Summer Update
Tomorrow is Rob’s last day at Microsoft, he’s one of the first ITPers to go back home. It’s a good time for an update.
I have about a month left at Microsoft, after that a few weeks more in Seattle and then we drive back east. Demetrie and Rob have been hard at work using Google MyMaps (we say Microsoft Virtual Earth whenever anyone is in ear shot) to plan our drive back. Then it’s time to make some decisions about my post ITP life. It’s going to be cool, whatever it is. I’ve met so many great people along the way we’re bound to do something incredible. Just as long as we don’t settle.
My two main projects at Microsoft are a persuasive game for ad-hoc networks and interfacing with Boku, an xbox game that teaches kids programming. The persuasive game project is at the analysis and data visualization stage while the technology we built for Boku will be put to use in the next few weeks as testers start creating content for the game. Along the way and in spite of myself, I have to say i’ve gotten pretty deep into .net, web standards/services and now have a cursory understanding of XNA. The community components Demetrie and I have built are now so ingrained in the xbox application that it will not build if our services don’t respond. How’s that for impact? Oftentimes interns are off on their own but even as I write this, at MSR there are full time Microsoft employees who can’t do a build unless my stuff is up. Feels like i’m making a real contribution.
I’ll put up screen shots of these projects later. I’m way behind on photos.
Seattle has been a good time. Anna has been sewing up a storm and we’re planning on camping in a rain forest in a few weeks. We have also been doing our best to make the weekly screenings from the Jacques Tate festival. Miss everyone and can’t wait to get back!
Also I have to say — what is up with Facebook? My old coworkers are on facebook, my present boss, my friends in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s my friend’s 18 year old son, my colleagues, the ITP alums, everyone is on Facebook. I don’t think i’ve seen a social network have such a strong attraction to everyone I know or have ever known. Something is going on.
