Microsoft Switzerland Student Blog https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/feed.xml Wed, 17 Apr 2019 03:28:48 GMT en-US hourly 1 Participate Now: Best of Swiss Apps https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/participate-now-best-of-swiss-apps Tue, 03 Sep 2013 01:24:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/09/03/participate-now-best-of-swiss-apps/ Did you participate in our last competitions? Or did you code a cool app just for yourself? Perfect! And do you think your app is cool and has some potential? Then it's time to participate at "Best of Swiss Apps"!

What is “Best of Swiss Apps”?

It’s an annual award given to the best Swiss Apps of several categories by a jury. It’s open to companies but also to individual and student apps. There will be a lot of media exposure and an award night.

How you can participate?

Go to the “Best of Swiss Apps”-Website, read the entrance requirements and submit your registration here. Deadline is September 30, 2013. Please note that you can submit your app only for one of the following categories:

  • Games
  • Knowledge
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • News
  • Productivity
  • Business
  • Enterprise
  • Public Affairs

There is a short description and some examples for each category.

What can I win?

You do it for honor and glory! But additionally to that you will get a nice trophy, a certificate and media exposure for your app. The last point is very important for you as developer. When your app gets publicity in Swiss media it will help you to generate a lot of new downloads and you can make small fortune J So take the chance now! We would be glad to see a lot of student apps participating.

 

Kind regards,

Raphael Bösch
Lead Student Partner Fribourg

 

]]> App of the Week - comparis.ch Property Switzerland https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-comparis-ch-property-switzerland Mon, 24 Jun 2013 01:33:59 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/06/24/app-of-the-week-comparis-ch-property-switzerland/ To find a flat or a room (or even a house!) is not an easy task. There are dozens of websites listing thousands of offers making it impossible to get an easy overview of what is available on the market. But with comparis.ch Property Switzerland app finding a place to live has never been easier!

The app gathers for you all the listings from the largest real estate portals in Switzerland such as Homegate or Immoscout24. There is now over 30’000 listings! To help you find the perfect place for you, you can search using multiple criteria such as the location, size, price but also if the place has a fireplace or is certified minergie. The results are conveniently displayed on a map and you have access to all the pictures and information about the different objects to rent or buy.

The app also offers more advanced feature to always stay up to date. You can for example subscribe to updates in the live tile or via e-mail. You can also take notes or synchronize you data across you devices. It is also possible to track the evolution of the price of a property from within the app.

If you are looking for renting or buying a place then this app is a must have! (and it is free!!!)

Check it out here

 

The App of the Week blog category is an initiative of your local Microsoft Student Partners in Switzerland. Feel free to contact us, send us your proposals for an App of the Week or drop some lines below if you want to share ideas, feedback or just want to comment.

]]> App of the Week - Dr. Windows for Windows 8 https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-dr-windows-for-windows-8 Mon, 17 Jun 2013 01:06:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/06/17/app-of-the-week-dr-windows-for-windows-8/ Hi folks!

Basically today's app just acts as a newsreader like many other apps available in the Windows Store. The reason I decided to choose this app is more obviously because of it's content. Dr. Windows brings you the daily dose of Windows you won't get everywhere else.

Acquired from their website www.drwindows.de, the app - besides the detailed and up to date news articles - provides you with useful and interesting content such as FAQ's, recent Downloads and Updates.

If you don't know about Dr. Windows, this is basically the website I recommend if you look for little tools that for example bring you your Windows 7 start button back, help you limit the maximum volume output level of your system's sound, or just help you create bootable USB drives.

The community is quite numerous and they are filling the questions and answers forum with lots of useful content.

Try the Dr. Windows app for Windows 8 now and you get everything important right on your start screen:

https://apps.microsoft.com/windows/de-ch/app/dr-windows/77ce8c27-9809-4143-b3a1-8832b37708ad

Regards,

Remo - MSP Bern

]]> Microsoft Switzerland is hiring graduates - Join our MACH program! https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/microsoft-switzerland-is-hiring-graduates-join-our-mach-program Thu, 30 May 2013 16:54:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/05/30/microsoft-switzerland-is-hiring-graduates-join-our-mach-program/ You just finished university? Looking for a great job?
We offer you challenging positions where you immediately will be placed in a challenging role!

At Microsoft Switzerland we currently offer 10 MACH graduate opportunities in Sales, Marketing, and Services. There are many different options. Come as you are. Do what you love.

Some general requirements

  • Graduated from a Bachelor or Master’s program in the past 18 months
  • Work experience during studies
  • Exceptional communication and presentation skills
  • Passion for technology
  • Fluent English, fluency in German preferred

Interested? For more details on MACH program, job descriptions and qualifications take a look at the following link: https://bit.ly/106Oxzb. We are looking forward to receiving your CV!

 

Kind regards,

Raphael Bösch
Lead Student Partner Fribourg

]]> App of the Week - Game Dev Tycoon https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-game-dev-tycoon Mon, 27 May 2013 00:30:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/05/27/app-of-the-week-game-dev-tycoon/ I know that many of you dream of becoming a famous game developer working on the next blockbuster. Why not start to practice now?

This week’s app is “Game Dev Tycoon” as very fun and addictive game where you start as an independent game developer in the 80’s working in your garage.

When you start you already have certain skills, you can program different styles of games for different platforms. When starting to develop a new game you must choose what you will prioritize: gameplay, story, engine etc. You have to make the right choices and fix all your bugs before publishing the game on the market and wait for the game reviews. If the reviewers love you, you will sell a lot of games and make a huge profit, if not you might risk lose money and go bankrupt!

After developing new games you will earn more experience and money to afford making research. You can for example learn how to develop new types of games or target for a specific target group.

As the years go by, new consoles come out and you will have to adapt if you want your company to grow. If you make the right choices you will be able to move out of your garage to fancy offices, have a huge fan base and open secret labs!

I really enjoyed playing this game. It has a very simple gameplay but yet it is complex and you must be fast if you don’t want to fall behind. As you can see from the screenshots, my first game was terribly bad, but I quickly learned and adjusted ;-)

The demo version lets you play the first five years of your career so you can test the game before buying it which is pretty cool.

Let me know what you think about the game in the comment! Do you like this kind of simulation games?

 

 

The App of the Week blog category is an initiative of your local Microsoft Student Partners in Switzerland. Feel free to contact us, send us your proposals for an App of the Week or drop some lines below if you want to share ideas, feedback or just want to comment.

]]> App of the Week - Fotor https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-fotor Sun, 12 May 2013 23:42:33 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/05/12/app-of-the-week-fotor/ Hello there!

Today's App of the Week is just a must have for any of your PC, Tablet, Convertible, All-in-one, or whatever device you use with Windows 8.

Fotor is my absolute favorite when it comes to quick photo editing, collage creation or image styling. Fotor provides you with a huge set of image manipulation operations and this in an incredibly simple and intuitive manner. Cropping, slicing, rotation, changes in illumination, colors, border styles, aperture effects, text overlays and one click and it’s done. OK, perhaps you need a few clicks more but I can assure that you will love the fluid and smart interface which appears as a neat sidebar on the right-hand side of the art board.

 

A feature I like besides the image manipulation capabilities is the additional ‘Collage’ mode. Here you can live out your creativity. Within a few steps you can design attractive prints for your photo album.

It would take too much time to really explain all features in detail. Therefore, the best way to get your own impression is to download the app yourself and just play around with the provided image samples. I think you will like it.

 

https://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/fotor/6f797ba2-500d-4dee-9c5a-13c2d818c958


Best regards,

Remo – MSP Bern

]]> App of the Week - Music Mix for Windows 8 https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-music-mix-for-windows-8 Mon, 06 May 2013 00:04:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/05/06/app-of-the-week-music-mix-for-windows-8/ Hi all,

This week I was looking for a music app for Windows 8 and found several that work well. I picked one out to present you now. The app I introduce is called Music Mix. As the name already anticipate the app not only plays songs but also has a mixer.

Optically the app looks really simple but it works well and it does what you can expect from a music mixer. You have 2 record turntables and you can add a song to each of them. Before you can start you have to feed your playlist with up to 999 songs. Now you have the possibility to play only one song, two songs at once and mixing these two songs to each other. For each turntable you have some basic features like play, pause, stop, change volume and balance.

If you are tired to be the DJ you can switch to auto mode and relax :-)

 

My conclusion: I like the app, it works well and looks nice. Some additional features like scratch with the turntable would be fun :-)

For more information visit the official site, where you also find the link to download this app from the Windows Store.

 

Kind regards,

Raphael Bösch
Lead Student Partner Fribourg

 

The App of the Week blog category is an initiative of your local Microsoft Student Partners in Switzerland. Feel free to contact us, send us your proposals for an App of the Week or drop some lines below if you want to share ideas, feedback or just want to comment.

]]> App of the Week - Jetpack Joyride https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-jetpack-joyride Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:26:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/04/29/app-of-the-week-jetpack-joyride/ It has been a while since we last reviewed a game! Let me change that and present to you “Jetpack joyride”. It is a very fun little arcade game a discovered only a few days ago.  

You are playing Barry, a bored salesman that happened to steal a jetpack in a secret lab. (If you want to see how that happened check this out).

The goal of the game is fairly simple: go as far as possible in the secret lab without hitting an obstacle using your jetpack to go up and down. The further you are, the faster you will go.


(image: copyright Halfbrick)

A lot of things happen during the game, you must collect coins, you can get bonuses that will transform your character, and you need to watch out for missiles going your way… you don’t even have time to blink!

You also have different challenges and objectives that you can complete to level up and make gain more coins. One you have enough coins you can upgrade your gear or customize your character with new abilities.

Overall the game is pretty fun but it is a little bit annoying (or frustrating) that you start every time from the same spot. It would have been nice to have different levels. The different challenges make up for that uniformity I guess. I also found another detail to be pretty frustrating and fun at the same time… the translation of the game in French is terribly bad.

I hope you will enjoy playing this game and let me know in the comments what you favourite game on Windows 8 is right now.

Pierre

 

 

The App of the Week blog category is an initiative of your local Microsoft Student Partners in Switzerland. Feel free to contact us, send us your proposals for an App of the Week or drop some lines below if you want to share ideas, feedback or just want to comment.

 

]]> App of the Week - Movie Guide https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/app-of-the-week-movie-guide Sun, 21 Apr 2013 23:49:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/04/21/app-of-the-week-movie-guide/ Here is another entertainment App which was rewarded at the Microsoft Switzerland's App conference Shape in the beginning of April.

Movie Guide is one of the Switzerland top Apps which brings you the information of over 69'000 Movies into one place on your start screen. The App lets you easily browse through upcoming and currently playing titles but also gives you the possibility to snoop through a huge list of popular and top rated films. Movie content contains a lot of useful information in IMDb-style such as playing actors, directors and producers. Within just a few clicks you can instantly watch and enjoy high-quality trailers.

    

Movie Guide semantically connects different content such as people and movies and allows you to crawl through a never ending list in the huge semantic network. Of course, also search functionality is present. At the end, the sharing feature allows you to export the content you like for example to Skydrive and OneNote - keeping track of everything.

Download it here.

 

Remo

Lead Student Partner Bern

]]> Azure data services for Windows Phone 8, Windows Store, iOS, Android App or websites! https://docs.microsoft.com/archive/blogs/swiss_academic_team/azure-data-services-for-windows-phone-8-windows-store-ios-android-app-or-websites Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:38:00 GMT https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/swiss_academic_team/2013/04/17/azure-data-services-for-windows-phone-8-windows-store-ios-android-app-or-websites/ Once upon a time, building a backend to you application was a nightmare. You had to set up a server, create databases, write your own little API for the server and the client side. Sure there were libraries that could help you, sure if you have time and experience you could manage to do it... but still... it was way too cumbersome. And you couldn't even think about authentication or integration with Facebook, Microsoft Account or Twitter... that was way too complex!

How many apps didn't you write because of this? How many feature did you leave out that would have been cool? A leaderboard for your game? Sharing data with other users?

But this will soon be distant memories thanks to Windows Azure data services! This new service will let you create a cloud backend to your apps within minutes. Not only for Windows Store apps or Windows Phone 8 apps, but also for iOS or Android apps!

You might wonder what a cloud backend is, well let me answer you with a classical example. Imagine you want to build a simple "to do" application where the user can store his tasks. If you only want your application to store the tasks locally on the device than you don't need a backend, but then you have a terribly borring app because the user won't be able to see his tasks on his other devices! Instead you could store the data in a backend and have it available to the user through all his devices. You could also imagine doing a "to do" app for teams, this would be impossible without having a backend to share the data!

How to get started? It's really easy, just follow the great guides and documentation on Azure's website. The first example will walk you though creating a very simple "to do" application: https://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/mobile/tutorials/get-started/ . You can then continue and learn more about integrating authentication or push notifications!

What about the price? It is pretty cheap! If you are using the "shared" version you won't have to pay anything for the data services part. This will be more than enough for moderate traffic. If your app gets really succesful you can scale up to a dedicated server that will costs you a few Francs per month to get maximal performance. You will also need Azure MS SQL server to store the data. This is the only thing that would cost you. If your database is under 100Mb that would also be just a few Francs per month (ess than a price of a beer in Zurich!). Of course if you only want to play around you can start with Azure's 90-day free trial !

Hope this post will help you create new exciting applications! If you have comments, ideas or want to know more write to us in the comments or on Facebook!

- Pierre

 

 

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