Why Microsoft made a Windows-powered robotic air hockey table

Microsoft today announces the release of Windows 10 IoT core - a specialized, stripped-down version of its new operating system designed to run on "small, embedded devices that may or may not have screens," as Microsoft puts it in a blog entry.

IoT is shorthand for "Internet of things," the idea that small devices with sensors will increasingly connect to each other and to the internet to exchange information.

Windows 10 IoT Core is designed to run on the Raspberry Pi 2 and the MinnowBoard Max, two kinds of super-tiny computers that are popular with robot enthusiasts and makers.

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To demonstrate, Microsoft built a Windows 10 IoT Core-powered robitic air hockey table:

Microsoft

Microsoft developers have also used Windows 10 IoT Core to build stuff like facial-recognition door locks that only open if it recognizes you, a robot programming kit, and an app to control a handheld fan.

Windows 10 IoT Core supports a bunch of common, developer-favorite programming languages like C++, C#, Java, Visual Basic, Python, and Node.js.

An earlier version of the operating system has been available for the last several months, but Microsoft says the version developers can get today is much beefier, with improved support and performance.

Thanks to Microsoft's "Universal Windows App" strategy with Windows 10, building an app for a robot or smart device is almost the same as building for Windows 10 on the desktop or tablet, making life easier for developers. It's a free download, too.

And who knows? The smart devices in your home could all be running on Windows 10, without your even knowing it.