related_results_labels({"version":"1.0","encoding":"UTF-8","feed":{"xmlns":"http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom","xmlns$openSearch":"http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/","xmlns$georss":"http://www.georss.org/georss","xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26574843"},"updated":{"$t":"2010-09-08T20:48:47.017+02:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Passion for Innovation"},"subtitle":{"type":"html","$t":"In my job I'm required to innovate. This is something that is not easy, but a rewarding thing to do"},"link":[{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/feeds/posts/default"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/-/Azure?alt\u003djson-in-script\u0026max-results\u003d5"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/search/label/Azure"},{"rel":"hub","href":"http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Aad 't Hart"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/07566387683675598847"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"}}],"generator":{"version":"7.00","uri":"http://www.blogger.com","$t":"Blogger"},"openSearch$totalResults":{"$t":"3"},"openSearch$startIndex":{"$t":"1"},"openSearch$itemsPerPage":{"$t":"5"},"entry":[{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26574843.post-9219501636525562455"},"published":{"$t":"2009-09-05T00:32:00.000+02:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2010-02-02T23:00:58.788+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"AppEngine"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Azure"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Microsoft"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Google App Engine versus Microsoft Azure"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cdiv class\u003d\"separator\" style\u003d\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cimg border\u003d\"0\" src\u003d\"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Cpsd1NUJ1D0/SqGVAiNFO9I/AAAAAAAABlo/tf4Kv66a0h0/s400/AppEngine+versus+Azure.png\" style\u003d\"float: right; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 10px;\" /\u003e\u003c/div\u003eThis is going to be a bit of a dangerous post, because I'm no expert in both. It's going to be like comparing:\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eGoogle versus Microsoft\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eConsumer versus Corporate\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003ePersonal versus Professional\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eMac OS-X versus Windows\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eSimple versus Advanced\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eConvenience versus Sophistication\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ul\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eThe reason for this post is feedback I received on the Keeping up with Technology post where I discussed a little hobby project on the Google App Engine. Some of my professional relations asked why I didn't build it on Microsoft Azure.\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eDisclosure: I work as Technology Director for Exact Software and I manage the technology part of our partnership with Microsoft. Microsoft delivers great technology that enables us to create value for our customers. This is also shown in the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/07/readyset7-exact-and-windows-7.html\"\u003eWindows 7 endorsement\u003c/a\u003e I recorded a few months ago.\u003c/div\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA couple of months ago I actually started to develop something on Azure. It started like this, visit the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.microsoft.com/azure/default.mspx\"\u003eAzure website\u003c/a\u003e looking for a getting started. There is a lot of information, but not really a step by step guide to get started. I figured out that I needed to register and thus I filled a couple of forms. After completion I received a message that I would get an answer within 24 hours. End of the project so far.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSince I wasn't satisfied I tried decided to try the Google App Engine instead. Go to the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://code.google.com/appengine/\"\u003eGoogle App Engine\u003c/a\u003e site and immediately found the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://code.google.com/appengine/docs/python/gettingstarted/\"\u003eGetting Started Guide\u003c/a\u003e. Just 2 small downloads for the SDK and Python and a text editor and I was in business. An hour later my 'hello world' application was up and running. This without any previous experience on Python and many stupid mistakes on case sensitive code. I felt good and was proud on the result.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe next day I hoped to receive my developer key for Azure so I could start comparing. Unfortunately no key arrived and I twittered about it. Someone from the Azure team noticed this and helped me out, good service, but I had to wait again for a day for a key.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFinally I got the key and started to explore Azure. On the Azure site I couldn't find a simple tutorial for a 'hello world' application. There are many advanced examples, but all too complex for me. Again Twitter came to rescue and quickly I received a link to a simple 'hello world' tutorial. Finally I could start to set up a developer environment. I already had Visual Studio installed, lucky me, but the developer environment also requires a local SQL server. A large download, a service pack and quite some time later I could finally start writing a few lines of code. Package the solution and deploy.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI haven't explored any of the differences in capabilities between Microsoft Azure and Google App Engine, but it's a clear case between convenience and sophistication.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen I decided to explore some of the cloud computing, the above memory was still in my mind. This combined with my preference of Mac OS-X over Windows 7 made the choice for the Google App Engine a simple one. A hobby is to relax and have fun!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/26574843-9219501636525562455?l\u003dwww.aadjemonkeyrock.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/feeds/9219501636525562455/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/09/google-app-engine-versus-microsoft.html#comment-form","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/9219501636525562455"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/9219501636525562455"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/09/google-app-engine-versus-microsoft.html","title":"Google App Engine versus Microsoft Azure"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Aad 't Hart"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/07566387683675598847"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"12531941165923430703"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Cpsd1NUJ1D0/SqGVAiNFO9I/AAAAAAAABlo/tf4Kv66a0h0/s72-c/AppEngine+versus+Azure.png","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"$t":"0"},"georss$point":{"$t":"52.0118994 4.3602566"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26574843.post-2781311701590474604"},"published":{"$t":"2009-06-14T16:53:00.000+02:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2010-08-17T21:34:29.110+02:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Windows 7"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Exact"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Azure"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Microsoft"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"BPOS"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Dutch BPOS \u0026 Azure EBC"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cdiv class\u003d\"separator\" style\u003d\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cimg border\u003d\"0\" src\u003d\"http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Cpsd1NUJ1D0/SjUN8vwneVI/AAAAAAAABb4/5AXFQngBM8M/s800/executivebriefingcentre.jpg\" style\u003d\"float: right; padding-bottom: 15px; padding-left: 15px;\" /\u003e\u003c/div\u003eI already wrote earlier about my \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/06/business-travel-inspiration.html\"\u003elast week visit\u003c/a\u003e to the Microsoft Campus in Redmond. Now I want to give you some details on the visit, without annoying any Microsoft lawyers of course.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Executive Briefing Center (EBC) visit was organized by Microsoft the Netherlands. They invited an interesting mix of partners that either host Microsoft solutions or develop on the Microsoft platform. This mix was very interesting, because the emerge of SaaS and cloud computing does create a greater dependancy between the different disciplines. Not without reason one important goal of the visit was to network.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe name of the event 'Dutch BPOS \u0026amp; Azure EBC' goes into Microsoft buzz words, but it would have been better to call it 'Microsoft Online Strategy'. The \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.microsoft.com/online/business-productivity.mspx\"\u003eBusiness Productivity Online Suite (BPOS)\u003c/a\u003e consisting of various different solutions and the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.microsoft.com/azure/default.mspx\"\u003eAzure Services platform\u003c/a\u003e are important components of the online strategy. Microsoft shared a good level of detail on the future roadmap, but I can't due to 'Non Disclosure Agreements' go into much detail. However some of the Microsoft messages I did pick up are:\u003cbr /\u003e\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003eSoftware + Services is important, because Services grow faster in terms of percentage, but in absolute value the Software industry still grows faster. Don't ignore the Software components and On Premise solutions.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eCoexistence between On Premise and Online solutions are an absolute necessity\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eIdentity is key, federation and syndication are essential for dealing with identity\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eMicrosoft is reengineering most of their solutions to improve the online capabilities. This allows to drive scale up and costs down.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eHigh scale computing and improved data center design brings the computing (energy) costs down. The reason for Microsoft to invest in large scale data centers.\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eThese are just some of the messages send out and based in the discussions within the group everybody has their own interpretations on how it will effect you business. All in all it was a very good visit and very well organized.\u003c/div\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eHowever the coolest part of the trip was a visit to the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.microspotting.com/tag/microsoft-studios\"\u003eMicrosoft Studios\u003c/a\u003e. The studios are in building 127 just behind the old company store and it's really cool. It's huge and there is a relaxed and creative atmosphere.\u0026nbsp;I was there to record a Exact testimonial for Windows 7 and I will of course let you know when that is ready. It was great fun and it gave a really good Hollywood feeling...\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/26574843-2781311701590474604?l\u003dwww.aadjemonkeyrock.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/feeds/2781311701590474604/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/06/dutch-bpos-azure-ebc.html#comment-form","title":"1 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/2781311701590474604"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/2781311701590474604"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2009/06/dutch-bpos-azure-ebc.html","title":"Dutch BPOS \u0026 Azure EBC"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Aad 't Hart"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/07566387683675598847"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"12531941165923430703"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Cpsd1NUJ1D0/SjUN8vwneVI/AAAAAAAABb4/5AXFQngBM8M/s72-c/executivebriefingcentre.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"$t":"1"},"georss$point":{"$t":"47.672229 -122.115633"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26574843.post-5360416852043120059"},"published":{"$t":"2008-12-06T23:51:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2010-08-17T21:46:50.397+02:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Azure"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Microsoft"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Windows Azure"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"Last week I was for a \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2008/12/microsoft-gisv-briefing-wrap-up.html\"\u003eGlobal ISV briefing\u003c/a\u003e at the Microsoft Campus in Redmond. A significant amount of time was spend on \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.microsoft.com/azure/default.mspx\"\u003eWindows Azure and Azure Services Platform\u003c/a\u003e (Yes extremely confusing). It's all still in it's infancy, it only runs in 1 data center, but the expansion plans are huge. Related to the data center expansion plans I found the interesting video below.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cembed src\u003d\"http://images.video.msn.com/flash/soapbox1_1.swf\" width\u003d\"432\" height\u003d\"364\" id\u003d\"dql8evpl\" type\u003d\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" allowFullScreen\u003d\"true\" allowScriptAccess\u003d\"always\" pluginspage\u003d\"http://macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer\" flashvars\u003d\"c\u003dv\u0026v\u003db4d189d3-19bd-42b3-85d7-6ca46d97fe40\u0026ifs\u003dtrue\u0026fr\u003dshared\u0026mkt\u003den-US\"\u003e\u003c/embed\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLets now all hope that the trucks don't get stuck in traffic when suddenly a need for additional capacity is required..\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/26574843-5360416852043120059?l\u003dwww.aadjemonkeyrock.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/feeds/5360416852043120059/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2008/12/windows-azure.html#comment-form","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/5360416852043120059"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/26574843/posts/default/5360416852043120059"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://www.aadjemonkeyrock.com/2008/12/windows-azure.html","title":"Windows Azure"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Aad 't Hart"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/07566387683675598847"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"12531941165923430703"}}],"thr$total":{"$t":"0"}}]}});