Microsoft Opens New Silicon Valley Developer Center

PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 11, 1998 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the opening of the Microsoft® Silicon Valley Developer Center ( http://msdn.microsoft.com/svdevcenter/ ) in Palo Alto, Calif. Larry Cohen, head of the new facility, said the developer center will support local developers, start-up companies and venture capital firms by providing access to information and tools that will assist them in understanding and taking advantage of key Microsoft technologies and business directions.

“The new developer center is an exciting expansion of the work Microsoft has been doing to support developers in Silicon Valley and throughout the world for over 20 years,”
said Tod Nielsen, general manager of the developer relations group at Microsoft.
“The opening of the Silicon Valley Developer Center reflects Microsoft’s long-standing commitment to the developer community and provides a great complement to our existing developer support programs.”

“I am incredibly excited about the opportunity to return to Silicon Valley to work with developers and other members of the Valley’s technology community,”
Cohen said.
“I am looking forward to expanding on our existing relationships and building new ones as a result of this effort.”
Cohen previously worked at Claris Corp. and Collabra, both Silicon Valley companies. Most recently, he served as group product manager for the MSN
™
HomeAdvisor
™
online real estate service where, based in Redmond, Wash., he was responsible for the overall product strategy development, marketing program management and business development.

Among its activities, the developer center will provide technical sessions and hands-on development assistance for developers, offer a speaker series on a broad range of technology and business topics, host special interest group meetings, and provide a number of additional technical and business opportunities. The developer center’s technical labs will feature state-of-the-art technology and hardware provided by Compaq Computer Corp. and will be staffed by technical evangelists from the developer relations group.

Located in Palo Alto, Calif., the developer center will move to its new home at the Microsoft Silicon Valley campus, currently under construction in Mountain View, Calif., when it is completed in late 1999.

Microsoft Creates Developer Center Advisory Group

In addition, Microsoft today announced the formation of a Silicon Valley advisory group to support the efforts of the developer relations group. The goal of the advisory group is to help shape programs and directions for Microsoft’s efforts in working with local developers and start-up companies. The group will provide feedback on an ongoing basis and will meet quarterly, with a kick-off meeting in December. Members will be representative of start-up companies, venture capital firms and industry organizations in the valley.

“Microsoft’s increased support for the Silicon Valley software development community is recognition of the region’s role in creating the future of computing,”
said Sandy Herz, executive director of the Software Development Forum.
“More software is developed in the Valley than anywhere on earth, and the Software Developer Forum is pleased to pair its expertise with that of Microsoft to offer exciting new opportunities for software developers.”

Initial members of the Developer Center Advisory Board, with more to be added, include the following:

  • Sandy Herz, executive director, Software Development Forum or

  • Jim Breyer. managing partner, Accel Partners

  • Russ Siegelman, partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

  • Heidi Roizen, Roizen Associates

http://www.roizen.com/heidi/bio.html

  • Joseph Ansanelli, CEO, Connectify Inc.

http://www.connectify.com/exec_f.html

  • Guy Kawasaki, CEO and co-founder, garage.com

http://www.garage.com/aboutwho.shtml

Developer Center Sponsors

Deskpros, ProLiant Servers and networking equipment were provided by Compaq, the official hardware sponsor of the Microsoft Silicon Valley Developer Center.

“As Compaq expands its presence in the Silicon Valley, we are pleased to work with Microsoft in supporting the local developer community,”
said Bill Heil, vice president at Compaq.

Additional hardware was provided by NVIDIA Corp., Diamond Multimedia Systems Inc. and Creative Labs Inc.

About the Microsoft Developer Relations Group

Formed in 1984 to provide education, technology resources and support for third-party developers for the Microsoft Windows® operating system, the developer relations group along with other Microsoft groups such as the application developer customer unit now works with more than 40,000 developers annually and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide to help ensure the success of developers of Windows-based applications. Microsoft spends more than

$268 million annually on developer education and support activities, including research, conferences, marketing assistance, training programs and events, product support, and publications. For more information on the developer relations group, please see http://msdn.microsoft.com/developer/news/drg3part.htm .

For more information on the Microsoft Silicon Valley Developer Center, please visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/svdevcenter/ .

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.

Microsoft, MSN, HomeAdvisor and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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