Microsoft Continues to Embrace Ethereum & Bitcoin

Microsoft is continuing to support cryptocurrency and blockchain technology within its infrastructure. Just recently, ConsenSys and Microsoft have collaborated on integrating Ethereum’s programming language, Solidity into the company’s Visual Studio. The tech giant company has also revealed that Excel 2016 will support Bitcoin’s currency format within the MS Office suite.

Also read: Putin’s Advisor: Bitcoin Legality in Other Countries is ‘Fiction’

Microsoft Enables Thousands of Devs to Build with Ethereum       

The reveal of this integration was introduced at Microsoft’s Build presentation with Ethereum co-founders Vitalik Buterin and Joseph Lubin attending the event. Build focuses on presenting the latest technology and tools to help developers generate innovative concepts.

The implementation of the Ethereum code will allow developers to create with its protocol, building decentralized applications (Dapps), smart contracts, and IoT compatibility. Through this collaboration, Windows users will be able to develop programs via the Ethereum Virtual Network (EVM). Buterin stated:

Making it easier for developers to build applications on top of Ethereum through developer tools has always been one of our primary interests and focuses, and the integration of Solidity in Visual Studio will help bring Ethereum to a very large developer community. I am looking forward to seeing the results that this collaboration will bring.

Solidity is a javascript-like programming language used for developing on the EVM. With the language users can write applications “that implement self-enforcing business logic embodied in smart contracts, leaving a non-repudiable and authoritative record of transactions.”

Visual Studio is a development environment that is used to build these programs for Windows, Android, and iOS platforms. Director of BizDev & Strategy for Blockchain at Microsoft Marley Gray said of the announcement:

This integration with Visual Studio will offer developers enterprise-grade solutions with advanced capabilities for teams working on blockchain Smart Contract projects of any size and complexity. We are excited to continue to support the development and innovation of the distributed ledger ecosystem. 

Excel 2016 will Support Bitcoin Currency Format

The Bitcoin currency format was revealed in the Office 365 Roadmap, which explains the development and upcoming updates to the software suite. Microsoft Office is currently the number one business application used by companies. Format support is currently in “development” but will offer a variety of use cases when it becomes available.

The Roadmap states, “Now use Excel to track, calculate and analyze Bitcoin data using native Bitcoin number formatting options. The feature is first being rolled out to Excel 2016 for Windows, Excel Online, Excel Mobile for Windows and Excel Mobile for Android.”

Microsoft clearly is interested in the digital currency and blockchain environment with Ethereum and Bitcoin being melded into its software. Projects like the cloud-based Microsoft Azure program and the acceptance of this emerging technology has been profound. The company still accepts Bitcoin and is now integrating certain elements of these technologies to prepare for the future.

What do you think about Microsoft’s deep involvement with cryptocurrency and blockchain tech? Could it give them the edge the company once had? Let us know in the comments below!

Images courtesy of Microsoft, Ethereum

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