2005 MVP Summit Comes to a Close - Life Returns to Normal

[Mike Temporale]

This years MVP Summit has come to a close. It was my first Summit and I had a great time. It was really nice to meet and talk with so many different people from the community that share the same enthusiasm and passion for Windows Mobile as I do. :) The week was jam packed with stuff planned from early in the morning until late at night. We had numerous discussions with many different developers from within the Windows Mobile team. Unfortunately the majority of what was discussed is covered under NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) so I can't share it with you. Rest assured that we are making sure the Microsoft knows what you like and dislike about Windows Mobile and they are listening to what we are saying. Thanks to all those that worked hard to make this happen and I hope to attend again next year. 8)

[Kris Kumar]

I believe the summit was organized at the Microsoft HQ. Did you get a chance to visit Window Mobile team's office, I mean building. What is it like? Do they have Smartphone littered around like candy wrappers? :-)

[Mike Temporale]

I believe the summit was organized at the Microsoft HQ. Did you get a chance to visit Window Mobile team's office, I mean building. What is it like? Do they have Smartphone littered around like candy wrappers? :-)

The whole Summit was held on site as Microsoft. Most of our sessions were held in the conference room on the ground floor of the Mobile Devices building. Right as you walk in the door of the building there one of those oversized display models of a Axim and a MPx200. They stood about 6 or 7 feet tall. I was going to take a picture for you guys, but my camera broke. :( So no pictures for me. At least nothing after the flight out.

We didn't make it up to anyone's desk, so I can't comment on how many devices were littered around. I did notice that every speaker was using a Audiovox SMT5600. :)

[Jerry Raia]

I did notice that every speaker was using a Audiovox SMT5600. :)

Good taste they have indeed! :mrgreen:

[Kris Kumar]

I did notice that every speaker was using a Audiovox SMT5600. :)

Albeit it runs a super special version of WM 5.0. :-) :-(

[Mike Temporale]

I did notice that every speaker was using a Audiovox SMT5600. :)

Albeit it runs a super special version of WM 5.0. :-) :-(

I can tell you that mine doesn't, but I don't know about there's. I never got a chance to look that closely. :(

Another interesting observation, was the urinal in the men's washroom outside the conference room in the Mobile Devices building. I don't think I've ever seen one that is that low to the ground. I was wondering if it was inspired by the Mobile Device guys attempts at keeping things small and compact. :lol: But seriously, why was that thing so low to the ground? :?

[Jerry Raia]

Another interesting observation, was the urinal in the men's washroom outside the conference room in the Mobile Devices building. I don't think I've ever seen one that is that low to the ground. I was wondering if it was inspired by the Mobile Device guys attempts at keeping things small and compact. :lol: But seriously, why was that thing so low to the ground? :?

Handicaped, there is one in every bathroom here in the states.

[Mike Temporale]

We've got that here too, but not when it's the only urinal in the washroom. If there is just one, then the toilet tends to be handicaped accessible and the urinal is normal. In this case, the toilet was and I guess the urinal too. :?

[ctmagnus]

Another interesting observation, was the urinal in the men's washroom outside the conference room in the Mobile Devices building. I don't think I've ever seen one that is that low to the ground. I was wondering if it was inspired by the Mobile Device guys attempts at keeping things small and compact. :lol: But seriously, why was that thing so low to the ground? :?

You weren't literally in the little boys' room, were you? ;)

[Mike Temporale]

You weren't literally in the little boys' room, were you? ;)

D'OH! Why didn't someone tell me. ;) :lol:

Nah, I'm sure I was in the right place. At least, I think I was. :oops: :wink:

[encece]

No offense intended, but I need to ask....why is it after every MVP conference, all I read about is urinals and shooting guns and who drank what. That is all very cool and I enjoy the stories. I understand there are a bunch of NDA items under discussion. But I hardly ever read about relavent things after the meetings.

MVPs are supposed to be OUR conduit to Microsoft in a sense. Information is supposed to flow both ways thru you guys. Am I wrong? Instead all I hear about are non-ms-ppc/smartphone related things and we are usually given the line that you cant talk about anything.

At least tell us all the cool stuff they gave you so we could be jealous. :)

Along the year, we ask you and other MVPs questions and submit issues for you to bring to MS. It would be cool to have them answered and addressed in some formal fashion after the summit....in some form. PLEASE!

I'm not trying to sound like MSMOBILES in ANY WAY! Please dont take it that way. I would just like the "leaders of the mobile community" to share the information that they learn at these things.

I feel like I'm at work and there is another closed door management meeting going on....only here...I cant go to the office on the other side of the wall, a listen in thru the duct work! :)

[Janak Parekh]

The whole Summit was held on site as Microsoft. Most of our sessions were held in the conference room on the ground floor of the Mobile Devices building. Right as you walk in the door of the building there one of those oversized display models of a Axim and a MPx200. They stood about 6 or 7 feet tall. I was going to take a picture for you guys, but my camera broke. :( So no pictures for me. At least nothing after the flight out.
You mean this, right? ;)

http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/281/IMG_2696.jpg

There might have been an opportunity to see individual workplaces, but we didn't really have time for it. Plus, I don't think we'd be allowed to share that anyway.

--janak

[Mike Temporale]

No offense intended, but I need to ask....why is it after every MVP conference, all I read about is urinals and shooting guns and who drank what. That is all very cool and I enjoy the stories. I understand there are a bunch of NDA items under discussion. But I hardly ever read about relavent things after the meetings.

MVPs are supposed to be OUR conduit to Microsoft in a sense. Information is supposed to flow both ways thru you guys. Am I wrong? Instead all I hear about are non-ms-ppc/smartphone related things and we are usually given the line that you cant talk about anything.

You're correct. So, here it is - all I can say about the day long sessions:

{ CENSORED } ;)

I can tell you all about how we were treated and the food we ate, where we went and that stuff. I can tell you the questions I asked, but I can't tell you the answers I got. I'll say that most of the MVPs wouldn't stop until they got an answer that they liked. Especially when it came to carriers. :twak:

At least tell us all the cool stuff they gave you so we could be jealous. :)

Sure! Are you read for this. It's ground breaking.... a dress shirt with "MVP" stitched on the pocket, and a pen. Seriously, that's all I got.

Along the year, we ask you and other MVPs questions and submit issues for you to bring to MS. It would be cool to have them answered and addressed in some formal fashion after the summit....in some form. PLEASE!

The problem is this; the answers deal with Microsofts future efforts. Thus we can't talk about it. I can personally guarantee you that I brought up all the issues raised in this forum over the last year or so. At times, I searched out the product group specifically to let them know the pain that we are all experiencing.

I'm not trying to sound like MSMOBILES in ANY WAY! Please dont take it that way. I would just like the "leaders of the mobile community" to share the information that they learn at these things.

I feel like I'm at work and there is another closed door management meeting going on....only here...I cant go to the office on the other side of the wall, a listen in thru the duct work! :)

Trust me, I fully understand. It hurts me to stay quite. I would love to stand up on the front page and yell out everything. Unfortunately, I'm sure I'll get the pants sued off me. :(

[Janak Parekh]

MVPs are supposed to be OUR conduit to Microsoft in a sense. Information is supposed to flow both ways thru you guys. Am I wrong?
Not entirely, but it's more complicated than that.

I can tell you that a lot of stuff flows INTO Microsoft, but stuff flowing out needs explicit permission. There was at least one talk that was considered so sensitive that the speaker threatened to walk out if he as much as saw a camera pulled out in the room.

At least tell us all the cool stuff they gave you so we could be jealous. :)
I, myself, got two t-shirts. I also got the right to buy some stuff from the company store, which I haven't done yet. The coolest stuff was the information. Believe me, it's frustrating that we can't talk about it.

Along the year, we ask you and other MVPs questions and submit issues for you to bring to MS. It would be cool to have them answered and addressed in some formal fashion after the summit....in some form. PLEASE!
The summit isn't such a good place to do that. :( We do bring all the issues. The problem is that much of the info we get includes future development, and Microsoft keeps that information very close to its chest. The silver lining is that, as we get public info from time-to-time, we'll post on it.

--janak

[encece]

That STINKS! :twisted:

If I am wrong and the intention of MVPs isn't to bridge the space between MS and it's users then they should really consider creating a vehicle that would do just that.

I need to stop ranting and get back to work!

PS.
You guys got jipped! I thought you get free phones and MS Products at the conference...I goodie bag of sorts! I've read that's what they've done in the past. Well, if they don't then they should.

[Mike Temporale]

If I am wrong and the intention of MVPs isn't to bridge the space between MS and it's users then they should really consider creating a vehicle that would do just that.

MVP is really just an award for the work a person has done in the previous 12 month period. As Janak mentioned, events like the Summit give us an opportunity to talk and share issues with Microsoft, however the answers aren't always as easy as a "yes" or "no". As such, we can't really share that with you guys.

I need to stop ranting and get back to work!

Well, that's no fun! :lol:

PS.
You guys got jipped! I thought you get free phones and MS Products at the conference...I goodie bag of sorts! I've read that's what they've done in the past. Well, if they don't then they should.

Maybe in the past. I wouldn't know - this was my first time. We didn't get any products per say. However, we were given a chance to spend a small amount of our own money at the employee store on software and hardware. But that small amount goes pretty fast.

[Mike Temporale]

You mean this, right? ;)

Yup that's what I was talking about. Thanks!

[Janak Parekh]

If I am wrong and the intention of MVPs isn't to bridge the space between MS and it's users then they should really consider creating a vehicle that would do just that.
To add to Mike's answer: the MVP is a "support award", whereby Microsoft gives us some more tools and information to help us support users. Some of that is nonprivileged, and others are privileged. MVPs have done things like bugreports and support questions that have been reported back to end-users all the time, but MS also provides NDA info to us to help us prepare support for newer technologies.

PS.
You guys got jipped! I thought you get free phones and MS Products at the conference...I goodie bag of sorts! I've read that's what they've done in the past. Well, if they don't then they should.
Considering the number of MVPs there are, it's difficult for MS to give us all that. Quite frankly, the ability to discuss issues and provide feedback is the most useful aspect to me.

--janak

[Mike Temporale]

Oh, I have to tell you guys about Jake, one of 2 SPOT MVPs in the world, and the only one that was able to attend the summit. Jake is maybe 15 years old - 16 max! I had a couple different talks with him, and I must say that Jake really knows his stuff. He mentioned his website to me, but I've forgotten the name already. :( Anyway, since he was the only person in his product group, Jake's sessions consisted of him visiting different members of the SPOT team - at their desk. Imagine getting the chance to chat 1 on 1 with the developers for a couple days. :D

Where ever you are Jake, I'm certian you've got a bright future ahead of you. :way to go:


Update: Google rocks! In case anyone is interested, here is his website: SpotDev.net (http://www.spotdev.net/) 8)

[Sven Johannsen]

Thought I'd poke my nose in here. Janak really defined it. MVP is an award for past efforts. You can hang the certificate on your wall, not sign the NDA and walk away, and you'll still have the title for a year.

The additional perks are two fold. We get some stuff that may not be widely available, previews, access to internal info, things that we really can't talk about unless MS says we can talk about it. Generally that only happens after they have already talked about it. This aspect is very frustrating. It has killed me in the past to know that such and such that is being bashed in a newsgroup or forum is being fixed in the next release. In the mobile devices space, releasing such information has different ramafications than in the general MS software space. Beyond just the potential that the fix doesn't make it into the release, doesn't work, or isn't what the users want, which can happen in the purely software side, such info can be detrimental to MS's OEM partners. MS has contractual obligations relative to their partners, and through the NDA, so do we.

What we can do with this info is get enthoused and excited, and a little headstart on what is coming out, so we can try to answer questions when the new devices/OSs appear. We can also point out issues that we see, so they can possible be reacted to before the new stuff comes out. That brings me to the second benefit. We do hold a position of some respect within the Mobile Devices product group. We are by no means a distributed chief architect, but our voices are heard and provided some enhanced credibility. Doesn't mean we are the only feedback MS listens to. They listen to OEMs, corporations, carriers, consumers, and others as well. The Summit is a great opportunity to meet the people at MS we are trying to influence, face to face. I can't overemphasize the value of having direct interaction. It suddenly becomes much more personal, than numeric analysis of surveys, and rants in newsgroups.

This is my third summit and I came away with one thing that I have come away with each other time. The the folks at MS that are producing the code you see, are absolutely dedicated to making the PPC the best experience for you that they can. They are excited, exceptionally competent, energetic, and unfortunately, often constrained by things outside their control. Budget, time, over-arching direction, business goals, all figure into what they can do, which is often much less than what they would like to do.

A side bennie of the summit to me is actually meeting the other MVPs, Mike, Janak, Jason, and many others, in the Mobile Devices space, or others.

[ctmagnus]

Oh, I have to tell you guys about Jake, one of 2 SPOT MVPs in the world, and the only one that was able to attend the summit. Jake is maybe 15 years old - 16 max! I had a couple different talks with him, and I must say that Jake really knows his stuff. He mentioned his website to me, but I've forgotten the name already. :( Anyway, since he was the only person in his product group, Jake's sessions consisted of him visiting different members of the SPOT team - at their desk. Imagine getting the chance to chat 1 on 1 with the developers for a couple days. :D

Where ever you are Jake, I'm certian you've got a bright future ahead of you. :way to go:


Update: Google rocks! In case anyone is interested, here is his website: SpotDev.net (http://www.spotdev.net/) 8)

If there was coverage here, I'd be all over Spot. Not to the point that Jake is, but I'd love to have a Spot watch.

[Mike Temporale]

If there was coverage here, I'd be all over Spot. Not to the point that Jake is, but I'd love to have a Spot watch.

You don't have any coverage? Wow, I thought it was in all major area's. I know we have some coverage out here, but it's a long way from 100%.

[Janak Parekh]

You don't have any coverage? Wow, I thought it was in all major area's. I know we have some coverage out here, but it's a long way from 100%.
Golden, BC (http://maps.google.com/maps?q=golden,+BC&spn=0.061280,0.132093&hl=en) isn't a major metro area, AFAICT. ;)

--janak

[Mike Temporale]

Golden, BC (http://maps.google.com/maps?q=golden,+BC&spn=0.061280,0.132093&hl=en) isn't a major metro area, AFAICT. ;)

--janak

:oops: That would explain it. I didn't realize that Golden was a city. I thought it was being used as a description of the province of BC. I guess the comma should have given that away. Sorry 'bout that. My bad.

[Janak Parekh]

:oops: That would explain it. I didn't realize that Golden was a city. I thought it was being used as a description of the province of BC. I guess the comma should have given that away. Sorry 'bout that. My bad.
And you call yourself a Canadian!? ;)

(Seriously, I only knew because CT has referred to its remoteness on PPCT.)

--janak

[Mike Temporale]

Sadly, yes. My knowledge isn't what it should be. Many of my friends that have immigrated to Canada, know much much more than I. My only visit to Vancouver was last week when I spent 2 hours sitting in the airport between flights.

Now, in true Canadian fashion.... Hockey season opener tonight! WooHoo!! Got me jersey on now. Just waiting for the game to start. :D

[Ed Hansberry]

No offense intended, but I need to ask....why is it after every MVP conference, all I read about is urinals and shooting guns and who drank what. That is all very cool and I enjoy the stories. I understand there are a bunch of NDA items under discussion. But I hardly ever read about relavent things after the meetings.

MVPs are supposed to be OUR conduit to Microsoft in a sense. Information is supposed to flow both ways thru you guys. Am I wrong?
Yes. You can read what an MVP is at http://mvp.support.microsoft.com - anything above and beyond that is gravy.