you ever wondered how Windows 7 resumes from sleep in less than 2 seconds? Or how Windows 7 can scale up to 256 cores? Or maybe you just want to want to learn about any Kernel improvements that will make your application run faster with no extra effort from you?

Well, guess what? On Monday, November 16^th, the day before PDC 2009 starts, we are running a FREE Windows 7 Workshop – AKA Windows 7 Developer Boot Camp. That is  right, it's FREE for anyone who wants to attend. Windows 7 is one of the most exciting pivotal releases of the year. As part of the wave of activity surrounding the product launch, we're opening up this workshop to anyone who wants to attend - even if you're not able to join the rest of the conference. So, if you live LA, its surroundings, or even the Bay Area, you can attend this workshop for FREE!

Wait a minute! By now, you must be thinking to yourself, “If it is free, it can’t be that good.” Well it turns out that this Windows 7 Developers Boot Camp will include top Microsoft Windows experts like Mark Russinovich, Landy Wang, and Arun Kishan. These are the guys who are behind a large number of the amazing performance improvements in Windows 7, and this is your onetime chance to meet them in person for an intense, deep, and high-quality session. Mark, Landy, and Arun will start by talking about Kernel and architectural improvements, for example, the Kernel Dispatcher Lock, new and even more efficient Windows Memory Management, and Trigger Start Services, among many other topics.

Next, they’ll take a dive deep into the different APIs, paying special attention to the new shell integration points in Windows 7 such as the taskbar, libraries, and search. Right after that, they’ll give some tips for getting the most out of today’s hardware using the Sensor & Location platform, multitouch, and the new graphics libraries (Direct2D, DirectX 11) that take advantage of the GPU.

Regardless of whether you’re a C++, C#, or Visual Basic developer, if you're building a Windows application and you want your application to have the best possible performance, experience, and look-and-feel while running on Windows 7, this event is for you! I know I will be there; what about you?

Register for the PDC Workshop or read more info about the Windows 7 Boot Camp.

The Windows Home Server Team has announced today the beta of Windows Home Server Power Pack 3 (PP3). And if you’re running Windows 7, Windows Home Server PP3 comes with several new features designed to take advantage key Windows 7 features:

• Full Image-based Backups of Windows 7 PCs. After the Windows Home Server Connector is installed on your Windows 7 PCs, Action Center should no longer display that your files are not being backed up.
• Windows 7 Libraries Support. Music, Photos and Videos shared folders from your Windows Home Server will be added to Windows 7 Libraries. Content saved to these shared folders will be able to be quickly accessed through your Windows 7 Libraries. And any application, like Windows Media Player and Windows Media Center, will be able to access content saved on your Windows Home Server through Libraries as well.
• Windows Search 4 is now included. With Windows Search 4, PP3 offers improved query search times, indexing times and reliability. Easy search through a Library in Windows 7 with files stored in multiple locations.
• Windows Media Center Enhancements. Archive old recorded TV shows onto your Windows Home Server in a variety of formats. Use Console Quick View to see statistics about your Windows Home Server through Windows Media Center.

More in-depth information on these features – see their blog post on PP3.

The Windows Home Server Team does not yet have a final release date for PP3 however they are shooting to have PP3 available shortly before GA of Windows 7. If you’re running Windows Home Server and have several Windows 7 PCs – I encourage you to give PP3 a try and help the Windows Home Server Team make PP3 rock.

To beta test PP3, please sign up as a beta participant of the Windows Home Server program on Microsoft Connect. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll be able to download PP3.

Windows Home Server Power Pack 3 will be a free update to existing Windows Home Server users via Windows Update.

I’ll be installing PP3 on my HP MediaSmart Server EX470 either tonight or sometime over the weekend. I’m stoked about the Windows 7 integration!