Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Web
Microsoft launches Windows Azure: Cloud operating system
by Brad Linder Oct 27th 2008 at 1:30PM
Developers can build applications using existing Microsoft tools like Visual Studio. Azure can be used to add web capabilities to existing desktop applications or to host completely cloud-based apps. In other words, you could build an online calendar or task management service and host it on Windows Azure, or you could create a desktop calendar that synchronizes with a web calendar. Or you know, something far more creative.
Microsoft unveiled the platform at the Professional Developers Conference today, saying that what's being made available today is just a community preview. More features will be available when the full version is released.
[via ReadWriteWeb]
With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet.
They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Todd said 1:48PM on 10-27-2008
Requires Internet Explorer 8 locally installed on a Windows machine = FAIL!
Redmond just refuses to learn from their past mistakes. Funny.
Reply
vdawning said 2:44PM on 10-27-2008
Um... when did anyone say anything was IE8 only? You can run full web apps based on PHP, ASP classic etc to connect to the Azure platform, and the platform itself is a cloud... not dependant upon a browser.
Chad Zeluff said 2:44PM on 10-27-2008
the reason this is funny, is because it is NOT a cloud operating system. If that were true, you wouldn't need another OS RUNNING in order to use it.
this is a software package that is accessible online. nothing more.
Reply
vdawning said 2:47PM on 10-27-2008
Again, maybe I'm missing something, but where does it say you need another OS running?
I went through the keynote, and it seems to me all of the hardware is at MS, not local... so... where would you need another OS?
I mean, if you're arguing that development is Windows-specific, that's one thing... but it is WINDOWS Azure after all...
Brad Linder said 2:48PM on 10-27-2008
I think you're misunderstanding the meaning of operating system. This isn't designed as an OS designed for end users. This is an OS that developers can use to create and host web applications. In the not too distant future you'll likely use web apps that run on Windows Azure without ever knowing it. Just like today you visit web sites and use web apps hosted on Linux servers or Amazon EC2 or Google App Engine, etc.
vdawning said 2:56PM on 10-27-2008
Thank you, Brad... I'm glad someone actually read about the product before commenting :-)
It iritates me when people see a new product (from MS or any other company) and make false assumptions without knowing anything about it. Do your homework first, people!
Brian said 4:28PM on 10-27-2008
Idiot....
Mark said 8:30AM on 10-28-2008
What purpose would it serve to have a thin client and the operating system on the other side of the continent. Microsoft already has "Terminal Services" with Windows Server, so it's already done. It is only satisfying for employers and IT people.
Regular Joe-Sixpack or Joe the Plumber would probably rather have an OS on their local hard drive, and not in a data center.
vdawning said 9:22AM on 10-28-2008
@Mark: It's all about scalability, my friend.
The first thing I asked myself was, how different is this from a regular hosting solution? From what I can tell, the benefit is that you have a little bit more programmatic control over the hardware environment. I could be wrong, but that's what I got out of it.
Either way, the benefits should be similar to those offered by EC2
Jash Sayani said 3:37PM on 10-27-2008
People are getting confused with the "Windows" name... This is NOT an OS... Its a "Web-platform".
In the Monday keynote, Microsoft’s Amitabh Srivastava made it clear that Windows Azure was not an operating system, but rather a complete cloud-based hosting management service.
Reply
deepak singh said 11:53AM on 1-17-2009
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179449.aspx
plz try to this it may help you
Reply