Keith Smith's Blog : Announcement

Silverlight Wins CNET Webware 100 Award

keiths — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 02:50:00 GMT

Well this latest news is enough to bring me back from my blogging hiatus. At 3:00 PM Pacific, CNET announced Microsoft Silverlight as the Webware 100 Award winner in the Publishing category.

We are very honored and excited about this award considering it seems like just yesterday that we unveiled Silverlight at the National Association of Broadcasters conference and we are busy putting the final touches on Silverlight 1.0.

It is always great to see one's work receive industry recognition when that recognition comes from actual user votes. There were many popular finalists in the Publishing category and having Silverlight come out in the top must mean we are delivering something useful and valuable to end-users, designers, developers and content owners.

It appears those of you who voted are as excited about Silverlight as we are. I am looking forward to seeing all the amazing things you do once all that creative energy is unleashed when Silverlight 1.0 is released this summer.

Silverlight Meets .NET at MIX

keiths — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 22:36:45 GMT

Today, during the MIX07 Keynote, Ray Ozzie and Scott Guthrie unveiled the .NET capabilities of Silverlight and previews of the latest Expression Studio and Visual Studio tools for building Silverlight applications.

This announcements comes on the heels of the rich media functionality announced 2 weeks ago at the National Association of Broadcasters conference. Everyone who has worked on this project is elated, excited, ecstatic, energized, and euphoric with all the buzz and clear designer and developer interest around what we are delivering. [Check out: technorati, flickr, twitter, facebook)

With Silverlight we are changing the conversations people have ]bout building RIAs and delivering rich media experiences in a broad, quick and easy way. No longer is it an either/or proposition where you have to make tradeoffs between:

High-quality animation or performance
Developer/designer productivity or skills reuse
Broad audio/video reach or low cost of delivery

With a cross-platform implementation of .NE T at its core and Windows Media as its foundation, Silverlight turns each of the ORs above to ANDs.

You want high-quality, performant vector animation? Check.
Your developers and designers want an efficient workflow that allows them to reuse their existing skills and maintain creative control? Check.
You need to deliver your existing media assets at a low cost? Check.

Exciting times.

Go check out the latest Silverlight news at http://www.microsoft.com/silverlight.

Also, we have launched the Silverlight Community Site at http://www.silverlight.net where you can see demos, download samples and participate in the discussion on the Forums.

Microsoft Silverlight to Light Up the Web

keiths — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 18:38:00 GMT

Today, at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) conference in Las Vegas, Microsoft unveiled Microsoft Silverlight, a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web.

Helpful links:

Get ready to Light up the Web...

Microsoft joins OpenAjax Alliance

keiths — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 08:29:13 GMT

I am sure you have heard the news already but wanted to post anyway following a long day of meetings and press briefings that prevented me from doing so sooner.

Well, the rumors are true: Microsoft has officially joined OpenAjax Alliance (OAA).

Over the past year we were really focused on bringing ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 to market much faster than anyone thought we would when the technology was first previewed back in October 2005. Delivering a cross-browser, cross-platform AJAX framework that seamlessly integrates with ASP.NET on the server (ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions) while providing a client-side library that can be used to enhance any server framework (Microsoft AJAX Library) was no small feat.

Many of you may recall the "Atlas" project began a few months before Visual Studio 2005 and .NET Framework 2.0 were released. In addition to developing "Atlas" concurrently with the most advanced VS and .NET release to date, we also accomplished some pretty noteworthy firsts along the way to releasing ASP.NET AJAX 1.0. For example, there were the regular Community Technology Preview (CTP) releases every 6-8 weeks, the ASP.NET AJAX Control Toolkit shared source project, the Go-Live licensing with the March 2006 CTP at Mix, the refactoring of the framework into the supported "core" and Futures CTP, and the release of the source code for both the client-side script and server-side managed code.

What does all this have to do with OpenAjax Alliance? It should be clear from our actions during the development of ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 that we have maintained our deep commitment to our developer community. We have been transparent, agile and open. We have solicited and incorporated feedback to help solve real problems in close to real-time. We made it possible for the broader developer community to do AJAX without doing AJAX. Over the past year we have focused on shipping both platform and tools components any developer can use to build enhanced browser-based Web experiences using the skills they already have.

With today's announcement we continue our work on behalf of developers by joining with other industry leaders and AJAX vendors to promote and contribute to a high degree of interoperability among the myriad AJAX frameworks.

It is great to see industry watchers like Ryan Stewart recognize our efforts and commend the work we are doing around standards, openness and interoperability. Stay tuned to Bertrand Le Roy's blog if you want to follow our OAA participation more closely. (Bertrand is Microsoft's OpenAjax Alliance representative.)

By the way, if you happen to be in New York City for AjaxWorld East, be sure to check out Brad Abram's keynote tomorrow morning. He will be sharing his thoughts on AJAX development starting at 7:30AM.

Free ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 Clinic from Microsoft Learning

keiths — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 22:57:31 GMT

I am excited to announce the launch of a new, free, 2-hour "Developing Enhanced Web Experiences with Microsoft ASP.NET AJAX Extensions" clinic created by Microsoft E-Learning. The delivery of this clinic helps us reach a major milestone in our content & training roadmap for ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 following its release back in January. The clinic was created by professional instructors from around the world with contributions and input from members of the Microsoft ASP.NET AJAX product team.

From the course description:

In this 2-hour clinic you will learn about the rich functionality that ASP.NET AJAX Extensions provides for building highly responsive and enhanced web applications. In addition to learning about the different server and client components of ASP.NET AJAX, you will also learn how to build new ASP.NET AJAX applications and how to upgrade existing ASP.NET applications to take advantage of ASP.NET AJAX.

This clinic is appropriate for experienced .NET Web Developers and Software Architects who are looking to incorporate ASP.NET AJAX within their existing and future solutions.

Here is a list of the modules and lessons covered in this clinic:

Clinic Overview
- Module Introduction
- Navigation Overview
Overview of ASP.NET AJAX
- Module Introduction
- Introduction to AJAX and ASP.NET AJAX
- Introduction to the Architecture of ASP.NET AJAX
- Module Summary
Programming with ASP.NET AJAX
- Module Introduction
- Building a Simple ASP.NET AJAX Application
- Using the AJAX Library to Enhance Web User Interfaces
- Calling Web Services and Web Methods from the Client
- Module Summary
Additional Information
- Module Introduction
- Glossary
- Next Steps

Please help me spread the word about this free training for AJAX development using the Microsoft platform. Also, send me any feedback you have. I would also like to get your feedback on follow-up lessons and content you would like to see.

Refactor! for ASP.NET 2.0

keiths — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 03:43:05 GMT

Want to save some serious time developing your ASP.NET 2.0 Web sites using Visual Studio 2005?
Tired of mundane copy & paste or tedious global search-and-replace as your primary tools for cleaning up your code?
Do you want to make your ASP.NET 2.0 solutions easier to maintain in the future?
Do you like having access to useful, whizbang (and very cool) utilities that actually help you get real work done?
What if those utilities were free?

Well, if you answered yes to any of the above questions, you should be ecstatic and astounded to know Developer Express has released Refactor! for ASP.NET for immediate and free download.

One cautionary note to existing users of Refactor! Pro:

Refactor! for ASP.NET is incompatible with existing Refactor! Pro installations. Do not install Refactor! for ASP.NET alongside Refactor! Pro. Instead, those Refactor! Pro customers still within their free one-year maintenance update period can download a free update to Refactor! Pro that includes these new ASP.NET refactorings.

Also, since Refactor! is a VS add-on, it does not work with Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition. You must have Visual Studio 2005 Standard or above.

So, how cool is Refactor! for ASP.NET? Watch this 12-minute video overview to see for yourself.

The v2.1.3 release includes 25 refactorings, with 9 dedicated to ASP.NET development:

Add Validator
Extract ContentPlaceHolder
Extract ContentPlaceHolder (and create master page)
Extract Style (Class)
Extract Style (id)
Move to Code-behind
Move Style Attributes to CSS
Rename Style
Surround with Update Panel

(the "Extract to User Control" refactoring will arrive in a future drop)

Also included are 16 standard refactorings that work inside both C# and VB code-behind files (most also work on code placed inside inline <script> tags):

Extract Method
Extract Property
Flatten Conditional
Inline Temp
Introduce Constant
Introduce Local
Move Declaration near Reference
Move Initialization to Declaration
Reorder Parameters
Rename
Replace Temp with Query
Reverse Conditional
Safe Rename
Simplify Expression
Split Initialization from Declaration
Split Temporary Variable

If you get stuck or need support (note: it is currently in Beta) you have a couple options:

Contact support@devexpress.com, or
Subscribe to the devexpress.public.refactor.asp newsgroup at news.devexpress.com

I am sure after a few uses, Refactor! will become a staple in your development process just like Reflector if it has not already.

Hats off to Developer Express for continuing to enhance the Web development capabilities of Visual Studio 2005 in some very clever and unique ways. The next time you come across a fellow ASP.NET developer let them know about this time-saving solution.

Molly Holzschlag Signs Up for IE Standards and Interop Improvement

keiths — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 03:07:29 GMT

I am wrapping up my week by clearing the backlog of blogging I intended to do but have not had time until now.

If you have not already heard, Molly E. Holzschlag, of Web Standards Project (WaSP) fame has signed on to lend her experience and expertise to Microsoft Internet Explorer on a contract basis.

While IE is not a product I look after directly (it's my colleague's, Pete's, baby) the products I do look after (IIS, ASP.NET, ASP.NET AJAX, Visual Web Developer Express Edition) rely on a Web browser at some point. That is why I am so excited Molly is lending her passion for standards and interoperability to our efforts.

Welcome aboard, Molly! Now get to work. ;-)

ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 Documentation Released

keiths — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 23:41:44 GMT

The official ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 documentation was released today and includes samples, tutorials, samples in addition to API references. So we have shipped the product, released the source and now the updated docs are available for download.

We are still not done and have even more exciting training and samples coming. Stay tuned...

ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions Source Code Released

keiths — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 22:41:43 GMT

If you have read the main ASP.NET Community Site page or Scott's blog today, you already know we have delivered on our promise to make the ASP.NET AJAX source code available following last week's release.

Here is the blurb...

Following the release of ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 last week, Microsoft has made the source code for the ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions available for immediate download. Now developers will have the tools they need to maintain and debug their ASP.NET AJAX Web sites and to better understand how the server features of ASP.NET AJAX work. With this source code release, Microsoft continues to break new ground in transparency and engagement with the .NET Framework developer community.

Remember this source code release is under the Microsoft Reference License (Ms-RL) so you can view and debug but not recompile or redistribute.

You may also be interested in Steve Marx's project out on CodePlex for improving the Microsoft AJAX Library for PHP development.

Enjoy,
Keith

IIS.net DownloadCENTER Released

keiths — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 02:58:05 GMT

The DownloadCENTER at IIS.net is an inclusive community destination for discovering new components, modules and 3rd-party solutions related to the Internet Information Services (IIS) Web server.

With the worldwide release of Windows Vista tomorrow, this new section of IIS.net is particularly relevant to ASP.NET developers interested in the future of the Microsoft Web stack.

For example:

The latest release of IIS, IIS7, is included with Windows Vista and has a completely modular architecture which features over forty pluggable components that can be easily added, removed or even swapped with custom implementations.
The integrated pipeline gives ASP.NET developers a familiar event model and unified programming framework for enhancing the server.
The powerful extensibility support is available to both .NET (managed) and C/C++ (native).
The new management & configuration system and tools make it easier to setup your sites so you can spend less time troubleshooting and more time implementing.

There are already numerous downloads for all versions of IIS available today. Many are provided by Microsoft but, even more exciting are those contributed by the IIS community. In the future, the DownloadCENTER will host a large number of extensions specific to IIS7 submitted by Microsoft, ISVs and the broader IIS community.

To learn more about the DownloadCENTER, go check out Bill Staples’ blog post about it or, better yet, go visit today.

ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 Has Shipped

keiths — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 22:27:14 GMT

We have released ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 and it is now available for immediate download on our newly redesigned ASP.NET AJAX Community Site.

You can read more about this major milestone on Scott's blog.

There are 4 things that excite me the most about this release:

Now developers have a fully-supported solution for building AJAX-enabled Web experiences using ASP.NET 2.0 and Visual Studio 2005. No new tools are required, no new concepts to learn. You can literally stick of few controls on your page and create a more sophisticated user experience that works in all modern browsers.
The ASP.NET AJAX Control Toolkit is up to 30 powerful controls and counting. The Control Toolkit has brought together some of the most creative developers in the ASP.NET community and everyone can benefit from their contributions.
We will be providng access to the source code for both the Microsoft AJAX Library and the ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions to aid in debugging and provide our developer community an unprecedented level of transparency.
Last, but certainly not least, there are many partners and early adopters who have gone to great lengths to support us since our early CTPs. From ComponentArt and SPI Dynamics to Burton Snowboards, Phanfare, Pageflakes, Squeet, TitleZ and Shelfari. There are way too many to list here and more sites coming online each week so be sure to check out the Showcase.

Over the next few weeks we will be providing a ton of new content and training material to help ASP.NET AJAX newbies and veterans alike take advantage of all the newest features and capabilities. This includes a complete MSDN eLearning Clinic, MSDN Virtual Labs, tutorials, sample applications and "How Do I?" videos.

Go download ASP.NET AJAX 1.0 today and let us know what you think.

ASP.NET AJAX wins Product of the Year

keiths — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 01:02:58 GMT

As you may have already read over on Glavs Blog, Microsoft ASP.NET AJAX was recently awarded the Developer.com Product of the Year 2007 award in the ".NET Tool or Add-in" category.

Other finalists in that category included some very popular tools:

CodeSmith
Lutz Roeder's .NET Reflector
NUnit
TestDriven.NET

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 won in the "Database Tool or Add-in" category.

Of course all of us working on these products are excited about this and pleased with the recognition. Even more rewarding is knowing members of the developer community are excited about these products as well.

A big thanks to everyone who voted for us. We won't let you down.

Register Today for Microsoft MIX07

keiths — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 08:47:51 GMT

Registration for the Microsoft MIX 07 event opened last week.

MIX is targeted at Web developers, designers, online advertising professionals and a broad set of partners and customers. This year's event will continue to explore how to build more interactive and responsive experiences that take full advantage of the capabilities of the Web.

MIX07 will also be an opportunity to dive deeper into Microsoft’s Web technology offerings — including ASP.NET, ASP.NET AJAX, Internet Information Services (IIS), Microsoft Expression, "WPF/E" and Internet Explorer.

Come discover ways to create more dynamic customer connections that take user experience to the next level. Similar to MIX06, MIX07 will be held in Las Vegas from April 30^th to May 2^nd, at the Venetian Hotel. More information can be found at the official MIX site at visitmix.com.

The price of MIX is $1195 USD, but if you register before March 15^th you will get a special discounted price of $995. Register today and save over 15%!

See you in Vegas at MIX!

Running IE6 and IE7 on a Single Machine

keiths — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 20:37:10 GMT

My colleague, Pete, product manager for Internet Explorer, recently posted a write-up on the IE Team Blog detailing some cool work the group is doing to help Web designers & developers prepare for Internet Explorer 7.0 while still having access to earlier browser versions for side-by-side testing and legacy support.

The solution involves intelligent use of virtualization technology and, even better, is 100% free:

Download Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 for free.
Download the Internet Explorer 6 Testing VPC Image for free, which includes:

Windows XP Professional SP2 + critical updates through November 2006 (time-bombed on April 1, 2007)
Internet Explorer 6.0
Internet Explorer 7 Readiness Toolkit 2.0

Use the Internet Explorer 7 Readiness Toolkit 2.0 (already included in the VPC image) to test & update your sites.

If you are running Windows Vista, grab the free beta of Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 from Microsoft Connect.

They are investigating similar programs for IE5, IE5.5, IE6 and IE6 SP1. Very cool...

ASP.NET CSS Friendly Control Adapters 1.0 Released!

keiths — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 04:15:05 GMT

ASP.NET CSS Friendly Control Adapters 1.0 has been released and is now available to help you build XHTML 1.1 compliant markup quickly & easily using built-in ASP.NET 2.0 UI controls.

Since the kits debut it has received tons of praise and generated lots of excitement throughout the community. Since the first Beta release, Russ and his team have made several enhancements and fixes and continued to solicit feedback for ways to make the kit even better.

This final version 1.0 release includes added functionality for the following popular ASP.NET controls:

An example of new functionality provided in this release includes the TreeView control that supports cascading checkboxes, populate-on-demand, and postback events.

To get started:

If you are running a Beta or earlier version of the kit, now is the time to upgrade!

Here is a list of major changes since Beta 3:

Changes @Page Title attribute on all pages due to kit rename (this is important if upgrading)
Added ASP.NET AJAX UpdatePanel support
Fixed IE7 "ghost" menus issue
GridView adapter updated to support more styling abilities
DetailsView and FormView adapted to support TableRow.Visible

Let us know what you think via the CSS Adapters forum.