MIX 11, Day 2 - Kinects, Celebrities, Kings, and Clubbing

Have you ever had a day where everything that happens just comes together to create the greatest day ever? Well, let me tell you about mine.

Kinects for Everyone

I posted about my thoughts on the keynote on Day 1. It was mediocre. It seems that Microsoft saved the best for last because the day 2 keynote was, in a word, amazing.

First, MS covered everything about the new Mango update for Windows Phone 7. I don't even own a WP7 and I wanted to toss my Droid into the trash by the end. Now that there are really awesome and useful APIs being introduced, I may start developing some WP7 applications.

Second, MS covered Silverlight 5 which actually does introduce some useful features like GPU acceleration, XNA integration, and 3D support. That is pretty cool. I haven't checked but I also hope they offer better clipboard integration.

Third, and of course, the best part of the keynote, was the announcement of Kinect for Windows SDK. We saw demos for helping navigation for blind folks, a robotic lounge chair, a game, and a galaxy simulator. As if that weren't good enough, every attendee got a Kinect.

The free Kinect was definitely a surprise and an awesome perk of going to MIX. Unfortunately, I already own one and company policy dictates I can't accept gifts over $100... so I had to forgo that.

My inner fanboy is satiated

Scott Hanselman and Phil Haack. I was also within 10 feet of Rob Conery so that counts, too. 'nuff said.

Watching presentations by Hanselman is like watching a comedy show, I can only aspire to make people laugh like that during my presentations.

Circle of Life

Me and Cassie went to The Lion King at Mandalay Bay later that night. It was fantastic, everything about it was amazing. The costumes were incredibly clever and creative, the actors were awesome, the stage sets were great, and the music was top notch. We sat in the 5th row or so and it was perfect.

VIP Life in Vegas

All MIX attendees were invited to The Marquee nightclub, which is a new club in Vegas. I got a guest pass for Cassie and we went and it was a lot more fun than I had expected. Usually, I am not one for dancing or clubbing, but I figured this was a unique experience I shouldn't pass up. I am glad I didn't! It was a ton of fun and the nerd level was off the charts. Half the people just sat or stood in place, silently sipping their drinks while everyone else was having fun. We sat and drank a bit but decided we needed to have some fun, so for the rest of the time we danced and partied in the "mosh pit." When you're dancing with a bunch of geeks and nerds, you really don't need to worry about how you dance.

So, in summary...

Best. Day. Ever.