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Microsoft Introduces 'Napa' Toolset For Cloud App Model

Posted by Soulskill on from the makes-decent-wine dept.

Nerval's Lobster writes "In keeping with Microsoft's 'all-in' strategy with regard to the cloud, Office 2013 incorporates a good deal of cloud functionality: SkyDrive is now the default storage selection for documents, for example, and users' work is synced between devices connected to the Web. In conjunction with that, Microsoft is now offering a 'Cloud App Model' that incorporates Web standards, meant for developers interested in building apps that bring functionality into Office and SharePoint. The toolset for building within this 'Cloud App Model' is codenamed 'Napa.' Among the potential uses: developers can build mail apps for Office, which add content and functionality to Outlook items based on activation rules, content apps for Excel, which add content and functionality to Excel documents, and task pane apps for Office, which add functionality to Excel and Word documents in a task pane adjacent to the document."

33 comments

  1. Um I smell Lawsuit by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 0

    Automatic Sky Drive? That is just wrong on so many levels it isn't even funny.

    --
    Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
    1. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What a joke. Why fiddle around with the imitator when you can have the Real Thing.

    2. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by RaceProUK · · Score: 1

      The thing about defaults is... brace yourself... they can be changed!

      --
      No colour or religion ever stopped the bullet from a gun
    3. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by busyqth · · Score: 1

      The thing about defaults is... brace yourself... they can be changed!

      Maybe this time they can. Next time, maybe not.

    4. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 1

      Yes, you're right. WHICH is why the default shouldn't be "the cloud". Period. Second how do you feel about IE being the "default browser"? Same thing IMHO

      --
      Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
    5. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Look, Microsoft is doing something... QUICK! TRY TO SUE THEM FOR IT!!!"

      That cycle has been repeating around here for the last 2 decades.

      Meanwhile, Google continues to bundle Maps results right into Search with absolutely no way for users to opt out ot "install" third party mapping services in Search.

      Slashdot is so virulently anti-MS that only a fool would believe anything this site says about MS.

    6. Re:Um I smell Lawsuit by RaceProUK · · Score: 1

      Not even Apple would be stupid enough to do that.

      --
      No colour or religion ever stopped the bullet from a gun
  2. All that needs to be said by GameboyRMH · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Write speed of an average HDD: ~50MBPS
    Upload speed of an average Internet connection: ~0.1MBPS

    I'll pass.

    --
    "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    1. Re:All that needs to be said by OzPeter · · Score: 1

      From a future MS press release:

       
      Are you tired of Pie in the Sky Apps that are slow to update?
       
      Is waiting around for a file save just plain boring?
       
      Do you constantly yearn for the good old days when the Internet was snappy?
       
      Well here at Microsoft we have listened to your concerns and we can say that they are absolutely a thing of the past!.
       
      In conjunction with AT&T, Verizon (and those other guys) Microsoft is proud to introduce your personal Sky Captain (tm) assistant. For only a few pennies more than a latte a day (*) you'll get priority desk side Check-in and update service that will have you saying "up, up and away to the Cloud" faster than a speeding bullet. Sky Captain (tm) is so speedy that you'll be back to playing Angry Fruit (MS's latest funpacked game that bears no resemblance to any other game that might have a similar name) without having to hit pause. With Sky Captain (tm) you just pay the way for priority internet boarding that will leave everyone else thinking "Who is that self important douche?!?!?".
       
      So don't delay, get Sky Captain (tm) today, and show the world how a great paid priority internet service is the way
       
      (*) And we don't mean no 2 bit el cheapo latte, we mean the full monty barista hand crafted latte with your name written in the foam using the purest cinnamon harvested by virgins, and only under a full moon.
       

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    2. Re:All that needs to be said by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Right, cuz there's no way they thought of that and decided to write to temp disk and then immediately start syncing back to skydrive. Nope. No chance they have engineers capable of rubbing 2 thoughts together.

    3. Re:All that needs to be said by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      That smooths over mid-transfer failures but it doesn't buy you any more bandwidth.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  3. ASPX is a web standard now? by DragonWriter · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I like how "client side ASPX" is one of the "web standards" that 'Napa' incorporates. Since when is this proprietary Microsoft technology a "web standard"?

    1. Re:ASPX is a web standard now? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 2

      If the wheel of karmic retribution has placed you upon this vale of tears as a Sharepoint developer, you probably won't know the difference...

    2. Re:ASPX is a web standard now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Expect at least 5 trolls drop in to tell you how since MS is largest on the desktop that they have the divine right to be the standard. It's BS, they know it's BS but MS zealotry won't allow them to say anything else.

    3. Re:ASPX is a web standard now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What is client side ASPX? How could it be anything but html, css and javascript?

    4. Re:ASPX is a web standard now? by gbjbaanb · · Score: 2

      What is client side ASPX? How could it be anything but html, css and javascript?

      well, it could be html, that renders correctly on IE, with css and javascript that contain only 1 or 2 additional features that MS deemed essential enough to put into their browser, plus a heap of microsoft-only javascript modules that, for efficiency reasons, are binary encoded into the IE js engine. And a C# based scripting engine as well, just for that 'developer friendly' productivity boost, if you want to use it, completely optionally.

      All completely standards "based" of course.

    5. Re:ASPX is a web standard now? by doesnothingwell · · Score: 1

      As a true believer in the Balmer you may be asked to drink the kool-aid when we're through with you. Fear not! it is only bitter and smells of almonds.

      --
      They can have my command prompt when they pry it from my cold dead fingers.
  4. obligatory dragon ball z reference by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What 9000?

    1. Re:obligatory dragon ball z reference by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      "Vegeta how many top corporations are about to dump MS office?"

      "IT'S OVER NINE THOUSAAAAND!!!"

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  5. Microsoft and the Cloud? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Stick to Windows and Office, MS. That's your core competency. The last thing I need is a virus on my cloud data.

    1. Re:Microsoft and the Cloud? by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1, Insightful

      But they have to fuck up Office as bad as they're fucking up Windows, it's part of their new take-no-prisoners strategy where they fire machine guns Rambo-style into their own feet until they've blown their legs off and dug their own grave.

      I'd say that it would be another Linux renaissance as was had when Vista fell stillborn into the world, but with Canonical still on a collective LSD bender and cozy golden prisons (especially Apple's) being the hottest real estate in town...this could be a very bad time for open computing.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  6. Designed from the get-go by sl4shd0rk · · Score: 1

    In other words, we didn't make it explicitly obvious to the user.

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  7. Are we talking by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Napa cabbage or Napa Valley?

  8. virus writers by vlm · · Score: 0

    Among the potential uses: developers can build mail apps for Office, which add content and functionality to Outlook items based on activation rules,

    Translation: virus writers can now use the cloud to send multimedia spam?

    I wonder if this is "open" enough that you could spam someone's calender thru it as an alternative distribution media. Imaging a MS calendar with thousands of entries every 5 minutes "wanna last longer than this spam? Shop at http://blah/ for your manliness needs"

    Another weird question is using the cloud to facilitate leaking confidential info both intentionally and via the usual security vulnerabilities.

    --
    "Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
  9. SkyDrive, a part of SkyNet by scorp1us · · Score: 1

    Until we can run our own open cloud servers and get our data to our own repository with our own encryption, I am not interested in any cloud technology. I like the convenience of having my files accessible everywhere but only by me on my own servers that can't be compromised en masse (I'm looking at you Yahoo) We need this fractured cloud design to protect against that.

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    1. Re:SkyDrive, a part of SkyNet by scorp1us · · Score: 1

      Forgot to add - if we want, all we should need is a DNS alias and point that to our own cloud server.

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      Slashdot's rate-of-post filter: Preventing you from posting too many great ideas at once.
  10. Auto sync with the cloud? by stanlyb · · Score: 1

    Is there any idiot who would ever ever consider buying Win8? I know, i know, you have facebook page, but common, really???

  11. Classic Microsoft by IGnatius+T+Foobar · · Score: 1

    Naturally, this is classic Microsoft behavior. They have a cloud, now they're going to make it very difficult for you to have Windows and/or Office and *not* use their cloud.

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  12. Outlook rises again! by rickb928 · · Score: 1

    "developers can build mail apps for Office, which add content and functionality to Outlook items based on activation rules"

    So Outlook can resume its role as the preferred vector for delivery of all manner of malware, viruses, etc. Activate this, sucka.

    Sure. I'm wanting a big bite of that.

    --
    deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
  13. You must admit it's aptly named. by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 2

    Write speed of an average HDD: ~50MBPS
    Upload speed of an average Internet connection: ~0.1MBPS

    You must admit it's aptly named.

    Every time you open or operate on a file you get to take a little Nappa.

    --
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    1. Re:You must admit it's aptly named. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      More likely you'll repeat Nappa's "Are we there yet?" routine over and over and over....

  14. Napa... by Dareth · · Score: 1

    Napa, what does the scouter say about the cost of our cloud storage?

    It's OVER $9000!

    --

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