Kurt Shintaku's Blog

This has been well-known for a while but for those of you who haven’t tried it, NFL Sunday Night Football is available in high definition 1080p streams using Microsoft Silverlight on your computer.

Watch HD 1080p stream LIVE (dynamically adjusts resolution based on your bandwidth in real-time), switch between 5 different camera views instantly, watch two views PiP, view real-time stats of teams/players, fwd/rew/slomo/freeze the broadcast, and more!

• WEB: NFL Sunday Night Football
  http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/26393211/
  (or http://tinyurl.com/SLNFL)

Here’s a quick list of the fantastic interactive features available in the new Silverlight NFL player:

1. PiP CAMERA ANGLES ON-DEMAND: Be sure to check out the Picture-in-Picture functionality we built in there, giving you the ability to switch between 1 of 5 camera angles LIVE during the game in either the small picture window or the main video frame.
2. DYNAMICALLY ADJUSTING VIDEO QUALITY: Notice that the video quality automatically & seamlessly changes depending on your available bandwidth from 300kbps (480i) to 2.1Mb (1080p). Hover over the bandwidth icon in the lower right hand corner to see your current bandwidth.
3. STATS & COMMENTARY ON-DEMAND: During the game & commercial breaks, you hace access to game stats and play-by-play information from top NBC commentators. Click on the "Reveal" button in the bottom left corner to see social networking discussions and game stats live.
4. CLICKABLE ADS & FULL SCREEN EXPANSION: Expand the entire windows to the size of your display… and click on the screen during ads throughout the game to jump to the advertiser’s web site for "special deals".
5. REWIND/FAST FWD/15 SEC JUMP: View the broadcast llke you were using your DVR! Rewind 15 seconds to review the last play or rewind/ffwd through the live broadcast just as if it was being recorded live, all without lame "Buffering…10%" messages. (Courtesy of patented Microsoft Windows Media 9 streaming)
6. MULTIPLATFORM: The Silverlight broadcasting experience is portable, making it possible to broadcast the stream to Windows PCs, Macs, and Windows Phone 7 devices. That’s right: A rich interactive NFL experience scaled down to your phone. Awesome.
7. HIGHLIGHTS & EXTRAS: Missed the pregame or the first part of the game? View the ‘good parts’ with a simple click of the scenes listed in front of you. Replay the pregame commentary.
8. SHARE-A-PLAY: Wicked hit? Awesome pass? Disgusting north-south run? Hit the Share button and instantly share the play with others over Facebook, Twitter, email, and any number of 12 different social networking facilities.
9. PAUSE & SLO-MO: Totally forgot about this. Need to hit the head? Wanna see if the catch was REALLY inbounds? Was the pass made over the line of scrimmage? Rewind the play and slow it down in HIGH DEF and see it for yourself if the refs don’t review it.

But don’t just take my word for it. Take a look at what the edito fo Macworld said about the Silverlight experience of watching the NFL on NBC… on a Mac!

• NEWS: Macworld editor says Silverlight is much better than Flash for video
  http://www.timacheson.com/Blog/2009/sep/
  macworld_editor_says_silverlight_is_better_than_flash_for_video

——————–

SIDENOTE: Be sure to check out the first 30-40 min of every NFL "Sunday Night Football" broadcast – specifically the "star cam" & the "cable cam" views. It’s view-worthy for no other reason than since the game’s not yet started, there’s really nothing much for the cameras to focus on other than the fans-in-the-stands & the cheerleaders and frankly that makes for some great entertainment in it of itself.

[repost from Oct 2010]

Here’s a list of stuff that I’m packing for my trip to CES 2013 in Las Vegas – even though we’re not gonna be there. Hope it helps someone who’s going. 

This is sort of a rip off of my 2012 list but this time I’m going through and remembering all the stuff I REALLY ACTUALLY USED on my last trip.

• Travel Humidifier
• Restaurant.com coupons
• Portable Power Strip
• Antistatic spray
• Cell Battery Chargers & Extra Cellphone Batteries
• Lightweight backpack
• Throat lozenges
• Pain killers (Advil, Asprin, Tylenol)
• Hand Sanitizing Wipes (40 count, 120 count)
• 2A USB port device charger
• Cold Antihistamine/Cough suppressant
• Basic Blackjack Strategy Card
• Eyedrops
• Vitamin C, Echinacea, or whatever you take to prevent getting sick
• Lipbalm

For the 2012 list, check this link out:
https://kurtsh.com/2011/12/22/info-my-ces-preparation-checklist/

In preparation of the launch of Halo 4, 343 Industries is producing a mini-series in 5 parts.  The first part released this past Friday, with a new episode to be released every Friday… basically up until November 6th, the launch of Halo 4. 

So be sure to preorder.  BTW:  If you do so at the Microsoft Store, they’ll give you a $25 gift card as well.

They also have backstory content available on the site as well:
http://halo.xbox.com/en-US/Universe/ViewMore?articleId=55106d5891d94281bdbc079ef3e0a62d&artType=All

Hastati Squad pays the price for Cadet Lasky’s defiance at Corbulo Academy of Military Science.

Thomas Lasky came to Corbulo Academy of Military Science with his mother and brother’s impressive military careers hanging over his head. Haunted by ghosts from his past, he has serious doubts about the war he’s expected to fight. As fellow cadet Chyler Silva tries to help him find his place at the academy, tensions with other squad members approach the breaking point.

Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn is a live-action digital series that takes you back to the beginning of the human and Covenant war and leads directly into the events of Halo 4. Be sure to tune in every Friday to Halo Waypoint and Machinima Prime, where you can watch the story unfold through a series of five episodes.

Watch here:
http://halo.xbox.com/en-US/Universe/detail/halo-4-forward-unto-dawnpart-1/55106d58-91d9-4281-bdbc-079ef3e0a62d

Lync 2010 is awesome.  It’s fast, convenient, federates with other Lync-companies for secure messaging, and integrates with everything in the Office suite.

One thing that presenters often want however is the ability to see what their “Audience’s view” is like end-to-end. 

Assuming that your IT infrastructure supports it in it’s Lync implementation, add the following characters to the end of any Lync URL to get the option of accessing the meeting via the web:

?sl=

EXAMPLE:
So if you have the following Lync conference URL, which connects you to your conference call through the installed Lync client:

https://join.companyname.com/meet/namegoeshere/J7THYCPG

to get the Web Client, the URL should become:

https://join.companyname.com/meet/namegoeshere/J7THYCPG?sl= 

The resulting experience is a Silverlight client “over the web”. (See below)  The client below is just a web browser with Silverlight components displaying the participants list, the instant messaging window, attachment controls, any sharing being done on the stage, and most other functions from the traditional Lync client.

This evening I made the decision to go to CES 2013.  I bought the flight, hotel, and started my traditional routine for preparing for the trip.

WHY?
This may seem like a peculiar question to some but allow me to explain.  Despite the fact that Microsoft is not attending CES anymore, I decided that there are several reasons why it still makes sense for me to go:

1. Windows 8 Hardware & Peripherals:  This is a huge year for Microsoft and the hardware/peripherals ecosystem will be booming.
2. Online Services Providers:  The future of computing is online services that leverage devices as end points.
3. Vacation/Las Vegas:  Nothing says vacation like Vegas casinos, spas, restaurants, clubs, shows, bars, & sightseeing.  Whee!

So here’s a few things that will hopefully help others in their trips to CES 2013.

SCHEDULE:
The CES Expo/Exhibit floor is open during the following hours:

• Tuesday, January 8: 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Wednesday, January 9: 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Thursday, January 10: 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Friday, January 11: 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

MAPS:
To get around CES, you’ll want two maps which have been provided:

• SHUTTLE MAP
  Figure out the shuttle system. It’ll save you a huge amount of money in taxi fares or LVCC parking fees. Download this map and print it for the show:
  http://cesweb.org/cesweb/media/CESWeb/Hotel%20and%20Travel%20Images/Shuttle%20map/2013ShuttleMap_CESweb.pdf
• SHOW MAP
  Here’s a map of all the locations planned for the 2013 event.
  http://cesweb.org/cesweb/media/CESWeb/Documents/CES_ShowLocationsMap.pdf

OTHER SITES:

• CES Tips for Conventioneers:
  http://cesweb.org/Hotel-Travel/Las-Vegas-Travel-Tips.aspx
• CES Discounted Hotel Reservations:
  http://cesweb.org/Hotel-Travel/Hotel-Reservations.aspx
• CES First Time Visitor FAQ
  http://cesweb.org/FAQ/First-Timer-ResourCES.aspx
• CES General FAQ
  http://cesweb.org/FAQ/General.aspx
• Mobile Site for CES
  http://m.core-apps.com/2013ces

The Travel-Time add-in from Instyler is compatible with Outlook 2003, Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010 and uses the mapping service from Bing. It adds a directions button to the appointment/meeting window. It also allows you to automatically add traveling time for your appointments and to generate travel expensive reports.

When pressing the Directions button, the add-in uses your predefined address and the location field of the appointment or meeting to get the directions. The nice thing of this add-in is that this is being done directly in the appointment or meeting window and does not launch an external browser. This mapping is being done via Bing Maps.

The main feature of this add-in is being able to set the travelling time needed to reach the location of the appointment or meeting. It has also a feature to calculate this automatically for you in the background (via OpenRouteService). When moving around the appointment/meeting in your calendar, it moves the traveling time block with it.

Automatically creating travel expense reports in Excel comes in handy when you do not have to pay for your own traveling. The Excel template can be customized to for instance to match the company’s template and to only view the information that you want.

More information:

• TRIAL:  Instyler Travel Add-in ($34)
  http://www.traveladdin.com/

Halo fan?  You ought to check this out:  The backstory of Bungie.  For those of you that remember Marathon, the announcement of Halo by Steve Jobs, the acquisition by Microsoft, etc.  You’ll love it.

“To cap off Bungie’s 20th Anniversary festivities, the team has assembled a near hour long documentary covering the studio’s past, present, and future. Featuring insight from the team — including their ever illusive Creative Director, Jason Jones — and interviews from key industry veterans and luminaries, "O Brave New World" is both a celebration of Bungie’s legacy and a love letter to the community of gamers who have embraced Bungie’s games for two incredible decades.”

Did you know that customers with MDOP that have an active Asset Inventory Service account (being retired)… get Windows Intune a no-charge for the duration of their MDOP subscription?

• Windows Intune Offer for Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) Customers Using Asset Inventory Service
  http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=242876

<taken from the Microsoft Product List October 2012>

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack for Software Assurance

Customers who wish to acquire the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack for Software Assurance (MDOP) must first have acquired and assigned to their desktop Windows Software Assurance, or a license for either Windows Virtual Desktop Access or Windows^® Intune.

Volume License customers with active licenses for MDOP will receive the following software (as it is made available).

• Microsoft Application Virtualization for Windows Desktops (App-V)
• Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM)
• Microsoft Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset (DART)
• Microsoft System Center Desktop Error Monitoring (DEM)
• Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V)
• Microsoft BitLocker^® Administration and Monitoring (MBAM)

Windows® Intune Offer for Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) Customers Using Asset Inventory Service

The Asset Inventory Service (AIS) offered as part of MDOP will be discontinued on April 3, 2013.  As of that date, customers will no longer have access to the service.  MDOP customers with active AIS accounts activated in the Volume Licensing Service Center on or before April 30, 2012 will have the option to transition to and use the Windows^® Intune online service provided Windows^® Intune is commercially available in the customer’s country.  A list of countries where Windows^® Intune is commercially available can be found here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windowsintune/faq/default.aspx.

Offer Details

• This offer can be accepted any time between April 3, 2012 and the expiration of customers’ current MDOP subscription.
• To accept the offer, customers must (1) create a Windows^® Intune trial account by going to http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windowsintune/try-and-buy.aspx , and then (2) submit the offer acceptance form at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=242876 .
• Access to and use of Windows^® Intune under this offer will expire upon expiration of the customer’s MDOP subscription.
• The terms and conditions of customers’ agreements, the Universal License Terms of the Product Use Rights, and the General License Terms of the Online Services section of the Product Use Rights govern use of the service.
• The number of devices from which a customer is eligible to access Windows^® Intune under this offer equals the customer’s AIS subscription seat total at the time that customer accepts this Windows^® Intune offer.  AIS seats added to an active account at any time up until the time the customer accepts the Windows^® Intune offer will be included in the count.
• MDOP seats acquired after a customer accepts this Windows® Intune offer, including licenses acquired through the true-up process under their volume license agreement will not be eligible to access Windows^® Intune under this offer. If a customer wishes to access Windows^® Intune from a number of devices in access of the number permitted under this offer, they will need to separately acquire additional licenses.
• Rights to access Windows^® Intune under this offer do not include any right to use Windows desktop operating system. 

We just released this today!

Download a one-page HYPERLINKED guide outlining the top resources for IT professionals interested in exploring, planning for, deploying, managing, and supporting Windows 8 as part of their IT infrastructure.

This has everything from ‘Exploring Windows 8’ to ‘Planning for Windows 8’s Deployment’ to ‘Executing a deployment of Windows 8’ to ‘Managing Windows 8’ to ‘Supporting Windows 8’.  It’s all in there.

• DOWNLOAD: Springboard Resource Guide for Windows 8 (.PDF)
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=34798

The biggest wave of innovation in Microsoft history is transforming enterprise IT. Join me for a free launch event, and you’ll see how the latest technologies can inspire productivity and increase your value as a strategic leader.

• Improve business performance and build a real-time enterprise by harnessing innovations in social, mobile, big data, and the cloud.
• Visit our Experience Lounge to explore Windows 8, the new Microsoft Office, Windows Server 2012, and the latest PC devices with touch and keyboard.
• See live demos showcasing real customer scenarios and end-to-end solutions for mobile, cloud, and business intelligence.

Attend The New Era of Work Launch Event for Windows 8, Office and More

• Date:  October 30, 2012
• Welcome Time: 8:00am
• Location: 
  Loews Hollywood Hotel
  1755 N Highland Ave
  Hollywood, CA 90028
• Register:
  http://www.microsoft.com/enterprise/events/theneweraofwork/#fbid=RY3EG5fvU3P