Microsoft confirms rumors as it announces the purchase of Mojang, the makers of Minecraft.

Minecraft Maker Mojang Joins Microsoft

Xbox One August Update enables mobile purchasing among other several features.

Xbox One August Update Rolling Out Generally Now

Xbox Music API is now open to all third party developers. The affiliate program is interesting too, but will developers come?

App Developer Focused On Music? Use Xbox Music API and Make Money!

The Surface Pro 3 is a great laptop replacement. What does the Surface Family of devices say about Microsoft’s plans?

The Surface Family Evolves: Where Does It Go from Here?

Several updates, including external storage support, are coming to Xbox One in the June update.

External Storage Support Coming to Xbox One in June Update

If you bought Xbox LIVE Gold and don’t need it after June, you can request a refund after the update rolls out.

Good News: Xbox LIVE Gold Can Be Refunded after June If You Don’t Need It

Two big cost-cutting moves made by Microsoft: Xbox One will be sold without Kinect and entertainment apps will now be free and not require Xbox LIVE Gold.

Xbox One Will Be Sold Without Kinect and Entertainment Apps Now Free to All

I have resumed writing at Techie-Buzz. This past week, Microsoft’s //build/ conference gave me an opportunity to write something about the company and its moves.

At //build/, Microsoft made key announcements to get closer to realizing their vision of “One Windows”, hoping to increase developer interest in Windows.

//build 2014: One Windows Vision Coming Together For Microsoft

I am not a gamer, but I have an Xbox 360. I got it when Kinect was introduced and when they shifted the focus to entertainment. I am a happy customer, paying for Xbox LIVE Gold, and cannot wait to get the XBOX ONE.

[youtube www.youtube.com/watch

Update: Found this amazing Kinect video at Wired. Watch it all the way. It is awesome.

[youtube www.youtube.com/watch

The much-anticipated Xbox v.Next is going to be revealed at Microsoft campus on May 21. #XboxReveal event will be streamed live.

#XboxReveal: Next Xbox Coming on May 21

Windows Phone needs a lot of fixes. This post goes into some key issues with Xbox Music and Video apps that need to be addressed quickly.

Windows Phone 8: Xbox Music and Video Issues

My peeves with Windows Phone 8 after using a Nokia Lumia 920 for three weeks.

Windows Phone Sucks

Microsoft Minesweeper Arrives on Windows RT, finally.

Microsoft Minesweeper Arrives on Windows RT

I finally got to use a Surface with Windows RT. I love it.

Surface with Windows RT: Likes

Xbox Music is a beautiful-looking service which comes with some asterisks, which Microsoft needs to knock off very soon.

Xbox Music – a Great Service with Some Asterisks

Microsoft is shifting from being a software company to a devices and services company. Welcome to the Modern Microsoft.

Devices, Services and the Modern Microsoft

What are the implications of Microsoft’s second reset with mobile in two years? Is Microsoft doomed, or is it ready for its next chapter?

Windows Phone 8: Second Reset in Two Years

Microsoft has a “major” announcement to make at an unspecified location in Los Angeles. My hope list for what may be announced.

What I Wish Today’s Microsoft Announcement Will Be

Manan Kakkar just blogged about how some of Microsoft's iOS apps are a bad thing for Microsoft, and how the SkyDrive app for WP7 is useless to him. I'd like to use this blog post as a response to some of his remarks, criticisms and rants.

Kinectimals for iOS leaves no USP for the Microsoft ecosystem in the living room

I agree with Manan that there was an implicit promise of Windows Phone working very closely with Xbox and Windows in a way that iOS and Android could not and would not. At the same time, you have to remember - Microsoft is clearly pitching Xbox as a platform. If they want the Xbox to become a platform, they will need many more consoles out in homes. At the same time, the reality is that most Xbox users are most likely users of iOS devices of some shape or form.

Giving a taste of how a mobile device can work tightly with the Xbox gives Microsoft several wins:

1. Exposes a Microsoft Studio game (in this case) to iOS users. If they don't have an Xbox and they like the game, they may start thinking about it.
2. Shows how Microsoft can integrate the mobile phone into its console. "With Windows Phone, the experience would be even tighter" could be the carrot.
3. If the iOS user already has an Xbox, they may be tempted to look at other add-ons for the game, perhaps other games, other content, etc. In other words, fueling the increased use of the console, leading to potential increase in revenues related to Xbox content.

All of these create the vicious circle of creating a bigger market for the console as well as selling more content off the console. For a platform company, is there a better recipe?

Microsoft is at a very interesting stage in its history. For the first time since it became the most dominant company in the world, it is facing a world where its operating system (note: not "software") may not be the most popular system. The world is moving towards smaller, lighter computing devices where so far, we have not seen Windows at all. Until we see Windows 8 succeed, we will continue with the argument that Microsoft is not a player in this new world where PCs will be outsold by smart devices which do not run Windows.

Why should I own a Windows Phone and not an iPhone, if the Xbox integration is going to be so tight with the iPhone?

First, I don't think every game is going to be made available on iOS. Kinectimals is one of those games Microsoft may be toying with, to see if there is any sense in pursuing that market.

So from a user perspective, you can be assured that Windows Phone will continue to have Xbox LIVE games which won't be on any other platforms, it will be the only platform with Xbox Achievements, and if there are games which get on iOS, Windows Phone will get them first for sure. It may not be a convincing argument, but frankly, if it were a convinving argument, Windows Phone would have sold way more than it has already.

Clearly, users don't really care much about Xbox on their phones enough to keep it a strict exclusive.

You bring one game, you have to bring all

I am not sure why they should be forced to bring every game with such tight integration. They chose this game just like EA Games or Pop Cap Games chose to bring one or two games to Windows Phone. I don't see any logical reason to bring every single title to iOS necessarily.

WP7 SkyDrive app is useless

This one confused me. Not because there is no basis for Manan's point. WP7 after all has an extremely efficient concept of Hubs which in fact avoid the need to have separate apps for each service. In that regard, my SkyDrive pics/vids can, and are available in the Pictures Hub. Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote can, and are available in the Office Hub. So I'd call the new SkyDrive app redundant in some ways, but not useless.

• SkyDrive app provides a single place to see "your personal cloud". What about generic files on SkyDrive you may have uploaded, like for example, an AutoCAD file? Where would you find that file on the current WP7? Nowhere, actually.
• SkyDrive app allows creation/modification of folders and deletion of files. Given that Microsoft is pitching SkyDrive against the likes of Dropbox and box.net, having a "drive" to access in one place would be better than spreading it all over the place.
• SkyDrive app allows you to selectively share files/folders via links for read and read/write scenarios. Again, tying this back to using SkyDrive as a cloud storage option, it is easier to have all the stuff in one place.

Hubs are meant to make it easy to see and share stuff that you care about like Pictures, Music, Office docs, etc. The purpose of the SkyDrive app is not to just let you browse the stuff, but also allow it to be selectively shared with others.

Finally, I believe Manan has concluded that the app is useless because it does not serve two of his wishes (more than being really useless) - being able to save an attachment to SkyDrive, and being able to see files on other PCs and devices from SkyDrive. The former is a missing feature of the Mail application and perhaps of the OS itself (not exposing the file system) and the latter is a missing feature of SkyDrive the service. Neither is a shortcoming of the SkyDrive app.

By having an app, Microsoft can also rev it faster than the OS updates, much like Google's apps on Android which are now de-coupled from the OS itself.

I feel bad having the need to write a long response but twitter's 140 characters were just not enough to make my point.

Manan, cheers :-)

SkyDrive app? It's as if the Gods at Redmond have finally heard the prayers of the peasants! Not very useful on WP7 though.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan what do you want it to do? i see it being quite helpful. share/send link/browse. WP7 has adv of being able to edit from Office.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit honestly, it's a useless app only released to avoid the shit storm of "Oh MSFT releases app for iOS leaves WP7"

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan what it provides over-and-above Office Hub is Send Link and creation/deletion of files.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

.@TheRomit essentially, nothing. I need access to my devices.live.com stuff. Till then SkyDrive's cloud promise is broken.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan so you want access to files on other PCs/devices. functionality of the app remains the same, yes?

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit the app's functionality is no different to the Office hub. I preferred SkyDrive within Office hub.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan that is still there. don't put it in past tense :-) unclear if you could enable sharing from Office Hub.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit it makes more sense of adding capabilities of sharing into the hub than create an app that does all the same stuff.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit so when they do that the app might make sense. But they don't right now. Hence the app as of now is useless.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan i streamed video that i had uploaded to one of the folders. today.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit going by that logic, why show me office document in the app. They are Office documents.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan however you could make a case that sharing other files could be done via Pictures Hub. Sure. But one-stop shop is nice.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit I still am looking for a reason as to why I need the SkyDrive app on WP7. I see none. At all.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan the app is for storing and sharing vs self-consuming. Helps?

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit nope. since I can't store a PDF file I download which was an email attachment.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

@manan is that SkyDrive app's fault that you cannot access the file system? No.

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@manan (2/2) it may not be as necessary on WP7 w/hubs and stuff, but i can see how it can be useful. also, as an app, it can be reved faster

— Romit Mehta (@TheRomit) December 14, 2011

@TheRomit I don't care. I can't convince my univ's IT dept to endorse SkyDrive with that statement.

— Manan Kakkar (@manan) December 14, 2011

[youtube [www.youtube.com/watch](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDXV1154lJM?wmode=transparent])

[youtube www.youtube.com/watch

[youtube www.youtube.com/watch

Gotham 2 off my Amazon Wish List