This is too funny: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8335653541

This happened a couple of weeks ago so I'm a bit tardy about telling you.  Check out the new landing page at http://msdn.microsoft.com/mce.  We refactored the page a good bit to help you drill down on all the great resources at MSDN and elsewhere on developing applications for Media Center.

Let me know what you think...

I posted a couple of quick samples / tools you might find handy...

onRemoteHandler.zip contains a complete onRemoteEvent handler which traps all of the remote control buttons passed into hosted HTML applications. Well, almost all -- I didn't explicitly include the 'More Information' button because we don't really recommend you leverage that button.

KeyPress.zip is a utility function which will present a Media Center dialog for each button press passed into hosted HTML applications.  I've used this in the past to confirm my remote control presses were actually being passed into the pages if experiencing some weird behavior.  It's especially helpful if you are using frames and you need to validate the button presses are being passed from parent to child.

Visit Donate To American Red Cross Hurricane Relief To Enter Raffle for a Copy of Visual Studio 2005, Office or Windows to learn more.  Only 5 donors so far, 4 great prizes.  That's quite surprising to me, but good for you if you haven't donated yet -- the chances of winning are extremely high.

Those affected by the hurricane still need our help, so take time today and give.

I've got to talk with folks like Tim Sneath more often -- with lot's of Avalon team members it's hard to make the rounds regularly; There are many of them and only one of me until we get the other Program Manager hired.  In Build an Avalon Web Browser Application Tim states WBAs are '...perfect for enterprise applications where you don't want to deploy anything to the client (simply browse to http://myserver/myapp.wba) and they'll also be great for really immersive web experiences as Avalon becomes more ubiquitous on the desktop.'

Hey Tim, did you forget developers will be able to create Media Center experiences using Windows Presentation Foundation Web Browser Applications?  If you (or others) need a refresher, check out Lot's of Goodness for Media Center Developers at PDC05.

I had the distinct privilege of spending some quality time with Peter Nears, Jason Tsang and one other MVP representing Windows Shell -- all flew in from the Toronto area this evening, but were up for chatting at the Rock Bottom Brewery in downtown Seattle tonight.  Thanks for the stimulating conversation and the great, honest feedback we have come to expect from such passionate supporters of Microsoft.

Here is your chance to come work literally side-by-side with me on the Media Center team.

All of the details can be found at http://members.microsoft.com/careers/search/details.aspx?JobID=18d751b0-09db-4a1b-9bee-358994028374.

Come join the BEST team at Microsoft (in my humble opinion of course).

So, after reading the latest response from Thomas multiple times I think I've boiled it down to this single statement...

'My points above most of all Charlie revolve not around the IF part of them being developed but the WHEN part of them being developed.'

There are many reasons why a corporation doesn't talk about the 'when' of any feature / product.  Here are a few...

1. Disclosing information at the wrong time or with too many people can jeopardize intellectual property rights, leading to the inability to capitalize on innovation (and therefore underwrite further innovation).
2. Talking prematurely can incorrectly set expectations (i.e. ship dates).
3. Loose lips sink ships; Talking about a deal before the deal is done puts the deal at risk.
4. They don't know (yet).
5. They know, but choose to wait (for marketing, intellectual property reasons, coordination with partners, bandwidth, etc.)

...and I'm sure there are more. I don't think this information is new for most people, and it's certainly not unique to Microsoft.  Most people will agree this stuff is common sense (at least I hope they do).

I totally empathize with Thomas, for he is stuck between two very difficult but positive choices...

Option 1: Sign a mutual nondisclosure agreement and have access to information NOT generally known to the public (like answers to 'when').  The flip side: Thomas couldn't say anything to the community about what he knows lest he invoke the wrath of lawyers and / or permanently damage his relationships with Microsoft on a variety of levels. He would know some really cool stuff long before others, but he couldn't *share* what he knows with the community at large until everyone knows.

Option 2: NOT sign a mutual nondisclosure agreement and have access to information generally known to the public (like answers to 'if'). The flip side: Thomas can freely share all that he learns without the worry of invoking the wrath of lawyers. Whoever talks to him does need to worry, though, meaning they might not be as forthcoming. He might get tidbits of information here and there, but largely learns along with the rest of the crowd.

Back over to you Thomas...

On the back of their subwoofer KSW10 is a level dial -- the numbers go to 11.

Through the generous gift from one of the MVPs I can sweeten this offer for helping Hurricane Katrina and Rita Victims.  We now have a copy of Windows XP Professional and Office Professional Edition 2003 to raffle in addition to Visual Studio 2005.  Instead of one lucky winner we will have three.

Interestingly enough, we only have three people currently in the running.  Give them some competition -- odds are really good right now for anyone to win.  The real winners are the folks devastated by the hurricanes.

Details are located in Donate To American Red Cross Hurricane Relief To Enter Raffle for a Copy of Visual Studio 2005, Office or Windows. Hurry, offer good until September 30!

Here is your chance to tell us what we can do better to engage the Media Center developer community.  If you have a suggestion, leave it as a comment here for all to see.

The last 30 hours have been really, really interesting.  As a result of forwarded URLs with 'have you seen this' attached I have had separate conversations with two smart, passionate developers who posted information they probably shouldn't have from a legal perspective.  So far, both have responded positively to my suggestions and offers of assistance, feedback, support, etc.

So here is the deal: If you are a developer doing 'interesting' things with any product outside the scope of a published and public software development kit, take a moment and follow this simple rule:

Be Smart

Read the End User License Agreement before posting the wonderful thing you have discovered.  If you have even the slightest shred of doubt whether or not you should post, keep the information to yourself or contact the company who owns the software and ask for clarification.

Here's the deal. I don't have the bandwidth or inclination to keep calling folks and pledging my personal support of their efforts. I'm not a lawyer nor a law enforcement officer. I'm just a guy trying to help enable developers, designers and companies on the Media Center platform.  From now on, if you choose to Be Dumb and someone points it out to me (or I see it via Google Alerts, RSS feed I happen to be subscribed to, website I happen to be perusing, etc.) it's just going to get forwarded to our Legal and Corporate Affairs team.  Not out of spite -- they get paid to look into these matters and resolve them -- I don't.

That said, you can ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS send your feedback about the Media Center platform to me directly. I may not always answer (my Inbox stays pretty full with Follow Up flags galore) but I guarantee I will read your feedback and pass along as appropriate to our development teams.

* 'Be Smart' isn't my idea.  I heard it first from Scoble in reference to blogging.  It seems an equally good maxim for this topic.