TE08: Getting Tactile
Hear it, See it, Play with it!
TechEd as a conference is so much more than it used to be . I mean there's always been the Welcome Event, the Closing Party, and the Track Sessions. Sometimes there have been inspiring Keynotes, and sometimes, well frankly they've been a bit ordinary.
As someone who's worked as a technologist, I've always been passionate about one thing when it comes to learning: Playing with the technology.
Hear it, See it, Play with it!
Trying to learn about the intricacies of Active Directory, clustering an Exchange Server, or coding a UI with WPF by just watching a PowerPoint presentation, is akin to trying to learn to play the guitar by listening to the radio. Of course demos take it one step further, kind've like trying to play that guitar after watching a concert. But until you've actually picked up the instrument, moulded your fingers into the chord, and strummed, many, many times, you haven't actually learned to play the guitar.
Hear it, See it, Play with it!
That's where the "Lab" comes into the TechEd picture. This is an entirely new concept we're trialling on the expo floor this year. An area with about 40 computers, all attached to "DemoNet" set aside just for delegates to play with our latest technologies. (Incidentally "DemoNet" is the same network the Microsoft speakers will be connecting to to demonstrate technologies in the Track Sessions and on the Technology Showcase)
Yes, there are Instructor Led Labs, where instructors will take you through the scripted demos.
Yes, there are Hands on Labs, (many more labs this year than before) where you can follow through the scripts yourself.
But both of these are aimed at learning current technologies, with specific scenarios to follow.
The "Lab" will be the only place where you can grab a computer and just play with the latest technology. No time limit, no canned scenario; just connect to cool new HP Blade Servers, running Hyper-V. Play with SQL Clustering? Setup a project in TFS? Create a potential solution for your work network? The choice is yours.
I'll see you in the "Lab"
R42
