Microsoft has announced the Windows 10 Application Deployment tool (WinAppDeployCmd) in the latest release of its Windows 10 SDK preview. WinAppDeployCmd is a standalone tool designed to enable users to deploy universal Windows apps from a Windows 10 PC to a Windows 10 mobile device, according to the company. In addition, users can use it to test their universal apps on physical devices.
The tool will be available with the installation of the Windows 10 SDK preview 10166 and newer, and will be in the RTM version of the SDK.
Visual Studio Code 0.5 releases with ES6 support and Git enhancements
Microsoft has released version 0.5.0 of Visual Studio Code, its new cross-platform code editor. The main new features and additions include:
- Files: Improved file and folder filtering in the explorer: opening files via the command line at a specific line number, reusing an existing instance when you open multiple files, and the ability to control the size of the working files list.
- Improved editor options: Support for removing trailing whitespace, and improved search patterns with include/exclude filters.
- JavaScript updates: ES6 support, jsconfig.json, improved /// reference management, and additional workspace settings.
- Git enhancements: An integrated credential prompt, multi-line commit message support, and improved control over auto-fetch.
- User-defined snippets: More built-in snippets for common languages (i.e., Dockerfiles, Python and Rust).
- Debugger enhancements: Watch expressions, and improved Node.js breakpoint and source map support.
- Proxy support, auto-update enabled for Mac and Windows and bug fixes.
More details are available on the Microsoft blog.
Pluralsight acquires HackHands
Pluralsight is expanding its online training for technology professionals with the acquisition of HackHands, an online mentoring platform for programmers. The acquisition will allow Pluralsight to go beyond video tutorials and assessments to live mentoring.
“We believe in the power of virtual communities and collaboration, and the HackHands acquisition is central to our strategy of democratizing and revolutionizing professional technology training,” said Aaron Skonnard, CEO and cofounder of Pluralsight.
This acquisition is Pluralsight’s seventh deal within two years, and it joins the recent acquisitions of Code School and Smarterer.
Android Studio 1.3 RC available for devs with C/C++ and NDK support
Google has announced the release candidate of Android Studio 1.3 to the Canary developer channel. Android Studio 1.3 RC includes full preview support for C/C++ and the Android NDK. The NDK improves build performance with new versions of Grade and build tools.
More information can be found here.
Google App Engine for Go is generally available
After four years in beta, Google has announced that Google App Engine for Go is now generally available. Support for the Go programming language in the PaaS is now backed by a Service-Level Agreement (SLA).
“We’re officially removing the “beta” label and extending App Engine’s Service Level Agreement and Deprecation Policy to App Engine for Go,” wrote
Go product manager Jason Buberel in a Google Groups post. “This announcement won’t change how you use App Engine today, but we have heard your feedback: We will continue to make significant investments in App Engine for Go, including an improved SDK and an upgrade to the Go 1.5 runtime. Our goal is to make App Engine the best deployment platform for Go programmers.”
More information is available in the Google Cloud Platform blog post.
