mix blog : News

All Sessions Are Now Online

Thu, 04 May 2006 03:27:00 GMT

We know you've been waiting. Perhaps you attended MIX06, but you weren't able to view three simultaneous sessions (an advanced conference technique one hones after years and years of TechEds and PDCs). Or, maybe you didn't make it to the event because we filled up before your boss approved your travel. Whatever the reason, you can now view all 52 sessions—including Bill's keynote—online. And, just like hitting the jackpot in Vegas, we're hosting all of this for anyone to access for free. Make sure you tell your friends.

We've upgraded our post-conference experience, and because you asked, we made it easy to download each session for offline viewing. You can also grab the PowerPoint presentations to show to your staff or local user group. And although you can show the slide decks around the family dinner table, we don't recommend it.

So, when you're ready, clear your calendar and dive in.

Tag: MIX06

That's a Wrap!

Thu, 06 Apr 2006 22:02:00 GMT

The MIX team at Microsoft is going through withdrawals. First we were in denial; some of us refused to leave Vegas for days. Then there was anger. “How "%$@^##& dare you not expect me to work 18 hours a day on MIX?” Next came bargaining. “Oh, please, please let me keep working on MIX, if you do I promise to be your wingman at TAO for life.” Then we were depressed. What's the point of getting out of bed in the morning if you don't have Marc Canter asking you for APIs? And now . . . we are starting to accept that MIX is over, it was a blast, it was a success and it's officially part of our history. But hope springs eternal; we've already had our first meeting to talk about the next MIX. YAY!

But seriously, thanks to everyone who attended, spoke at, worked on, wrote and talked about MIX. Not only did we have a ball, but from what we are hearing in the community you did too. We tried really hard to make this a different conference, something you wouldn't expect from Microsoft, and we think/hope/believe we took a few baby steps in the right direction. We learned a ton, just a mountain of new experiences and opinions were shared with us at the conference, and we think we can do even better next time. And we hope you join us for the next ride we take.

In the meantime, you can watch the keynotes (Bill Gates, Dean Hachamovitch, and Joe Belfiore) on Virtual MIX and the sessions will be streamed in about 3 weeks. The slide decks and some of the Sandbox materials are posted at https://content.mix06.com/content/sessions.aspx. We'll also try to keep Virtual MIX up to date as new content is made available so we can keep the conversation going.

Thanks to each and every one of you for making MIX a success.

Viva MIX!

Thanks for joining us…

Wed, 22 Mar 2006 05:30:00 GMT

Well, the fat lady is about to sing. Thank you for joining us at the inaugural MIX event. We hope you had an interesting, informative, educational, worthwhile and fun time with us here in Vegas. We are reading your session evals, checking out the blogs and talking to you about how we can do better next time (and there will be a next time). We hope you keep the conversation going with us even after today, and that you've made new business connections and new friends that you'll keep talking with as well. You can keep up with post-MIX news at Virtual MIX where the sessions will be streamed in ~4 weeks. Join us today at the MIX Chat for a final wrap up and group hug (kidding!). A huge thank you is extended on behalf of the entire Microsoft team who worked on MIX, and we hope to see you at the next one!

Tag: MIX06

Check out the MIX06 Bot on Windows Live Messenger!

Wed, 22 Mar 2006 00:24:00 GMT

Ever talk to a Bot before? Now's your chance! Add "" to your contact list in Windows Live or MSN Messenger. The MIX06 bot can tell you about sessions, speakers, schedules at MIX06 (type "sessions Wednesday"). And, when you're ready for some fun, the MIX06 bot can help you find a restaurant, show, or a great local golf course (type " outside activities"). The MIX06 Bot is built using Messenger Bots, Activities, Virtual Earth, and the MSN Spaces blogging API.

MIX06 is the first time we've created a conference bot (better late than never!). The bot is very much a work in progress, but we wanted to share it with you… there is a feedback page so you can tell us about your experience using the MIX06 Bot and what you'd like to see future conference bots do.

Tag: MIX06

MIX Sessions Streamed in a Month

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 20:30:00 GMT

The keynotes are available now on Virtual MIX and the rest of the sessions will be streamed in about 4 weeks. Check back here for updates on content over the next month.

Tag: MIX06

Live from MIX06 Day 2 - Four new podcasts on Channel 9

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 20:02:00 GMT

Today I continued to roam the halls of Mix06 today and was fortunate enough to run into 4 more attendees willing to go on The Mix06 Buzzcast Show on Channel9. at http://channel9.msdn.com/shows/The_MIX06_Buzzcast ...(read more)

Sandbox in the MIX Sky

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 18:14:00 GMT

What? A free hosted website.

Who? Each MIX attendee gets their own.

Where? Anywhere! From your laptop or at the CommNet via Internet Alley.

When? Now, but it will also be available for 6 months after the conference.

Why? Why not! Be a part of the experiment. The Sandbox is a virtual playground for you to play with the technologies we are talking about at MIX (check out the “Atlas” content up there now). It's not Microsoft specific, you can use any platform or any products you like – this is your play land.

How? At check-in each attendee got a private code. Go to http://mixsandbox.com/, log-in and generate your website.

Sandbox in the Sky: it's a state of mind!

Join Us @ the MIX Chat on Wednesday

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 16:35:00 GMT

Wednesday, March 22, 12:45 pm – 2:45 pm, Delfino/Lando rooms on the 4th floor. Grab something to eat and talk one-on-one with MIX speakers, staff, and your fellow attendees. Topics include the following, plus more tables will also be available for ad-hoc and Birds of a Feather (BOF) discussions:

DELFINO ROOM
Technologies:

“Atlas”
InfoCard
Office 2007
Windows Live
Windows Presentation Foundation

Partners:

AvenueA/Razorfish
Conversagent
Fluid
Frog Design
Schematic

LANDO ROOM
Technologies:

ASP.NET
Expression Suite
Internet Explorer 7
Windows Communication Foundation
Windows Media Center
Windows Vista Sidebar

Partners:
AKQA
Amazon.com
EBay
MySpace
Rezn8
Yahoo

Live from MIX06 Day 1 - Six new podcasts on Channel9

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 22:44:00 GMT

As I roamed the halls of Mix06 today I was fortunate enough to run into 6 attendees willing to go on The Mix06 Buzzcast Show on Channel9. The podcasts can be found at http://channel9.msdn.com/shows/The_MIX06_Buzzcast ...(read more)

Virtual MIX

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 06:29:00 GMT

If you're not able to attend MIX, check out Virtual MIX, http://blog.mix06.com/virtualmix, to see and hear all the action happening at MIX06. Virtual MIX will offer a deeper look into the range of Web technologies from Microsoft including videos of partner and customer participants, audio, photos and more! You can also subscribe to the RSS feed to have it delivered to you.

Remix MIX Contest Winners

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 23:44:00 GMT

One hundred and six different ways to start a conversation, 17 different countries, 3 entrants going to MIX on the house. As selected by the Remix judges...

The Top 3 Remixes:

Vegas Retro by TCarnright

Mix 86 by Donavon

Mixmas Tree by Sandra

The Top Honorable Mentions:

72 Hours by Zhivko

A Different Angle by Jon Pielak

Bubbles by Cheri

Elvis Gates by Webmistress

Horizontal Approach by Alpa

Mix2Point0 by Scottmeinzer

Mix Ubu Mix by Alan Sevajian

My Vista MIX06 by Andy Parker

oSpace by Trey

The winner of the MIX06 Microsoft Gadget Contest:

Yousef El-Dardiry

Congratulations to everyone on an incredible experiment in design. The level of quality, creativity, humor and thought that went into the Remixes is simply incredible. The judges poured both time and reflection into their decisions'. They did not always agree on what the best designs were, but there was a consistent amazement at the level of design excellence.

It was extremely difficult to pick only three winners. To those that were chosen, truest congratulations. I look forward to toasting you in person at MIX. To the Honorable Mentions, and all the other designers giving this their all, my heart felt thanks and admiration. I wish there was a way to recognize in equal share the effort you put into this.

The Remix has left the building - let the MIX begin!

mix,mix06

Meet at MIX

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 20:22:00 GMT

We've launched a new tool, Meeting Place, on our web site to better help you meet up with folks at MIX. Go to https://content.mix06.com and fill out your professional profile that you can make viewable to other attendees who have also filled out a profile and opted to make it viewable. Meeting Place allows you to set up times & locations to meet on-site at the conference. This structured networking increases your chances of meeting people who have business interests in common with you, and takes some of the guess work out of who the key people are that you should be schmoozing with at the event. Meeting Place, in addition to the session scheduling tool, will help ensure your time spent at MIX is chock full every minute so you can mute the siren's call of the one-armed bandits. Have fun mixing-n-matching!

Tag: MIX06; MIX

Sandbox Learning Exercises posted in the Session List!

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 05:28:00 GMT

Check out what Learning Exercises will be available in the Sandbox at MIX06. There will be plenty to learn! Just choose the Hands-On Lab in the Session Type drop down. Also, please remember that the Sandbox isn't just for getting your hands dirty with the specific technologies you learn about in the various sessions , but also it's also a place where you can demo your wares (Share Station), check out the features of new technologies (like Windows Vista and Windows Vista Media Center Addition, Ultra Mobile PCs and devices, etc), and work with the IE team in the IE Compatibility Lab. It will be fun! Looking forward to seeing you in the Sandbox.

PS. We are also currently working on something specifically for you that you will find quite useful and cool. Hmm. Wonder what it could be...

The MIX Party Starts at 6 at TAO . . . is that AM or PM?

Mon, 27 Feb 2006 18:42:00 GMT

Of course the primary reason to go to MIX is for all of the sessions you'll attend, the content you'll pick up, and the conversations you'll participate in. But let's face it, the parties matter too! And if you're a connoisseur of conference parties like I am (is that a good thing or a bad thing?), you're probably wondering how MIX will stack up. Is the MIX entertainment going to slot in somewhere at the level of a Styx reunion concert at an insurance sales convention (how many times can you hear Mr. Roboto in a 2 hour period anyway?), or is the event team really going to rise to the occasion and come up with something memorable? Well, since I'm on the event team did you really expect me to go with the Styx option? Of course not - the official MIX reception is going to rock! We're holding it at TAO, the newest and most exclusive club in Vegas, in the Venetian hotel on Monday night. TAO is a New York style hotspot and celebrity hangout brought to Vegas, and it is HUGE! At 42,000 square feet, Tao's “entertainment complex is among the largest in the world and features Las Vegas' hippest nightclub, coolest ultra-lounge, largest banquet facility and of course, the hottest restaurant in town. Plus rumor has it that Microsoft's very own DrinkBoy has been tapped to create an exclusive, one of a kind original liquid concoction for MIX. And for those of you who need something to tell the boss when they approve your expenses, I'm sure lots of legitimate networking will be happening at the party too; the waterfalls, century old woods and stones, and their hand-carved 20-foot-tall Buddha floating above an infinity pool will certainly help facilitate those profitable business connections. So now you know: MIX is striving for new records in event entertainment, with a little something for every taste and desire - will I see you there?

Tag: MIX06; MIX

The Sandbox: A place to explore, learn, teach and relax.

Mon, 27 Feb 2006 10:19:00 GMT

Want to play around with the technologies you've learned about at MIX while you're attending MIX and even after MIX has ended? How about doing so in a relaxing, non-laboratory, non-clinical environment? If the answer to either question is yes, then the MIX06 Sandbox is the place to be....(read more)