Now, Microsoft has expanded the capabilities of Sketch2Code. Thanks to its ease of use, does the app put dev’s who work on bringing service from prototype to real products under threat? That’s probably a little hyperbolic, but there’s no doubt Sketch2Code streamlines development. Users can draw sketches and export them to a code translator that will convert sketches into source code. Microsoft Garage developed an artificial intelligence system to automate code translations from wire frame drawings....

“I’m really proud — I just learned yesterday that we were recognized as having the highest availability of any cloud over the course of 2016,” Greene said during the keynote. She added with a chuckle, “I think 2017 will be promising, too.” She was discussing data compiled by Gartner research division CloudHarmony. The firm found that Google Cloud suffered just 74 minutes of total outages during 2016. It is an impressive figure next to AWS with 108 minutes (a number already surpassed in 2017 incidentally) and Microsoft Azure with 270 minutes....

Kubernetes is a Google-incubated open source container orchestration system. It has grown in popularity and has been implemented by many providers for managing large container deployments. As well as rolling out support to all customers, Microsoft has also added a couple of new features. Now users can scale clusters up and down more easily. Another new addition gives the ability to manage high-availability setups with multiple masters. In an announcement post, Microsoft points out that Azure Container Service is now the first public cloud platform that provides a service across the three most popular open source orchestrators....

To allow this and maintain user security, Microsoft is leveraging Windows Hello, while the feature only works in Microsoft Edge. Another way to login to your Microsoft Account without a password is through a FIDO2 device. Tech giants are starting to turn away from passwords and users should follow them on the adventure. Not least because most people don’t take password safety seriously. Many users either utilize the same password across service or have a password that is too easy to guess....

To accompany the release, the PWABuilder 2.0 GitHub page allows dev’s to see information about the service, its security feature, and snippets. Microsoft has been investing heavily in PWAs in recent years and PWABuilder is an important tool for drawing in developers. The tool allows the easy transition of a normal web site into a progressive web app. The company says PWABuilder 2.0 now makes it easier for developers. This is largely achieved by a new efficient design that is focused on being user-friendly....

The companies say this is a joint commitment from the world’s largest cloud providers to ensure fairness for customers. “The Trusted Cloud Principles will help safeguard the interests of organizations and the basic rights of individuals using cloud services so that they can accomplish what they need in a safe and secure way,” the companies claim in a statement released this week. “This initiative is more important today than ever … when some governments come directly to providers like us for access to customer data without their knowledge — in some cases for legitimate reasons but in other cases for reasons that could hinder basic human rights — it creates a tension that needs to be addressed through both technology and policies....

Microsoft has created a domain for the tutorials, which can be seen at http://dot.net/videos. Around one hundred videos are currently available, and the company promises more content to come. Among the topics covered at C# 101, making desktop applications in .NET and making ASP.NET web apps. Elsewhere, Microsoft has tutorials for learning containers and Dockers. Importantly, there are plenty of videos geared towards beginners, offering a slow paced introduction into Microsoft’s open source framework....

Rumors of the Xbox Keystone have been circling for some time, at least from the first previews of Xbox Cloud Gaming (Project xCloud). It is a stick for the platform that allows users to stream Xbox games to their TV. Confirmed While those rumors cooled, Microsoft has now confirmed it is developing the Xbox Keystone device. Speaking to Windows Central, a spokesman for Microsoft says that Keystone is real but changes are being made to make it different from its current iteration: “Our vision for Xbox Cloud Gaming is unwavering, our goal is to enable people to play the games they want, on the devices they want, anywhere they want....

Essentially, it’s an alternative to Lucas DeGroot’s Consolas, which has been part of Microsoft’s ClearType collection since Windows 7, or Courier New. It comes with programming ligatures, meaning you can combine characters like /=, >=, and more. “The name Cascadia Code originated from the Windows Terminal project. Before it was released, the codename for Windows Terminal was Cascadia,” explains Microsoft’s Kayla Cinnamon. “In fact, some of the source files within the Terminal still use this name!...

Users getting Cognitive Toolkit 2.0 for the first time will see several major improvements and myriad smaller additions. Among the big changes to the platform is the ability to use Python and C++. There is also a new developer AI method called reinforcement learning. Enhancing the performance of the service was important for Microsoft. Version 2.0 is now faster than any rival, according to the company, especially when handling big data sets and multiple machines....

If you’re out of the loop on Windows 10X, it is Microsoft’s upcoming SKU which has been pushed back to a fall 2021 release. It’s taskbar will place icons centrally. While Microsoft is not so far planning a similar look for Windows 10, the company is making some changes. Specifically, Microsoft watcher Albacore has found the company is moving the taskbar code from Explorer.exe to its own bespoke DLL known as Taskbar....

Eric Horvitz, director of Microsoft Research Labs, is now becoming chief scientific officer. Microsoft told CNBC that it’s a new position in the company that will unify its Microsoft Research division. While Microsoft Research was founded in 1991, it has been a disparate division. With Horvitz at the helm, Microsoft wants the business to more deeply integrate research projects and health care innovations. The re-organization of Microsoft’s research output comes after Shum departed last month....

Fancy Bear is a known Russia-backed group that has been active during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Malwarebytes Threat Intelligence reports the group is sending documents in a phishing campaign that are loaded with an exploit for Follina. This is a known Microsoft one-click vulnerability (tracking as CVE-2022-30190). “This is the first time we’ve observed APT28 using Follina in its operations,” researchers say in the post. Microsoft has had a long-running battle with Fancy Bear....

It brings new data security capabilities to the cloud, including Trusted Execution Environments, Intel SGX, and Virtualization Based Security. Today Russinovich took to the Azure blog once more to explain Microsoft’s vision for the service and its use cases. According to Russinovich, Azure Confidential Computing is looking to ensure the following for its customers: “Top data breach threats are mitigated Data is fully in the control of the customer regardless of whether in rest, transit, or use and even though the infrastructure is not Code running in the cloud is protected and verifiable by the customer Data and code are opaque to the cloud platform, or put another way the cloud platform is outside of the trusted computing base”...

Just about everything can be smart these days if you stick a CPU in it, and it’s no different with clothing. So-called smart fabric is expected to be a major growth area in tech in the coming years. This market expansion will be driven by rapid evolution of research and development into the technology. Tech companies not associated with fashion or clothes are already on the smart fabric train, including Samsung, Apple, and Google....

A new Microsoft patent filed on March 2018 hints at a future mixed reality headset. Titled “AUGMENTED REALITY SYSTEM EYE RELIEF ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM”, this could be the upcoming HoloLens sequel. At the very least, it shows what Microsoft has planned for future mixed reality hardware. Either way, the patent shows the headset features a mechanism for automatically moving the eyepiece. This is important because it could extend the field of vision, which is among the biggest problem with the current HoloLens....

“Patterns of inaction are identified based on user inactivity, both in comparison to a group who has received ed the same group of documents, and as an individual who has received a request regarding a document from another user,” explains the patent. “When a user crosses a threshold of inactivity, attempts to engage with specific documents are initiated. In one embodiment, promoting content includes displaying links to content in novel ways, including adding links to promoted content to existing content lists in existing application software....

Windows Central reports Microsoft wants its Xbox Live Gamertag solution to become more flexible. The idea is for Xbox One users to have freedom to use any username by simply placing a hash number at the end. In other words, users will no longer be restricted if they select a username another person has already selected. Instead, random numbers will be assigned at the end of the name as its individual identifier....

First up are changes to the File Explorer add-on. Microsoft is adding Developer file for the preview pane. This means around 150 file extensions total are available. PowerToys uses the Monaco Editor to drive this new addition. Also in the File Explorer add-on, it is now possible to generate a thumbnail in the STL file format. Microsoft points out this is still popular amongst developers. With the new STL support, users will have a quicker visual check....

However, at an event discussing his book at the Microsoft Center in Brussels, Smith indicated that he’s reluctant to support the ban. The chief legal officer and president of Microsoft pointed out some of the positives of the tech, such as reuniting families with missing children. “I’m really reluctant to say let’s stop people from using technology in a way that will reunite families when it can help them do it,” he said....