Is SharePoint 2013 Release Imminent?

I came across a blog post on Bjørn Furuknap’s SharePoint Blog stating that he has now published his final issue in the series “What to Expect from SharePoint 2013”. This has been one of the richest sources of information regarding SharePoint 2013 (SharePoint 15) over recent months. Bjørn is now working on material for post SharePoint 2013 public beta release. Would Bjørn be cutting off his popular (and i guessing profitable) pre-public release series if the public release was not imminent? I don’t think so.

SharePoint 2013 – Team Site Screenshot (believed to be a concept screenshot rather than actual product screenshot – click to enlarge)

A faster SharePoint 2013 (SP15) browser experience thanks to MDS?

What is MDS and how does it effect the SharePoint browser experience? There is very little documentation around regarding MDS (which stands for Minimal Download Strategy). It appears to be a technology that Microsoft is introducing with the next release of SharePoint (SharePoint 15 / SharePoint 2013). I make this wild assumption as I’ve not heard or found reference to MDS prior to the release of the SharePoint 15 API reference.

In Microsoft’s own words:

The minimal download strategy will use a single .aspx file (start.aspx) for your pages, with the actual URL encoded in the text following the hashmark (‘#’). When navigating from page to page, only the changes between two compatible pages will be downloaded. Fewer bytes will be downloaded and the page will appear more quickly.

At this stage it is unclear as to whether this new MDS technology is specific to certain page types within SharePoint or Microsoft is tackling it at a more fundamental level and it is a technology that may be equally applied to .Net web applications in future.

With the vast UI performance we saw between Server 2007 (MOSS) and SharePoint 2010 thanks in large part to the introduction of AJAX, can we expect a similar performance improvement when SharePoint 15 hits our servers? Until I see it in action I will reserve my judgement, it does make you just a little bit excited though doesn’t it…

SharePoint 15 Technical Preview Interoperability API Documentation

EDIT – Now that SharePoint 2013 Preview is available the best article I’ve come across on the workings of MDS is this article from Wictor Wilen SharePoint 2013 – Introduction to the Minimal Download Strategy (MDS)

Office 15, Agaves and SharePoint Connector

I’m a little pressed for time to write my own blog pulling together the snippets of info that have been circulating related to Agaves and the new development opportunities that Office 15 will bring with it. Until I get time to blog here’s a great primer (all credit to Learning SharePoint for this information)

“Agaves” is a name given to web extensions that you can write in HTML 5 and JavaScript to enhance the existing capabilities of the New Office 15 suite. Agaves will be launched with Office 15(just guessing) which is suppose to be released in beta version later this summer.

Lets look at basic features of Agaves -

* Agaves will be written using HTML5 and JavaScript. Sources also say that Office JavaScript application programming interface (API) will be used to create different kinds of Agaves.

* Agaves will be available for download from the coming Office 15 in-app marketplace.

* There will exist different kinds of Agaves, including Content Agaves and Task Pane Agaves.

Now lets see how does it matter to our beloved SharePoint.

According to this post from Mary Jo Foley, there will exist a SharePoint connection on the Agave front and SharePoint apps will be able to be integrated with Agaves. So here is a golden chance to create applications targeted to Office suite which integrates well with SharePoint.

via All about SharePoint and Agaves : Learning SharePoint.

SharePoint 15 (SharePoint 2013) Screenshots

The following screenshot emerged on Timur Sahin blog with comments that it is from the public beta.

Click on the image to enlarge.

Microsoft Product Release Schedule Leaked (including SharePoint 15 and Office 15)

The following slides were leaked yesterday by Maarten Visser (chief executive of Meetroo, an IT solution provider). Although no word on the slides authenticity has come out of Microsoft, respected IT journalist Mary-Jo Foley has backed the slides stating they were confidentially distributed by Microsoft to selected partners.

 

What does this means for SharePoint and Office?

The slides confirm some of the rumoured dates that had already been circulating rather than providing and great twists in the guessing games of when the new releases will be out.

As already rumoured, the next wave of products will be a synchronised effort across server and desktop technologies meaning we will see a refresh of SharePoint Server, Office 365, Office Desktop Suite, Project, Visio and Internet Explorer.

The expectation for us to be seeing Beta software continues to be mid 2012 with general availability early 2013.

Microsoft have also released the SharePoint 15 Technical Preview Interoperability API Documentation which provides a lot of information regarding change to the SharePoint 15 client object model.

The expected enhancements we can look forward to in the next release of SharePoint (if any of the loud rumours are correct):

Here’s a summary of the suggested, forthcoming improvements to SharePoint:

• SharePoint app marketplace
• Overhauled Client Object Model (COM)
• Better suited for cloud environment
• Improved UI, especially around social networking 
• Improved mobile support
• Simplified development and integration
• Enable workflow looping in SharePoint Designer, eliminating the need for the Visual Studio
• Cross-platform authentication