carolp

Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals, August 5th-10th 2007, Seoul, South Korea

carolp — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 13:52:00 GMT

I'm sure that by now many of you will probably already have seen the final results from this year's Imagine Cup competition which was bigger and even better than ever with over 100,000 students from over 100 countries entering and 344 students from 65 countries battling it out last week in Seoul at the Worldwide Finals.

The standard of entries this year was incredible and congratulations should go to all finalists however I'd particularly like to recognise the 10 Western European teams in the Software Design competition including Austria and Ireland who made it to the final six and the Netherlands who made it to the final 12 plus also Ireland who finished second in the Web Development competition and Austria who took first place in Interface Design!

You can check out all the results on the Imaigne Cup Virtual Press Center at www.microsoft.com/presspass/events/imaginecup/default.mspx, check out video cast interviews with many of the teams on Channel 8 at http://www.channel8.com plus my photos are posted at http://www.flickr.com/photos/47972197@N00/

We're now looking forward to the Imagine Cup 2008 which is going to challenge students to use technology to enable a more sustainable environment for all and the finals will be returning to Europe and to Paris next July! So good luck to all European teams for next year :)

Imagine Cup Gallery Launches in Second Life

carolp — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 17:14:00 GMT

Just in case you haven’t checked this out yet ... we’ve launched an Imagine Cup Gallery in Second Life, the increasingly popular virtual world, to showcase 21 of the Software Design teams and their applications from Europe, the Middle East and Africa before they head off to Korea to compete in the Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals. So come along and meet the teams, check out their presentations and videos or even hang out at the Korean bar and pavilion. And we’re also giving away some great Xbox 360 consoles and games!

The Imagine Cup Gallery is open in Second Life until August 5^th 2007 so you can visit anytime. However we’re holding two more open events for you to come and meet the different teams and these will be held from 19.00-21.00 Central European Time on July 19^th and 26^th2007.

Find out more, watch the video, read our blog or if you already have a Second Life Avatar teleport directly to the Microsoft Island. Otherwise simply sign up for a Second Life ID and Avatar and install the Second Life application today. Look forward to seeing you in Second Life and I’ve posted my photos from the opening party on flickr.

Namaste from the Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals, India!

carolp — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 18:40:00 GMT

Well it’s been over a year since I last blogged…. and I guess my only excuse is the fact that my last post coincided with moving to a new role within Microsoft, still based in Reading and in the Academic Developer team, but working in the Europe, Middle East & Africa regional team responsible for over 100+ countries. It’s been an incredible year working closely with the EMEA ADEs to better understand their local academic landscapes and also travelling to and meeting students from all four corners of the region.

I’m just back from a trip to the Imagine Cup 2006 Worldwide Finals in India which are a “bit like the Olympics for Geeks” to use a quote from Jonas from the Norwegian team. And what better time to resurrect my blog especially as EMEA walked away with a great share of this year’s trophies ;) This was my fourth Imagine Cup finals and it’s amazing to see how the competition has grown since its humble beginnings and since Team Mercury from the University of Hull finished third equal back at Tech.Ed Barcelona in 2003. I’m still blown away by the talent, hard work and innovative ideas demonstrated by the students from right around the world and all of the competitors, finalists and winners should be commended including:

Italy and Norway who took first and third place in the Software Design competition;
Poland who took all three places in the Algorithm category;
Austria, Romania and France who took the first three places in the IT category;
Poland who took second place in the Short Film category and;
France, the Republic of Serbia and France who took the first three places in the Project Hoshimi programming battle.
Plus China, Croatia and Germany who have been invited to attend the Imagine Cup Innovation Accelerator along with the top three SDC teams in January 2007.

On reflection this year’s Imagine Cup was a strange experience for me though as I was hosting the diplomats, VIPs and judges from BT rather than mentoring a UK team of students. I did unofficially “adopt” the Egyptian Software Design team (as it was the first time that Egypt had ever participated) as well as the Saudi and South African teams whilst still managing to watch over Andy Sterland and Team Three Pair from good old blighty for old times sake. (Andy was part of Team Mercury and also an intern in my team last year).

BT were the official sponsors of this year’s Imagine Cup worldwide finals marking the continuation of a great partnership started off in 2005 when they agreed to sponsor the Imagine Cup UK Software Design Finals held at the BT Tower in central London. Perhaps more importantly the Imagine Cup Innovation Accelerator was included for the first time as an official prize in this year’s competition and I’d just like to recognise Joe Black (one of the judges from last year’s finals from BT) who originally came up with the idea in Japan last year).

India was an amazing but brutal experience, so rich in culture, colour, aromas and history and a country full of contrasts and unpredictability. There were so many highlights to the trip including a visit to the Taj Mahal which is definitely one of those unforgettable places that you have to visit before you die, the drive from Delhi to Agra in the middle of the night skirting with death and avoiding the water buffalo and homeless, a trip with Arch’Na to visit the Unesco World Heritage site of Fatehpur Sikri, a visit to Humayun’s Tomb and Qutb Minar with Steve and Lorie from BT and of course finally getting to meet Berno in person ;)

Caroline, Lorie and Arch'Na at the Taj Mahal. More Photos posted on Flickr.

Once again congrats to all who took part in this year’s Imagine Cup and roll on Korea!

Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals trip report

carolp — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 21:49:00 GMT

Well it seems like an age ago now but this year’s finals were held earlier in the month in Yokohama, Japan, which is a fabulous blend of both the traditional and modern situated about one hour south of Tokyo. Famous for its port, a devastating earthquake, its ferris wheel, Ramen noodle museum and some very dodgy American GI bars (just ask Deeps), it is also home to Japan’s tallest building, the Landmark Tower, in which you can take the world’s fastest lift to the 60^th floor of the Royal Park Hotel bar and take in the stunning views of Mount Fuji and Tokyo.

Mark, Kevin and I were “babysitting” Adrian, Andy and Joe aka Team Bit Shifters in the Software Design competition and it was an absolutely incredible experience with 40+ teams going head to head with the most amazing applications. Congratulations should go to all the finalists but especially to Team OmniMusic from Russia who were crowned this year’s world champions for showing how technology can solve latency problems and unite musicians across geographical and cultural boundaries.

Away from the competition we managed to find some time to explore and some of the highlights included a trip to Sankeien Garden, a traditional Japanese-style garden and the spectacular setting for a number of reconstructed buildings from Kyoto; a mad dash with Nick, Milo and Mark in 30 degree heat and 90% humidity to Kamakura which is situated in a valley boasting a rich heritage of ancient temples and shrines including the famous Great Buddha (Daibutsu), Kencho-Ji Temple and Tsurugaoka-Hachiman-Gu Shrine. We also managed a trip into Tokyo and boy could we have done with Bit Shifters One Reach application. With non existent Japanese, navigating the train and underground networks is no mean feat! Once in Tokyo we headed straight to the Imperial Palace gardens for a cultural fix and then on to Akhihabara for some retail therapy in the electronic shopping district (below).

The Imagine Cup really is a competition like no other and for those that fancy pitting their wits against students from around the world, this year’s theme has just been announced, to” imagine a world where technology enables us to lead healthier lives” The competition also jumps to yet another continent and if you make it through the national, regional or online qualifying rounds you could end up winning an all expenses paid trip to Delhi, India next August. Good luck and it would be great to see even more European success in next year’s competition..!!

The end of an Era (to borrow a phrase from Antranik..)

carolp — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 19:18:00 GMT

Last week was the culmination of a really amazing academic year and what better way to end than with our last MSP meeting of the year and the finals of the Imagine Cup Software Design Challenge.

Microsoft Student Partner Event, Cambridge, June 20th

The weekend hit temperatures of 30 degrees and heatwave proportions and the Academic Team and 40 MSPs headed up to the beautiful town of Cambridge for a punting and walking treasure hunt around the River Cam and some of the most famous colleges along the Backs. The highlights of the day included Andy ripping his trousers whilst attempting to board a punt and John Cumbers ending up in the Cam!

The "Dream" Team; Caroline, James, Darrell, Phil and Mike

The next day was spent at Microsoft Research for a day of fantastic speakers including Andrew Herbert, Richard Black, Tim Regan and our very own Stephen Turner who talked about the future of software engineering, network topology, social media spaces and Longhorn. We also announced our three MSP Star Award winners – Mykel Kochenderfer, University of Edinburgh; Michael Phillipson, University of Wales, Aberystwyth and Antranik Kasparian, University of Sheffield who will each going to Tech.Ed Europe as a thank you for their outstanding contribution over the past year.

Imagine Cup 2005 Software Design Finals, BT Tower, London June 21st

From Cambridge, Andy and I trekked down to London for the Imagine Cup briefing meeting at Microsoft’s central London offices in Soho followed by dinner at Planet Hollywood. Three of the eight teams then stayed up all night coding … and then headed straight over to the BT Tower for the Imagine Cup finals proper which were this year sponsored by BT in association with Capgemini and 3i. The eight finalists spent the day presenting to a mix of business and technology experts and showcasing their applications on the 34^th Floor of the BT Tower to a mix of VIPs, press and university lecturers. All of the applications were truly outstanding ranging from an emergency services application from Team Babbage to a MediaCenter takeaway ordering application from Team Sharp Scots; just take a look at the Imagine Cup Brochure to find out more, read the official press release or take a look at the articles on BBC Online and Builder.

Peter Richards, Imagine Cup UK 2004 finalist now working as a developer at BT and Joe Black, BT on the 34th Floor

The winning teams on the day however were in first place: Team Bit Shifters with their OneReach gap-year student travelling companion; in second place Team Genesys Innovations from the University of Sheffield which included our only female finalist; Nicola Walton; and in third place was Team mSpace from the University of Southampton.

David Burrows, Microsoft Director of Education, Team Bit Shifters & Dr Sinclair Stockman, BT

After the formalities of the day we then made our way over to the substation of Namco on London's famous South Bank for some serious games and relaxation including a Microsoft/BT challenge of pool and bowling as well as a few well earned beers. I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of the sponsors, judges
as well as the students and lecturers for an amazing day which I will personally never forget.

And I'm sad to say that it really is the end of an era as many of the MSPs and Imagine Cup entrants have just graduated and are now entering the IT industry.... good luck to you all and keep in touch!

East meets West

carolp — Thu, 23 Jun 2005 02:02:00 GMT

During the past month I've been out on the road again starting off with a trip to Zurich for a European developer marketing meeting. It was then off to Istanbul for the Microsoft OneEd conference which brings together the Academic Developer, Education and Microsoft Research teams from across Europe to collaborate and share their academic plans and strategies for the next financial year. Fortunately we arrived in Istanbul pre the arrival of the hoardes of Liverpool and AC Milan fans for the UEFA cup final and Clare from the Education Group and I managed to fit in an intensive day of sightseeing over the weekend. I’ve been to South Western Turkey a few times before on holiday but this was my first trip to Istanbul and I was impressed!

Straddling the Bosphorus, its skyline studded with domes and minarets, İstanbul is definitely one of the great romantic cities, where East literally meets West. With only 24 hours Clare and I set out on a mission of intensive sightseeing taking in the Aya Sofya mosque (below), the stunning Topkapi Palace and Harem, home to Selim the Sot who drowned in the bath after drinking too much champagne..., the magnificent Blue Mosque (above) resplendent with its 6 minarets and blue tiles, the Grand Bazaar, one of the world's most famous souqs, rounded off with a trip to the Basilica cistern, the underground water reservoir built by the romans. Aside the sightseeing we managed to find time to drop in at the very stunning Four Seasons Hotel, a former prison, for a drink and then headed off to Ulus 29 for dinner, perched high above the Bosphorous with the most amazing views back towards Istanbul.

From Istanbul I then joined the developer team and headed up to Harrogate, synonymous with Betty’s Tearoom and Yorkshire Tea, for the penultimate of this year’s Technical Roadshows where we were joined by a number of academics including David Grey, a lecturer and MVP from the University of Hull as well as Peter, a budding 14 year old developer!

After my trip to Istanbul I'm left with a final thought, can you ever drink too much champagne?

Can't Get You Out of My Head!

carolp — Tue, 17 May 2005 21:52:00 GMT

Life at Microsoft in the Academic Team is always crazy however the past few weeks have been even crazier than usual and in chronological order the key highlights include:

Imagine Cup UK Software Design Final

We received a great number of incredibly high quality submissions before the May 1^st deadline and we’ve just announced the top 8 teams who will be invited to the UK Finals to showcase their application at the BT Tower on June 21^st and they are:

Babbage, University of Edinburgh, University of Sheffield, University of Reading, University of Wolverhampton

Bit Shifters, University of Aberystwyth, University of Bournemouth, City University

Delorean, University of Birmingham

Genesys, University of Sheffield

mSpace, University of Southampton

Puto, University of Reading

Serenity, University of Hull

Sharp Scots, University of Strathclyde

Many congratulations to these eight teams and all that entered this year’s Imagine Cup competition.

Microsoft Home Student Day

On Saturday, Chris, Andy, Emily and I were incredibly fortunate to be able to host a day at the exclusive Microsoft Home in trendy Notting Hill for Campus Club Presidents, Microsoft Student Partners and prospective MSPs. The mHome is the brainchild of Simon Darby and is the embodiment of our digital lifestyle vision showcasing the amazing entertainment and communications devices available today.

Chris, Andy & Caroline at the mHome, Notting Hill, London

Gumball 3000

After the mHome Andy and I headed off to catch Jenson Button and the start of the Gumball 3000 rally, the European equivalent of the famous Canonball run, a six day rally of high performance cars and celebs (including Caprice below) battling it out to arrive first in Monaco.

Kylie’s Showgirl Tour

Well after today’s sad news that Kylie has had to postpone her Australian leg of her Showgirl tour I really was very lucky, lucky, lucky to catch her a couple of weeks ago at Earls Court. And what can I say except that being in row 13 we had the most amazing view of Kylie (and her famous bootylicious behind). With 8 different costume changes, all of her greatest hits, some very sexy dancers and 27 songs in all the Showgirl Tour is an amazing show.

VBUG Spring Conference and Slide5

carolp — Wed, 27 Apr 2005 20:34:00 GMT

Carrying on the theme of technology events I just wanted to let you know about a couple of great upcoming events for both students and lecturers.

VBUG Spring ASP.NET Conference, 18th May 2005, Sheffield Hallam University

This one day in-depth conference covers the technical aspects of the most prominent web development platform available today. Encompassing details on ASP.NET 1.x and ASP.NET 2.0, the conference delivers technical content for both today and tomorrow as the Microsoft ASP and ASP.NET platforms are the most widely used in the web development industry. Speakers include the world renowned Dino Esposito, Steve Harris, Dave Sussman and Darren Burford.

There's a small cost involved - £30 for students and £50 for lecturers (which includes refreshments and lunch). To book youur place call 01753 648555.

Students Learn Interconnected Device Expertise, 18th July 2005, Microsoft Campus, Reading

SLIDE5 is a free conference specially for students thinking of taking mobile development seriously. It's organised by Rob Miles from the University of Hull, one of our most prolific UK bloggers, and Microsoft and even includes free beer and pizza!

Microsoft Technical Roadshow kicks off in Edinburgh

carolp — Tue, 19 Apr 2005 17:37:00 GMT

Chris, Andy and I and indeed most of the Developer team are now back from a trip up to Bonny Scotland and Edinburgh for the first of the new, improved, spring series of Technical Roadshows which now include 3 technical tracks (Developer, IT Professional and Security). Edinburgh is definitely one of my favourite cities and one in which I used to spend a fair amount of time when I was at university and I'm happy to say that Chris and I managed to grab some time away from the event venue. We even managed to get a glimpse of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown who were kicking off the Labour Party’s election campaign in Scotland. Plus we met up with three of our Edinburgh University Microsoft Student Partners – David Richardson, Mykel Kochenderfer and Paul O’Neil as well as Mat who is a budding, 15 year IT infrastrastructure afficionado from Kent and hopefully a future Microsoft Student Partner and Imagine Cup finalist in the making.

So if you want to get the lowdown on Visual Studio .NET 2005 from Mike Pelton; see the great new lifecycle tools in Visual Studio 2005 Team System from Sean Puffet; check out some great live demos of Live Communications Server by Eileen Brown or find out how to better protect your IT Infrastructure from Steve Lamb and Deep and more, then why not sign up for for the FREE Technical Roadshow which will be heading to Harrogate, Birmingham, and London over the next couple of months. Don't forget to come and visit the Academic Team in the Expo Area and if you can't make it you can now download the slides from the post event website.

Future Flight Takes Off

carolp — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 15:20:00 GMT

If you have any friends and or even children aged between 11 and 16 studying at a school in the UK interested in design and or aviation then please point them in the direction of the great new Future Flight web-based competition which was launched last week at the London Airshow at Earls Court.

Devised by Kenji Takeda at the University of Southampton’s School of Engineering Sciences, Future Flight tasks youngsters to design the airliners of tomorrow for take off in 2050 balancing engineering, environmental and economic factors. The Academic Team at Microsoft is also involved along with BAE, Airbus and BAA and the winners will get to go on an unforgettable VIP visit to the Airbus and BAE SYSTEMS factories where the A380 and Eurofighter Typhoon are designed and built plus there’s a heap of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 copies up for grabs. Happy flying!

Imagine Cup Registration Deadline Looming

carolp — Wed, 23 Mar 2005 18:42:00 GMT

Just a quick reminder that time is running out to register for this year’s Imagine Cup student competition and to claim your free copy of Visual Studio .NET 2003 Academic Edition via theSpoke Premium before April 1 2005.

And for those of you that fancy your chances in the Software Design Challenge I just wanted to let you know some other good news. We’ve just announced that this year’s UK final will be sponsored by BT in association with 3i and Capgemini and the top 8 UK teams will be invited to show their stuff in front of a panel of judges from Microsoft, BT, 3i and Capgemini on June 21 2005 at the very stunning 640 foot high BT Tower in central London. You’ll also have the opportunity of showcasing your application in front of key journalists, leading academics and VIPs. And in addition to all the recognition that you’ll receive our sponsors will also be providing a whole host of great prizes. The top five teams will be invited to join a one-day venture capital workshop led by the global VC, 3i, at their London offices where you’ll get to learn how to transform your winning business concept into a commercially viable solution with real market potential.

So if you’ve got what it takes and are keen to earn both fame and fortune and to pit your wits against students from other countries in a multitude of different technology challenges then why not enter this year’s Imagine Cup and you could be celebrating more than just your birthday!

Unforgettable Places to see before you Die

carolp — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 16:06:00 GMT

So I can’t believe that yet another year has literally whizzed by; maybe it’s something to do with the fast pace of the IT industry, working in the academic team or maybe I’m just getting older…. Last year ended with the usual frenetic array of activities including our first Gen ’05 campus event at Glasgow Caledonian University in December which attracted over 500 students from local schools and other universities passionate about technology as well as some of our Scottish-based MSPs – David Richardson, John Cumbers and Paul O’Neill from Edinburgh and Michael Paccione from Strathclyde and afforded the Academic Team the opportunity of sampling all of the delights of Glasgow courtesy of our resident Glaswegian host, Chris.

In December we also hosted Joe Wilson and Ash Javeri aka the matching polo neck wearers from the Academic Team from Microsoft Corp which of course included a night out on the town and a visit to Floridita, the fabulous, new Cuban-style bar and restaurant from Conran which is a modern day replica of Ernest Hemmingway’s favourite haunt in Havana.

And so on to the New Year and following the stresses of a pre Christmas house move out of London to Marlow (not for the faint hearted) and before returning to work I headed off to the stunning Medieval city of Prague on a four night short break courtesy of a great deal with lastminute.com.With some six hundred years of architecture virtually untouched by natural disaster or any of the world wars, few other cities, anywhere in Europe, look as good. It straddles the River Vltava, with a steep wooded hill to one side, it retains much of its medieval layout and the street facades remain smothered in a rich mix of Baroque, Rococo and Art Nouveau. While the Iron Curtain was in place, Prague was seldom visited by westerners but since the 1990s all that has changed and Prague is now one of the most popular city break destinations in Europe so probably best not to visit in the peak Spring or Summer months.

We stayed at Andel’s Hotel which is a great new designer hotel just a couple of tram stops from the city centre and managed to see most of the sites on foot and just some of the highlights were:

Strolling across the Karluv most (Charles Bridge) the wonderful medieval stone bridge, peppered with amazing Baroque statues

Taking a trip around the Prazský hrad (Prague Castle) one of the city's most spectacular landmarks, and home to the cathedral, royal palace and a host of museums and galleries.

Visiting the Staromestské námestí (Old Town Square) which is Prague's busy showpiece square, best known for its astronomical clock and the Christmas Market stalls.

Walking up to Vysehrad, the leafy, riverside zig-zag red brick fortress which houses the country's most exclusive cemetery, and is the resting place of Dvorák and Smetana.

And of course sampling the local delicacies; well what can I say except that you can eat and drink very cheaply in Prague: the food is filling and the Pilsner Urquell or U Flecku beer is apparently divine; but I'm not a beer drinker;) The bad news though is that the pork, gravy, dumplings and pickled cabbage are very hearty. So instead plump for any of the Kampapark group of restaurants but especially Bazaar situated in the castle district in a vaulted red brick 17^th Century cellar, it serves amazing Mediterranean cuisine and even has a rooftop winter garden restaurant with spectacular views over the city which apparently doubles up as open top nightclub complete with sandy beach in the summer!

The lowdown on Prague is that it is a very beautiful city and deservedly “one of those unforgettable places that you have to see before you die”. So now I just need to decide on the next place to visit from Steve Davey’s essential wanderlust tome….

Club Dahab Trip Report

carolp — Wed, 16 Mar 2005 22:14:00 GMT

Well I’m just back from yet another windsurfing trip to Dahab in Egypt sporting the usual array of cuts and bruises and a good old bout of flu for good measure. Dahab is one of my favourite locations and is situated on the Red Sea Riviera mid way up the Gulf of Aqaba at the foot of the red sandstone mountains that form the Mount Sinai range. This year our trip coincidentally clashed with the Camel Cup, which is a mix of slalom, long distance and speed racing organised by British Champions Dan Ellis and Lucy Horwood who were just back from their successes on the recent Asian Windsurfing Tour.

So despite succumbing to the flu, the week really was awesome with wind ranging from a gentle force 2 at the beginning of the week and peaking with a massive force 9 in the middle of the week; other highlights included the obligatory Club Dahab Bedouin fancy dress night (Dan, Jenny and Lucy aka Camel Cup race officers below), a trip to the local town of Mazbat to barter with the locals for spices and suitable fancy dress attire and a trip out to Baby Bay to watch the real pros at work in the speed sailing. All I need to do now is to shake off the flu....

Student Events

carolp — Tue, 15 Feb 2005 21:40:00 GMT

Microsoft Student Partner Event, London

So last week was spent out and about on the road again at a whole host of student events across the country starting off on Sunday with our second Microsoft Student Partner event of the year organised by the legend that is Chris in London at Planet Hollywood in Leicester Square.

The event fortuitously coincided with the Superbowl final which meant that Planet Hollywood was overflowing with American cheer leaders much to the delight of the predominantly male MSP audience and especially Lydon just check out that smile!

The social evening was followed by a day of presentations at the MSN office in Soho, central London and included some excellent speakers such as Jules Gold from Microsoft Research who spoke about the games development industry as well as Mike Smith who showed off some amazingly cool Microsoft IPTV technology. We were also honoured to have Márcio Sete (below), a Brazilian Student Ambassador, attend the two days and he gave an amazingly impassioned presentation about the life of a student ambassador in Brazil. And after last year's Imagine Cup finals in Brazil I think I definitely need to find a way to swap jobs with Rogerio my Brazilian counterpart ..

Xbox LAN Party, Birmingham University

Following the MSP event the Academic Team then headed north in dribs and drabs for the Midlands and the University of Birmingham which for me started off with handing out prizes at the awesome Xbox LAN party organised by our 4 Microsoft Student Partners; Richard, Tom, Kieran and George followed by a trip to hear some live music with Ian Pearshouse (Imagine Cup judging fame) to Jools Holland’s Jamhouse located in a stunning, Georgian building in the heart of the Jewellery Quarter.

Gen ’05, Birmingham University

After a great night out on the tiles in Birmingham the Academic Team then headed over to the Great Hall at the University of Birmingham for the second of our Gen ’05 regional campus events which thanks to Emily are designed for any student passionate about technology and which include a whole series of presentations and interactive demos on What’s New in Visual Studio .NET 2005, Developing on Mobile Devices, Gaming and Recruitment. We were swamped by over 400 students from Birmingham, Aston and Wolverhampton but fortunately our trusted MSPs were around to help out including Antranik (Sheffield University) and also Steve (former Birmingham MSP), Chris (below) and Martin (former Microsoft Student Interns from Aston) plus we even made computinguk.

I’ve finally managed to catch my breathe and it’s almost time to head off up North to Leeds for our third event on Thursday so if you are in the area please do pop by or alternatively catch us at Hertfordshire and Southampton!

What comes around goes around

carolp — Wed, 02 Feb 2005 22:34:00 GMT

Academic Airlift 2005

The start of another year heralds the beginning of another Microsoft business planning cycle which typically begins with Mid Year Review when Steve Ballmer and other key execs review how each of the different Microsoft subsidiaries are performing. It also coincides with an annual Academic Airlift in late January which sees 75+ Academic Programme managers (ADEs) from across the world coming together in Seattle to share best practices and to discuss plans for the remaining 6 months and the next fiscal year. It’s a great chance to catch up with ADEs from across the world and this year I finally got around to meeting some familiar faces from theSpoke such as Kevin, Alfred and Sam from the US; Daniel from Canada as well as a number of new additions to the team including Rob from Ireland, Chandar from India and Maarten from the Netherlands. Apart from the 4 days worth of back to back meetings there’s usually plenty of opportunity to interact socially and this year’s highlights included a private evening trip and dinner for the EMEA region to the Museum of Flight which has a cracking display of WW1 and WW2 planes plus also a trip to the Garage in Capitol Hill where I was forced to show off my diabolical bowling skills.

The Pacific Northwest

I really love coming to Seattle because besides the trip to the mother ship that is the Redmond campus there’s always something new to experience and this year was no exception. Post academic airlift I had intended to take a trip skiing to Whistler however due to the worst snowfall in 30 years Antonio, Mark and I headed off instead on a road trip skirting the coastline up towards the stunning city of Vancouver in British Columbia.

Vancouver is surrounded by water on all sides and at one end is dominated by Stanley Park which is a massive national park and rainforest stretching down to the waterline of English Bay and on the other side is the ski resort of Grouse Mountain which towers majestically above in the distance. Vancouver has a small town feel and some great shopping and it’s now firmly on my list of places to revisit.

The week ended with Kevin (new UK Academic Lead) and I taking the Underground Tour beneath Seattle as recommended by Dominic, a former Microsoft Student Partner and now a Software Design Engineer in Test in the Visual Studio Team System product group at Microsoft. I’ve visited Pioneer Square on many an occasion but had no idea that beneath it lies the neighbourhood as it was before it was raised and rebuilt after the Great Fire last century. It’s a really great and light hearted historical experience charting Seattle’s earliest history and origins before Starbucks, Boeing and Microsoft and definitely ranks as one of the 10 best things to do in Seattle.

A trip to Seattle really wouldn’t be the same without a stay at the W Hotel sampling their Lemon Drops and Whatever Whenever experience. And I just love their new advertising slogan which I’m now going to formally adopt as my perfect New Year’s Resolution; “Dance through your dreams to where anything can happen”