Paul Krill
Editor at Large

Ballmer: I’m not going to WWDC

news
May 27, 20102 mins

Microsoft also says that it has no plans to support iPhone app development, despite bloggers' rumors

Contrary to a published report, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will not be presenting at the Apple WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) in two weeks. Speculation had centered on Ballmer appearing at the San Francisco event to talk about Visual Studio 2010 accommodating Apple’s iPhone OS-based devices, which feature applications based on the Objective-C language. But a Microsoft Twitter message on Thursday rejected the notion of Ballmer speaking at the conference.

“Steve Ballmer not speaking at Apple Dev Conf. Nor appearing on Dancing with the Stars. Nor riding in the Belmont. Just FYI,” the Tweet said. The company also has no plans to support Objective-C, a Microsoft spokesman said.

[ See InfoWorld’s review of Visual Studio 2010, which shipped last month. | Read InfoWorld’s peace plan for the Flash-on-iPhone fight. ]

Visual Studio 2010 accommodations for Objective-C would benefit Microsoft, an analyst said, though Visual Studio currently does not support Objective-C development. “If Visual Studio was to support Objective-C, it would be a great strategic move for Microsoft,” said IDC analyst Al Hilwa.

This story was updated on May 27, 2010, with new information from Microsoft regarding Objective-C development.

This article, “Ballmer: I’m not going to WWDC,” was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Follow the latest developments in business technology news and get a digest of the key stories each day in the InfoWorld Daily newsletter and on your mobile device at infoworldmobile.com.

Paul Krill

Paul Krill is editor at large at InfoWorld. Paul has been covering computer technology as a news and feature reporter for more than 35 years, including 30 years at InfoWorld. He has specialized in coverage of software development tools and technologies since the 1990s, and he continues to lead InfoWorld’s news coverage of software development platforms including Java and .NET and programming languages including JavaScript, TypeScript, PHP, Python, Ruby, Rust, and Go. Long trusted as a reporter who prioritizes accuracy, integrity, and the best interests of readers, Paul is sought out by technology companies and industry organizations who want to reach InfoWorld’s audience of software developers and other information technology professionals. Paul has won a “Best Technology News Coverage” award from IDG.

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