Learn more about Visual Studio Team System and our promotional offer!

Visual Studio Team System provides software development organizations with comprehensive capabilities for supporting software development projects, to help address all the roles that play part in delivering products to customers.

In recognition of the critical role Gold Certified and Certified partners play in the overall success of the Microsoft ecosystem, we’re excited to announce the special promotion offering of Microsoft® Visual Studio® Team System 2008 Team Editions or Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Suite at approximately 65% off of Open Value ERP for purchases made between April 15, 2009 through June 26, 2009. These offers are available exclusively for active Microsoft Partner Program Gold Certified and Certified partners and partners are referred to their preferred reseller or distributor for fulfillment. See terms and conditions for additional details .

Join us on a webcast to learn about:

1. The functionality you are missing in the test and architecture editions of Visual Studio, including the exciting new capabilities coming with VSTS Visual Studio Team System 2010, that can help improve the productivity and capabilities of your software teams.

2. The limited time promotion and how you can take advantage of it.

Register now! http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032416140&Culture=en-CA

If you know me, you would know that I’m a passionate fly fisherman. As well, if you fly fish, you may or may not know that southern Ontario has some of the best fly fishing in the world, for all species of fresh water trout, smallmouth and largemouth bass, as well as regular runs of Great Lakes steelhead, and our runs of Chinook, Coho, and Pink Salmon. Not to mention Pike, Gar, Muskies….

Anyways, my brother and I (Josh Gallant, Technical Account Manager extraordinaire) finally got out this season, and we went to Bronte Creek, a great local spring creek that hosts great runs of Salmon and Steelhead. We had a great time, and although it was busy, I had lots of hits, some small stuff, hooked into quite a few large fish,  and landed a really nice post-spawn female on the fly:

On a size 12 barbless fly, fished deep. If you look close, you can see that she’s fresh from the rigours of spawning (fins are scraped red from gravel). She had 5 or 6 runs, and at least five nice leaps…

She was release without harm, hopefully to grace our southern ontario tributaries and make lots of babies for years to come.

For more information on southern ontario fly fishing, check out http://www.grindstoneangling.com …

From John Valk:

On Wednesday April 22nd at 10:05 a.m. the fly fishing community in Ontario lost one of its most genuine, sincere and best loved members. John Ponsford.

John was a great teacher who taught thousands the art of fly tying. Whether you were a beginner or seasoned tier, John had special methods and techniques that he shared with anyone who walked through the door. He has been teaching at Grindstone for the 16 years we have been in business. The local fly-tying clubs had John in for presentations and he was very popular through-out the community. He also has created many of the guide patterns we use and many of our clients from all over the globe have landed not just trout but very large trout on his signature caddis patterns.

John was always the gentleman. ‘Please’ and ‘thank-you’ were the most often used words in his vocabulary and this great man always put everyone else above himself. It didn’t matter what John was doing but it could always wait for a friend who needed help. As recently as 4 weeks ago, he made a special trip to the shop on his way to work to drop off a fly pattern book for a customer to borrow for a specific pattern. That was John. Every-one at the shop and all of our customers will miss him greatly.

To Carolyn, John’s wife, Jeff and Jennifer and her children, our deepest sympathies are with you, you lost the most wonderful husband, father and grandfather. The passing of John is a shock to all of us.

As per Johns wishes his family will not be having a formal funeral service.

Last tuesday, I had the please of co-delivering our “Better Development with Team System” session at the Microsoft Montreal office with Claude Remillard from InCycle Software .

We had some great questions from the audience, and had some great conversations afterwards!

For a copy of the deck, check out : http://cid-bfc5a11b75eac1c9.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Public/Better%20Development%20with%20Visual%20Studio%20Team%20System.ppt

This webinar is focused on quick and cost-effective methods for moving critical applications out of obsolescence.

A number of business reasons continue to compel companies like yours to move away from legacy platforms such as VB6 and ASP.

The need to lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) with easier integration of enterprise systems, to improve developer productivity and reduce specialty skills, and to consider compliance and scalability issues continue to drive companies to search for legacy transformation and migration options.

Artinsoft’s Visual Basic Upgrade Companion (VBUC) is the industry-leading tool for migrating from VB6 to .NET, offering 80% savings against a manual re-write and a 4x lower timeframe. Don’t miss this chance to learn more about VBUC and other cost effective migration options, including:

• Which migration strategy works best for you (complete, partial,
  coexistent, partial development)
• How to reduce project risk, costs, and time to market
• How to guarantee business continuity by preserving knowledge
  invested in legacy applications

All attendees will be given a complimentary copy of the ArtinSoft VB6 Upgrade Assessment Tool, which works by analyzing application components and relationships from a migration perspective.

Past webinars have reached capacity in less than a week, so register early to guarantee your spot!

http://www.starshot.com/microsoft/avanade/April15/

It’s a question that keeps coming up on internal DLs, customer emails, and on the web, so I thought I’d share a quick walkthrough on the Team Foundation Server workgroup edition and its 5 user limit.

Backgrounder:

Team Foundation Server currently comes in two flavors, a workgroup edition, and a standard edition. Both of these editions are functionally equivalent. In other words, you don’t get more functionality or capability with the standard edition of TFS, except, and this is the BIG EXCEPTION, you are limited to 5 named users accessing the TFS Server in Workgroup edition. Workgroup edition does not require any client access licenses, so it is free to use from a TFS perspective, once you have it installed. It is most commonly acquired through available through MSDN subscriber downloads for license holders of the following products:

• Visual Studio 2008 Architecture Edition (with MSDN Premium)
• Visual Studio 2008 Developer Edition (with MSDN Premium)
• Visual Studio 2008 Database Edition (with MSDN Premium)
• Visual Studio 2008 Test Edition (with MSDN Premium)
• Visual Studio 2008 Team Suite (with MSDN Premium)

Managing Your TFS Workgroup Edition

OK, so you can only have 5 named users in TFS Workgroup Edition.

TFS Workgroup edition can be installed in a number of different configurations, per the installation guide available at : http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=ff12844f-398c-4fe9-8b0d-9e84181d9923&DisplayLang=en . All the same topologies for standard edition apply to workgroup edition.

In order to manage your TFS Workgroup implementation, you’ll need to have the Team Explorer client installed. It can be installed on the server interactively, or on a client machine, either from the TFS installation source or media, or from one of the above listed client product versions installation source or media, or indeed, you can download it from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=0ed12659-3d41-4420-bbb0-a46e51bfca86 as a standalone installation.

Managing your Users:

First, the users need to exist in your Windows account database. You can do that by adding the users from your active directory, or, if standalone, adding users to the local Windows security accounts database. All credentials for the Windows user are managed here, particularly their local group membership and their account password. For ease of use, and some seamless interactions, you’ll want to try and synchronize the passwords between the different user environments (clients) and the server, by setting the passwords to be the same. It’s not necessary, but it can help the user experience.

To manage the users connecting to Team Foundation Server, you go from the team explorer, right click on your server, and select highlight Team Foundation Server Settings:

Choose Group Membership…

The resulting dialog shows the root groups with [Server]\ predicated. These are TFS groups, that only exist in TFS, and all versions of TFS use this model. There is a special group that only appears on the workgroup edition, the “[Server]\Team Foundation Licensed Users” , that manages the users allowed to connect to the server. Only 5 user accounts can appear in this list.

When you then go to properties for the group, and try and add a number of users, any user beyond the 5^th causes an error, per below, and the additional users do not get added:

Once you’ve got the users added, everything works like normal.

If you then try and change the valid users, it works fine, by first removing an existing user, and adding the new user. So the result is that you CAN change the users that have access, but the total cannot exceed 5 named users.

When you grow:

If you need that 6th user, you can move to Team Foundation Server standard edition. Your server can be “upgraded” for this by following the procedures in the http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms404848.aspx . It’s pretty straightforward.

 VSTT Quick Reference Guide 1.0 on Codeplex.

This document is a collection of items from public blog sites, Microsoft® internal discussion aliases (sanitized) and experiences from various Test Consultants in the Microsoft Services Labs. The idea is to provide quick reference points around various aspects of Microsoft Visual Studio® Team Test edition that may not be covered in core documentation, or may not be easily understood. The different types of information cover:

· How does this feature work under the covers?

· How can I implement a workaround for this missing feature?

· This is a known bug and here is a fix or workaround.

· How do I troubleshoot issues I am having?

Hey hey, our latest introductory session on Visual Studio Team System is being held in Montreal on April 14th….

I will be co-presenting with Claude Remillard from InCycle Software, a great Montreal area partner with tons of experience working with clients in Central and Easterm Canada and the US, in all industries, around Application Lifecycle Management. Claude will be able to provide us with real world insights on how he’s implemented VSTS to help customers improve their development practices to meet varying goals.

More details below, look forward to seeing you there!

April 14, 2009 9:00 AM - April 14, 2009 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Welcome Time: 8:30 AM

Microsoft Canada Co.
Montreal Room
2000 Avenue McGill College, Bureau 450
Montréal,  Quebec

http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032389053&Culture=en-CA

Did you know that you can get the benefits of using Team Foundation Server without needing Visual Studio Team Editions as clients? Did you know that Team Foundation Server can be used as a replacement for Visual SourceSafe, and adds scale, reliability, and security to your environment, while providing easy migration of existing source control files AND history? Did you know that Team Foundation Server adds defect tracking and enhancement request functionality to your entire organization, without the need to client access licenses? Did you know that your team can build more advanced solutions, more easily using Visual Studio 2008 Team Edition Clients?

There are many scenarios where moving to Team Foundation Server can provide tremendous value to your organization. In these sessions, we will provide a thorough overview of the functionality provided by Visual Studio 2008 Team Editions and Team Foundation Server, with particular emphasis on:

·         Source Control integration,

·         Work Item and Defect Tracking,

·         Automated Build Services,

·         Project Management capabilities,

·         Process and Governance,

·         Portal Services, and

·         Reporting

We will illustrate different scenarios for the adoption of Team Foundation Server, as well as demonstrate some core capabilities that have high impact on project teams, from Teams with Visual Studio Team Edition clients, to those without. We will also provide background information on how to move forward and build out an roadmap for implementation using assessment tools and services. Also included will be information on licensing models that can help you efficiently move your team onto Microsoft’s next generation development platform.

The sessions will be delivered by Adam Gallant, the Developer Tools Technical Specialist for Microsoft Canada, and Claude Remillard, President of InCycle Software, a Microsoft Partner and VSTS Specialist Organization. Both Adam and Claude will be available to answer your questions about product functionality and licensing. Claude will also provide unique insights into implementing improvements to development practices based on his real-world experiences at several well know organizations across different industry segments.

Better Development with Visual Studio Team System

We had great turnout in both Edmonton and Calgary for last week’s Developer Tools Power Hour in-person events. I was joined by Joel Semeniuk, the president and co-founder of Imaginet Resources Corp, one of our really super strong VSTS partners. They offer a bunch of great services, from advanced ALM consulting, to jumpstart services and ALM assessments to help organizations get started with ALM and build a roadmap to progressively improve software development practices, both with tools and ancillary to tools.

In case you missed the event, or if you attended, the deck is posted on my skydrive…

The deck from today’s Developer Tools Power Hour session, Building BizTalk Solutions with Visual Studio 2008 Team System, is available from the following SkyDrive location:

http://cid-bfc5a11b75eac1c9.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Public/Building%20BizTalk%20Solutions%20with%20Visual%20Studio%202008%20Team%20System.ppt 

Lots of great resources are listed at the end of the deck, be sure to check them out. As well, be sure to check out the BTS 2009 Beta release that you can grab from the connect site at http://connect.microsoft.com .

Running Microsoft^® Visual Studio^® 2005 Professional Edition or Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition without an MSDN subscription? You’re missing out!

An MSDN subscription gives you all the tools you need for your development and test environment. And if you subscribe before June 30, 2009, you’ll save 20% to  40%!

Adding an MSDN subscription to your existing licenses of Visual Studio offers a cost effective way to receive and license the use of Microsoft-based platforms and tools for the purposes of development and testing. Plus, you can help increase your development agility and productivity with instant access to:

• the latest versions of Visual Studio and other Microsoft-based technologies;
• testing environments, so you can overcome issues before they start costing you money and customer satisfaction; and,
• an online concierge service, to help you zero in on the information you need, when you need it.

Exclusive offer on MSDN Premium or Professional
Save 20% to 40% when you subscribe before June 30, 2009.*
Find out more .

So, not my usual post about Visual Studio Team System. But I am an avid angler (fly fishing only), and also an avid fly tier…

This is where I hang my hat every Saturday for a couple of hours. If you are in southern Ontario, and you’re interested in fly fishing and fly typing, pop in! They offer great courses on fly tying and fly fishing!

www.grindstoneangling.com

Fly-tying with Grindstone Angling 2009

Call or email the shop, 905-689-0880   or flyshop@grindstoneangling.com

Saturday February 7^th

Rob Heal will be teaching a class on tying trout patterns from a guide’s perspective. 9:30a.m.-1:30p.m.

The class will be covering 4 stages of the mayfly’s life cycle. You will begin with tying nymphs, working through and understanding the emerger. Then the adult Mayfly or dry fly followed by his variation of a great spinner

. Rob Heal spends a-lot of his off season time behind the vice tying flies for the next guide year. Rob has come up with some great patterns for trout, Bass and Steelhead. He will share with you the knowledge he has developed to simplify the use of natural and synthetic materials for his trout fly patterns and the techniques to tie them. Seating is limited. Please e-mail or call the shop to confirm your seat at the table. 905-689-0880   or flyshop@grindstoneangling.com

At The Podium, February 7^th Bill Spicer, Host of the New Fly-fisher T.V. Show, Will be tying some great patterns for all species.

5 Minute Flies.

All of the flies are simple patterns that can be tied in 5 minutes or less. Included in the line-up will be simple Spey flies, Stone flies, CDC trout patterns etc.

All are welcome; Coffee is on at 9:00 a.m.

Click on the map to link to the Live Maps site: 24 Mill St. North, Waterdown, Ontario

This sounds like a great opportunity to learn more about Team System and Team Foundation Server. Andre and Dave really know their stuff… Highly recommended!!!

http://www.objectsharp.com/events/smart-breakfast-team-system-team-foundation-server-dave-lloyd-andre-king.aspx

SMART Breakfast on Team System
Registration: 8:30am
Event: 9:00am to 11:00am
Thursday February 5, 2009

In just over an hour - while you finish your gourmet breakfast - Dave and Andre will explain why VSTS and TFS are technologies you should be using now to control and manage your software development projects. 

SMART Breakfast with Dave Lloyd and Andre King