So, what happened on the first day at Mix 06?

Bill Gates delivered an impressive keynote speech where he outlined Microsoft's vision of using their products (such as IE 7, IIS 7, Vista, WPF, and Windows Live) to bring the web experience to a whole new level for both users and developers.  Scott Guthrie also gave a presentation that effectively conveyed how quickly Atlas can be used to build an AJAX enabled web application.  Finally, Tim O'Reilly quizzed Bill about some various topics and had some general Q&A with the audience.

I got my first glimpse of the latest build of IE 7.  It has progressed a long way from the first beta.  I really like how they have simplified the interface by removing a lot of the buttons.  This saves a lot of screen real estate that can be used for displaying pages.  There have also been some dramatic improvements to the security feature of the browser.  For instance, if you reduce your security settings to a low level that puts your computer at risk, the browser will warn you about it.  Even if you close the browser, you will get a warning about your security configuration the next time it is opened.  In addition, a feature has been added that changes the color of the background of the address bar to red when you visit a reported phishing site.  If you visit a site with a valid security certificate, then the background will turn green.

I also got my first real exposure to Windows Live and WPF.  I must say that my jaw dropped in awe at some of the capabilities.  The graphics abilities in WPF is simply amazing.  Using XAML, it is incredibly easy to quickly develop powerful applications that take advantage of the framework.  Windows Live is also a very compelling web platform.  I am excited about getting home so I can experiment with some code to leverage the platform.  It is very sexy the way Microsoft has architected Live using a mashup philosophy.  Gadget integration in Live is going to revolutionize the way a lot of people use the web.  I think I may have found a good topic for a Code Camp session.

So far, this has been an awesome conference that was well worth the trip.