 Windows Phone version 7 brought a brand new kind of, well the Zune had started this a little bit, the Zune HD, but Windows Phone really you guys had this very strong design, it was a very strong, very different design concept than anything we'd seen from Microsoft. And I think a lot of people were kind of blown away. I know I was, it was not what I expected. And you're now taking that and it's really starting to propagate through all of the other products or a lot of the other products of Microsoft. Windows 8 is this Metro or Metro style. The Xbox dashboard is looking more and more like Metro style. So how important is it to bring all that stuff together and at what point did you realize that you needed to unify or you wanted to unify? You know I think we as designers knew way before we actually executed that we did have a very mixed messages to consumers or let's call it end users. And our brand as far as the external community and users were concerned looked very fragmented because our design languages were inconsistent. Maybe more importantly I don't think things worked as well as they're supposed to. And so we internally and somewhat externally like to joke and say you know the expectation for our products to work and feel like they're part of a family have always been quite high. I like to think that right now is finally when we're delivering on that promise. So one plus one could equal more than two. So we're introducing new math at Microsoft. Scary thing in a computer science company right? But I like to use it. We say one plus one equals eleven when we do what we do. And that is effectively aligning first and principle. We get that scale to interaction design so interoperability and cohesiveness. Same similar conceptual models. The way you use a phone cognitively should use similar concepts of what you're using in Windows and or Xbox. That's the priority. Then the look and feel also then now sends a message that you're within a certain family right? And your expectations are set. So we've always felt that was important. I think to answer your question directly it was about two years ago that I recall an event where we as many some of the design directors in charge of the different divisions. League of Design. League of Design so to speak. We call it an LT. Leadership teams. Went off site for a day and a half. And we actually stepped back and for the first time put up all the work using screenshots. Hard copies not digital shots. And we filled a wall of twenty feet long top and bottom and tried to parse let's call it information worker from consumer. But really took a look from server and tools all the way to what's going on in some cases what's happening in MSR but Windows, Xbox at the time, Zoom. And started to look for commonality amongst all this. And you know saw an awful lot of it. But we're very disappointed in what we're seeing as well. And what a waste of development efficiency. And a huge complaint from consumers as well I think. We I know as in the press we had been giving Microsoft a hard time because there was this promise of you have all these pieces but they're all so disparate. And then you've got no common real. So we did as a community. And this wasn't anything we needed permission to do. It was always on us. Not just design but it's program management. Anyone's making decisions. Shame on us for not bringing that together as well as we could have. And so we've just took it upon ourselves to say you know what we're making calls for the different divisions. It's important that we really start to develop a more unified promise and message to end users. Right. Right. So at a very grassroots level at one hand we just start to create these small working teams to actually start lining natural user interface. Gesture. Right. Certainly within our divisions even that was a challenge. But across divisions even more of a challenge. And then the look and feel. The metro design style and language became something where different teams were now cross pollinating. Right. So we're not just talking about liners. We're talking about icons. We're sharing what palette of colors people are using. And this continues today in a more formal state. But then we're just doing our job.
 Windows Phone version 7 brought a brand new kind of, well the Zune had started this a
 little bit, the Zune HD, but Windows Phone really you guys had this very strong design,
 it was a very strong, very different design concept than anything we'd seen from Microsoft.
 And I think a lot of people were kind of blown away.
 I know I was, it was not what I expected.
 And you're now taking that and it's really starting to propagate through all of the other
 products or a lot of the other products of Microsoft.
 Windows 8 is this Metro or Metro style.
 The Xbox dashboard is looking more and more like Metro style.
 So how important is it to bring all that stuff together and at what point did you realize
 that you needed to unify or you wanted to unify?
 You know I think we as designers knew way before we actually executed that we did have
 a very mixed messages to consumers or let's call it end users.
 And our brand as far as the external community and users were concerned looked very fragmented
 because our design languages were inconsistent.
 Maybe more importantly I don't think things worked as well as they're supposed to.
 And so we internally and somewhat externally like to joke and say you know the expectation
 for our products to work and feel like they're part of a family have always been quite high.
 I like to think that right now is finally when we're delivering on that promise.
 So one plus one could equal more than two.
 So we're introducing new math at Microsoft.
 Scary thing in a computer science company right?
 But I like to use it.
 We say one plus one equals eleven when we do what we do.
 And that is effectively aligning first and principle.
 We get that scale to interaction design so interoperability and cohesiveness.
 Same similar conceptual models.
 The way you use a phone cognitively should use similar concepts of what you're using
 in Windows and or Xbox.
 That's the priority.
 Then the look and feel also then now sends a message that you're within a certain family
 right?
 And your expectations are set.
 So we've always felt that was important.
 I think to answer your question directly it was about two years ago that I recall an event
 where we as many some of the design directors in charge of the different divisions.
 League of Design.
 League of Design so to speak.
 We call it an LT.
 Leadership teams.
 Went off site for a day and a half.
 And we actually stepped back and for the first time put up all the work using screenshots.
 Hard copies not digital shots.
 And we filled a wall of twenty feet long top and bottom and tried to parse let's call it
 information worker from consumer.
 But really took a look from server and tools all the way to what's going on in some cases
 what's happening in MSR but Windows, Xbox at the time, Zoom.
 And started to look for commonality amongst all this.
 And you know saw an awful lot of it.
 But we're very disappointed in what we're seeing as well.
 And what a waste of development efficiency.
 And a huge complaint from consumers as well I think.
 We I know as in the press we had been giving Microsoft a hard time because there was this
 promise of you have all these pieces but they're all so disparate.
 And then you've got no common real.
 So we did as a community.
 And this wasn't anything we needed permission to do.
 It was always on us.
 Not just design but it's program management.
 Anyone's making decisions.
 Shame on us for not bringing that together as well as we could have.
 And so we've just took it upon ourselves to say you know what we're making calls for
 the different divisions.
 It's important that we really start to develop a more unified promise and message to end
 users.
 Right.
 Right.
 So at a very grassroots level at one hand we just start to create these small working
 teams to actually start lining natural user interface.
 Gesture.
 Right.
 Certainly within our divisions even that was a challenge.
 But across divisions even more of a challenge.
 And then the look and feel.
 The metro design style and language became something where different teams were now cross
 pollinating.
 Right.
 So we're not just talking about liners.
 We're talking about icons.
 We're sharing what palette of colors people are using.
 And this continues today in a more formal state.
 But then we're just doing our job.