Contagious Curiosity

Teaching Kids to Program with SmallBasic - Screencasts

2009-12-22T05:40:08Z

I’ve been working on developing more and better material to use to teach kids to program with SmallBasic. To that end, LLewellyn Falco and I have recorded the first few sessions in a series of screencasts about these methods.

These screencasts include the following:

1) How to get set up, i.e. install SmallBasic and SmallBasic Extensions
2) How to code your first SmallBasic recipe from the SmallBasic wiki
3) How to code your first SmallBasic recipe variations

Enjoy! We welcome feedback on this methodology (i.e. recipes and variations) as we are intending to create courseware for much more than one hour introductory events in 2010 (such as Digigirlz and TeachCamp). We envision creating this courseware for a one-year introductory program ‘Introduction to Programming’ for kids ages 10 to 17. Let us know how you think we are doing!

Screencast – How to get setup

Screencast – Coding your first recipe in SmallBasic

Screencast – Coding recipe variations

Happy holidays and happy coding!

Teaching Kids to Program at Microsoft in Irvine, CA on Mon, Dec 21

2009-12-21T00:26:47Z

If your kids are joining us at Microsoft Irvine tomorrow for the testing of 'Teaching Kids to Program Session', please be on time (either 9am OR noon OR 3pm), bring a PC laptop if possible. The address is 3 Irvine Plaza, Suite 1600, Irvine (bldg next to Hyatt). You may drop off your children for one session (you may also stay with them during the class), if dropping off, then please provide us with your (parent’s) cell phone number when you sign in.

We are looking forward to seeing you there.

Teaching Kids to Program – Today’s Lessons Learned

2009-12-15T05:54:37Z

In preparation for some larger scale events in 2010, I am working with a team of volunteers to develop new teaching methods and extensions to SmallBasic to teach children to code. Today we had our first live test (with 12 kids aged 9 to 16 – both girls and boys), here’s some of the things we found:

1) The recipe method works – We’ve written lessons using recipes (requirements in English) which the kids then translate into SmallBasic line by line.

2) Pair programming works – So long as the pairs are NOT siblings and so long as the one typing and the one talking SWITCH at regular intervals, we found this method to work very well.

3) The environment matters – We created wall posters using the wiki recipe graphics (for inspiration) – these piqued the kids’ curiosity and served as inspiration. The poster below shows the code where we saved the recipe, which can be imported directly into SmallBasic (via the import button).
Of course also food, movement – snacks and frequent physical movement are a must to keep the attention span high and to keep all of the kids engaged.

4) Variations work – after we got all the kids completely through a recipe, we verbally introduced variations, to get them thinking about the possibilities. We’ll probably make a screencast of these variations as we haven’t written them down anywhere yet.

5) Extensions work – we’ve written several new objects for SmallBasic, based on previous testing with kids (on the phone), such as creating a replacement for the built-in Turtle object with our Tortoise object. We’ve done this to make the objects and methods more intuitive and discoverable and to add documentation. We’ll continue to write more extensions as time allows. We’ve posted our extensions on CodePlex.

Here’s a sample of the Tortoise object and some new methods and documentation we wrote via extensions.

Here are some areas that we are still working on (and hope to learn more about in our next live test, scheduled for Microsoft Irvine next Monday, Dec 21).

If you’d like to have your child (ages 10 to 17, boys or girls) join us in Irvine for a two hour test session, please send me mail via this blog with the following info:

Name, age, time (9am OR Noon OR 3pm) and whether your child can bring a PC laptop with SmallBasic installed on it.

Areas of focus for next test:
1) Amount of conceptual explanation vs. time coding
2) Best method(s) to present conceptual information, i.e. in the SmallBasic IDE or verbally or in the wiki (example below)
3) Which recipes (pick two or three of all in the wiki) we should try to teach during a one-hour long event
4) Most effective ways to follow up / continue the learning after the initial introductory class.

Example lesson from the SmallBasic wiki, explaining Subroutines

If you are working with SmallBasic in any way, we’d love to hear from you. What has worked when you are teaching kids and what has not.

Happy coding!

Windows Azure information for Architects (includes #PDC09 announcements)

2009-12-01T22:20:13Z

I’m attending the Microsoft Architect Council Presentations today in At the Microsoft office in Irvine, CA. Our local Architect Evangelist, David Chou is presenting. Several attendees have asked for his decks so I’ll post them here. The first deck is an overview of the capabilities of the Windows Azure platform (which includes the announcements from PDC09).

Windows Azure Platform

View more presentations from lynnlangit.

The next deck is on SOA and Cloud Computing

SOA and Cloud Computing

View more presentations from lynnlangit.

Check out David’s blog as well.

Also watch my blog for the schedule of the next round of local MSDN Developer events. The content will be all about implementing Windows Azure, SQL Azure and .NET Services for developers. I will publish the schedule and outline here as soon as it is finalized.

Windows Azure ROI Calculator

2009-12-01T20:02:24Z

Why Azure? Well, how about saving money? Need to figure it out – try out the new Windows Azure ROI / TCO calculator

After you agree to the terms, then you have to fill in a one page questionnaire. I put in some sample data to illustrate. The most interesting question is about the expected ‘growth profile’ of your application, i.e. steady, predictable or spiked growth, etc…

You are then presented with a detailed cost estimate, which includes estimated costs for Windows Azure, SQL Azure, .NET Services and bandwidth costs.

The next tab breaks down the Windows Azure costs. This includes platform application migration and setup cost estimates (shown below) and more.

It also includes estimates for Platform IT Administration and Support and then a Windows Azure Platform TCO rollup for your application.

The last tab shows a detailed ROI comparison including the important ‘cost-savings’ estimated value.

I’d be really interested in hearing the usefulness of this tool.

Happy programming!

Teaching Kids Programming – Extending SmallBasic

2009-11-29T01:36:27Z

I’ve been pair programming with Llewellyn Falco and wanted to share a bit of what we’ve been working on. We’ve written and published some extensions to SmallBasic on CodePlex and would love your feedback.

To use these extensions, you’ll need

1) Small Basic – download it here
2) Small Basic Extensions – download here and then upzip
3) Create a folder named ‘lib’ in the Small Basic directory and copy the two unzipped filed into in ‘SmallBasicFun.dll’ and ‘SmallBasicFun.xml’

We’re also continuing with our new ‘recipe’ method of teaching. To use it, just click the link(s) on the wiki page, then import the requirement and then start coding!

Take a look at our wiki page and try out some recipes with the built-in objects, such as the Turtle, and then the object we’ve added, such as the ‘Tortoise’

We’ll start conducting formal testing with kids (boys or girls, ages 12 to 17) on the dates / times / locations below. If you’d like your child to be a tester, email me via this blog. You do NOT have to bring anything, we’ll have laptops set up, you CAN bring your own laptop if set up per instructions above. It is important to BE ON TIME for the session, if late, you can join the next session. Each session is only two hours. Parents are responsible for transportation and parking. Parents are welcome to stay with their children.

1) Monday, Dec 14 – Microsoft office San Diego pick any one of three 2-hour sessions (starting at 9am, noon or 3pm)

2) Monday, Dec 21 – Microsoft office Irvine, same time slots as above

We intend to use this courseware / extensions at DigiGirlz events and at TeachCamps in California in 2010. We’ll also be making our work broadly available, including screencasts to train-the-teachers in 2010. If you’d like to work with us on this project (or on other kid’s courseware, including Kodu, XNA, Robotics and more, please contact me via this blog).

Happy coding!

Teaching Kids to Code – Graduating from SmallBasic

2009-10-29T20:34:53Z

Regular blog readers may know of my work with Microsoft’s free kid’s coding IDE, SmallBasic as a tool to introduce the fun of coding to DigiGirlz. As I work with my volunteer developer teams on improving the way we work SmallBasic (more on that later in this post), I am thrilled to see a major enhancement in SmallBasic itself.

Kudos to the incredible Vijaye Raji (a developer on our Visual Studio team). He’s not only created SmallBasic alone and on his own time, but he continues to improve it. He’s recently released version 0.7, which includes the new ‘Graduate’ Feature. This allows SmallBasic applications to be seamlessly migrated to VB.NET.

To see this in action, download SmallBasic (it’s FREE) and install it. Open the IDE and write a simple program (sample screen below).

After writing your program, simply click on the new ‘Graduate’ button on the toolbar and the magic happens. Just fill in the destination on the pop-up dialog, and you’re done!

Just for fun, I’ve installed the Visual Basic Express 2010 beta 2 on my machine and am using it to open the newly created VB project. All of the Express editions of Visual Studio are also free – you could also use Visual Basic Express 2008. Because I did use 2010, there is a ‘update project’ wizard that pops up – just click through those dialogs and enjoy the results (shown below).

Of course, this being Visual Studio Express, you can enjoy all the features included in the Express Editions of Visual Studio, such as the Object Browser (shown below), debugging, etc… I am so excited about these capabilities as we are teaching kids over the long term!

In addition to the new ‘Graduate’ feature, my team of community technical volunteers and I are continuing to work with Vijaye to prioritize requests for improvements to the SmallBasic IDE, based our our work teaching with it.

Along with these improvements in tools, I have been working with community developer and technical instructor Llewellyn Falco on improvements in teaching methods and he’s come up with a great idea to ‘give legs’ to SmallBasic after the live classes we teach. His concept is to use ‘recipes’ for further exploration. We are quite interested in your feedback on this approach. Here’s a link to the wiki where we are posting recipes (partial screenshot shown below as well).

What do you think? Let us know. We are particularly interested in hearing feedback from middle and high-school technology classroom teachers on our new approach, so if you are reading this blog and know a teacher – please pass along the link – thanks!

SoCalDevGal answers your Windows 7 Developer Questions

2009-10-27T06:18:02Z

Wow what a launch today in Orange, CA! Thanks to the standing-room only audience this morning. Because of the crowd size, you were so kind as to send your questions via text messages. I didn’t have time to answer all of your many questions all at the event, so here are the rest of the answers. I’ll categorize the questions for easier reading too.

General Developer readiness and internals

Q: How do I get the Windows API Code pack?
A: The new MSDN Channel9 Windows 7 online training center has links to everything you’ll need. It includes links to SKDs, code packs, as well as all of the sample code from the demos I showed in today’s presentation – enjoy!

Q: Do developers have to distribute the API code pack .dlls with their applications that use them?
A: Yes, you do, but you can select the individual .dlls that apply so as to keep your application size as small as possible.

Q: What is the best way to take advantage of 64-bit applications? If I write an application for 64-bit, will it still work on 32-bit?
A: For a deeper understanding of Windows internals in general, and 64 vs 32 bit in particular, there is no better source than Mark Russinovich – his blog is here. He also has done several interviews on MSDN Channel 9 and has recently published a book on Windows Internals.

Q: If I write an application that uses a feature that is only available in a particular edition of Windows 7 (such as Bit Locker), what happens if someone tries to run my application on an edition of Windows 7 that does not contain that feature?
A: You should use version checking and ‘fail gracefully’ in your code (i.e. ‘the edition of Windows 7 that you are using does not support feature x). For more information see the hands on lab on version checking.

Q: How has UAC changed?
A: See this hands on lab, also the MSDN guidance

Q: How is PowerShell integrated into Windows 7:
A: PowerShell 2.0 is included – more info here (showing cmdlets)

Q: Does booting from VHD work in Windows 7?
A: It sure does – here’s a lovely blog post about this topic

Q: Can you demo homegroup setup?
A: Sorry no time, but here’s a video.

Q: Does Windows 7 support languages other than English?
A: Definitely – here’s a MSDN Channel9 video to get you started.

Sensor API

Q: Does the Location API support geo-coding? complete address reporting (also called civic address)?
A: If the location device provides that information and yes it does – more in this presentation.

Q: Are there any simulated accelerometers in the Windows 7 SDK or dev kits?
A: Not that I know of, however here’s a great blog entry on how to test/use the Freescale board (that I showed and gave away as swag) accelerometer with a sample XNA racing game.

Multi touch API (and Graphics Enhancements)

Q: How much of the multi touch API is in the current beta of .NET 4.0 (beta 2)?
A: It is not complete yet. Use the Managed Wrappers until .NET 4.0 is RTM’ed, or use native code.

Q: Can you use multi touch to geo tag items?
A: Yes the location gadget can be coded to work with touch (the sample uses a mouse click on a Bing Map to set your location).

Q: Can you use multi touch on multiple monitors?
A: Yes, as long as all monitors support touch

Q: If I code for an Infrared multi touch screen, does that mean that I’ll have to write different code for a Capacitive multi touch screen?
A: No, you will not. The same code will work for both types. However each type of screen may have a different maximum number of points of touch.

Q: Is there a built-in option in Windows 7 to automatically make the screen (or icons) bigger for touch?
A: No, but that has been coded into some Windows 7 applications. You’ll also see that design in jumplist menu items (i.e. more space between them). For more on the API, see these hands on labs.

Q: Do multi touch applications have the ability to respond to the amount of touch pressure? i.e. a ‘pressed harder’ event
A: Not at this time

Q: Can you define a custom gestures?
A: Yes you can by coding a custom response to a particular WM_TOUCH message, see the HOL referenced earlier for an example.

Q: Can we see Mike and Kim’s X-Ray multi touch application?
A: There is a video on MSDN Channel 9 about this application – enjoy!

Q: Is touch capability moving us toward virtual keyboards?
A: That is possible, also still complex. Microsoft Research has been doing some work in this area.

Q: What type of touch support is built-in to Windows 7?
A: Support for mouse clicks being replaced by simple gestures – like the Word 2010 (beta) scrolling with simple inertia that I demonstrated. More complex gestures, such as those with complex inertia, must be manually coded.

Q: Will a Windows 7 multi touch application be deployable on a MS Surface device?
A: Not presently, however we are working toward parity with MS Surface capabilities, particularly controls, for more info see this MSDN Channel 9 video.

Q: What is the maximum number of points of contact that a Windows 7 application can support?
A: That depends on the capabilities of the hardware. For example, on the HP TouchSmart tx2, 5 points of touch are supported after the N-trig monitor drivers are installed.

Q: Which applications that ship with Windows 7 are multi touch capable?
A: IE8 has the ‘bump’ feature; MS Paint is multi touch enabled

Q: Does Silverlight support multi touch? Do you code it the same way?
A: It will and coding is different at this time – here’s a Codeplex sample for Silverlight 3.0

Q: Is the Surface API / SDK separate from the Windows 7 multi touch API?
A: Yes it is separate at this time.

Q: Does Window 7 support handwriting recognition?
A: Yes, we have had this since earlier versions of the OS. It performs better after end-user training as well.

Q: Which version(s) of DirectX are compatible with Windows 7?
A: DirectX9, 10 and 11

Taskbar & Library API (also UX and Search)

Q: Can you set up a default save location in a library, like in a folder?
A: Yes, and that is a recommended programming practice for Window 7. You can see this ‘hands on lab’ for more information.

Q: Can you backup a library?
A: Yes, you can and you can automate those backups as well.

Q: When you copy a file into a library, where are you actually copying the file to?
A: The physical folder that the library is referencing.

Q: Can I pin an item to the start menu? (Run…)
A: Yes, right click the item and then click ‘pin to start menu’

Q: Why is your taskbar at the top of your screen?
A: Because I have chosen to put it there. I think it makes me more productive, it is an optional placement.

Q: Are programmable taskbar enhancements, i.e. icon overlays, etc…available only in Windows 7?
A: That is correct

Q: What gadgets do you recommend for Windows 7?
A: These are fun.

Q: Can we incorporate BING into Windows 7 search? how?
A: Yes, you can, via federated search. Using the OpenSearch standard, you can incorporate BING as well as other data sources, here’s some guidance.

Q: Does Windows 7 include voice activation? (i.e. a Speech API)
A: Yes, we’ve had one since Vista – here’s a link on how to build a WPF application that is speech-enabled.

Q: Is the scenic ribbon user configurable?
A: Not by default, but you can add that functionality to it with code. To get started coding a scenic ribbon, see these hands on labs.

Q: Where can I find a list of keyboard shortcuts for Windows 7:
A: Here’s a pretty good link.

About XP Mode

Q: When will XP emulation be fully available?
A: XP Mode is part of the the professional and ultimate editions of Windows 7. Read this blog to understand more about different types of virtualization offerings.

Other questions (ahem…I did not make these up, actual texts!)

Q: Where can I find information on the new Microsoft Store opening this week in Orange County? (Mission Viejo, CA this Thursday)
A: Here’s a link – get there early this Thursday for fun and prizes!

Q: Have they fixed the bug that makes developers burst into flames at the touch of sunlight?
A: I hope so, or there wouldn’t be any developers in SoCal!

Q: How are you?
A: Fine, but a bit busy at the moment. (asked during presentation via text).

Q: I was at U2 concert last and know how you feel (directed at Mike)
A: Exactly.

Q: I am 14 years old and my mom had to wake up at 4:30 am to drive me here, can I have some swag?
A: Sorry, no, but thanks to your mom.

Q: I noticed your frequent websites link included ‘Aries and Leo love compatibility’ – would you consider a Sagittarius?
A: Well, that is supposed to be a pretty good match for a Leo

Q: Will you marry me? (assuming this was directed at me and not at Mike Roth :)
A: Not at this venue – maybe a Las Vegas event in the future.

Q: Are you single? (same assumption as above)
A: Yes, are you?

SoCalDevGal shares Windows 7 Launch LIVE

2009-10-23T16:19:05Z

Well, it’s not me presenting, but it is the same content. If you couldn’t make it to the Windows 7 launch event next Monday, October 26th starting at 9am, you can watch the live stream of the presentation of my developer evangelist colleague Daniel Egan and more presenting on Monday.

Here’s the link for the live stream http://thenewefficiency.com/live

For those of you who DID register for my event on the same day (in Orange), I am looking forward to seeing you and will have some special surprises for select attendees.

SoCalDevGal recommends the new Windows 7 Online Training

2009-10-21T20:12:20Z

Wow – this is GREAT! MSDN Channel 9 has a new online training center for you (developers) to learn the Windows 7 APIs. The topics included are multi touch, taskbar, sensor / location, ribbon, shell libraries, background services, instrumentation & performance, installer detection, data redirection, high DPI, session 0 isolation, user privilege isolation and version checking.

There are hands on labs written using managed code (in both C# and VB.NET), native code. Code samples are downloadable. Also there are videos and more resources around each developer topic. The developer prerequisites (with links) are listed at the top of page as well.

Happy coding!

SoCalDevGal presents Windows 7 Developer APIs

2009-10-20T18:02:20Z

Next week Monday and Wednesday, I’ll be presenting at the MSDN launch events for developers for Windows 7. Both events are registered full already – however, I am posting my decks here for you. Also we may be recording one set of launch sessions, if we do so, I’ll post the link to the recording on my blog.

Session 1 – Windows 7 Taskbar and Library APIs

Windows 7 Developer APIs -Task Bar Libraries

View more presentations from lynnlangit.

Session 2 – Windows 7 Graphics Enhancements and Sensor APIs

Windows 7 Developer APIs - Graphics Sensors

View more presentations from lynnlangit.

Sessions 3 – Windows 7 Scenic Ribbon and Multi Touch APIs

Windows 7 Developer APIs - Multi Touch and Scenic Ribbon

View more presentations from lynnlangit.

Happy coding!

Also, if you haven’t done so already, please join my facebook group ‘Windows 7 Developers’ for more information.

SQL Azure – Let’s Get Started

2009-10-16T05:07:49Z

As you may know we’ve announced that Microsoft’s cloud computing platform, Windows Azure, will have commercial availability as of the first day of the upcoming Professional Developer’s Conference in Los Angeles on November 17th, 2009. In addition to data storage via Windows Azure, included in our offering will be SQL Azure. I’ve been following the product team’s progress with SQL Azure for quite some time now, given my long-term interest in, and professional use of, SQL Server.

In fact, just this week the product group announced on the the SQL Azure blog, that the current build is feature-complete for PDC09 now. The product team’s most recent blog details features that have been added to the most current CTP, such as the ability to configure firewall (access) rules, support for bulk copy (mostly for initial data load-in), and more. I’ve been watching and waiting, eager to ask lots of detail questions of product group as we start our first phase of commercial availability. Of course, the paramount questions are around security of your data in our cloud. We have a large number of sessions at the upcoming PDC in Los Angels, which runs from November 17 to November 19. The announced schedule to date already included 9 dedicated sessions on SQL Azure. These sessions are being conducted by members of the SQL Azure product group team.

If you can’t attend the PDC and want to get started learning the capabilities of SQL Azure, then I recommend downloading the October 2009 Windows Azure Platform Training Kit. It includes power point decks, demos, hands on labs and more. Of course this kit will be updated to reflect changes in the product as we add features. There will also be a good bit of SQL Azure coverage at the upcoming SQL Pass Summit in Seattle from November 2 to 5th. In addition, there will be sessions at TechEd, Europe in Berlin from November 9th to 13th.

An interesting new development is the recent update to the SQL Azure management portal. The CTP access URL is changing as of PDC (from https://ctpportal.database.windows.net to https://sql.azure.com) and the portal itself has been updated to reflect the newly-added features of SQL Azure.

Due to the level of interest in SQL Azure (including my own interest), I have decided to write a technical book about the topic. Readers of this blog will get to preview partial chapters, as I plan to begin the writing in December. I intend to write about topics thtat will have interest for developers, ITPros and architects. These will include development of .NET and non .NET front-end solutions (i.e. PHP, Java) which use SQL Azure as a partial or entire storage solutions, also deployment and management considerations such as auditing and synchronization between cloud and local copies of data stores. Of course there will be a strong emphasis on security implementation best practices throughout the book.

I am quite interested in your feedback if you have worked with any version of the SQL Azure CTP (beta). Take a minute to drop me a mail via this blog to tell me what you’ve liked or not liked about your experience so far.

TeachCamp 2010

2009-10-13T18:17:50Z

You may know that I've led Microsoft's annual events for high-school aged girls (in SoCal) DigiGirlz for 3 years now. I will continue to do this, plan for 2010 is to host three one-day events (in April) in LA, Irvine and San Diego for DigiGirlz. Also, I will be participating in DigiGirlz events (as an instructor-trainer and as an instructor) in other geographies. An incredible group of community volunteers has been the key to the success of DigiGirlz events.

New for 2010 is a vision to implement a larger initiative for both boys and girls (middle school and high school). The 'big vision' is to create a series of annual events, in partnership with the local technical communities and one university per event, where we teach large numbers of kids technology. The style of the event is based on codeCamp, that is community-driven, with corporate support (Microsoft and more), with community volunteers setting up logistics (registration, schedule, setting up classroom loads, etc...) and teaching.

The first instance will be held in Mountain View on Feb 27 (single day) at Foothill Valley College (site of the hugely successful annual SVCCodeCamp). This is being run by the NorCal technical community. They have decided that their first event will target girls only (300), due to the under-representation of women in technology. I will participate as an instructor-trainer and instructor. Peter Kellner and his wife Tammy (they run SVCCodeCamp) are already on board to help with volunteers as well.

The second instance will be held at UCSD in San Diego the second weekend in July. Llewelyn Falco will co-lead the event with me. We are currently working on curriculum development and are looking for volunteers to assist with this. Jason Frankovitz & Thomas Mueller are also on board helping with curriculum development. As we get closer to the date, we will obviously be looking for a bunch more volunteers.

I would like to run one more instance in SoCal this year. I am looking for suggestions for venue and timeframe.

If you would like to be part of my TeachCamp planning (mailing list), because you'd like to contribute and / or host your own TeachCamp somewhere outside of the Western US, you are welcome to join the conversation too.

If you are interested in helping in any way please send me mail to lynnl at microsoft dot com with the subject 'TeachCamp'

SoCalDevGal is getting ready for the Cloud

2009-10-13T15:42:47Z

As you may already know, we (Microsoft) have announced that we will have ‘general availability’ of our version of cloud computing, Windows Azure, on the opening day of the Professional Developer’s Conference (Nov 17).

As we prepare to ‘go-to-market’ with Azure, I’ve been doing some preparatory reading and wanted to share with you. First I’ve finished ‘Cloud Application Architectures’ by George Reese (O’Reilly). The focus of this book is on implementing using Amazon’s cloud services (EC2 and/or S3), there is also some coverage of RackSpace and GoGrid. The focus of the book is on architecture, i.e. designing for availability, scalability, securability, etc…I found this short book to be a well-written introduction to these areas.

The second book that I read is ‘Cloud Security and Privacy’ by Tim Mather, Subra Kamaraswamy and Shahed Latif (O’Reill). I was lucky enough to meet two of the three authors recently. They attended my talk on SQL Azure at Silicon Valley Code Camp in Mountain View. This book does a great job covering all aspects of cloud data security considerations. It focuses on explaining security concepts deeply and does not focus on a a particular cloud provider. I particularly like the chapters on regulatory issues and on auditing.

Since I have yet to find a dedicated book on Windows Azure, I am also working through the freely downloadable ‘Windows Azure Platform Training Kit’ as preparation. I am finding a wealth of information there and am particularly liking the Hands on Labs, Demos and Presentations sections of the kit.

In addition, MSPress has approached me about writing a book on SQL Azure and I am working on the proposal now. To that end, I’d be interested to hear from you about what topics would be of most interest. Also, the Azure team has asked me to record a series of ‘How do I…SQL Azure?’ screencasts (similar to those I did for my last SQL Server BI book ‘How do I…BI?’) as a companion to my book.

Let me know what you are interested in seeing / reading!

SoCalDevGal answers ‘What is Windows Azure?’ in 5 minutes

2009-10-04T20:03:57Z

Slides from #CloudCampSVCC – 5 minute time limit for my lightning talk. It was also filmed, I’ll add the link after it’s published.

What is Windows Azure?

View more presentations from SoCalDevGal.