Ho, Ho, Ho ... MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Hi folks,

We wish you all a Merry Christmas! Enjoy the time with you loved ones!

My wife and I will spend the holydays in Tübingen/Germany with my parents and sister,  as well as visiting the in-laws in Nürnberg/Germany.

Have fun!

[Tutorial] Connect an ST7735 1.8" TFT SPI display to Intel Galileo

Hi,

In this tutorial, you will understand how to connect a ST7735 1.8" TFT Display module using the Windows IoT and the Intel Galileo Gen1 platform.

Pre-requisit:

• Intel Galileo Gen 1 hardware
• Visual Studio 2013 with Windows IoT plugin
• A git tool to get access to the source code repository
• A ST7735 module (from adafruit or compatible model)

Hardware wiring:

The ST7735 module should be wired as following.

ST7735 connection to the Intel Galileo Gen1

Software:

You can pickup the sample source code from bitbucket repository in folder :  Software / Display_ST7735 .

The ST7735 library included inside this project is inherited from https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit-ST7735-Library, and minor adaptations has been added in order to make it working in the Windows IoT environment.

Setup function

The setup function is in charge of the initialization of the platform and is a good place for the Adafruit_ST7735 class object.

tft.initR(INITR_BLACKTAB);

The initialization of the display panel differ depending on the reference of the panel that you are using. The screen protection tab identify the version of the panel controller that you have. If you already removed the screen protection and have no idea on the revision you are using then you can test the different available configuration within the source code. There is no risk of breaking the panel at this time.

loop function

The loop function does nothing. only sleeping :-)

Known issues:

Right now the SPI interface usage is not optimized and therefore it takes ages to fill the content of the screen. The next project step could be the optimization of the AdaFruit library in order to send block of data instead of doing it pixel per pixel.

Conclusion:

The access to the TFT Panel using an existing Arduino sketch is really straightforward on the Windows IoT platform, and the whole development took 60 mins.

Intel Galileo Gen1 with ST7735 module

-Nicolas

Intel Galileo Gen2 platform introduction

Hi Folks,

There is no big differences with the Gen1 hardware, except the USB interfaces, and an easier access to the serial port. So check out the details for the Gen2 of the Intel Galileo.

For now, no support of Windows Developper for IoT runtime image is available. So stay tuned...
-Nicolas

[Tutorial] Connect a DS1307 RTC to Intel Galileo

Hi,

In this tutorial, you will learn how to access a DS1307 RTC module using the Windows IoT and the Intel Galileo Gen1 platform.

Pre-requisit:

• Intel Galileo Gen 1 hardware
• Visual Studio 2013 with Windows IoT plugin
• A git tool to get access to the source code repository
• A DS1307 module (from adafruit)

Hardware wiring:

The DS1307 module should be wired as following, please note that the LED is just here to show some system activity and can be removed.

Intel Galileo Gen1 and DS1307 module wiring

Software:

You can pickup the sample source code from bitbucket repository in folder :  Software / RTC_DS1307 .

The RTClib included inside this project is inherited from https://github.com/jcw/rtclib, and minor adaptations has been added in order to make it working in the Windows IoT environment.

Setup function

The setup function is in charge of the initialization of the platform and is a good place for the I2C/TwoWire library initialization.

Wire.begin();

The next step is the initialisation of the RTC to a specific time (August 22nd 2014 at 12:00:59).

// Set a default time
rtc.adjust(DateTime(2014, 8, 22, 12, 00, 59));

loop function

The loop function is making the LED blinking witch have not a big interest here, but it also reading the time and display it in the Visual Studio output window.

// Get time from the RTC
dt = rtc.now();
sprintf_s(outputBuffer, "%d:%02d:%02d\n", dt.hour(), dt.minute(), dt.second());
OutputDebugStringA(outputBuffer);

Conclusion:

The access to the RTC using an existing Arduino sketch is really straightforward on the Windows IoT platform, and the whole development took 30 mins.

Intel Galileo Gen1 with DS1307 module

-Nicolas

Discover Windows IoT with the Intel Galileo

Hi,

Microsoft launched for some privileged contact, the access to their IoT platform and Operating System, based on the Intel Galileo Gen1 hardware. This hardware platform have the exact same pin-out of the famous DYI oriented platform the Arduino.




It's not too late to register for the public access to that program, by checking the WindowsOnDevices website.

If you are one of the lucky user of a Galileo Gen1, and have registered to that program, you can update the provided microSDCard to the latest version of the Microsoft IoT OS, using the following instructions :
http://ms-iot.github.io/content/IBoughtAGalileo.htm

-Nicolas

VS2012 and Platform Builder Error in WEC2013 workaround

Hi Folks,

With the new Windows 7 upgrade of the .Net Framework to 4.5.1, the plaform builder does not build properly and throws out the error,

fatal error ! Microsoft.NET Framework v4.x must be installed on your machine

 Until Microsoft comes up with a fix, following 2 steps is the simple workaround, thank you to Claus for pointing out the workaround

1. First open the file sources.ce in the path C:\WINCE800\public\common\oak\misc.
At the top of the file, set the environment variable at the installation path of .Net Framework as

_DOTNET40ROOT=C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319

2. Go to windows Control Panel, then select System. In the System window, select Advanced System Settings. In the System Properties window, select the Advanced tab.

Click on the Environment Variables button, and edit Path variable.

Carefully modify the Variable value as above C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319

Satya Nadella is new Microsoft CEO

Hi folks,

Satya Nadella, formerly Executive Vice President of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise Group, was named new Microsoft CEO today! Nadella is only the 3^rd CEO in Microsoft’s 38 year history.

Former CEO Steve Ballmer continues to serve in Microsoft’s Board of Directors. Bill Gates retires as Chairman of Microsoft’s Board of Directors and will serve as Technology Advisor whereas John Thompson, CEO of Virtual Instruments, was appointed new Chairman of Microsoft’s Board of Directors.

Congratulations!

Have fun!

Windows Embedded Compact 2013 Wi-Fi drivers now available

Hi folks,

       

Microsoft just announced the availability of Wi-Fi drives for Windows Embedded Compact 2013 – check out the entire story!

Have fun!

Webinar: Windows Embedded 8 Standard – Embedded Lockdown Features

Hi folks,

       

Watch fellow MVP Nicolas Besson present a webinar featuring the Embedded Lockdown Features of Windows Embedded 8 Standard

Have fun!

See Windows Embedded Compact 2013 boot in 2 seconds!

Hi folks,

       

Adeneo Embedded has created a demo to boot Windows Embedded Compact 2013 in 2 seconds on a Freescale i.MX6Q SabreSDP – check it out!

Have fun!

Windows Embedded Compact: 2013 Yearly Rollups now available

Hi all,

the yearly cumulative product rollups for Windows Embedded Compact have arrived; these updates include all previous updates up until and including December 2013:

Windows Embedded CE 6.0 Cumulative Product Update Rollup Package (through 12/31/2013)

Windows CE 5.0 Cumulative Product Update Rollup Package (through 12/31/2013)

Keep your system up to date!

Have fun!

Windows Embedded Compact QFEs for December 2013 have arrived!

Hi all,

the December updates for Windows Embedded Compact are available for download:

Windows Embedded Compact 7 Monthly Update December 2013:

Fixes made in this update:

Component: Apps

131223_KB2905181 -  The Password Control Panel item dialog box closes unexpectedly when the SIP is closed on a Windows Embedded Compact 7-based device.

Component: Browser

131231_KB2899712 -  An update that improves the performance when you scroll by keyboard arrow key in Internet Explorer 7 is available for Windows Embedded Compact 7

Component: Networking

131231_KB2918697 -  This update addresses the issue with failure to establish wifi connection.

Component: Shell

131227_KB2921186 -  An access violation exception when you install an exploitable font file on a Windows Embedded Compact 7-based device.

Component: Silverlight

131010_KB2895117 -  Selected item is not displayed in a ComboBox control in a Silverlight for Windows Embedded application on a Windows Embedded Compact 7-based device.

Component: Storage

131231_KB2912406 -  OpenStore function fails to open the store device which was loaded by AutoLoad registry.

REMEMBER: It’s important to keep your system up to date!

Have fun!

Windows Phone 8 is upgradable according to Microsoft

"We will not have the same experience as we had when Windows Phone 7 was upgraded to Windows Phone 8," Greg Sullivan, Windows Phone director of public relations at Microsoft, said in an interview Wednesday at the International CES indicating that the next version of Windows Phone, which is expected to launch in spring 2014, will be backwards compatible with Windows Phone 8. It is expected that the next version will be called Windows Phone 8.1.

The statement refers to users of Windows Phone 7 being upset when Windows Phone 8 was released which could not run on Windows Phone 7 devices due to hardware restrictions.

Have fun!

Free Live Meeting on January 23, 2014: “Networking Improvements under Windows Embedded Compact 2013”

Hi folks,

join fellow MVP Doug Boling’s free Live Meeting “Networking Improvements under Windows Embedded Compact 2013”:

Date:

January 23, 2014

Time:

Both 9:00 AM PST and 5:00 PM PST

Description:

"Join Windows embedded Compact expert Doug Boling as he discusses the improvements in networking technologies in Windows Embedded Compact 2013. Doug will discuss improvements in performance and new features in this latest release of Windows Embedded Compact. Sign up to learn ways you can take advantage of these improvements in your next embedded system.

Windows Embedded Compact 2013 is the latest version of Windows Embedded Compact (Formerly Windows CE) and is now available for download on the Windows Embedded Downloads page at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsembedded/en-us/downloads.aspx."

Registration:

here

See you there!

Have fun!

Microsoft Surface Pro 2 with faster CPU

Hi folks,

the newer models of Microsoft’s tablet Surface Pro 2 seem to have a faster CPU. Whereas earlier models had an Intel Core i5 4200U CPU with 1.6 GHz and 1 GHz graphics, the newer models use an Intel Core i5 4300U CPU with 1.9 GHz (2.5 GHz with Turbo Boost) and 1.1 GHz graphics. Battery usage is the same for both CPUs.

The faster CPU could be a reaction to problems some users have experienced with the already removed System Firmware Update 12/10/13.

Have fun!