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Ravings of a Developer TS

I have been with Microsoft as part of their Develop Platform and Evangelism team since July of 2006. As I go about my day to day, I often stumble across things I want to share out with the community. This is my soap box. I am based out of the Midwest District, so please don't be offended if you see most of the events I post being in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. If you are ever curious if the event will be in a city near you, just ask :)

Syndication

More Tech Tweets!

Well, I got married and had myself one doozy of a honeymoon :)  Since most of you don’t care about the details (it was a fantastic Old Route 66 road-trip BTW), you might have missed some good stuff you WOULD care about.  So to save everyone the trouble of filtering through all of my twitters about that part of my life, here are the last few weeks worth of tech-related Twitter posts:

 

RT @joshholmes - Announcing @WebsiteSpark! Designed to help small web consultants with free MS bits @ScottGu's post - http://bit.ly/2X2OJX

Yup, definitely want one! (Microsoft Courier) RT @BradleyLJones - The Day Microsoft Killed the eBook Reader - http://bit.ly/Y2CFh

Been waiting for a replacement image resizer for the XP one, W00t! RT CodePlex project @saraford can't live without? http://bit.ly/3CtOse

RT: @saraford RT @lidnug: LIDNUG Event: Visual Studio Tips and Tricks with @saraford - 24 Sep 2009 at 10:30am PST/PDT - http://bit.ly/zoglZ

RT: @drice Just saw an overview of Teamprise by John O' Neil. If you do Java, you need to check out these tools!!! http://teamprise.com/

Support PDC09 Nov 17 - 19, add a #twibbon to your avatar now! - http://bit.ly/1a7Xn8

Retweet @lidnug LIDNUG Event: Visual Studio Tips and Tricks with @saraford - 24 Sep 2009 at 10:30am PST/PDT - http://bit.ly/zoglZ

Retweet @WadeWegner "What Exactly Does One Do With 'Oslo'?" - http://bit.ly/cYUc0

RT @PDC09: PDC, TechEd, MIX ...which conference is right for you? Learn more on the About page: http://microsoftpdc.com

RT @briankel Killer! RT Enrich VSTA 2010 Use case diagram with SketchFlow Screens http://bit.ly/a4WOb

RT @shanselman: New "Code Optimized" profile in Visual Studio (or the "I hate designers view") http://bit.ly/USZV4...

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Notion Solutions Bringing Some AWESOME VSTS 2010 Training to You!

Accelerate Your Software Process with Visual Studio Team System 2010 Roadshow

Come join Microsoft and Notion Solutions as we present the latest tools and techniques for managing your software process to attain quality software. Microsoft’s tools make implementing a predictable process simpler than ever, but you need to know what your options are. This roadshow is all about making sure you know what is possible so that you can start planning how to improve your organization’s ability to deliver quality software to your customers.

Chicago, IL

October 6, 2009

Houston, TX

October 7, 2009

Dallas, TX

October 8, 2009

St. Louis, MO

October 13, 2009

 

Migration Planning Workshop for Visual Studio Team System 2010

The goal of the Migration Planning Workshop is to create a roadmap for migrating a company to Visual Studio Team System 2010 (VSTS 2010). This is done by reviewing the capabilities of Visual Studio Team System 2010 (VSTS 2010) and also reviewing how a company is using Visual Studio Team System 2005 or 2008 today. In order for many of the new features of VSTS 2010 to function, changes will need to be made to the existing environment. Whether you’re looking for the new dashboard reporting features, or the new test case management features, simply upgrading an existing environment won’t be sufficient. SharePoint, report and process template changes will need to be made, and training will need to take place. The deliverable for this workshop is a report that contains information gathered from the workshop, an evaluation of your current Visual Studio Team System environment and its use, and a roadmap detailing how to most effectively migrate your existing environment to Visual Studio Team System 2010.

Click here for more details

Contact us to schedule: (info@notionsolutions.com or call 972.607.4833)

 

Interested in a more in-depth multi-day course?

Overview of Visual Studio Team System 2010 (4-Day Course)

This course provides students with the knowledge and skills to improve the development practices of their entire organization and team. This course covers a broad set of features provided with Visual Studio Team System 2010 to assist your team with application design, test management and execution, development standards and collaboration, automated build and release management, database schema management and test lab management. This course covers all of the most important features without going overly deep. By the end of the course, students are equipped to better understand how Visual Studio Team System 2010 can be used within their organizations. This course is currently taught using Beta 1 of Visual Studio Team System 2010.

Dallas, TX

October 26 – 29, 2009 8:30am-5:00pm CT

 

Tester Training with Visual Studio Team System 2010 (4-Day Course)

This course provides students with the knowledge and skills to use the latest testing tools provided by Visual Studio Team System 2010 to improve their ability to manage and execute test plans. Test case creation and management will be covered, as well as test execution and automation practices. Creating and managing virtual lab environments using Team Lab will be discussed within the context of test planning and execution. By the end of the course, students are equipped begin planning the implementation of Visual Studio Team System 2010 for improving testing practices within their organizations. This course is currently taught using Beta 1 of Visual Studio Team System 2010.

Dallas, TX

November 2 - 6, 2009 8:30am-5:00pm CT

 

Development Training with Visual Studio Team System 2010 (4-Day Course)

This course provides students with the knowledge and skills to improve the development practices of their organization and team. This course focuses on improving interaction between team members as well as enhancing architecture compliance, coding practices and debugging techniques using tools all integrated directly into Visual Studio 2010. By the end of the course, students are equipped to enforce architecture and coding standards, perform unit testing during builds, setup gated checkin processes, use historical debugging, uncover performance bottlenecks and interact better with test teams. This course is currently taught using Beta 1 of Visual Studio Team System 2010.

Dallas, TX

November 9 - 12, 2009 8:30am-5:00pm CT

 

Database Training with Visual Studio Team System 2010 (4-Day Course)

This course provides knowledge and skills to manage database objects using Team Foundation Version Control, Team Foundation Build, and tools that aid in database testing, test data generation and deployment all integrated directly into Visual Studio 2010. By the end of the course, students are equipped to use managed techniques for testing, versioning and deploying databases to create high-quality databases. This course is currently taught using Beta 1 of Visual Studio Team System 2010.

Dallas, TX

November 16 - 19, 2009 8:30am-5:00pm CT

 

 

Looking Ahead to Team System 2010 Webcast

This is an overview of Team System 2010 and highlights the difference between 2008 and 2010. Key emphasis will also be put on what migration steps need to be taken to make use of all of the new features, including the testing tools, version control, work item tracking and build enhancements. As a basis for demonstration, the development processes and practices used to create Notion Tools for Team System will be demonstrated, including branching models, build and deployment automation, custom reporting and workflows.

Sept. 17, 2009 1:00pm CT

Oct. 15, 2009 1:00pm CT

Nov. 17, 2009 1:00pm CT

Dec. 15, 2009 1:00pm CT

Looking Ahead to Testing with Team System 2010 Webcast

This is an overview of the VSTS 2010 testing tools including using the new Microsoft Test & Lab Manager to manage your testing and using test automation to automate your UI testing. The use of Test Lab will be discussed as a means of automating the creation of virtual environments for testing purposes. Deploying to VM environments during build will be demonstrated and facilitate a robust developer/tester lifecycle. For a taste of real-world use, the test plans and test process used to perform multi-platform testing of Notion Tools for Team System will be demonstrated.

Sept. 10, 2009 2:30pm CT

Oct. 8, 2009 2:30pm CT

Nov. 12, 2009 2:30pm CT

Dec. 10, 2009 2:30pm CT

Looking Ahead to Development Practices with Team System 2010 Webcast

This is an overview of the new development and database tools in Team System 2010. The new capabilities of historical debugging, code analysis, profiling and the new test impact analysis will all be demonstrated. Working with Team Foundation Server 2010, gated-checkin will be discussed as well as the tester/developer collaboration experience. The new architect tools will be demonstrated to facilitate a better understanding of how modeling is a part of the development experience.

Sept. 24, 2009 3:00pm CT

Oct. 22, 2009 3:00pm CT

Nov. 19, 2009 3:00pm CT

Dec. 17, 2009 3:00pm CT

 

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

More Consolidated Tech Tweets, It’s Been a Good Week :)

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Great VSTS 2010, Agile, and Scrum Webcasts Available Soon!

August 18th - Agile/Scrum : How to Deliver Business Value Faster, Presented by Riad Bacchus, Neudesic

Please join Neudesic to learn more about Scrum software development methodology and how it can help address the constant struggle to balance the project management constraint profile (time, cost and scope).  Scrum reveals a well known but not openly discussed truth in software development:  during a project, customers often change their minds about what they want and need (often called requirements churn), and unpredicted challenges cannot be easily addressed in a traditional predictive or waterfall process.   Scrum adopts an empirical approach, accepting that the problem cannot be fully understood or defined, focusing instead on maximizing the team's ability to deliver quickly and respond to emerging requirements.

REGISTER TODAY!

Tues., August 18, 2009
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time

 

August 18th - A First Look at Team System 2010  - Tester Edition

Visual Studio Team System 2010 Test Edition and the accompanying, standalone Microsoft Test & Lab Manager (MTLM) significantly extend the capabilities of the 2008 version and bring into existence some new capabilities. First and foremost is the support for manual, user acceptance testing. The new tools will enable additional tester roles to be part of the team and the application lifecycle. The good news for these testers is that they will not be using the (complicated) Visual Studio IDE, but rather a new, lightweight WPF application.

In addition, the tester benefits from being able to gather diagnostic information when running tests and automatically adding this information to a bug work item. The tester can collect details of the actions that are performed when running a manual test case. These details can be used the next time to fast forward manual testing.  In the 2010 version all testing artifacts are part of your team project. No more random documents on the portal, but rather the plans, suites, configurations, and cases are stored in Team Foundation Server.

Join Accentient for a drill-down into the new features and capabilities of Visual Studio Team System 2010 Test Edition:
- Defining acceptance criteria
- Test case management
- Creating test plans, test suites, and test configurations
- Creating and running a manual test
- Collect diagnostic (system impact) data during a test run
- Recording a manual test for playback
- Creating automated (code) UI tests

Register here!

Tuesday, August 18th 2009

12:00 PM - 01:00 PM Mountain Time

 

August 20th - A First Look at Team System 2010  - General Overview

Microsoft has been working hard on their next generation of Visual Studio Team System. The 2010 version will deliver new capabilities for everyone on a project, including architects, developers, project managers and testers.  Since beta 1 released, the experts at Accentient have been heads-down, putting it to the test, and demonstrating it to our clients. We would like to share some of our insight with you.

Join Accentient for a tour of the marquee features and improvements found in Visual Studio Team System 2010:

- Separate and improved install and configuration process
- Team project collections
- Architecture Explorer
- UML support
- Hierarchical work items
- Improved test case management
- Source control branch visualization
- Workflow-based build
- Test and Lab Manager
- UI testing

 

Register Here!

Tuesday, August 18th 2009

12:00 PM - 01:00 PM Mountain Time

 

September 15th - Agile/Scrum : How to Deliver Business Value Faster, Presented by Riad Bacchus, Neudesic

Please join Neudesic to learn more about Scrum software development methodology and how it can help address the constant struggle to balance the project management constraint profile (time, cost and scope).  Scrum reveals a well known but not openly discussed truth in software development:  during a project, customers often change their minds about what they want and need (often called requirements churn), and unpredicted challenges cannot be easily addressed in a traditional predictive or waterfall process.   Scrum adopts an empirical approach, accepting that the problem cannot be fully understood or defined, focusing instead on maximizing the team's ability to deliver quickly and respond to emerging requirements.

REGISTER TODAY!

Agile Scrum
Tues., September 15, 2009
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time

 

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by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Tech Tweets Consolidated! Azure, Win7 and TFS, OH MY!

Hi out there! I do have a Twitter account but honestly, I Tweet about everything including my crafting projects, what I am having for dinner (when I believe it is a Tweet-worthy meal), etc, which most of you do not care about :)  So, since so many awesome things have been popping up in the TFS, Windows, MSDN worlds of late, I thought I would consolidate my tech Tweets for anyone who might be interested in just that part of my stream of consciousness:

  • @mitrik blogged about a new CodePlex project for a check-in policy that handles keyword expansion in #TFS: http://tr.im/w9Ch
  • RT @JasonBarile - Blogged: How to undo a pending change in a workspace you no longer have http://is.gd/2axrX
  • There is still time, sign up today! Come check out the “Real World Azure with Microsoft IT” Road Show details at http://bit.ly/QPcAQ
  • Keeping this handy! RT @JasonBarile Blogged: How to connect to a TFS 2010 server from a Team Explorer 2008 client http://is.gd/2andy
  • RT @JasonBarile "Vista is my OS I do not want. Though I upgrade to Win7, I fear no evil. Thy quality comforts me" -Book of Win7 8:6 #win7day
  • @ruffyen - As for Mantis, nothing I know of, maybe the #TFS Migration & Synch toolkit could help you: http://tinyurl.com/6hqumj
  • @ruffyen There is a 3rd party tool to convert #TFS to SVN http://tinyurl.com/m2egry. #TFS only leverages its build in SCM out of the box.
  • Where has this been my whole life? ASP.NET One Click Deploy & Easy Config! 10-4: Making Web Deployment Easier - http://tinyurl.com/bpcvlo
  • My favorite Win7 post so far today! :) RT @JasonBarile ... and the geeks shall upgrade the Earth - Book of Win7 8:6 #win7day
  • You a student, recent grad, or know one? Visit Microsoft’s Student to Business Website for interview tips, training, etc http://tiny.cc/S2B8
  • RT ms_dev_events - Microsoft Silverlight 3 and Expression 3 full 60 day trials available here: http://ow.ly/j2KO

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Hey Microsoft Coders! Free Stuff (Training, Books, Magazines) to Sharpen your skills!

FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO MSDN MAGAZINE!

http://www.submag.com/sub/mf?tc=1

 

FREE E-BOOKS!

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/vstudio/2008/default.mspx#EBOOK

 

Start training today with new, free e-learning on Visual Studio 2008!

 

Collection 6261 Developing Rich Experiences Using Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008—free offer!

This series of three, two-hour clinics focuses on how to build solutions by using Windows Workflow Foundation, Windows Presentation Foundation, and Windows Communication Foundation with the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008.

   

FREE E-LEARNING COURSES FROM Microsoft eLearning!

http://learning.microsoft.com/Manager/Catalog.aspx?view=free

Clinic 5046: Inside Look at Building and Developing Solutions with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007

Clinic 5045: Inside Look at Developing with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0

Clinic 6262: Introducing Windows Workflow Foundation using .Net Framework 3.5 & Visual Studio 2008

Clinic 6263: Introducing Windows Presentation Foundation using .Net Framework 3.5 & Visual Studio 2008

Clinic 6264: Introducing Windows Communication Foundation using .Net Framework 3.5 & Visual Studio 2008

Clinic 6188: What's New in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 for Enterprise Data Platform

Clinic 6189: What's New in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 for Business Intelligence

Clinic 6190: What's New in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 for Database Development

Clinic 6448: Understanding the Differences Between Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard and Enterprise Editions

Course 6339: Database Fundamentals in Microsoft SQL Server 2008

Clinic 6342: Developing an Application for Microsoft SQL Server Data Services

Clinic 6341: Overview of Microsoft SQL Server Data Services

Collection 6340: Introducing Microsoft SQL Server Data Services for Developers

Collection 6187: What’s New in Microsoft SQL Server 2008

Clinic 6258: New Features Of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services

Collection 6261: Developing Rich Experiences using Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 & Visual Studio 2008

Clinic 3402: ASP.NET for PHP Developers: Introduction to ASP.NET

FREE MICROSOFT VIRTUAL LABS

Visual Studio 2008 Virtual Labs (clip_image002[5] Labs can be completed in 30 minutes)

· MSDN Virtual Lab: AJAX 3.5 SP1 New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Developing ASP.NET Dynamic Data New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Introduction to ASP.NET MVC New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Introduction to ADO.NET Data Services New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Introduction to ADO.NET Entity Framework New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Introduction to the .NET Framework Client Profile New!

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 Windows Communication Foundation and REST

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008: ASP.Net AJAX, New Designer Features and Script Debugging

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 - Developing an Outlook Add-In

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 - Integrating Windows Communication Foundation and Windows Workflow Foundation

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 - Developing a WPF Application

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 - Developing a .Net Compact Framework 3.5 Application

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Studio 2008 - Lighting up MFC Application

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Using LINQ to SQL with the .Net Framework 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Visual Basic 9 and LINQ

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Building AJAX/JSON Services using WCF

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Syndication using Windows Communications Foundation

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Silverlight Monster Factory- Using a XAML Template

· MSDN Express Virtual Lab: Connected Applications with Windows Communication Foundation and Windows Workflow Foundationclip_image002

· MSDN Express Virtual Lab: Microsoft Open XML and LINQ to XMLclip_image002[1]

· MSDN Express Virtual Lab: Multi-Targeting in Visual Studio 2008clip_image002[2]

· MSDN Express Virtual Lab: Office Business Applications and the New Ribbon Designerclip_image002[3]

· MSDN Express Virtual Lab: The New WPF Designer and WPF/WinForms Interoperatbilityclip_image002[4]

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Client Application Services

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Building Web Applications with Visual Studio 2008

· MSDN Virtual Lab: What's New in C# 3.0

· MSDN Virtual Lab: What's New in Visual Basic 9?

· MSDN Virtual Lab: Mapping Your Objects to Database Tables with LINQ to SQL

 

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FREE E-LEARNING PLATFORM COURSES For IT Pros and System Architects from Microsoft eLearning!

Collection 5934: Introducing Windows Server 2008

Clinic 5939: Introducing Server Management in Windows Server 2008

Clinic 5936: Introducing Security and Policy Management in Windows Server 2008

Clinic 5937: Introducing Branch Office Management in Windows Server 2008

Clinic 5938: Introducing Terminal Services Presentation Virtualization in Windows Server 2008

Clinic 6336: Exploring Terminal Services in Windows Server 2008

Clinic 6335: Exploring Microsoft Application Virtualization

Clinic 6334: Exploring Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008

Collection 6333: Exploring Microsoft Virtualization Technologies

Clinic 5935: Introducing Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008

Course 4698: Getting Started with Microsoft Office Groove 2007

Clinic 6078: Deploying Microsoft Forefront Client Security

Clinic 6079: Managing and Troubleshooting Operations in Microsoft Forefront Client Security

Clinic 6080: Deploying Microsoft Forefront Server Security Products

Clinic 5091: Introduction to Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging

Clinic 3404: What’s New in Windows Vista

 

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Clinic 2801: Microsoft Security Guidance Training I

Clinic 2802: Microsoft Security Guidance Training II

Clinic 2804: Microsoft Security Guidance Training IV

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Clinic 2808: Microsoft Security Guidance Training V

Clinic 6078: Deploying Microsoft Forefront Client Security

Clinic 6079: Managing and Troubleshooting Operations in Microsoft Forefront Client Security

Clinic 6080: Deploying Microsoft Forefront Server Security Products

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Wanna See the VSTS 2010 Architect Tools LIVE and IN-PERSON (in Chicago)?

Hope you can join us for a look at the VSTS 2010 Architecture tools. I am personally extremely excited about these tools, as someone who used to have only Visio for Enterprise Architects in her toolbox. I especially love the reverse engineering of UML diagrams from existing code and the ability to reject code that violates defined architectural design rules. Yes, I am totally serious, we really will have all of that!

Come on down to the Aon center, enjoy some free pizza and giveaways, and see Chris Kadel show off what is new and cool for architects in the next big release of Visual Studio for Architects. And for the record: No, I still don’t know when it will be released :)

 

Time period: 7/23/2009 5:30 PM till 7/23/2009 8:00 PM CST

Location: 200 East Randolph, 2nd Floor. Chicago. United States

Registration: https://www.usergroupsupportservices.com/UGEventView.ugss?EventID=7133

 

Description: Chris Kadel from Polaris Solutions will speak on the new Architect Tools included in VSTS 2010. These tools have undergone amazing transformations in the 2010 release which will make them indispensible for solution and enterprise architects. This session will involve an overview and demonstration of the Team System 2010 architect tools with a practical focus on how you can actually use these tools to create value in your organization.

Feel free to share this event with your friends!

  

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by AngelaB | 0 Comments

A First Look:Visual Studio Team System 2010-Architecture Edition

VSTS 2010 Architecture Edition - What's New?

Prior to the 2010 version, the Architecture Edition was focused solely on helping a team model their SOA-based system and application architecture and then "proving" that it could be successfully deployed to one or more data centers. The tools, known as Whitehorse, leveraged technologies such as SDM, DSI, and software factories. In the 2010 version Microsoft has abandoned this approach to high-level modeling. Instead, they have built brand new tools to enable UML modeling, code  dependency visualization, sequence diagrams, reverse engineering, and layer validation. 

Whether you've already adopted Team System, or have been waiting for the critical "third version" to be released before you commit to trying it, you should attend this webinar, see it firsthand, and get your questions answered.  Join us for a drill-down into the new features and capabilities of Visual Studio Team System 2010 Architecture Edition:

  • Architecture explorer
  • Code dependency
  • UML diagrams
  • Sequence diagrams
  • Reverse engineering
  • Layer diagrams
  • Layer validation

 

More Details and link to Register

Tuesday, July 28th.  2-3  p.m. EDT

Limited Space. Reserve Your Seat Now!

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

TechNet & MSDN Events Present: Real World Azure with Microsoft IT

Come spend a day with us to explore Windows Azure™ – Microsoft’s platform for building and deploying cloud based applications – from a real world point of view!  During this event, we’ll review critical lessons Microsoft IT has learned migrating internal line-of-business applications to Windows Azure™.

What is Windows Azure™? When should I use it? How does it apply to my job? Whether you’re an IT Professional, Developer or Architect, we’ll address your top of mind questions about cloud computing.

 

Use this link to browse the various available dates and cities all over the U.S. including Chicago, Indianapolis, Irvine, Columbus and more!  Be sure to register for BOTH events if you are interested.  MSDN and TechNet require separate registrations. http://tinyurl.com/lswfbe

TechNet Presents – for the IT Professional from 8:30am to noon

In this session, we will discuss:

· Azure architecture from the IT professional’s point of view

· Why an IT operations team would want to pursue Azure as an extension to the data center

· Configuration, deployment and scaling Azure-based applications

· The Azure roles (web, web service and worker)

· Azure storage options

· Azure security and identity options

· How Azure-based applications can be integrated with on-premises applications

· How operations teams can manage and monitor Azure-based applications

 

MSDN Presents – for the Developer & Architect from 1:00pm to 5:00pm

In this session, we will discuss:

· Cloud computing architectures in general and the Azure architecture in particular

· Several aspects of Azure from the developer’s and architect’s perspective

· Azure roles (web, web service and worker)

· Azure storage options

· Azure security and identity options

· How Azure-based applications can be integrated with on-premise applications

· Configuration, deployment and scaling Azure-based applications

· How development teams can optimize their applications for better management and monitoring

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

Visual Studio’s Built-In Code Generation Tool

As I was listening to my buddy Clark Sell’s podcast on www.DeveloperSmackdown.com, I heard them talking about a tool that I kept hearing about but never personally used, and honestly didn’t know too much about.  I digress...

 

Ever sit there at your desk, coffee or Dew in hand thinking, “geez, why can’t some of this basic code be automatically generated by the computer using my software factories in the managed language of my choice?”.  Uuhhh, well, you can, and it does!  The Patterns and Practices team and the DSL team have been using it for some time.  The Text Templating Transformation Toolkit (T4) is actually already on your machine if you're using Visual Studio 2008.  Seriously, check it out!  You can also get it by downloading the DSL Toolkit if you're using Visual Studio 2005.

Some of the features of the T4 Editor:
- Available for Visual Studio 2005 and 2008 (Orcas B2)
- Colorization of directives, text blocks and code.
- Intellisense on directives and attribute values.
- Support for multiples host (GAX, DSLTools and Clarius)
- Preview transformation and properties reflection

 

Here are a few articles to help get you up to speed:

Visual Studio T4 Code Generator: http://visualstudiomagazine.com/articles/2009/05/01/visual-studios-t4-code-generation.aspx

Generating Artifacts with Templates: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb126445.aspx

Jose Escrich Blog Post on T4 Editor: http://weblogs.asp.net/jescrich/archive/2007/06/07/new-t4-template-visual-studio-editor.aspx

Clarius Consulting’s Visual T4 Blog: http://www.visualt4.com/ 

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

CNUG Downers Grove Meeting July 15th

Meeting Details

When:  July 15th

Where: Microsoft Downers Grove

3025 Highland Parkway
Downers Grove, IL

What: Webservices and WCF

Agenda:

  • 5:30PM - Back to Basics: WCF and Webservices, Scott Seely
  • 6:30PM - Food and Beverages. Bring your nagging coding issues and design challenges for open discussion
  • 7:00PM - WCF and REST, Scott Seely

Abstracts

Back to basics:

WCF helps you to build message oriented systems by letting you focus on the messages you want to send and receive. WCF abstracts away the underlying protocols, wire formats, and other parts that make messaging hard. In this talk, we will cover the basics you need in order to successfully use WCF. If you need an introduction or a refresher, this is the talk for you.

 

REST:

The Microsoft stack gives us lots of ways to build RESTful services: ASP.NET/IIS7 integration, MVC, WCF, and ADO.NET Data Services. In this talk, we’ll cover how to think about REST. Then, we’ll cover how each technology can be used with REST and even dive into a few code samples and demos.

Scott Seely is the author of "Essential REST Services via .NET"

 

RSVP: http://www.clicktoattend.com/?id=139517

 

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by AngelaB | 0 Comments

July 23rd Chicago VSTS User Group - VSTS 2010 Architect Edition

Hope you can join us for a look at the VSTS 2010 Architecture tools. I am personally extremely excited about these tools, as someone who used to have only Visio for Enterprise Architects in her toolbox. I especially love the reverse engineering of UML diagrams from existing code and the ability to reject code that violates defined architectural design rules. Yes, I am totally serious, we really will have all of that! Come on down to the Aon center, enjoy some free pizza and giveaways, and see Chris Kadel show off what is new and cool for architects in the next big release of Visual Studio for Architects. And for the record: No, I still don’t know when it will be released :)

 

July 23rd Chicago VSTS User Group - VSTS 2010 Architect Edition

Registration: https://www.usergroupsupportservices.com/UGEventView.ugss?EventID=7133
Event name: July 2009 Meeting: Architect Tools in VSTS 2010
Time period: 7/23/2009 5:30 PM till 7/23/2009 8:00 PM (GMT -6)
Location: 200 E Randolph, 2nd Floor. Chicago. United States

 

Description: Chris Kadel from Polaris Solutions will speak on the new Architect Tools included in VSTS 2010. These tools have undergone amazing transformations in the 2010 release which will make them indispensible for solution and enterprise architects. This session will involve an overview and demonstration of the Team System 2010 architect tools with a practical focus on how you can actually use these tools to create value in your organization.

Speaker Bio: Chris Kadel has worked in the IT industry for over 10 years and has consistently worked with Microsoft technologies as a developer, designer, and architect. Chris is a co-founder and owner of Polaris Solutions, a Microsoft partner and leading provider of ALM Solutions including ALM Assessments, Implementations, and Process Consulting. Polaris has deployed Global TFS environments as well as have assisted small/medium size clients benefit from Team System. Chris is most passionate about the Microsoft ALM tools such as Team System. His certifications: MCAD, MCSD, MCTS: SharePoint Server 2007, MCTS: Team Foundation Server

Feel free to share this event with your friends!

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

THRIVE for Developers NOW LIVE!

Lately we seem to be launching a ton of great new campaigns for students, small business, and now our IT Pro community.  And given how hard the economic changes of late have hit everyone I know in the IT community (among other places), this is a refreshing bit of good news.  Here’s a little more about Thrive:

 

We’ve heard from lots of developers that times are tough. You’re doing more with less, applying your skills more broadly, and maybe even learning new tools. That’s why we created Thrive – a one-stop community hub that offers job postings, technical content, and community resources. So whether you’re seeking new ways to differentiate yourself on the job, or you need to re-tool your skills for that next big role, Thrive has the resources to help you get there faster. 

Advance your Career

  • Industry and career resources designed to help developers land a  new job  (i.e. training and certification, tips and tricks from CareerBuilder.com, Dice.com)
  • Community member insights on career strategies
  • Search functionality for thousands of developer job openings across the US (powered by Simplyhired.com)

Enhance your Skills – Web and Client Development

  • Best of class resources outlined in a step by step format to help developers ramp on new tasks faster, saving time and money
  • Product offers, training and certification discounts to get up to speed on MS tools and technologies quicker

Connect with your Community

  • User groups and MS dev events search functionality
  • Blogs feeds as well as industry leaders in the Web and client space
  • Community leaders share their insights on success strategies handling the downturn.  (i.e. “Development in a Downturn” podcast series delivered by .NET Rocks and “Insider Advice” corner highlighting community content around “Thrive” related topics of career, training and community)

Visit the main Thrive site here: http://www.microsoft.com/click/thrivedev/

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

LIDNUG: Advanced developer features in Visual Studio 2010

Tuesday July 21, 2009 at 10:30AM PDT - 11:30AM PDT

Website: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/microsoft/join?id=G2K4BH&role=attend&pw=PN6.%3CQ%5Drb

Intended For: Software Engineers, .Net Developers

Organization: Linked .Net Users Group

Location: This is a virtual event.

Price: FREE

 

Advanced developer features in Visual Studio 2010

Experience a tour of what’s coming soon in Visual Studio 2010 for debugging, profiling, analyzing and diagnosing your applications so they are capable of 24x7 reliability and of scaling to enterprise loads.

Not only will you get to see the technology in action, you’ll get a chance to ask questions to a member of the Microsoft team responsible for delivering those features.  Come get the inside scoop, and get a leg up on all the other development teams out there!

 

Presenters: Visual Studio Program Managers Daryush Laqab and Andrew Hall

Live Meeting: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/microsoft/join?id=G2K4BH&role=attend&pw=PN6.%3CQ%5Drb

 

by AngelaB | 0 Comments

IndyNDA July 9th - RESTing on the Web with Dan Rigsby

July 9th, 2009 - RESTing on the Web with Windows Communication Foundation
.Net 3.5 ushered in a new Web Programming Model for Wcf which extended the library to support REST, Json, and Syndication. This session will dive into what this new model has to offer and how you can use it to extend the reach and scalability of your applications.

About Dan Rigsby
Dan Rigsby is a Lead Software Engineer for Interactive Intelligence in Indianapolis, Indiana where he has been since March of 2000. Dan has been an avid .Net developer since late 2001 starting with ASP.Net, but today concentrates on SOA, Wcf, smart client applications, and a host of other areas. Dan is very active in the community as a developer, speaker, blogger, officer at IndyNDA, and 5 star moderator on the MSDN forums for Wcf. He is always eager to help out others when he can and has been awarded the Microsoft MVP award for his work with Connected Systems in Wcf. As a certified ScrumMaster, Dan has been involved in agile techniques and project management. Read more about Dan and development adventures at http://www.danrigsby.com/ or connect with him on Twitter or Facebook.

Registration - We will be registering at the door. Bring your business card or this newsletter or be prepared to provide your name and email address. We will be back at our standard meeting location: Junior Achievement Education Center at 7435 N. Keystone Ave.

Special Interest Groups
Three Special Interest Groups (SIGs) meet after the Main Presentation (around 8PM). The SIGs (Architecture, ASP.NET, and C#) feature a good hour of specific content.
Architecture: This group, led by Steve Porter, explores topics of interest to Software Architects.

C#: Jim Ellis moderates a session each month for C# developers. Thursday, Joel Dart explore Garbage Collection.

ASP.NET: John Thomas moderates Tips, Tricks, and Best Practices with ASP.NET. This month, Trey Gourley previews a series that will start in September.


IndyNDA meets on the second Thursday of every month at the Junior Achievement Education Center, 7435 N. Keystone Avenue, on the north side of Indianapolis.


Doors open at 5:30pm and the meeting starts at 6:00pm. Everyone is welcome to join us, and the admission is free.
Thanks to our sponsors, we will again be having FREE PIZZA and cokes beginning at 5:30 (while supplies last).

 

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by AngelaB | 0 Comments

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