With Microsoft in the middle of rolling out NoDo, and Mango being many months off yet, many are asking questions around why multitasking is taking so long to come to Windows Phone 7. Today, it appears that a developer has beaten Microsoft to the post, and has figured out how to implement 3rd party application multitasking without the help of Microsoft.
Windows Phone Hacker reports that the developer "JaxBot" has shown off his implementation of multitasking, which appears to work pretty well. The hack works when the user "half-presses" the camera button -- it opens and allows the user to select an application that is running -- then quickly switches to that application. It appears that they do run in the background, as JaxBot shows in his video a timer application that continues to count, even when away from the application. This hack could be a trick similar to the one that was recently shown off, where modifying a registry value allows for applications to continue running in the background, under a locked screen (which also, funnily enough, was developed by JaxBot).
It appears the homebrew scene for Windows Phone is gaining momentum, with Chris Walsh releasing a hack to allow any Windows Phone to update to NoDo last week, among other recent changes. JaxBot hasn't provided a release date for the application yet, and we're told not to bet on the UI being final either. Keep an eye on his Twitter for future updates.
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