Microsoft Build 2015, Redmond's huge developer conference, started off a bit on the dry side, with C++ code making an appearance early on in a demo of Azure cloud services programming. But it picked up steam with news of free Mac OS and Ubuntu versions of the company's Visual Studio, techniques for easily migrating Android and iOS apps to Windows phones, and finally, the truly staggering HoloLens device.

Facing stiffer competition than ever from Apple, Amazon, and Google, Microsoft is stepping up its tech game under CEO Satya Nadella by being more open to having its systems work across platforms. We've already seen some of that with full-featured Office apps for Android and iOS and the open-sourcing of several developer and platform technologies such as .NET, and even with its browser incrementally supporting open technologies. At Build 2015, that openness took another leap forward.

Another large theme of the conference was the Universal App. This is related to the apps previously known as Metro and later renamed "Modern" apps. In fact, that last sobriquet is what appears in the interface, like when you search with Cortana for an app. But for developers, the Universal App consists of code that's largely the same whether it's running on a Raspberry Pi, a Surface Pro 3, a Lumia Phone, an Xbox, or even a HoloLens.

And of course the cloud, as embodied in Azure and its new machine learning capabilities was another major theme at the conference. How that relates to the estrus cycles of cows...well, click through the slideshow to find out.


1. Moscone Convention Center Microsoft took over San Francisco's Moscone Convention Center for Build 2015.

2. Huge Crowd Attendees waiting to ride the escalators up to the day one keynote.

3. Satya Nadella Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaking at the Build 2015 first-day keynote on April 29.

4. Composing with Surface Stylus Composer/entrepreneur David William Hearn composes using stylus input in the StaffPad app running on a Microsoft Surface Pro 3 to write chamber music during the Build 2015 conference. (There was a live performance of the piece at the end of the keynote, as a nice bookend.)

5. Lotsa Code There was plenty of code on display at the conference right from the start; unusual for a Day One keynote, but after all, it is a developer conference.

6. Android Apps Become Windows Apps Developers were shown how they could easily port Android apps to Windows Phone apps. (For more on that, see Microsoft's Dangerous, But Necessary Android App Route .)

7. Azure cloud services Azure cloud services like the SQL DB Elastic Database Pool were announced at Build 2015. If the pool's not big enough, there's also an Azure Data Lake service.

8. Universal Windows Apps Universal Windows Apps run on all these devices, with HoloLens the newest member of the family.

9. USA Today Universal App on Xbox One Here's USA Today's Universal Windows App running on an Xbox One.

10. Bridge to a Billion Devices Using "bridges" such as the easy ports of Android and iOS apps as well as allowing older Win32 and .NET applications in the Microsoft Store, Microsoft hopes to get Windows running on a billion devices within the next few years.

11. New Lock Screen The Windows 10 lock screen will include hotspots to surface features relevant to the user, including apps and features.

13. HoloLens Build attendees could sign up for a hands-on experience with HoloLens, Microsoft's 3D enhanced-reality headset.

14. HoloLens Microsoft showed more HoloLens developments at Build 2015. The device projects 3D objects into your real-world view.

15. HoloLens Apps With HoloLens, you can have an app like Skype follow you around the house. HoloLens apps are Windows Universal apps.

16. HoloLens Surgery With a HoloLens app, a student surgeon could practice performing heart surgery without needing a cadaver.

17. Minecraft Modder Aidan Brady A 17-year-old Minecraft-modding star, Aidan Brady, introduces a new Visual Studio tool for just that activity.

18. Developer Challenge At Build 2015, developers could put their skills to the test in the QuickStart Challenge zone.

19. 3D Printing Windows 10's native support for 3D printing was in evidence at Build 2015's demo areas.

20. Internet of Things Windows 10's support for AllJoyn gives it a toehold in the hot area of the Internet of Things (IoT).

21. Raspberry Pi 2 Build 2015 attendees could play with a robot Powered by a Raspberry Pi 2 and Windows 10.

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