Sean McBreen's WebLog

Structured (and more likely) unstructured thoughts on software development and the New Zealand software market.

I'm Moving to Redmond

Well it's probably old news for many people......

Author: smcbreen Date: 11/24/2007

Disaster - Major data loss

Well it's clear I celebrated too soon - I've lost at least 3 months of data, the entire (digital)...

Author: smcbreen Date: 09/05/2007

I'm Number 10 in the 'Geekfest' top 10

A good laugh from Louis:...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/30/2007

Final US OOXML Voting Result - Yes with Comments

This is already everywhere, but I thought worth repeating for readers of my blog. On the 24th the...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/26/2007

People Implementing Ecma Office Open XML

Over on Rod's blog the comments wage on and there is another common question popping up - 'no one...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/24/2007

IPR on Ecma Office Open XML

One of the first comments on Rod's blog related to IPR on Ecma Office Open XML. Here is a quick...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/23/2007

My top 4 questions on Ecma Office Open XML and simple answers

There are a number of common questions in relation to this standardisation effort that I've heard...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/23/2007

Why have another document standard?

There are a number of great reasons for this - but the first and most important point to make is...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/23/2007

OpenXML Debate – the heat is on...

Standards New Zealand hosted the first day of feedback on Ecma Office Open XML in Wellington...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/23/2007

TechEd NZ is in full swing

The event is going well and we are into day 2. TechEd Live (www.techedlive.co.nz) is the place to go...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/13/2007

TechEd It's Happening

Well we are in full flow for TechEd - I spent the entire day on the event and visited the venue it's...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/11/2007

More Intro Videos - Data Access

I know I talk about these all the time but there really is (my point of view) no better way then to...

Author: smcbreen Date: 08/09/2007

Catching BillG

I recently went up to the US and was lucky enough to get an award. As a result at the awards dinner...

Author: smcbreen Date: 07/27/2007

Developer Virtual Labs

This is a good list of links for developer virtual labs (which let you try the software in a...

Author: smcbreen Date: 07/27/2007

Prioritize Learning about LINQ

I've had a few days off over the last week (I've recently become a dad). During that time I have...

Author: smcbreen Date: 07/14/2007

.NET v J2EE Sample Application

It's been a while since there was a good sample comparing .NET v J2EE performance and cost. We...

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/28/2007

Silverlight 'how to' video from Nigel

Embedded in this post from Nigel is a streamed video really worth the 7 1/2 minutes to see how...

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/19/2007

TechED NZ is a SELL OUT

No real supprise here but as of tonight TechEd NZhas effectively sold out we are leaving the site...

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/15/2007

Backgound Motion is Live

Over the last 6 months we worked with Mindscape (* link corrected) to build an end-to-end sample...

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/14/2007

Expression Training Videos

Mike Zeff has a good post I'd missed on Expression Training videos.

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/01/2007

Cool Learning Resources - Beginners, kids, games, VSTS, SharePoint

I was just having a look around the new MSDN site (msdn.microsoft.com). I like the search...

Author: smcbreen Date: 06/01/2007

Expression Has Landed

From our audience management team.... Microsoft Expression has landed! The full family of Microsoft...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/29/2007

My first Popfly test Mash-up

This is pretty boring but shows how quick it is (took 1 minute) This is just a simple mash-up of...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/21/2007

TechEd Earlybird has sold out!

Well I though it would happen soon/today and as of 3:15pm we sold out of Earlybird Tickets - should...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/10/2007

TechEd NZ Tickets & Earlybird Pricing

UPDATE SOLD OUT OF EARLYBIRD - 11/5/2007 As I write this we have only really just started the full...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/09/2007

Silverlight Resources Mind-map

I really like mind maps to structure content and thoughts. This is a pretty cool mind-map that...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/09/2007

Cool (and short) Silverlight Tutorials

Over at Tim's blog he has a great list of short 'nugget' style videos for silverlight......

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/08/2007

The DLR is Announced

More announcements from MIX this time around the Dynamic language Runtime. The blog to read is:...

Author: smcbreen Date: 05/01/2007

It's not all about MIX/Silverlight

So much else is also going on. Longhorn Beta 3 with IIS 7 and PowerShell has shipped (importantly...

Author: smcbreen Date: 04/30/2007

More Silverlight - Yeah Baby!

Many other people will be writing about Silverlight today - we have a great piece of technology here...

Author: smcbreen Date: 04/30/2007

MIX - a 72 hour conversation

So I've sent Nigel up to MIX with a bunch of NZ customers - I'm sure they are having a great time ;)...

Author: smcbreen Date: 04/29/2007

test page

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Author: smcbreen Date: 04/03/2007

Improving .NET 2.0 Application Performance

I just responded to a customer e-mail that i thought might be worth while sharing... The first time...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/08/2007

What a great day

We had out technical event today - from my PoV (Point of View) - it was a huge sucess. Thanks for...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/07/2007

Getting Started: SQL Express Videos

These are so helpful for the developer who is getting started. SQL Express is a great product - I...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/03/2007

TechEd Registration Opens

We have set-up the registration site for TechEd 2007 earlier than ever this year. The event plannng...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/02/2007

An Expansive View of Migration

I've had the chance to express my views on application migration a few times over the last month -...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/02/2007

Zune, Zune, Zune....

So pretty much everyone in the team now has a Zune- I’ve got to say that it’s a great device – it...

Author: smcbreen Date: 03/02/2007

Our best non-TechEd event ever?

I look after TechEd and all of the large scale technical events we run for people who design, build...

Author: smcbreen Date: 02/01/2007

XNA Game Studio Express - Make your own game

Now I do love my XB0x 360 - I don't get a huge amount of time to play on it but it is a fantastic...

Author: smcbreen Date: 12/12/2006

Visual Studio Team System Resources (VSTS)

I'm very proud of Visual Studio Team System and what Microsoft have done here - I've blogged about...

Author: smcbreen Date: 12/05/2006

Keeping the team busy

We are on the road again currently · Designer meetings with Nigel – registration link · Architect...

Author: smcbreen Date: 12/04/2006

Wow – it’s been busy, I think I always say that, but it really has been...

Since I last blogged there have been a few updates to my team. · Mike Zeff – jointed the team as the...

Author: smcbreen Date: 12/04/2006

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