Windows Insider Podcast

Having the opportunity to preview builds is one of the cornerstones of the Windows Insider Program. We have discussed many aspects of how a build makes its way externally to Insiders, beginning with new code being written, continuing to the build "snap" (aka: compiling the build), to media availability, to flighting, and of course the feedback process that continues the cycle of development. Joining us this episode is Roger Johnson, Windows Software Engineer to talk about build validation and more. Click here for transcript of this episode. Roger Johnson | LinkedIn Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

Fellow Windows Insider Program team member Brandon Leblanc is our guest this month as we cover a variety of topics including Surface devices, features in recent WIP builds, the seventh anniversary of the Windows Insider Program, and even TikTok videos! Tune in for the variety, stay for the fun! Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

Throughout time there have been many dynamic duos which left their mark on the future. In the modern era, few, if any, combinations have been more impactful than the blending of hardware and software. Dani Tene joins us this month to discuss mixing hardware, software, your career, and more! Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

Everything we thought we knew about work—where we do it, when we do it, how we do it—has been turned on its head. Where is it all going, and is there a map to get us there? WorkLab is a new podcast from Microsoft that taps into data and research to guide you on the road ahead. Leaders and scientists share the company's findings, and we'll hear stories about how people and organizations are being transformed at this radical moment. Join host Elise Hu as we tap into even more data and research to guide you on the road ahead. The first season we'll be focusing on hybrid work, and how we can ensure that workplaces aren't defined by where you gather, but by how you feel included. The show launches on September 8. Follow the show at microsoft.com/worklab.

Are you a fan of voice typing? How about the touch keyboard? If you're interested in Windows 11 and the evolving landscape of device input methods, you won't want to miss this conversation as we deep-dive into these topics and more with Program Manager Hadley Griffin and Senior Designer Julia Carlson. Join in! Click here for transcript of this episode. Hadley Griffin | Twitter [guest] Julia Carlson | Twitter [guest] Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

With the variety and importance of conversations surrounding Windows 11, what does this new version of Windows mean for the Windows Insider program? How are we delivering this release to Insiders? Amanda Langowski and Brandon LeBlanc join Jason Howard to discuss these topics and more! Click here for transcript of this episode. Amanda (McClellan) Langowski | LinkedIn [guest] Brandon LeBlanc | LinkedIn [guest] Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

The Windows 11 journey is officially underway! There are lots of changes to explore, but it's important to understand the backstory of those changes and the process and efforts that drove them. Sheetal Agarwal from User Research and Hanna McLaughlin from Design join us this month to cover these topics and more! Click here for transcript of this episode. Sheetal Agarwal | LinkedIn [guest] Hanna McLaughlin | LinkedIn [guest] Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

If you've heard the adage of "you are what you eat," you likely realize the literal truth of the statement. The same is true in the computing world as your PC becomes what you deploy to it! Understanding the basics of deployment (and recovery paths of needed!) are vital in staying up-to-date and secure. Aaron Lower from the Windows Fundamentals team joins us this month to talk deployment, recovery, and more! Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

Trust is so much more than a buzzword, it's the foundation upon which long-lasting relationships are built. What happens when you combine a passion for building customer relationships with a desire to create lasting impact? Joining us this month is Doug Winnie, Windows Insider MVP and customer advocate, as we discuss change management, being authentic, and building trust with customers! Doug Winnie [guest] LinkedIn | Twitter Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

What happens when an important change in one product overflows and influences another? You guessed it, the ice cube tray effect! Tune in as Briana Roberts and Nathalia Scrimshaw join us to talk about how feedback from Xbox gaming enthusiasts helped create a cohesive cross-platform experience in Windows. You won't be disappointed! Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

Learning alongside customers is more than a passing fancy, it's a way of doing business. This collaboration drives exciting innovations and remarkable outcomes that may not otherwise be achieved. Join us this month as we chat with Ryan Hill, Software Engineer in the Azure CXP organization as we discuss the importance of connecting with customers to learn together. Click here for transcript of this episode. Microsoft in Atlanta aka.ms/MSAtlanta Microsoft Docs - home for documentation and learning for developers and technology professionals. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

The world continues to change, and the News and Interest feature is here to keep you informed and on task. Tune in as Alex Campbell joins us to discuss this Windows Insider feature and much more! Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

2020 has come and gone, and 2021 marks the beginning of a new chapter with stories yet to be written. In this episode, we reminisce as we look back across the past year, the changes it brought, and take a look forward to 2021 and what the team expects next. Jason talks with the Windows Insider team, including program lead Amanda Langowski, Brandon LeBlanc, Vivek Elangovan, and Eddie Leonard. Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this episode, we broach a new topic that hasn't previously been discussed in-depth: what is Windows Currency? Project Manager Laura Finch from the Windows Fundamentals team joins us to provide an end-to-end overview of the importance of staying current with Windows preview builds. Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Windows Insider Twitter | Instagram Helpful links discussed in the episode: aka.ms/WIPtrouble aka.ms/WIPnoupdate aka.ms/flighthub Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this month's episode of the Windows Insider Podcast, Steve Syfuhs joins us from the Hybrid Identity group within Microsoft's Cloud & AI org as we take a behind-the-scenes look at the login and authentication processes within Windows. Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com Twitter | Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this episode, we're joined by Jenelle Trimmell from the Windows Servicing & Delivery team to discuss the "Flight Like We Service" concept and explore how Windows Insiders contribute to the process of global Windows OS updates. Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this episode, guests Eric Papamarcos, Charles Taylor, and William Devereaux join us to discuss the history of changes and modern-day evolution of two iconic Windows features: Start Menu and Taskbar. Click here for transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In the second half of this month's two-part episode, we're joined by Chris Guzak, a Principle Software Developer in Windows, to reflect on the history of Windows 95, including the Start Menu, Taskbar, as well as the early days of software usability testing. Click here for full transcript of this episode Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In the first of a two-part episode this month, we're joined by Raymond Chen, a Principle Software Engineer in Windows, to reflect on the history of Windows 95 as well the early days of application compatibility and testing. Click here for full transcript of this episode. The Old New Thing Dev Blog by Raymond Chen Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this month's episode we're joined by Shweta Jha, a Senior Program Manager for Tamper Protection, to take a look at how the suite of Windows Security features are protecting Windows Insiders, enterprise customers, and all Windows users by defending your devices' security. Click here for full transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

It's time for a deeper look at feedback! First, we're joined by Eddie Leonard to take a look at how our team looks at your feedback across platforms. Then, we're joined by Nikki Rubino and Devin Sinha from the Feedback Hub team to learn more about the app and where it's headed next. Click here for full transcript of this episode. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this month's episode of the podcast, we're looking at how the Windows Insider Program is continuing to evolve with the new leader of our program, Amanda Langowski. Then we're joined by Brandon LeBlanc to take a look at how our team is adjusting to working from home. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this month's minisode of the Windows Insider Podcast, we're revisiting the Windows Hassles program, how it works, and what they're currently working on with its leader, Amy Kruzick. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com Windows Community community.windows.com @WindowsInsider on Twitter and Instagram Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

This month, we're digging into troubleshooting, from how Microsoft is doing it on a large scale with Microsoft News to how you can do it as a Windows Insider. First, we're joined by Ben Rudolph, the director of Microsoft News to look at how Microsoft is driving solutions through technology in the field of journalism. Then we're joined by Christopher Caulfield and Emma Saboureau to take a look at the tools available for you to troubleshoot your own devices and how Insiders can get started. Resources: insider.windows.com @WindowsInsider Check out all of our Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts! Ben Rudolph | Twitter | LinkedIn aka.ms/WinDebugPreview aka.ms/KDNet Docs.Microsoft.com

In this episode, we're looking at what's coming for the Windows Insider Program. First, we're talking about the future of the program and our goals for the new year with Ian Todd, who's helping guide us while we search for new leadership. Then, we take a look behind the scenes at how the podcast gets made and at what's next for the program's marketing content with Allison Shields, our team's content expert. Windows Insider Program insider.windows.com @WindowsInsider Listen and subscribe to other Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts

In this episode, we're looking to the future with an important feature announced at Microsoft Ignite, the Update Staging Lab and a product that's always searching for what's next—Bing. First, we're joined by Raji Rajagopalan and Rama Shastri to talk about how their team's new service, Update Staging Lab, which will help independent software vendors validate their app's compatibility with Windows faster. Then, Michael Kroll joins us to talk about Bing's content strategy, the Bing Insider Program, Microsoft Rewards, and the future of search. Resources: insider.windows.com @WindowsInsider Check out all of our Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts! Bing Bing Insider

In this episode, we're talking about Microsoft's ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion in tech. First, we're joined by Raji Rajagopalan and some of her new engineers at the new Africa Development Center in Lagos, Nigeria to talk about Microsoft's investment in Africa. Then we're joined by Jennifer Gentleman, a partner of the program who recently joined our inspirational Grace Hopper Awardees at this year's Grace Hopper Celebration. Finally, we're getting ready to see Insiders at Microsoft Ignite 2019! Resources: insider.windows.com https://www.instagram.com/windowsinsider/ https://twitter.com/windowsinsider "Meet our Grace Hopper Celebration winners!" Check out all of our Microsoft podcasts at aka.ms/microsoft/podcasts!

Happy 5th anniversary to the Windows Insider Program! In honor of this celebration, we're bringing you a special super-episode that journeys through the years. Think of it as our version of The Christmas Carol. First, we're joined by Brandon LeBlanc of the Windows Insider Program, who helps us take a look back at where the program started and how far it's come. Then, Amanda Langowski from flighting joins us as the ghost of WIP present to take about the current state of the program. And finally, Windows Insider and .NET developer Jeremy Sinclair joins us as the ghost of WIP future to talk about what's next. Join our host Jason Howard as he proves he has a heart and gives thanks for all our Insiders! Resources: insider.windows.com Instagram @windowsinsider Twitter @windowsinsider insider.microsoft.com Jason Howard @NorthFaceHiker Jeremy Sinclair, a.k.a. snickler | @sinclairinator Check out our other shows about technology, visit: The Intrazone: https://aka.ms/TheIntrazone Sync Up, a OneDrive podcast: http://aka.ms/syncup

Internships at Microsoft can be lifechanging opportunities. In this two-part episode of the Windows Insider Podcast, our host Jason invites in interns he's had the privilege of interviewing and staying in touch with. Chantale Ninah walks us through her role as a project manager intern for machine translation. Then we're joined by Dasha Pushkareva, a returning program manager intern for the Microsoft Managed Desktop team, who talks to us about the culture at Microsoft, her advice for new interns, and the future of the industry. Resources links: Windows Insider Program Microsoft Early Careers Programs Microsoft Student Partners Microsoft Managed Desktop Chantale Ninah Dasha Pushkareva

Start the next phase of your career with advice from Microsoft mentors in this two-part episode of the Windows Insider Podcast, plus learn more about how you can start mentoring others. Jason chats with Anita Varghese, a mentor from the Microsoft data and analytics team, about the critical skills you need to succeed in any industry and how mentorship can help your career. Then we're joined by Mike Pell, a mentor and envisioneer with the Microsoft Garage, to talk about the importance of creativity and diversity while problem solving and building new technology.

Learn more about accessibility in gaming and how when everybody plays, we all win in this two-part episode of the Windows Insider Podcast. Jason chats with Tara Voelker, a program manager at Mixer about gaming for everyone, the Game Accessibility Conference, the evolution of Mixer, and the future of streaming. Then we get together with Gabi Michel, the program manager behind the Xbox Adaptive Controller. She takes us through how her team developed the controller, Microsoft's commitment to accessibility, and how the controller's marketing was so impactful. Resources: insider.windows.com @windowsinsider Mixer "Xbox: Accessible games can 'mean the difference between existing and living' for disabled people" Game Accessibility Guidelines Xbox Mixer.com/MixerBlueShow Mixer.com/WindowsInsider Warfighter Engaged AbleGamers SpecialEffect Craig Hospital Cerebral Palsy Foundation

Take a fascinating dive into Microsoft's approach to quantum computing. Then, get an inside look at recent improvements to the Windows Update experience. Machine learning and increased transparency are helping the Windows team track user feedback and deliver our best update experience ever. Resources: Windows Insider podcast page Janet Schneider, Principal Software Engineer in the Cryogenic Computing Group at Microsoft. Microsoft Quantum Development Kit Microsoft.com/quantum AI for Africa brilliant.org Windows' new public-facing health dashboard Mike Fortin's blog Microsoft Build Conference 2019

Join us as we dig into all things security in this two-part episode of the Windows Insider Podcast. Jason chats with David Westin, group security manager for operating systems, about big picture security, including red team versus blue team operations, the importance of securing public infrastructure, and the future of AI. Plus, get an inside look at how Insiders make his job easier. Then, Jessica Payne, a senior security researcher for Microsoft Defender, joins us for a conversation about how you can stay secure. She shares a peek into how attackers in the current landscape are taking advantage of vulnerabilities and walks us through what Microsoft's doing to protect you and what you can do to protect yourself. https://twitter.com/windowsinsider https://insider.windows.com/ https://www.instagram.com/windowsinsider/

The Windows Hello team chats about security features that make passwords obsolete and authentication safer and easier than ever. Then Jason meets up with Dona Sarkar for an inside look into the Windows Insider Program's impact on Windows 10 and exciting new possibilities for the future. Resources: Windows Insider Program Jason Howard Dona Sarkar Nadya Amirchoupani Anastasia Tarnouskaya Other Microsoft podcasts of interest: The Intrazone, a show about the SharePoint intelligent intranet Behind the Tech with Kevin Scott Women in Business and Technology M365 Modern Desktop

Technology and the jobs that go with it are evolving exponentially faster. How can new grads and seasoned pros alike be prepared for the jobs of tomorrow? How does Microsoft hire the brightest minds to work on leading edge tech? We ponder these questions and more with Dave Wecker, Architect at Microsoft's Quantum Computing team, and Tyler Roush, of Microsoft's talent sourcing team. Dave gives us a peek into his work on the frontier of quantum computing, and Tyler shares what it's like to source talent for an international dream team. Then, we sit down with Microsoft engineer Raymond Uchenna Ononiwu to get his tips on landing a Microsoft internship and how to turn that into a full-time job offer. Episode Transcription Jason Howard: You're listening to the Windows Insider Podcast and I'm your host, Jason Howard. This is Episode 17: Jobs of Tomorrow. Technology and the jobs that go with it are evolving exponentially faster. How can new grads and seasoned pros alike be prepared for tomorrow's jobs in tech? How does Microsoft hire the brightest minds to work on leading edge tech? We ponder these questions and more in this episode. Before we get to our first segment, we've got a great opportunity we want to mention called the Windows Insider Women in Computing Award. If you are majoring in computer science or a related field, you could win a trip to the Grace Hopper Celebration, the world's largest gathering of women technologists. Winners will also receive mentoring at Microsoft Headquarters. You can get full details by going to Insider.windows.com. In case you didn't know, the Windows Insider Program runs quite a few awesome contests and they are only available to Insiders. So that's my shameless plug – if you aren't yet a Windows Insider, go to our website and register. It's free, it's easy, and you become a part of a global community shaping the future of Windows. OK, onto the show! (Music.) Jason Howard: First up, we have special guests from Microsoft's Quantum Computing team to talk about life on the cutting edge and what Microsoft looks for in candidates for jobs on the frontiers of innovation. Dave and Tyler, welcome to the show. Would you please introduce yourselves for our audience? Hi, I'm Dave Wecker. I'm the Quantum Architect and my job is to pull all the pieces together from the very top which is the software, we normally do all the way down to the materials, the fridges, the devices that we put in our labs all over the world. So, I spent a lot of time on an airplane going from lab to lab. (Laughter.) Tyler Roush: My name is Tyler Roush. I work with our talent sourcing team and I've been working with Dave for the last two years but most of my job is trying to understand what they do as much as possible and identify some of the skills that we need to come on to Microsoft to help build a quantum computer. Jason Howard: So he's doing a cool stuff, and you're getting people to come in and do the cool stuff. Tyler Roush: Exactly. Jason Howard: Awesome. So Dave, we start with you. Can you help us understand in kind of layman's terms what quantum computing actually is. Dave Wecker: Yeah it's actually fairly straightforward, if you think of it compared to classical computing. Classical computing we have bits, and a bit is zero or one. The qubit which is the basic unit in quantum computing is also zero and one but it can be zero and one at the same time. It's actually a little more than that because there's more information than just the zero or one in there. So, you can do a lot of computing with a single qubit. If 32-bits holds one number, let's say on your phone, that number can be from zero to four billion, 32 qubits can hold four billion numbers at once. So, all of a sudden, you're doing computation on a massive amount of information at one time, this unlocks a whole bunch of possibilities for what you can do computationally that you can't do with a classical computer. Jason Howard: So, what are some of the possibilities that kind of like get you going, things that you've found and they have expanded your mindset and way of thinking about it when it comes to what quantum computing will enable us to do? Dave Wecker: Well there's some poster children we use, things that are good examples of what you can do. A lot of people bring up cryptography, Shor's algorithm but to be honest that's not our focus, it's not the type of thing that we want to do in terms of solving problems for the world and doing things for Microsoft that we think are worth doing and are important. So, I'll start with a very mundane one, which is fertilizer. Fertilizer is something that is extremely expensive for most of the world and the reason is it takes a process that uses a lot of energy, a lot of pressure, high temperatures to make and so a lot of the emerging world can't buy fertilizer because it's out of their price range, because of the amount that it takes. We're talking on the order of five percent of the natural gas on the pl

What's next for the future of gaming? To find out, Dona Sarkar chats with Joe Neate, Executive Producer of the hit pirate adventure, Sea of Thieves. Joe talks about major gaming trends that are influencing Sea of Thieves and the expansion of the game's rich storylines. Next, we explore the growing popularity of game streaming by chatting with Microsoft's Mixer team. Marketing director Jenn McCoy and engineer Chad Gibson discuss how the Mixer platform is sparking new experiences in gameplay and innovations in game design. Finally, we catch up with Windows Insiders at E3 and get their impressions on what's most exciting about the future of gaming. Episode Transcription JASON HOWARD: You're listening to the Windows Insider Podcast, Episode 16 -- Next-Level Gaming. I'm your host, Jason Howard. This episode, we'll be chatting about exciting trends hitting the gaming universe -- namely, gaming as a service, and interactive live streaming with Mixer. First up, Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider Program, sits down with Joe Neate, executive producer at Rare. Rare is the game developer behind Sea of Thieves, the multi-player pirate adventure that has taken Xbox and Windows 10 by storm. Here's Dona and Joe. (Music.) (Sea of Thieves pirate audio clip.) The life of a pirate is fraught with danger. For you see, to journey out onto the waves is to take a step into the unknown. There are things that have lived there and rulled there far longer than us. Great terrors from the deep. Some I've seen with my own eye. DONA SARKAR: Hello, again, Insiders! I'm Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider Program. And you just heard a snippet from one of the new content trailers for Sea of Thieves. Here to talk about Sea of Thieves and new trends in the gaming universe is a very special guest -- Joe, welcome to the show. Could you start by introducing yourself to our audience and sharing a few words about what you do? JOE NEATE: Yes. So I'm Joe Neate, and I'm the executive producer on Sea of Thieves. Ultimately, I've been involved in the project from the very start from when it was kind of just Post-Its on a whiteboard figuring out what was next for Rare, through to what it is now. Yeah, ultimately, responsible for vision and maintaining the vision and delivery and now running and operating, growing it as a service. DONA SARKAR: That's amazing. I want to ask you all about the latest Sea of Thieves news -- our Insiders definitely want to know. But first, can you please share what it's like to be the executive producer at a gam dev company like Rare, being the chief wrangler and all? JOE NEATE: It's an amazing responsibility. So to have that responsibility of coming up with what is next for a studio like Rare. You know, Rare has been in the gaming industry for 32 years now, which is pretty much since the games industry began, and they've done so many different games. And so to have that opportunity to sit down and look at the kind of emerging trends in the industry, to see where player tastes are going and figure out what you think is going to be the place you should take gaming and you should take players with you is an incredible feeling. Even just the different stages of game development from when you've just got the idea through to kind of pitching it to prototyping to getting into the real production of it, and then starting to build a community and bring fans in and then get people playing it and go through all of that, and then eventually get to launch and have an incredible launch. And now we're in this place where we've got this game out there, we've got this huge community, and now we just want to grow and build on top of it. I'm very privileged to have the job that I have and to get to do what I do every day. DONA SARKAR: That is amazing. So for the very few, small number of people in our audience who are not yet familiar with Sea of Thieves, can you give us a quick rundown of what the game is all about? JOE NEATE: Yeah. Absolutely. So when we set out at the start, we wanted to create what we called a "shared-world adventure game." The acronym for that is SWAG, which we're particularly happy with for a pirate game, but we love our acronyms at Microsoft, right? It's really about putting people into this shared-world, multi-player game where you're off on your own kind of pirate adventures, doing what you want to do in a pirate world from, you know, maybe you've grown up reading Treasure Island or you watch The Goonies or you love Pirates of the Caribbean, or anything like that. And whenever you see a set of sails on the horizon, or you encounter another pirate on an island, that's going to be someone else. And they're going to be on their own adventure doing their own things, too. And the collision of those adventures, the encounters you have with other players out there are going to play out in different and unexpected ways every time, just like if you were, you know, a pirate out adventuring on the open sea. And that's

With the release of the Windows April 2018 Update, we chat with Microsoft engineers about three exciting features that Insiders voted as part of their top 10 favorites. Tom Alphin joins Jason Howard in the studio to talk about Timeline, a new, chronological way to keep track of all your stuff, including across multiple devices. Jake Cohen chats about Eye Control, an accessibility feature that Microsoft developed with the help of Steve Gleason, an NFL football player for the New Orleans Saints who is living with ALS. And Samuele Dassatti, an 18-year-old Windows Insider from Italy, shares his experience developing his app, Fluenty, using Fluent Design. Then, Dona Sarkar and Jason have a candid discussion about what it's really like to be a Microsoft engineer and evolve an operating system used by more than a billion users worldwide. Episode Transcription JASON HOWARD: Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast. I'm your host, Jason Howard, and this is Episode 15: Updates and Features and Engineers—Oh, My! This episode, we'll chat with Microsoft engineers about Timeline and Eye Control, as well as a Windows Insider about Fluent design. All three of these features were voted by insiders as part of the top ten features within this update. Later, Dona Sarkar and I will chat about what it's really like to evolve an operating system used by more than a billion users worldwide. JASON HOWARD: To talk about the new Timeline feature today, we have Tom Alphin. Welcome to the show. TOM ALPHIN: Thank you. JASON HOWARD: So could you please introduce yourself to the audience and tell them what you do here at Microsoft? TOM ALPHIN: Sure. So I'm Tom Alphin. I've been working at Microsoft for about 15, 16 years. Been on the Windows team for most of that, and most recently, as you introduced me, I've been working on the Timeline feature. JASON HOWARD: Awesome. TOM ALPHIN: Yeah. JASON HOWARD: And for those who may not be familiar, or may not have watched some of the webcasts we do, back in December of 2017, we did a little demo -- what was it? About a week early before the Timeline feature showed up Insider builds? TOM ALPHIN: Yeah. JASON HOWARD: Actually had you on the air, got to do some demos -- they worked. TOM ALPHIN: Yeah. Yeah. JASON HOWARD: Which was awesome. (Laughter.) Doing live demos is always a risky proposition. So for those that are listening to the show and may not be familiar with the functionality, since it's just now like properly releasing to the public, can you give us a bit of a rundown on what Timeline is? TOM ALPHIN: Yeah. Before talking about Timeline itself, it's worth speaking for a moment about what problem we think Timeline solves. We identified some years ago that people were struggling to find their stuff. It used to be that I knew where all my stuff was. It was on my one laptop on the hard drive. And now with a world of cloud services, OneDrive and Dropbox or whatever your favorite storage solution is, it's kind of hard to find stuff sometimes. Or it might even be on the C drive of a different laptop. And it's like, "Where's my stuff?" And so rather than just trying to make sure even puts all their stuff in one place, which of course we're investing in making OneDrive a great place for your stuff, we also recognized, you know, people are going to use a mix of things. So why don't we give them one view of all their stuff? And it's organized, actually, chronologically, not by physical storage location. And that was sort of the conceptual journey that we went through to get to the idea, "Hey, maybe we just give people a timeline of their stuff." And that's the gist of it. When we ended up, ultimately, shipping today is the ability for users to click on the task view button that's been part of Windows for a while now. Instead of just seeing what's running, you can actually go back in time. And you're seeing your chronological view of stuff you've done in the past. And from that chronological view, you can click on something because you want to get back to that document or that website, and it will just launch. And we've made it really easy. We're hoping people habituate to that as an alternate way to go back and find things they care about. JASON HOWARD: And it seems like the name was pretty easy to stumble upon, it kind of named itself. (Laughter.) TOM ALPHIN: Yeah. I mean, the name of the feature kind of just is the essence of the feature. Although, we use that name as a bit of a guiding principle. We were, like, when we started thinking about search results in the timeline experience, we could have organized the search results in any manner of ways. We could have organized them by application, we could have organized them by some sort of relevance algorithm. We chose, ultimately, to organize them chronologically because we're, like, "This is Timeline, we've got to keep things organized in a predictable, consistent way." And that bounding concept is chronology. So reverse chronology, center of Timeline.

Everyone's favorite new buzzword is 'machine learning' (or 'ML') but what exactly is ML and how is it already transforming everyday life and business? We chat with Microsoft engineers about machine learning and the significance of Windows ML, a new AI platform for developers available through the upcoming Windows 10 update. We cover how ML is changing the field of app development and how developers can get started with Windows ML. Finally, a Windows Insider gives us a tour under the hood of his app and discusses how machine learning is baked into the app's evolution. Episode transcription JASON HOWARD: Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast. I'm your host, Jason Howard, and you're listening to Episode 14, What's Up with Machine Learning? In this episode we chat about ML, its future influence on app development, and the impact of Microsoft's recent Windows machine learning announcement. Here in the studios with our first guests is Dona Sarkar DONA SARKAR: Hi. I'm Dona Sarkar, Chief Ninja Cat and head of the Windows Insider Program I'm here today in the studio with some special guests from Microsoft to talk all about everyone's favorite new buzzword, machine learning. I would love for our guests to introduce themselves. Clint, would you like to go first? CLINT RUTKAS: Hi. I'm Clint Rutkas. I am a Windows developer community champion. So if you guys have APIs you want in the system, please talk to me. DONA SARKAR: Exactly. You'll see him on Twitter a lot talking about the Windows SDK. So for all of your Windows SDK needs, tweet @ClintRutkas. And then Lucas. LUCAS BRODZINSKI: Hi. I'm Lucas Brodzinski. I'm the program manager lead of the Windows AI platform team. DONA SARKAR: That is awesome. What does that mean? LUCAS BRODZINSKI: Well, we're teaching the robots how to think. You know, we've added capabilities to Windows for people to do machine learning inference on the edge. So we're introducing the intelligent edge to Windows. DONA SARKAR: That is really cool. Thank you for joining us. LUCAS BRODZINSKI: Thank you for having me. CLINT RUTKAS: I actually think it's even more than that. Think about we're adding machine learning, the ability for every Windows device, not just desktop, device, to be able to do machine learning. So I think the big question is like, what is machine learning and why do we care? DONA SARKAR: That's exactly the very first question I have for both of you, which is let's go all the way back, back, back. What is machine learning and why is it different than AI? LUCAS BRODZINSKI: Cool, totally. So the way to think about AI and machine learning is machine learning is a subset of AI. The whole concept of AI is you're trying to get a computer to act intelligently, kind of like a human would. So you can get a computer to do a function like a human would and get a response from the computer as a human would. Machine learning is a specific technique to try and do that. So for instance, if I'm having a conversation with you guys in real life, like I am right now, you know, I can read your facial expressions and I can kind of change my approach to the conversation based on the facial expressions you guys are giving me. So that's my intelligence. And we would love to teach computers to be able to react to human interaction in that way. One potential technique to go about doing that is emotion detection, which there are machine learning models to do. However, machine learning is this technique towards building out this larger intelligence, which is AI. CLINT RUTKAS: So I think the question is, why would you use machine learning? Let's say for whatever reason you want to build out a vegetable detector. Let's say I wanted to detect a carrot versus broccoli versus cauliflower. So what is a carrot? So would I do it based on color? So I have an if-statement that says, okay, well, if it's shaped kind of like a triangle, if it's orange and it's roughly this long in the photo, that's a carrot. Well, there's purple carrots. DONA SARKAR: Right. CLINT RUTKAS: So now I have to add in an additional if-statement there. And then, okay, well, now, what's the difference between a carrot and broccoli? That's a bit more easy. But what's the difference between broccoli and cauliflower? If you ask a kid that doesn't know, has never seen them, they might go like this is a baby version of that. So all those things, once you start having to factor in more and more and more, that code becomes extremely unwieldy, and then that's when machine learning comes in, because now you can start giving -- start training your model, this is exactly what a carrot is. Here are all the different examples, all the different images we have of carrots, from different angles, different viewpoints, different coloring, different variants. Same thing with broccoli and cauliflower. And then magically now we can start getting high confidences with that model, and all I had to do was call a couple lines of code. LUCAS BRODZINSKI: You hit it really

In this episode, we delve into lifelong learning – the key to growing your superpowers, whether you're interested in taking the next step in your career or feeding your side hustle. We gathered expert tips and advice on how to keep learning and how to decide what new skills will most benefit you. We also get the scoop on how to get the most out of learning conferences and what it takes to earn a certification from Microsoft. Listen to this episode for a chance to win a free three-month subscription to LinkedIn Learning! One lucky Windows Insider will be selected to access the entire LinkedIn Learning library of 10,000 courses. To enter, tweet about the new talents and knowledge you've gained through LinkedIn Learning, and we'll randomly select one entrant to win. So, let us know on Twitter how you've used LinkedIn Learning to up your game. Then, tag your Tweet with #alwaysbelearning and #windowsinsider to be entered into the drawing. Entries must be received by Wednesday, April 18. Episode transcript JASON HOWARD: Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast. You're listening to Episode 13. I'm your host, Jason Howard. Today, we're talking lifelong learning, that is, how to continue growing your superpowers, whether you're interested in taking the next step in your career, feeding your side hustle, or an amazing new hobby. Plus, we'll share our Windows Insiders can access exclusive free courses on LinkedIn Learning. Our first guest is "the" ultimate lifelong learner. She took a break from her busy job at LinkedIn to share pro tips for acquiring at least three new skills every year. SAVANNAH BARRY: I'm Savannah Barry, and I am a marketing manager at LinkedIn, and I work primarily on LinkedIn Learning. JASON HOWARD: Awesome. Welcome to the studio. SAVANNAH BARRY: Thank you. Thank you for having me. JASON HOWARD: So, we've heard from our colleagues at LinkedIn that you are "the" ultimate lifelong learner and are really savvy in terms of being able to work on new skills to grow your career. Would you mind sharing with everybody your method for doing this? SAVANNAH BARRY: Yeah, totally. So, I'm just a curious person in general. If there is a problem that I come across, I'm very eager to learn how to fix it. I have a hard time, like, just kind of stepping back and saying, "Like, okay, like, someone else handle this problem." Which I think has driven me to be naturally a very curious learner, and kind of have a desire to learn a lot. So when I first joined, I actually joined the Lynda.com team prior to LinkedIn acquiring Lynda.com, and I worked on our enterprise marketing team there. And a great example about what I did there was we needed some e-mails to be coded, and we had to basically rely on an engineering team to build them. And I was, like, "This is not efficient, I cannot get stuff done in the timely manner that I would like it to be." So I basically taught myself how to code e-mails, which I had no idea how to do. But I had a need. I had a problem I needed to overcome, I had some campaigns I wanted to ship, and yeah, I spent months after work learning HTML, taking courses on Lynda, LinkedIn Learning, reading books -- just like basically picking my fiancée's brain, like, "Please teach me how to do this." And at the end of the day, you know, I think it, in general, has made me a better marketer. That's a great example of just like one very tactical thing I did. But I reserve an hour out of my week, every single week, to learn. Truly, I have a calendar invite on Friday, it actually will be after this podcast, where I will basically just reserve at least an hour just to sit down and read something that's like relatable to my career, watch an online course, listen to a podcast -- really, anything that can kind of help me achieve my goals, which I think that has been on my calendar as long as I can remember, so that's kind of how I can carve out time. JASON HOWARD: Well, it sounds like you have a bit of a system -- almost like you've planned out time to go and learn new things. Can you describe some of the, like, the mindset and the process you have behind that? SAVANNAH BARRY: Yeah. I think just knowing that you need to make the time, like, kind of just clearing things out of your brain, off of your desk. I actually go to like a different place. I'll go to a coffee shop, I'll go to a different room in my house, just kind of find a place where I feel a little bit inspired, just to really sit down and focus on the task at hand. So, for example, right now, I'm learning UX design. So I got a bunch of books. And this all stemmed because I was using an app and I was, like, getting really frustrated at it. And I was, like, "Why am I getting so frustrated at this app?" And there's such a psychology behind how we, like, interact with things. And I was very keen to understand. So that is currently what I'm doing. And I have a book in my car that I will be diving into when I get done here, and probably go into a coffee shop or

What does the world stand to lose without equal access to technology and the internet? Microsoft's Dona Sarkar and Leonardo Ortiz discuss the Microsoft Airband Initiative and why the future of jobs and education make closing the digital divide more important than ever. Then, Windows Insider MVP Andre DaCosta from Jamaica, shares his thoughts on the power of connectivity, plus a few tips for optimizing Windows while having limited access to the internet. Episode transcript JASON HOWARD: Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast. You're listening to Episode 12. I'm your host, Jason Howard. Today, we're exploring the digital divide and access to the Internet, what does the world stand to lose if some people have access to technology and the Internet and other people don't; what can be done about the digital divide; and why should all tech companies care. Those questions and more coming up in this episode. First up, Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider Program, chats with Leonardo Ortiz of Microsoft Philanthropies about how the digital divide profoundly affects communities, education, and employment. Here are Leonardo and Dona. LEONARDO ORTIZ: My name is Leonardo Ortiz. I've been in Microsoft for 18 years now, and I currently work for the Microsoft Philanthropies group where I oversee our global execution. DONA SARKAR: Which is, you know, kind of amazing LEONARDO ORTIZ: It's definitely fun, you know, and it has to do with figuring out how we land our programs all over the world. DONA SARKAR: That's right. So as a society we're in the middle of an exciting technological transformation, but there's billions of people around the world, and millions right here in the U.S. who don't have access to tech and the Internet. Why is this issue of digital divide so critical, and why is Microsoft Philanthropies so committed to solving it. LEONARDO ORTIZ: As you say, you know, the world is changing at a very rapid pace. Everything is becoming more digital, which means the way in which we work, the way in which we learn, the interaction with government, with commerce. And as the world becomes more digital, when you have more than half of the population in the world with no access to technology or connectivity, which on itself shouldn't matter that much but for the fact that that connectivity allows you to access opportunities, content, knowledge, services, then these people are lagging behind even in a more rapid pace. They are underserved already, and the gap gets just widening in a more dramatic way. And they're not being able to advance and access technology by market means, which means that companies like Microsoft, we really need to step up and do some extra work in addition to what we normally do in our business model to ensure that technology advances but that we left no one behind, to the extent possible. DONA SARKAR: You said over 50 percent of the world has no connectivity. LEONARDO ORTIZ: Exactly. DONA SARKAR: That's enormous. LEONARDO ORTIZ: Not even a feature phone, nothing. DONA SARKAR: Nothing. LEONARDO ORTIZ: Nothing. DONA SARKAR: So more than 50 percent of the world is never connected. LEONARDO ORTIZ: Exactly. DONA SARKAR: That's pretty extraordinary. And I know you guys have been doing a lot of work over the past few years to ensure that people in communities have access to the opportunities that tech provides. Can you tell us a little bit about what you've been doing. LEONARDO ORTIZ: Yes. So our main goal is to bridge that digital divide, to ensure that people have access to technology, but most important to ensure that people is ready for the future. In a world in which we're going to see more artificial intelligence, more robotics, the way of working is going to evolve rapidly. We need to make sure, and I'm going to start with young people, that all the future generations that will come to the workforce are future ready, that they're learning not only how to use technology but how to create technology, which is now going to become not just something that is useful for the software industry, but for everyone, regardless of the discipline that people pursue. So that's going to more generalized in the future, and we need to make sure that that happens. Right now, we're seeing displacement starting to happen, job displacement, people whose jobs are going away because of automation, and especially in areas like the manufacturing industry or retail industry. And we need to work with society, with academia, with nonprofit sector to ensure that we're identifying those people, that we're reskilling those individuals, and that we're matching them to the existing jobs that are out there, because people may just think jobs are going away, but you know what, every time that technology evolves and that industry evolves, jobs go away but other new jobs come up. DONA SARKAR: That's right. LEONARDO ORTIZ: But we just need to make sure that people are trained rapidly enough to be able to plug into the existing jobs. So we

How is Mixed Reality (MR) changing the way we experience the world? We explore this question with three creators using MR to entertain, connect, and assist people with different abilities. First, we chat with Mia Tramz, Managing Editor at LIFE VR, about using virtual reality to travel the world. Then we catch up with Zach Clark, a veteran who was injured in combat and is now using HoloLens to help people with visual impairments and brain injuries navigate hospital settings. Finally, Microsoft's Dona Sarkar and Spencer Reynolds take us on a tour of becoming a virtual hologram via Microsoft's Mixed Reality Capture Studios. Episode transcript JASON HOWARD: Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast. You are listening to Episode 11 part two, in our series on mixed reality. Today, we're talking to creators in the mixed reality space. Mixed reality, also known as MR, is the term for experiences where physical and digital objects coexist and interact in real time. We can reach these experiences through a combination of headsets, computers, and external sensors, or more sophisticated technology like the HoloLens. Microsoft, and Windows in particular, has been a leader in enabling mixed reality experiences. In fact, Windows 10 was built from the ground up to support innovations in mixed reality. To learn more about Microsoft's commitment to MR, check out part one in our series on mixed reality. Hardware and software technology are both important for mixed reality, but so is the context available on the platform. Creators in MR are using it to tell stories, enable innovation, and even provide medical care. We're still discovering all the ways MR could impact our lives. Our first guest today talks to me about the challenges and opportunities of creating entertainment content for virtual reality platforms. She's calling in from her office in New York where she develops mixed reality content for Time, Incorporated, the media giant behind more than 100 magazine brands and websites, names you've probably heard of like Sports Illustrated, and Time Magazine. MIA TRAMZ: My name is Mia Tramz. I'm the Managing Editor of Life VR, and newly Time's Special Projects Editor for Time Magazine. I develop and produce VR and AR experiences for all Time, Inc. brands. So that includes Time, but also Sports Illustrated, People, EW, Travel & Leisure, Food & Wine, Essence & Style, the list goes on and on and on. And I also lead the company's strategy in both markets. JASON HOWARD: Wow, it sounds like you have quite the reach. MIA TRAMZ: I do, I do. I get to do a lot of fun things and wear many hats. JASON HOWARD: So officially you are Managing Editor for VR Content. What's a typical day like for you. MIA TRAMZ: On the one hand, I can sit down with the editors from pretty much any of our titles from Time to People to Sports Illustrated, and brainstorm, you know, big ambitious and smaller, quicker turn VR, AR, and 360 projects, or I can go out into the world and find projects that align well with our brands, and kind of integrate those editorial teams into the development of, you know, projects that are coming to us from the outside. And then I also get to come up with a lot of projects on my own, which has been a really fun part of the job. We create for and publish across many platforms, everything from Facebook 360 to Samsung Gear to our Life VR Cardboard app, which is available for free for iOS and Android -- do my little plug -- to Oculus and Vive, which are, you know, at the higher end of the spectrum. We are also very newly a Microsoft MR launch partner, so we have a Life VR app on the new Windows MR platform. And, you know, each of those platforms requires an understanding of what works best on that particular device, understanding the different types of production that it takes to create some effective for those different platforms. So I get to work a bunch of different muscles, and I'm constantly learning and being thrown into new situations. It's a really fascinating job. JASON HOWARD: No doubt that keeps it interesting and entertaining. So you've mentioned, you know, the broad variety of platforms that you engage users across, like the Life brand itself has a long history of telling stories across a ton of different subjects, you know, everything from news to sports, fashion and food, of course. How does your approach in telling stories in the virtual reality space differ from telling stories with traditional means like video or a magazine feature. MIA TRAMZ: Well, I'll answer that in sort of an indirect way. Life VR is meant to be an extension of the Life Magazine brand. When this initiative was, you know, being thought up in our company, one of the issues they were trying to solve for was going into VR as a publishing company was distribution. It's one of the hardest parts of being a creator in the VR space right now, getting eyeballs on what you're creating. And what they decided was instead of, you know, developing separate VR app

Over the next two episodes, the Windows Insider podcast explores all things mixed reality. In part 1, we chat with the Hololens team about design elements in Windows Mixed Reality and how developers can get started creating immersive experiences. We also hear how virtual reality enhances social life and creates community with people from all over the world. Find out more about Windows Mixed Reality here: https://aka.ms/MoreInfo_WindowsMixedReality Episode transcript ALEX KIPMAN (from video): Now we're standing together at the threshold of the next revolution of computing. Now, the thing that excites me about this revolution is that computers will empower us to renegotiate our very contract with reality, giving us the capability to transcend time, space, and devices In this revolution we will immerse ourselves in virtual worlds of our choosing, and we'll be able to accomplish impossible things. And we'll be able to do all of this while creating lasting memories with the people that we love Our very sense of reality is set to be transformed as we enter this new era of computing, the era of mixed reality JASON HOWARD: That's Alex Kipman, Technical Fellow here at Microsoft, delivering the keynote at a recent event where he unveiled the company's vision for mixed reality And as you can tell from that clip, his vision is a bold one. Microsoft's plan for mixed reality is nothing short of transforming the way people interact with the physical and digital worlds But let's back up for a second. What is mixed reality, and what will it enable us to do? Welcome to the Windows Insider Podcast where we explore all things Windows, the Insider community, and beyond I'm your host, Jason Howard. You're listening to Episode 10, the first of a two-part series where we'll explore mixed reality Microsoft has been a pioneer in mixed reality, also known as MR, starting with the groundbreaking launch of HoloLens in 2015. The HoloLens is the world's first untethered holographic computer that enables people to have experiences that blend both the physical and digital worlds To learn about recent developments in MR I've invited a couple experts from the HoloLens team to the podcast today BECKY HARUYAMA: My name is Becky Haruyama, and I am a Principal Designer for the Windows Mixed Reality Engineering Team. And what I've been focusing on most recently is the customer experience in the physical Microsoft stores where people who are going out and looking at what is this Windows Mixed Reality, we have design and experience for them to kind of better understand why they should invest in this KATHERINE HARRIS: Yeah, and I'm Kat Harris. I am also on the Windows design team, but I am a developer and I work mainly with our open source toolkits that we provide to developers to help them really dive into working with our headsets, and making very high quality, cool, new experiences and new tools for their companies or bringing their ideas to life JASON HOWARD: So Becky, let me ask you, what is your definition of mixed reality? BECKY HARUYAMA: So we are familiar with the physical world. We live in it every day. It's made out of atoms. It's things that you can touch. And then there is this digital world that is made out of pixels. And mixed reality is the blending of those two realities together And so while that is still really abstract, if you start thinking about augmented reality and virtual reality, those are actually under the spectrum, the umbrella term of mixed reality So augmented reality is when you have digital artifacts in your physical world, so you can see your environment, you can move around inside of it, and there are digital artifacts that are around. And there's different kind of fidelities of that And then of course on the virtual reality side your environment is completely digital. And there's not really like a hard edge line, it's more of a blending of people, places, and things. And so you could have a fully digital person in a fully physical location or physical place. And so it's really like Alex Kipman talks about this dial, the mixer, that kind of mixes people, places, and things between augmented reality and virtual reality. So there is no boundary between the two, it's really a mixture of those three characteristics under the umbrella of mixed reality JASON HOWARD: So Kat, your work is focused on enabling developers to create mixed reality experiences. What are some inspiring things you've seen people do with this new technology KATHERINE HARRIS: A lot of different things. What's great about mixed reality is that it's kind of an open platform for a bunch of different industries to kind of jump into. You have the medical industry, you have education, you have training people. And it's this new exploratory like medium of giving content to people and kind of training their brains or delivering that content in a different way that they've never really experienced before And so we're enabling developers now to create new exp

In honor of International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3rd, the Windows Insider Podcast team explores advancements in inclusive technology. For decades, Microsoft has been creating products and services to serve people of all abilities, and in recent years the company has made a stronger commitment to this goal with the appointment of Chief Accessibility Officer, Jenny Lay-Flurrie. In this episode, we chat with Jenny about the future of inclusive tech, and we learn how feedback from users (and Windows Insiders!) is shaping Microsoft's efforts. To find out more about Microsoft's commitment to accessibility and inclusion, visit Microsoft.com/Accessibility. Episode transcript: NARRATOR: Welcome to the Windows Insider where we explore all things Windows, the Insider community and beyond I'm your host, Jason Howard (ph). You are listening to Episode 9, and this month's theme is accessibility JASON HOWARD: Wait a minute, that's not me. That was the Windows 10 Narrator. And it's more than just a podcast gimmick, the Narrator feature helps people who are blind or have low vision navigate their computers by reading what's on screen When you think about how much of what we do in the world relies on what can be read, you really start to understand how this technology could impact the lives of millions of people More and more accessibility features are built into the DNA of Microsoft services and products. These features deliver on Microsoft's mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. That includes ensuring people of all abilities can participate in life, work, and society Today, we're going to talk to someone who's taking the ideals of accessibility and inclusion and putting them into action. Please meet Microsoft's Chief Accessibility Officer, Jenny Lay-Flurrie So here you are the Chief Accessibility Officer. JENNY LAY-FLURRIE: I am JASON HOWARD: What does that mean JENNY LAY-FLURRIE: Basically, it means that my job is to drive for a great experience for customers with disabilities and employees with disabilities, and also really pursue the concept of inclusive design. So it just means I'm really thinking about a section of our customer base that's pretty big, and how we can ensure that we're delivering great products, great services, great hiring process, to ensure that we're really inclusive JASON HOWARD: A few years ago, accessibility could have been considered a side project at many companies, but things have changed, at least at Microsoft. Now it's becoming an integral part of our company culture and product development. Can you tell us how that happened JENNY LAY-FLURRIE: Yeah, it's kind of cool what's going on, and I'm loving being part of it. But actually accessibility has been part of Microsoft's strategy for well over actually 20 years. But we've definitely in the last couple of years decided to really kick it up a notch And by kicking it up a notch, it's just really leaning into the opportunity that we have. You know, there's a billion people in the world with disabilities, a billion plus. These are our customers, our friends, our peers, our everything. And there's a whole suite of innovation that can come from really designing products and building products that include disability So we invested in some resources across the company, across our product divisions, including my lovely team, and really decided to go after that opportunity to build better products, and to really think about how we were hiring talent across the spectrum of disability as well JASON HOWARD: So Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella has a son who's in a wheelchair because of cerebral palsy, and is paralyzed. Satya has said in his new book Hit Refresh that having a son with disabilities has made him more empathetic, and that's one of the reasons he's committed to driving accessibility and inclusion at Microsoft. That explains why the company is working towards some of these accessibility initiatives On a personal level what experience has led you to working in accessibility JENNY LAY-FLURRIE: It's a great question, and Satya, the book is just it's incredible. And if you haven't read it, please do. I mean, Satya is sharing his own personal experiences there. It's just incredibly powerful I think we've all had a personal journey. My personal journey, let's just say I would never have predicted that I would be doing this job today. I mean, I come from a small town on the outskirts of Birmingham in the UK. I went through mainstream education. I went to a music college. I got a classical music degree. And I thought I was going to be a really cool classical rock star or a music therapist or something in that vein And then I started working in IT, actually in a newspaper in London on the IT help desk, and realized that I dig, I just love problem-solving. And I thought that was going to be my career was, you know, solving problems with IT and doing a bit of music on the side But all the wa

According to a 2016 study, only 26% of the tech industry's workforce is women. This month on the Windows Insider Podcast, we explore the impact of having so few women in software development and other tech careers, and what we can do to empower women in the field. Featuring guest hosts Colleen O'Brien and Sonia Dara from the podcast "Women in Business & Technology". To learn more about the "Women in Business & Technology" podcast, visit: https://aka.ms/Womenbizandtech

The Windows Insider Program gives IT Pros credibility and the chance to deliver better products to their customers. On top of that, companies and organizations have a huge impact on the development of Windows. In this episode, we ask Michael Niehaus, Director of Product Marketing at Windows, what businesses can gain from deploying preview builds at work. We also hear from an IT Pro whose close relationship with the Windows Insider team makes him better at his job. To connect with Michael Niehaus on Twitter, you can find him @mniehaus. To 'DIY' your own Microsoft Ignite experience, check out the sessions online at https://aka.ms/WatchIgnite.

Have you ever wondered what it's like to intern at Microsoft? In this month's episode of the Windows Insider podcast, we look at the intern experience from two perspectives. First, we sit down with Lauren Rosenberg, a double-major in computer science and astrophysics, to learn what it's like being part of the Cloud and Enterprise team. Lauren was a Windows Insider in the fast ring before starting university, and the program helped propel her interest in working for Microsoft. We also talk to the Windows Insider engineering team's own intern, Marissa Zhang. Marissa shares her behind-the-scenes perspective of the program and what she's learned from the global community of Insiders.

Insiders influence all that we do, so this month they are powering the Windows Insider podcast as we dive into themes of community and engagement. Listen as Dona Sarkar responds directly to questions from the Insider community on Twitter, along with giving us an exclusive first look at what's next for the program (hint: it's about building connections). Two long-time Insiders drive the second half of the episode when they interview Windows Insider MVP, Joel Rushworth, about engaging with friends and colleagues through the Windows Insider Program.

This month on the Windows Insider Podcast, hear Kiki Wolfkill, the Studio Head for Transmedia at 343 Industries, and Dona Sarkar dissect how experiential gaming builds empathy, and learn life lessons from a third grader about how gamifying coding builds not only robots but friendships and newfound skills within immigrant communities.

On this week's show, the Windows Education Marketing team describes what it takes to make technology more accessible for schools and more useful for today's student – get an insider's perspective into an event that launched a philosophy, not just a product. Keep listening to hear how Kayas Cultural College built a digital classroom using a fully Microsoft solution for distance learning in remote areas. From K-12 to adult education, join us for an episode In the Classroom.

In this Down Under episode of the Windows Insider podcast, listen in as Chief Ninja Cat, Dona Sarkar, and the Godfather of Windows Insider Program, Bill Karagounis, discuss updates coming out of Ignite Australia and ways our Insiders can become heroes of the digital transformation. Our next Aussie guest shares the origin story of Girl-germs, the name of her blog, and the value she finds as a member of the Insider community.