Smartsheet Adds Microsoft’s Andrew Lientz to Lead Engineering Team

New SVP of engineering will spearhead company’s continued efforts to help organizations empower their employees to work more productively and efficiently

Bellevue-based Smartsheet, the spreadsheet-inspired collaborative work management platform used by millions of people worldwide, and one of Deloitte’s 500 fastest-growing technology companies, today announced former Microsoft partner/general manager Andrew Lientz will be joining the company as SVP of engineering. In this role, Lientz will oversee the technology operations, engineering and QA teams.

“Andrew’s knowledge of both the technology and business aspects of companies allows him to bridge between customer, software, management and developer,” said Mark Mader, CEO of Smartsheet. “His experience as an engineering leader at growth stage and large companies offers us an added layer of expertise on top of an already deep development team. This will further establish Smartsheet as the collaborative work management platform of choice for enterprises worldwide.”

Microsoft 2015 Partner of the Year Awards Revealed

Winners and Finalists of Microsoft 2015 Partner of the Year Awards Announced

Redmond-based Microsoft recently announced the winners and finalists of the Microsoft 2015 Partner of the Year Awards. The annual awards celebrate top Microsoft partners that are demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology. Award winners and finalists, chosen out of nominations from around the world, will be recognized at the 2015 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference taking place July 12–16, 2015, in Orlando, Fla.

Microsoft to Offer Windows 10 as Free Upgrade Starting July

Windows 10 to Be Offered As Free Upgrade

A media release from Microsoft this morning says that Windows 10 will be available as a free upgrade to existing Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users starting July 29th.  The question is - who is going to be willing to be among the first to try it?  It is well noted that early adopters of previous Windows versions have often faced serious problems and frustrations with new versions of the operating system.

Here is the official media release from Microsoft:

Microsoft Corp. has announced that Windows 10 will be available July 29 in 190 countries. Windows 10 will help people be more productive and have more fun, with a personal and natural experience that works across all their devices. Familiar, yet better than ever, Windows 10 will deliver ongoing feature innovations and security updates. Windows 10 will be available as a free upgrade to people using Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, enabling hundreds of millions of people around the world to upgrade to Windows 10 for free.

“Windows 10 is a new generation of Windows designed to empower you to do great things,” said Terry Myerson, executive vice president, Microsoft. “Windows 10 starts to deliver on our vision of more personal computing, defined by trust in how we protect and respect your personal information, mobility of the experience across your devices, and natural interactions with your Windows devices, including speech, touch, ink and holograms.”

Familiar and better than ever

Windows 10 brings back the Start menu people know and love while enabling them to easily find their files, pinned applications and favorites. Windows 10 starts fast, resumes fast and helps enable batteries to last longer. More secure than ever, Windows 10 includes Windows Hello, Microsoft Passport and Windows Defender for anti-malware protection, and a commitment to deliver free, ongoing security updates for the supported lifetime of the device. Optimized for both keyboard and touch, the Windows 10 upgrade is designed to be compatible with Windows devices and applications.

A more personal and natural experience

Windows 10 adapts to people for a more personal experience. Cortana, the world’s first truly personal digital assistant, helps people get things done across all their devices. Cortana learns individual preferences to provide relevant recommendations, fast access to information and important reminders via talking or typing. Windows Hello greets people by name and lets them log in to their PC without a password — providing instant, more secure access to their Windows 10 devices through biometric authentication. Windows 10 also lets people interact with their device via the traditional mouse and keyboard or through more natural ways such as voice, pen or gesture.

Be more productive

Windows 10 will help people get more done with less effort than ever before. Microsoft Edge, the all-new browser designed to get things done online in new ways, offers built-in inking, sharing and reading view. With Cortana integrated, Microsoft Edge offers quick results and content based on individual interests and preferences. Fast, streamlined and personal, Microsoft Edge empowers people to focus on just the content that matters to them and actively engage with the Web.

In addition to the Office 2016 full-featured desktop suite, new Universal Windows applications for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook will offer a consistent, touch-first experience across a range of devices. Designed from the ground up to run on Windows 10 and perfect for staying productive on the go, people can easily create and edit Word documents and deliver PowerPoint presentations while annotating on the fly. With new touch-first controls in Excel, people can create or update spreadsheets without a keyboard or mouse.

Work and play the way you want across devices

Windows 10 offers a familiar and consistent experience across devices. Continuum enables devices to transform, enabling elegant transitions of a tablet into a PC, and back — and for a Windows phone to become like a PC.⁵ Xbox on Windows 10 brings the expansive Xbox Live gaming network to both Windows 10 PCs and tablets. People can communicate with their friends on Windows 10 PCs and Xbox One while playing any PC game and share content using Game DVR. People can also stream games directly from their Xbox One console to a Windows 10 tablet or PC in their homes. Games developed for DirectX 12 in Windows 10 will see improvements in speed, efficiency and graphics capability.⁶

Upgrade availability

On July 29, people can get Windows 10 for PCs and tablets by taking advantage of the free upgrade offer, or on new Windows 10 devices. New Windows 8.1 devices will also easily upgrade to Windows 10, and many retail stores will help upgrade new devices. Starting today, people can reserve their free upgrade if they choose. More information is available here and at Windows.com.

Related:

Winners and Finalists of Microsoft 2015 Partner of the Year Awards Announced

Patent Agreement Announced by Microsoft and Fuji Xerox

It's really great to see such great partnerships between high-tech leaders. It will be very interesting to see what types of technological advancements will come from this.

Fuji Xerox Co. Ltd. and Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC announced on Thursday a broad patent cross-licensing agreement. Building on a 2007 cross-licensing agreement, today’s agreement ensures that Microsoft and Fuji Xerox continue to benefit from access to each other’s substantial and valuable patent portfolios and accelerate research and development.

“Today’s agreement demonstrates the power of patent licensing to stimulate engagement and innovation,” said Nick Psyhogeos, vice president and executive director of Microsoft Technology Licensing. “This expanded deal between our companies demonstrates that the opportunities for collaboration across our mutual technologies and intellectual property assets continue to grow. We look forward to further strengthening our partnership with Fuji Xerox in the years ahead.”

This agreement covers a broad range of products and services offered by Microsoft and Fuji Xerox, including digital imaging, document management and mobile consumer products. Microsoft and Fuji Xerox have a long history of working together to bring high-quality, cutting-edge products to consumers. Contents of the agreement will not be disclosed.

“We are pleased to continue our mutually beneficial patent agreement that respects each company’s innovations and intellectual property, encourages greater interoperability, and provides valuable protections for consumers,” said Yasuaki Onishi, corporate vice president of Fuji Xerox.

Microsoft’s commitment to licensing IP

The patent agreement is another example of the important role intellectual property (IP) plays in ensuring a healthy and vibrant technology ecosystem. Since Microsoft launched its IP licensing program in December 2003, the company has entered into more than 1,100 licensing agreements. More information about Microsoft Technology Licensing’s programs is available athttp://www.microsoft.com/iplicensing.

About Fuji Xerox

Founded in 1962, Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. is in the Document Services & Communications field, offering solutions and services to help customers resolve their business challenges. Underlying their solutions and services are their world-class office multi-function devices, printers and production printers that we develop and manufacture for worldwide distribution. Together with cloud and mobile solutions, Fuji Xerox builds a communications environment that enable their customers to access the right information, at the right time, and in the right form — thereby contributing to their valuable communications.

Fuji Xerox is a 75-25 joint venture between FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation and Xerox Corporation, and its direct sales force covers Japan and the Asia-Pacific region including China. We employ approximately 45,000 people globally, with more than 80 domestic and overseas affiliates / sales subsidiaries. http://www.fujixerox.com/

About Microsoft Technology Licensing

Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC was formed in 2014 to acquire, manage and license Microsoft’s patent portfolio.

St. Thomas School Helps Shape Microsoft’s OneNote Class Notebook Creator

St. Thomas School in Medina, WA has a long history of incorporating laptop programs for students in the third through eighth grades so they can produce videos, compose music, take online math tests, and author book reviews and essays. This year the school expanded the program to include a program for first through second grade students and chose the Surface Pro as the school's standard device.

St. Thomas School worked closely with Microsoft through the development and testing of the OneNote Class Notebook Creator, a new app that allows teachers to create a personal workspace for every student.

St. Thomas School participated in beta testing of the product and the teachers and students were able to provide valuable insight and feedback
to the Microsoft team.

"St. Thomas School provided us with invaluable real-world feedback as we developed the OneNote Class Notebook Creator,” said Kristin Rhodes,
general manager for education at Microsoft.  “We wanted to create an app that was immediately useful for teachers and helps them quickly and easily set up class notebooks for collaborating and sharing content.  Working with teachers and students at St. Thomas School through early product testing and programs like the Surface Advisory Council helps us to create innovative learning environments for students.”

By working with the Microsoft Surface team, St. Thomas School has taken a leadership position in the integration between education and technology. To further the collaboration between St. Thomas School and Microsoft, Kimberly Mecham, the school’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, has accepted an invitation to join the Microsoft Surface Advisory Council.

About St. Thomas School
Founded in 1951, St. Thomas School is an independent, non-sectarian, early childhood, elementary and middle school. STS gives students the
intellectual capacity, rigorous critical thinking skills, and strength of character to lead, innovate and collaborate. We serve 300 students on a
55,000 sq. ft. LEED Gold® certified campus on the east side of Lake Washington in Medina. St. Thomas School is one of five schools in the U.S.
selected to be a part of the Microsoft Innovative Schools World Tour. For more information, please see http://www.stthomasschool.org, find them on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @stsfalcons.