Another Microsoft Store?  [07:28]

Kinect Star Wars!  [02:38]

OneNote for Android   [05:42]

Kinect helps the visually impaired  [10:20]

Many have tried to remedy this (in many languages) by adding sets of requirements, commonly known as "concepts." Many of these efforts, notably the C++0x concept design, have run into trouble by focusing on the design of language features.

This talk presents the results of an effort to first focus on the design of concepts and their use; Only secondarily, we look at the design of language features to support the resulting concepts. We describe the problem, our approach to a solution, give examples of concepts for the STL algorithms and containers, and finally show an initial design of language features. We also show how we use a library implementation to test our design.

So far, this effort has involved more than a dozen people, including the father of the STL, Alex Stepanov, but we still consider it research in progress rather than a final design. This design has far fewer concepts than the C++0x design and far simpler language support. The design is mathematically well founded and contains extensive semantic specifications (axioms).

• How to use your Kinect to determine the angle and confidence for where a sound is coming from
• How to use the KinectAudioSource to record audio synchronously and asynchronously
• How to build a basic speech recognition application to dynamically turn application features on/off
• How the speech recognition engine can be used even when the application is not the current active application 

Resources

• Download the Kinect for Windows SDK
• Download the Quickstart slides and samples

For all its might, C++11 is not addressing a few basic needs in template programming. For example, you'd hate to have to define a new function or indeed a whole new class wherever you need an "if" statement; yet, this is exactly what we do for template code. Also, conditional overloading using the likes of std::enable_if is syntactically bulky and semantically ham-fisted (as is visible with constructors and other special functions).

This talk describes a new proposal (joint work with Herb Sutter and Walter Bright): a "static if" construct that works much like "if", just during compilation. It's reminiscent of #if, just done copiously right.

With "static if" a lot of generic code becomes radically simpler, which in turn enables idioms that today are too complex to be usable. This proposal for C++ benefits from a large body of experience within the D programming language.

• [0:39] Mark your calendar: We are hosting a Windows 8 Consumer Preview event on Feb 29 in Barcelona!
• [1:52] C++ AMP Open Specification (S.Somasegar)
• [4:08] C# to C++ – A Somewhat Short Guide (Michael B. McLaughlin)
• [5:40] One ASP.NET Sneak Peek: Elegant Web Forms and Snowballs in Hell (Scott Hanselman)
• [7:11] 10 myths holding HTML5 back (Martin Beeby)
• [9:11] Beta of Amazon Web Services SDK for Windows Phone released (Adalberto Foresti), Beta release of the Amazon Web Services (AWS) SDK for Windows Phone ( Lee Stott) [Found Via: Mary-Jo Foley, Microsoft delivers developer kit for linking Amazon web services to Windows Phone]
• [10:27] Extension Me Serialize: With Encryption! (Caleb McElrath)
• [12:53] IntelliTrace Moves Beyond Development in Visual Studio 11 (Mickey Gousset)
• [14:13] MapReduce Patterns, Algorithms, and Use Cases (Boris Lublinsky) , "MapReduce Patterns, Algorithms, and Use Case" (Ilya Katsov)
• [16:08] The State of NuGet (Phil Haack)
• [18:04] How to Set Up a Local NuGet Gallery (Michael Ceranski), [MSDN Magazine] Creating a NuGet Gallery (Clark Sell,Mark Nichols)
• [19:17] Going Native: Interactive Panel: The Importance of Being Native (Herb Sutter , Bjarne Stroustrup , Andrei Alexandrescu , Stephan T. Lavavej , Hans Boehm)
• [20:07] Microsoft Mouse Mischief [Found Via: MicrosoftFeed - Download Microsoft Mouse Mischief and Enter the New Generation of Learning Solutions]

Picks of the Week!

• Duncan's Pick of the Week! [22:14] The Defrag Show, Defrag: Change Pinned Sites Icons, Laptop WiFi Router, Full Path for File
• Dan's Pick of the Week! [24:25] Day 2 Keynote - Herb Sutter: C++11, VC++11 and Beyond

In this episode, we are very sad to bid Steve Marx farewell as he looks for new challenges outside of Microsoft. Fortunately, we're able to share some of his best moments on the Cloud Cover show and review some of the best demos he's built over the years.

• http://devoxx.cloudapp.net/
• http://netflixpivot.cloudapp.net/
• http://ssplayer.cloudapp.net/
• http://www.twoenglishes.com/
• http://www.flatterist.com/

In the news:

• Get Started with Node.js + Windows Azure: Resources
• Windows Azure Toolkit for Social Games Version 1.2.2 Released
• Welcome to Wordament on Windows Azure

You can stay in touch with Steve Marx through his blog at http://blog.smarx.com/.

• How skeleton data retrieves joint information for 20 joints (head, hands, hip center, etc)
• How skeletal tracking works and how you can choose what skeletons to track using tracking IDs.
• How you can tweak TransformSmoothParameters based on your applications needs (responsiveness versus smoothness)
• How you can use the built-in depth mapping methods to map a skeletal joint’s position into depth and color space
• How you can use the Coding4Fun Toolkit to scale the skeletal joint value to make it easier for users of your application to not have to extend their reach when using your hand as a cursor
• How to use the SkeletonViewer to visualize all joints returned by Kinect including whether those joints are not tracked.

Resources

• Download the Kinect for Windows SDK
• Download the Quickstart slides and samples

Introduction

I've written a number of Windows Phone apps, and each time I've wanted to let people know about my other apps.  While I could mention the other apps somewhere, I wouldn't want to update all of my apps each time I release a new one.  It finally occurred to me that I could use the listing of apps directly from Marketplace instead.  This provides me with an easy-to-parse XML feed (Atom) of my apps with all of the info that I need.  Armed with that, it wasn't too much work to create a user control to let me drop in the list of apps anytime I need it.

This code doesn't require a physical phone, but it isn't very useful if you don't have a Marketplace account!  Ideally, you should have several published apps under your account for this to make much sense.  Once you have it in place though, all of your apps will always show your complete list without any special updates.

If you don't have the software installed, go to create.msdn.com, then click Download the free tools to download the Windows Phone Developer Tools (or use the direct download link provided above this Introduction section). This code is written for the Windows Phone Developer Tools 7.1 (Mango).  It’s is a mostly online install, and it’s pretty big so expect it to take some time. Even if you don’t have any development tools, this will give you Visual Studio Express, Blend, and XNA Game Studio. If you have the full-version tools already, it will add new templates.

Project Basics

The intention is to create a user control to display a list of apps from a given publisher (preferably yourself!).  This user control will be implemented as a ListBox with individual apps showing up visually similar to the way they do in Marketplace.  Touching an app in the list should bring the user directly to the appropriate Marketplace page.  It should be as easy as adding a project reference, adding the control to a XAML page, and setting the publisher (this could potentially be set by reading the WMAppManifest.xml file).

Marketplace Data

At first glance, getting Marketplace data programmatically isn't an option.  Sadly, there's no API for this.  Fortunately, there's a solution!  If you're using the Zune app to browse publishers and apps, you can watch the network traffic using Fiddler (http://fiddler2.com/fiddler2/).  What's nice is that everything you do in Zune results in a simple HTTP request for the data, which is returned as an XML stream.  A simple WebRequest object can do a DownloadStringAsync call to get the data, then the SyndicationFeed class can load and parse it.  There are extension elements for rating, release date, and price.  Even nicer, is that the image thumbnail can be resized server-side based on the URL query string.  This makes it super easy to get exactly what we need.

The server of interest is catalog.zune.net, and the URL format is:

/v3.2/en-US/apps?q=PublisherName&clientType=WinMobile 7.1&store=zest

The "q" parameter just needs to be set to the publisher name of interest.  Remember to URL encode yours if you have spaces in it.

Note the "clientType" parameter.  If you change it to WinMobile 7.0 you will get NoDo (pre-Mango) apps only.  You may or may not have anything show up for that, but it's not likely you'll want that list.

The "store" parameter is set to "zest" but we'll just have to take this one on faith!  I'm not aware of any other options here.  This could vary by country, but I don't have any data on that.

This will return all apps for Mango.  This returns feed information starting with a header:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<a:feed xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:os=http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearch/1.1/ 
 xmlns="http://schemas.zune.net/catalog/apps/2008/02">
  <a:link rel="self" type="application/atom+xml" 
    href="/v3.2/en-US/apps?q=Arian+T.+Kulp&amp;store=zest&amp;clientType=WinMobile+7.1" />
  <os:startIndex>1</os:startIndex>
  <os:totalResults>5</os:totalResults>
  <os:itemsPerPage>5</os:itemsPerPage>
  <a:updated>2012-01-30T04:21:41.9702941Z</a:updated>
  <a:title type="text">List Of Items</a:title>
  <a:id>tag:catalog.zune.net,2012-01-30:/apps</a:id>

You can pretty much ignore this section.  The important stuff comes next!  Each Atom entry is one app, along with every bit of metadata that you need to make an interesting view:

  
<a:entry>
    <a:updated>2012-01-30T04:21:41.9858942Z</a:updated>
    <a:title type="text">Metro Lockscreen Creator</a:title>
    <a:id>urn:uuid:0f5eaaa8-e75e-4a04-a5f9-24db1c176a6b</a:id>
    <sortTitle>Metro Lockscreen Creator</sortTitle>
    <releaseDate>2011-07-26T14:30:39.987Z</releaseDate>
    <version>1.3.0.0</version>
    <averageUserRating>7.254902</averageUserRating>
    <userRatingCount>51</userRatingCount>
    <averageLastInstanceUserRating>5.2</averageLastInstanceUserRating>
    <lastInstanceUserRatingCount>5</lastInstanceUserRatingCount>
    <image>
      <id>urn:uuid:cb46389d-6d50-4be0-b4ff-75c968f301ea</id>
    </image>
    <categories>
      <category>
        <id>windowsphone.toolsandproductivity</id>
        <title>tools + productivity</title>
        <isRoot>True</isRoot>
      </category>
    </categories>
    <tags>
      <tag>apptag.independent</tag>
    </tags>
    <offers>
      <offer>
        <offerId>urn:uuid:b8d5cc60-0839-4bcb-b26e-e85ba3e92c8d</offerId>
        <mediaInstanceId>urn:uuid:2ff871ea-cf8a-488e-b613-286052b90a13</mediaInstanceId>
        <clientTypes>
          <clientType>WinMobile 7.1</clientType>
        </clientTypes>
        <paymentTypes>
          <paymentType>Credit Card</paymentType>
          <paymentType>Mobile Operator</paymentType>
        </paymentTypes>
        <store>Zest</store>
        <price>0</price>
        <displayPrice>$0.00</displayPrice>
        <priceCurrencyCode>USD</priceCurrencyCode>
        <licenseRight>Purchase</licenseRight>
      </offer>
    </offers>
    <publisher>
      <id>Arian T. Kulp</id>
      <name>Arian T. Kulp</name>
    </publisher>
  </a:entry>

From this block you can get title, release date, rating average and count, category, image ID (easily converted to URL), and price (per market).  The System.ServiceModel.Syndication.SyndicationFeed class can read from an XMLReader object and it handles everything for you.  Dealing with the custom Marketplace namespace can lead to some slight complication, but fortunately that's simplified as well.

Syndicated Data

For standard Atom elements (the ones with the a: namespace here), you can use properties of the SyndicationItem class.  For some reason, the SyndicationItem class isn't actually available in the Windows Phone libraries.  I'm not sure why this is the case, but it turns out that you can use the desktop version without a problem.  Just add a reference to the "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SDKs\Silverlight\v3.0\Libraries\Client\System.ServiceModel.Syndication" assembly.  You might get a warning when you add it, but it will work fine.  If you download the accompanying code, you'll get all the assemblies you need in it.

The SyndicationItem class gets you properties like Title and Id.  The other properties are all custom types in the "http://schemas.zune.net/catalog/apps/2008/02" namespace.  From these properties, you are interested in shortDescription, userRatingCount, averageUserRating, version, releaseDate, displayPrice, and priceCurrencyCode.  Instead of worrying about namespaces, since you know they are custom elements, you can use the ElementExtensions collection on the SyndicationItem and query the OuterName property.  A simple extension method makes this easy:

Visual Basic

Private Shared Function GetExtensionElementValue(Of T)(item As SyndicationItem, extensionElementName As String) As T
  Dim f = (From ee In item.ElementExtensions Where ee.OuterName = extensionElementName).FirstOrDefault()

  Return If(f Is Nothing, Nothing, f.GetObject(Of T)())
End Function

Visual C#

private static T GetExtensionElementValue<T>(SyndicationItem item, string extensionElementName)
{
    var f = item.ElementExtensions.Where(ee => ee.OuterName == extensionElementName).FirstOrDefault();
    return f == null ? default(T) : f.GetObject<T>();
}

With this method in place, you can create most of a new MarketplaceApp object with the following code:

Visual Basic

Dim app = New MarketplaceApp() With { _
    .Id = id, _
    .AppLink = "http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=" & Convert.ToString(id), _
    .Title = item.Title.Text, _
    .ShortDescription = GetExtensionElementValue(Of String)(item, "shortDescription"), _
    .UserRatingCount = GetExtensionElementValue(Of Integer)(item, "userRatingCount"), _
    .Version = GetExtensionElementValue(Of String)(item, "version"), _
    .AverageUserRating = GetExtensionElementValue(Of Double)(item, "averageUserRating") / 2.0, _
    .ReleaseDate = GetExtensionElementValue(Of String)(item, "releaseDate"), _
    .PrimaryImageUrl = Root & "/v3.2/en-US/apps/" & Convert.ToString(id) & "/primaryImage?width=95&height=95&resize=true", _
    .DisplayPrice = "Unknown" _
}

Visual C#

var app = new MarketplaceApp
{
    Id = id,
    AppLink = "http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=" + id,
    Title = item.Title.Text,
    ShortDescription = GetExtensionElementValue<string>(item, "shortDescription"),
    UserRatingCount = GetExtensionElementValue<int>(item, "userRatingCount"),
    Version = GetExtensionElementValue<string>(item, "version"),
    AverageUserRating = GetExtensionElementValue<double>(item, "averageUserRating") / 2.0,
    ReleaseDate = GetExtensionElementValue<string>(item, "releaseDate"),
    PrimaryImageUrl = Root + "/v3.2/en-US/apps/" + id + "/primaryImage?width=95&height=95&resize=true"
};

Where it gets a little bit tricky is the "offers" block.  This is an XML block within the overall Item block.  This requires that you shift over to an XmlReader method of parsing.  This works by reading the XML sequentially, stopping at elements of interest.  You start by finding the "offers" element, but instead of using the GetObject method, you use GetReader.  From there, you use a while loop to visit every node, and grab the value if it's of XmlNodeType.Element and either displayPrice or priceCurrencyCode.

Visual Basic

Dim offers = (From ee In item.ElementExtensions Where ee.OuterName = "offers").FirstOrDefault().GetReader()

' TODO: Restrict to current country's offer
If offers.ReadToFollowing("offer") Then
    While offers.Read()
        If offers.NodeType = XmlNodeType.Element Then
            If offers.Name = "displayPrice" Then
                app.DisplayPrice = offers.ReadElementContentAsString()
            ElseIf offers.Name = "priceCurrencyCode" Then
                app.PriceCurrencyCode = offers.ReadElementContentAsString()
            End If
        End If
    End While
End If

Visual C#

var offers = item.ElementExtensions.
    Where(ee => ee.OuterName == "offers").FirstOrDefault().GetReader();

// TODO: Restrict to current country's offer
if (offers.ReadToFollowing("offer"))
{
    while(offers.Read())
    {
        if (offers.NodeType == XmlNodeType.Element)
        {
            if (offers.Name == "displayPrice")
                app.DisplayPrice = offers.ReadElementContentAsString();
            else if (offers.Name == "priceCurrencyCode")
                app.PriceCurrencyCode = offers.ReadElementContentAsString();
        }
    }
}

Notice the "TODO" block.  If you are offering your app for sale at different prices in different markets, this will only grab the first offer.  Ideally, this should grab the offer for the user's location, but that's another topic!

Creating the Control

Creating a user control makes it easy to add your list of apps anywhere.  I like to add it to a PivotItem in my About page.  There are really three things to do:

1. Download the XML
2. Parse the XML into model objects
3. Bind the collection of items to a list

Of course, before you can show anything, you'll want to create a template to serve as the ItemTemplate in the control.  This will use databinding to point back at the properties of the marketplace entries to display the name, price, image, etc.  This can be created inline within the ListBox markup, or in the UserControl.Resources block (as it is in this case).  The root element is a Grid.  The Image shows the app's icon, and the StackPanel displays the title, price, and rating information.

<DataTemplate x:Key="AppTemplate">
    <Grid x:Name="LayoutRoot" Margin="0,0,0,4" Width="450" Background="Transparent">
        <Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="95"/>
            <ColumnDefinition Width="1*" />
        </Grid.ColumnDefinitions>

        <Image Source="{Binding PrimaryImageUrl}" Margin="0,0,20,10" />
        <StackPanel Grid.Column="1">
            <TextBlock Text="{Binding Title}" />
            <Controls1:RatingControl Max="5" Total="{Binding UserRatingCount}"
Score="{Binding AverageUserRating}" />
            <TextBlock Text="{Binding DisplayPrice}" />
        </StackPanel>
    </Grid>
</DataTemplate>

With the template complete, you just need a ListBox with the ItemTemplate set to the above template. 

<Grid>
    <ListBox x:Name="listBox" ItemsSource="{Binding Apps}"
ItemTemplate="{StaticResource AppTemplate}"SelectionChanged="ListBox_SelectionChanged" />
    <StackPanel x:Name="LoadingView" HorizontalAlignment="Center"
VerticalAlignment="Center"Visibility="Collapsed">
        <TextBlock TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="Loading list of apps..."
d:LayoutOverrides="Height"FontWeight="Black"/>
        <ProgressBar Margin="0,0,0,6" Height="5" IsIndeterminate="True"/>
    </StackPanel>
    <StackPanel x:Name="ErrorView" Orientation="Vertical" VerticalAlignment="Center"
HorizontalAlignment="Center" Visibility="Collapsed">
        <TextBlock HorizontalAlignment="Left" TextWrapping="Wrap"
Text="Sorry, there was an error reading the list of apps." FontStyle="Italic"/>
    </StackPanel>
</Grid>

The other elements are used to display a loading message and an error message.  Switching between the list, loading, or error message is accomplished using VisualStateManager with the "Normal," "Loading," or "Error" states accordingly.

The only other methods needed in the code-behind are to handle selection and caching.  When an item is selected, you create a MarketplaceDetailTask object, set the ContentIdentifier to the app's unique ID, and call Show().  Set the SelectedIndex property back to -1 to prevent a problem where a user can't press the same item twice in the row.

The caching is important so the app doesn't cause data access on every single visit to the control.  It's currently set to reload once per day, but this could be changed (or better yet, made configurable).  Even if it's more than a day, if there's an error downloading the data it will always fallback to cache.

Visual Basic

Dim items As IEnumerable(Of MarketplaceApp) = Nothing

If IsolatedStorageSettings.ApplicationSettings.Contains("PublisherAppsControls.Items") Then
  items = DirectCast(IsolatedStorageSettings.ApplicationSettings( _
    "PublisherAppsControls.Items"), IEnumerable(Of MarketplaceApp)) 
  ' Use the cache if within a day...
  Dim dt = CType(IsolatedStorageSettings.ApplicationSettings( _ 
    "PublisherAppsControls.Items.DateTime"), DateTime)

  If DateTime.Now.Subtract(dt).TotalDays < 1 Then
    ctrl.Apps.Clear()
    For Each i In items
      ctrl.Apps.Add(i)
    Next
    Return
  End If
End If

Visual C#

IEnumerable<MarketplaceApp> items = null;

if (IsolatedStorageSettings.ApplicationSettings.Contains("PublisherAppsControls.Items"))
{
    items = (IEnumerable<MarketplaceApp>)
             IsolatedStorageSettings.ApplicationSettings["PublisherAppsControls.Items"];
    // Use the cache if within a day...
    var dt = (DateTime)IsolatedStorageSettings.
               ApplicationSettings["PublisherAppsControls.Items.DateTime"];
    if (DateTime.Now.Subtract(dt).TotalDays < 1)
    {
        ctrl.Apps.Clear();
        foreach (var i in items) ctrl.Apps.Add(i);
        return;
    }
}

Next Steps

I haven't tested this app against publishers with large numbers of apps.  I'm not sure if they would all come back in the response or if there would be more requests to make.  It would also be good to filter out the currently running app.  This could be obtained from the WMAppManifest.xml file.  As mentioned in the article, it would also be good to restrict the offer to the current country, but I really don't know how to do that without using the location API, which seems too heavy-handed.

It would be nice to create a general-purpose library for Zune Marketplace data.  There are some good starts out there from the likes of Brandon Watson and Jesse Liberty, a CodePlex library, and even another Coding4Fun project, but much of that is based on general catalog data, or specialized for music entries.  Even better would be if Microsoft can put out their own API!  That would ensure a better experience if/when formats change over time.

Conclusion

XML has made the world of data so much easier to consume!  As soon as I saw structured data as the foundation for Zune I knew this would be a pretty easy project.  Being able to advertise all of your apps in each of your apps provides a great way to promote with a minimum of effort.

About the Author

Arian Kulp is a software developer living in Western Oregon. He creates samples, screencasts, demos, labs, and articles, speaks at programming events, and enjoys hiking and other outdoor adventures with his family.

• Which key features in C++11 will most change the way you write code: the features that directly affect C++ style, coding idioms, and the guidance in pre-C++11 books and articles that most needs to be updated.
• Specific guidance on each of those key features: how each one changes your code; tips on using it well; and a pitfall or two to avoid (and how).
• Status update on C++11 adoption: how compilers, books, and programmers are doing, plus a few updates and projections.
• What's next for C++: what's top of mind for the near future of Standard C++, and why?

Join the Kinect Effect

The Imagine Cup 2012 Kinect Fun Labs Challenge asks students to think about entertainment with a social conscience and brings the Imagine Cup into the living room. It is a unique opportunity for students to develop applications that change the world with the Fun Labs area of Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE. The Imagine Cup Kinect Fun Labs Challenge will test your Team’s ability to build a prototype which leverages natural user interface (NUI) features such as skeletal tracking, speech recognition, face recognition, and gestures. For this Challenge, we will provide you with state-of-the-art tools to develop Kinect Fun Labs style applications on your PC. And… the top 100 Teams that advance to Round 2 will receive a free Kinect for Windows sensor! Get started building your solution today.

Get your questions ready! Join Kinect Fun Labs Challenge Captain Dan Waters on 14 February at 16:00 or 23:30 GMT via Live Meeting and ask him about competing in the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge. Follow these instructions to join the Live Meeting. The Live Meeting sessions will be recorded and posted on this page under the Helpful Links. Find out what time these meetings take place in your country/region.

Ready to Get Started?

We know you are excited, but before you join the Kinect Effect, take a few minutes to read the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge Rules and the Imagine Cup Official Rules and Regulations.

Next: Register and sign up to compete in the Imagine Cup 2012 student technology competition, using the steps on this page.

Returning to Imagine Cup? You can skip Step 1 and sign in now at the top of the page with your email address and password from last year. You still need to sign up for the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge through your My Profile page. Read the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge Rules first but if you want to get started now, take a look below at what is required for Round 1.

New to Imagine Cup? Follow these four steps and you are on your way!

Step 1. Register. We need some basic information from you before you can get started.

Step 2. Sign up to compete in the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge through your My Profile page.

Step 3. Read the Kinect Fun Labs Challenge Rules before you begin your project.

Step 4. Start building your solution!

---

Round 1
Create a Team!

It can be a team of one, but that isn’t very much fun. Grab up to three of your smartest friends and challenge yourselves. All teams are required to complete and submit a Project Plan that describes your team’s gadget, the intent of your gadget, and details of the unique gadget features and how your gadget aligns to the Imagine Cup 2012 Theme - Imagine a world where technology helps solve the toughest problems. Round 1 submissions are due by 23:59 PM GMT on 06 March 2012. Find out what time this deadline is in your country/region.

Meet Kinect Fun Labs Challenge Captain, Dan Waters. Dan is a Producer at Microsoft Studios (formerly Microsoft Game Studios), building technology to help create living room entertainment experiences for the Xbox 360 and Kinect. Dan has been involved with the Imagine Cup since 2007, most recently in 2011, where he served as the Windows Phone Challenge Captain. Dan’s areas of expertise include software development, XNA, mobile applications and games.

Listen to Captain Dan Waters talk about competing in the Imagine Cup 2012 Kinect Fun Labs Challenge.

...

Project Information URL: http://www.imaginecup.com/Competition/mycompetitionportal.aspx?competitionId=68

Contact Information:

• Blog: http://www.imaginecup.com/blogs/imagine_cup_finals/default.aspx
• Twitter: @imaginecup

• KrashLander
• NFL Pro '12
• MixTapes
• Weave
• Network Dashboard

Please leave suggestions for hot apps that should be featured in the comments section, thanks!

• An overview of how depth data represents the distance and player for every pixel
• An overview of Default and Near Mode and what features are supported in both
• An explanation of what distance data the Kinect returns including knowing when you are too near, too far, or the distance is unknown
• The formulas for calculating depth and player information
• How to visualize depth and player data, including a monochrome histogram and player colorization
• How to use the WPF DepthViewer control to understand depth data returned from the Kinect

Resources

• Download the Kinect for Windows SDK
• Download the Quickstart slides and samples

But how do we write good code? What principles, techniques, and idioms can we exploit to make it easier to produce quality code? In this presentation, I make an argument for type-rich interfaces, compact data structures, integrated resource management and error handling, and highly-structured algorithmic code. I illustrate my ideas and guidelines with a few idiomatic code examples.

I use C++11 freely. Examples include auto, general constant expressions, uniform initialization, type aliases, type safe threading, and user-defined literals. C++11 features are only just starting to appear in production compilers, so some of my suggestions are conjecture. Developing a "modern style," however, is essential if we don't want to maintain newly-written 1970s and 1980s style code in 2020.

This presentation reflects my thoughts on what "Modern C++" should mean in the 2010s: a language for programming based on light-weight abstraction with direct and efficient mapping to hardware, suitable for infrastructure code.