Three weeks ago,
Microsoft announced
that it would hold a free global hackathon in over 100 cities around the globe. November
9 is the first day of this “Wowzapp 2012” event, and Microsoft just announced that it has
managed to attract over 17,000 developers – many of them students – who are
currently working on their Windows 8, Windows Phone 8 and Windows Azure apps
with the help of mentors from Microsoft. The event is scheduled to run until
November 11.
Participants in
the United States, India, Finland, Pakistan, Greece, Malaysia, Turkey, Brazil
and many other countries will work together for 48 hours, creating Windows
Store apps for consumers to enjoy, building off the momentum of the release of
Windows 8, which saw sales of more than 4 million upgrades in the three days
following its launch on Oct. 26.
U.S. locations
include Austin, Texas; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Redmond, Wash.; and more than 20
others. A complete list of participating locations is posted at http://www.WOWZAPP2012.com.
"With more
than 17,000 students registered to participate, WOWZAPP 2012 will be the
largest simultaneous hackathon of student developers ever, acting as a catalyst
to bring a wealth of new, exciting and quality apps to the Windows Store,"
said Moorthy Uppaluri, general manager of Worldwide Academic Programs at
Microsoft. "Microsoft is committed to empowering students with the tools
and resources they need to showcase their creativity and make money through app
development."
With the global
youth unemployment rate at 12.7 percent* — double the overall unemployment rate
— students are seeking new ways to build their skills and start their careers.
Microsoft offers students a variety of programs to help them learn new app
development skills and differentiate themselves in a competitive job market.
WOWZAPP 2012 is a chance for students to explore a different professional path,
and is just one way that Microsoft is equipping students with free tools and
resources to build apps.
Microsoft will
provide students at each hackathon location with free software to create apps,
such as Visual Studio Express for Windows 8, and with free Windows Store
registration codes through Microsoft DreamSpark. Developer experts and
trainers will be available around the clock to answer questions, and Microsoft
executives such as Uppaluri and Drew Robbins, director, Technical Evangelism,
will be on hand at many locations to discuss what it takes to build great apps
for the Windows ecosystem.
Den Delimarsky, a
student at Wichita State University in the United States, is one of three
developers who created the official Microsoft WOWZAPP 2012 app, which is
currently available on the Windows Store. Besides keeping up with his
schoolwork, Delimarsky is a Microsoft Student Partner and is also in the middle
of building two additional Windows Store apps. He said, "The Windows Store
provides a great opportunity for both professional and student developers
worldwide. WOWZAPP 2012 is a part of that opportunity, and I am excited to see
what new applications will be added as a result of this event to the Windows 8
ecosystem."
Students can also
choose to enter the apps they create in Microsoft's annual technology
competition, Imagine Cup,
where they will be eligible to compete for a total of $300,000 in prize money.
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