| Home-of-the-future contest deadline nears |
Dec. 19, 2008
Do you have an interesting idea for how a Windows CE device could become part of the "home of the future"? If so, add it to your list of last-minute holiday to-dos, and you could win $16,000 from Microsoft.
As WindowsForDevices has reported over the years, hundreds of Windows CE devices already exist, from smart remotes, set-top boxes, to GPS receivers, to robots. Microsoft, however, would obviously like to see even more uses for its popular real-time operating system -- and is betting that members of the public can come up with them.
The software giant launched its Sparks Will Fly contest in October, and the deadline for entries is now fast approaching. By Jan. 7, 2009, contestants -- who can be anyone except fulltime Microsoft employees -- need to go to Microsoft's website and submit a one- to three-page entry detailing a Windows CE-based idea for the home of the future.
Via's Artigo
(Click for details) |
On Jan. 9, the company will announce 50 contestants chosen to participate in round two. In order to build their devices, each contestant will receive Windows CE 6.0. R2, Visual Studio, and a Via Artigo computer (right). The next step will be submitting a four- to eight-page paper describing their solution, along with a three-minute video showing it in action, by Mar. 11.
On Mar. 13, the top three finalists will be announced. Each, receiving a $1,000 award and an "all-inclusive trip," will present his or her idea at ESC Silicon Valley, which begins Mar. 29. Microsoft adds that the eventual winner will receive $15,000, plus a trip to the 2009 TechEd conference in Los Angeles.
Ilya Bukshteyn, senior director of Windows Embedded marketing at Microsoft, said, "This is a great chance for the embedded developer to have an impact on the innovation we will see in the future. We are eager to see the forward thinking that will shape the home of the future."
A satellite view of Bill Gates's computer-packed compound
(Click to enlarge)
Source: Microsoft Live Maps)
Putting it another way, our sister publication eWEEK.com noted in a recent podcast that Microsoft's Bill Gates already lives in a dream house (pictured above) stuffed with computers. But, by using the low-cost Artigo as a base, the Sparks Will Fly contest allows envisioning affordable devices for ordinary homes. If the winning entry is compelling enough, eWEEK quips, it could get put into production -- and then Gates can have one, too.
Further information
For a Microsoft intern's on-the-scene report about a visit to Bill Gates's house, see here.
For more information on the Sparks Will Fly contest, see our earlier coverage, here, or listen to eWEEK.com's podcast, here.
To enter, go to Microsoft's website, here.
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