Interview with Dr. Neil Roodyn about the book " Developing for Microsoft Surface"

A couple of weeks ago Dr.Neil Roodyn from nsquared released the first book about developing applications for Microsoft Surface.

At nsquared weve had a lot of questions regarding the book and we thought it would be nice to do an interview with the author.

The movie below gives an answer to the questions:
Why did Dr. Neil write the book?
Who did he write it for? Just for developers? Or is it for designers too?
Why should anyone get a copy of the book?
Why is it published as an ebook only?

Where can you get read a preview or get your own copy of the book?
The answer is here: nsquaredsolutions.com/surfacebook

Locus in Action

In this short video Dr. Neil shows you how to use Locus. It is simple, fast and fun. Find out where your friends are today with Locus.

Students from Pre-University College in Rotterdam talk about Surface Development

Freena Eijffinger from nsquared is a teacher at the Pre University College in Rotterdam. She has a big group of students who are divided into 5 project groups with their own Surface application to build.

In this movie 2 groups give us an introduction about their Demo Surface application for Healthcare 2.0 in the Netherlands. First we hear "4Left" about their idea for children with a setback in development and second we hear "JYJIM" about their idea for helping people with Autism.



In the second movie 2 groups give us an introduction about their Demo Surface application for Healthcare 2.0 in the Netherlands. First we hear "PZN" about their idea for people with Schizophrenia and second we hear "No Meds" idea for helping doctors and patients within hospitals clarify certain problems.



In the third movie the last group "Delta Development" gives us an introduction about their Demo Surface application for their Surface version of the game "tower defense". The movie ends with a short overview of the classroom where the students are working.

nsquared at the LA Car Show with Lexus

At nsquared we recently helped Lexus show off their new hybrid technology by using our hybrid technologies. Lexus needed an interactive kiosk that would engage its existing customers and hook new ones. We teamed with design and concept studio, Spinifex, to deliver some outright high tech, hands-on goodness to match the image of Lexus’ progressive concept car that they plan to have in production for next year.



Using a Windows 7 Touch kiosk paired with a Nikon D90 camera, we enabled consumers to contribute to the Photosynth project dedicated entirely to the Lexus Concept vehicle, and to decide the colours of the production cars.

The kiosks allow attendees of the car show to get a great feel for the car by using the Nikon D90s to capture the car’s best features. The pictures are then uploaded to the synth. The same pictures were sent by email and shared with friends and family, directly or through social networking sites. By all accounts the kiosks and interactive app took a beating that no one could have planned for, and it came out shining: more zero-defect software that has resulted in highly engaged consumers and high quality leads for Lexus! Take a look at one of the many Lexus Synths here.

Photosynth is a spectacular technology allowing digital pictures to be collected and compiled into stunning 3D experiences. The 3D experiences can be navigated and explored at amazing levels of detail! You can even create your own . We’re looking for more ways to use this fascinating technology to encourage collaboration and engagement in the very near future.
If you have an idea, please drop us a note.

Freena's Acer Aspire One reviewed

Freena, our Marketing & Sales Manager at nsquared Europe, won an Acer Aspire One netbook at TechEd Berlin.

She has been using the device for a month now, here is her review.












Specifications of the netbook:

1.6GHz N270 Intel Atom Processor
2 GB DDR2 533MHz
Windows 7 Ultimate
10.1" glossy LED backlit display
220GB Hard Drive
802.11b/g Atheros Wireless
Multicardreader (Pro, XD, SD,multitimediacard Sony memory)
SD expansion slot
3USB ports
Built in camera in display
6-Cell 23Wh battery

Design
"When looking at the design of my netbook, I find it very sleek with its softly rounded edges and a smooth glossy surface. The look is fairly basic, but it I like it like that. Glossy plastic is found on the top of the screen cover, as well as around the entire LCD. At times the reflective boarder does get on your nerves if you are in a brightly lit room with many sources of glare."

Hardware
"Build quality looks solid for a subnotebook and the construction feels strong enough to handle being tossed around inside a bookbag without much concern for its safety (well apart from the glossy surfaces). Holding it while it is folded in half is similar to holding a hard cover book, having a good amount of rigidity to resist flex and compression. The screen cover feels especially strong, which is important for protecting the relatively fragile LCD panel. I do have to say I bought a neoprene sleevecover for protection. Cause my previous netbook has had 4 new displays due to cracks…Better be safe then sorry..."

Touchpad
"I especially liked the multi-gesture touchpad! It's very Iphone-like and easy to use when designing and developing."

Performance
"My netbook came with1GB of memory, but I found that a bit too slow. So I bought a 2GB card and now its very speedy!"

Conclusion
For those looking for an even lower cost budget netbook, the Acer Aspire One is a worthy candidate to think about. This computer has solid build quality to handle being tossed around in a backpack or purse, and modest performance to handle common software applications with ease. Battery life is the best with the 6-cell and is highly recommended. While it is not the easiest netbook to upgrade, it does offer a large storage drive to start with and an SDHC expansion slot.

Pros
• Good performance (when upgraded to 2GB memory)
• Dual card readers
• Responsive multi-gesture touchpad

Cons
• Hard to take apart for upgrades
• Poor sound (without headphones)
• LED display has poor viewing in brightly lighted rooms or outside in the sun

World's First Surface Book Released!

Here at nsquared we've released the world's first Surface development book. Developing for Microsoft Surface has been created and compiled from the many training sessions delivered the world over by Dr. Neil, and focuses on crafting exceptional user experiences for Surface.

Guiding its readers on the complete journey from the initial unpacking of a Microsoft Surface unit, to the satisfying delivery of their first Surface application, Developing for Microsoft Surface deals mostly with the ideation of Surface application design. Along the way it is filled with plenty of hands on labs and practical exercises to help readers explore the adventure that is Microsoft Surface and hone their application development skills for this platform.

The book (rrp US $49.95) is available now in handy e-book format at the special introductory price of US $45.00. Click on the link below to get started now.