simon.says : Events

Call for Papers: Architecture Journal Issue #9

smguest — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 03:12:00 GMT

Microsoft’s Architecture Journal is a quarterly magazine, providing a world-class forum for the publication of unique articles on how good architecture can help create great implementations. Microsoft’s Architecture Journal is available as a printed subscription (you can order your own here) and also online here

Now that TechEd is out of the way, I'm looking for abstracts and ideas for Issue #9, the theme of which is Software Factories (think modeling, DSLs, development approaches etc.). Writing for the Architecture Journal gives you the opportunity to get your thoughts and ideas in the hands of enterprise, solution and infrastructure architects around the world – that’s a growing number of over 41,000 subscribers! In addition, your article will be localized into multiple languages and distributed at major events and conferences worldwide.

The cut off date for abstracts for the next issue is July 21st. If you are interested in making a submission, here are the details:

How do I make a submission?

To submit an idea for a paper, you are asked to send the following:

- A 2 – 4 paragraph abstract explaining how your paper fits the theme of the magazine

- A 1 – 2 paragraph bio

- A list of previously published articles

Submissions should be made via Email to editors@architecturejournal.net

Each issue of the Architecture Journal follows a theme (for example; integration, workflow, data). 80% of the issue is dedicated to this theme. 20% is reserved for articles that we wish to print, but do not follow the theme.

We receive many submissions for each issue, so we encourage you to put time and thought into the submission.

When will I know whether my submission is accepted?

After the call for papers has ended, everyone that submits an idea will be notified via Email as to whether their submission was successful or not.

What happens if my submission is accepted?

If accepted, you’ll have between 4 and 6 weeks to submit two drafts and a final version of your paper. These dates will be clearly communicated. Your first draft will be reviewed by an editorial board to ensure it is on message for the magazine. Your second draft and final version will be subject to both technical and content editing. You’ll be asked to be available to work with our editors via Email during this process.

The magazine is generally available in print and online 4 weeks after final drafts are submitted.

What are the guidelines for papers printed in the Architecture Journal?

We recommend that papers are between 3,500 and 4,500 words in length – although we have accepted shorter and longer papers in the past. The article should be submitted using Microsoft Word. Diagrams should be submitted in either Microsoft Visio or Microsoft PowerPoint.

Do I still own the work?

Yes. We ask you to sign a release form that gives Microsoft permission to reprint the article, but ownership of the paper remains with you, the author.

Will I get paid for writing?

We do not currently pay authors for contributing to the Architecture Journal.

Will I get copies of the magazine as an author?

After printing you’ll be sent 10 copies of the Journal for your own use. Additional copies can be requested.

ARC202 - Slides from TechEd 2006

smguest — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 21:32:00 GMT

I've now uploaded my slides (hosting space courtesy of Mark) from my user experience presentation at TechEd 2006 this week. You can find them here:

PowerPoint 2003 Format (60Mb)

PowerPoint 2007 Beta 2 Format (20Mb)

*** Update - Fixed link (again) ***

ARC202 – Putting the User Back into SOA (TechEd)

smguest — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 12:33:00 GMT

Thanks to all that came to my session today (ARC202 – Putting the User Back into SOA) at 10.45am. I really enjoyed putting the talk together and appreciate all the feedback (yes, I know the title of the talk needs changing for next time).

For those looking for the PPT, I am working on it! The deck is 60Mb (don’t ask!) and I need to get some more space so that I can host it!

Putting the User back into SOA - my first ARCast!

smguest — Sat, 20 May 2006 00:36:00 GMT

After the US NAF (National Architect Forum) last month, I sat down with Ron Jacobs to record my very first ARCast. The topic was "Putting the User back into SOA" - you can listen to it here.

Architecture Journal - now in 8 languages!

smguest — Sat, 20 May 2006 00:32:00 GMT

Issue #7 of the Architecture Journal is now available in 8 languages (English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, Simplifed Chinese, Japanese and Korean).

To access these in PDF format, visit http://www.architecturejournal.net and select the lanuage from the top menu.

Enjoy.

Microsoft at JavaOne 2006

smguest — Tue, 16 May 2006 22:35:00 GMT

I can't believe it's been a year since I was at JavaOne last year - it seems like only yesterday I was getting my picture at Duke's 10 year birthday! (only kidding, of course :-))

Although I'm not in San Francisco for this year's conference, Microsoft do have a couple of sessions and a booth on the trade floor. I've been following Mohammed's excellent blog on the in's and out's of the event. If you in the Moscone Center, be sure to track down the team!

Cliff Atkinson / Beyond Bullet Points

smguest — Wed, 10 May 2006 20:35:00 GMT

Cliff Atkinson is my new hero. For those that don't know, Cliff put together an MS Press book called Beyond Bullet Points. In the book, he describes a new way of compiling and putting together presentations using PowerPoint (without bullet points!). I used this style in a recent keynote I did at the US NAF (National Architect Forum) last month and it seemed to be very well received. Half way through the presentation I was amazed at how many people were engaged with the message I was saying - actually 100% focused towards me and not doing Email!

Cliff also has a blog - you can check it out here.

Iron Architect at TechEd US 2006

smguest — Tue, 09 May 2006 03:22:00 GMT

Coming to TechEd US this year? Think you are a pretty good architect? Think you are the best architect at the conference?

Now you can prove it by entering our "Iron Architect" competition as part of the Architecture Track. You'll get the chance to work on a solution to a real life problem and submit it to an audience and panel of judges during the week. The winner will win free entry into the MCA (Microsoft Certified Architect) program.

More details here...

Mix06

smguest — Tue, 14 Mar 2006 06:58:00 GMT

On Sunday I'll be heading down to the Mix06 conference in Las Vegas. Over the past few months I've been working on a new set of materials around user experience design (for Architects), so I'm really looking forward to the conference.

WSCF 0.6 Released!

smguest — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 04:48:00 GMT

Congratulations to Christian and the guys over at Thinktecture on their v0.6 release of WSCF!

New features include support for .NET Fx 2.0 and Visual Studio 2005, together with partial classes, nullable types, SOAP 1.2, generics and a host of other goodies.

Moving Beyond SOA

smguest — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 21:45:00 GMT

John DeVadoss (my manager and the guy who runs the architecture team at Microsoft) has been on the road talking about "Moving Beyond SOA", the latest of which was a session at VSLive. His messages appear to be generating some buzz - including reports by both eWeek and InfoWorld.

Announcing Microsoft's Architecture Forums

smguest — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 23:21:00 GMT

I’ve been a fan of Internet Newsgroups and Forums for many years – it still amazes me how these bring people together on subjects that they are very passionate about. As I’ve been looking into resources for our community however, it’s clear that we need something similar for people to post architecture related questions and comments.

To help address this, we have created brand new forums, dedicated to architecture on the Microsoft platform. You can find these live today on http://forums.microsoft.com. Go to the homepage, and select the Architecture forum group.

We are starting with two forums today – one for general architecture-related questions, and a second for modeling and tools. We'll be looking to expand these in the next few months.

I'd like to encourage anyone interested in architecture to participate on the forums. We have RSS enabled all of these so you can download the latest threads and comments into your favorite RSS reader, and our team is dedicated to making sure we have follow ups for all questions asked!

Holiday Web Casts!

smguest — Fri, 23 Dec 2005 02:47:00 GMT

Have some spare time during the holidays to catch up on new technologies? Mohammad Akif, an Architect Evangelist in Canada, has recorded two new webcasts that are worth checking out...

Using Visual Studio for Deployment Modeling

The new modeling features in Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 can help you to validate application deployment scenarios by defining a logical data center. This webcast provides an overview of the new modeling features and a demonstration of the deployment modeling capability that is designed to improve and automate the interaction between development, infrastructure, and operations teams. The intended audience for this webcast includes solution architects, infrastructure architects, and developers.

Tracking the Life of a Business Requirement

This webcast demonstrates the new integration capabilities between Microsoft Office Excel, Microsoft Office Project, and Microsoft Visual Studio. We track a business requirement from its definition in Excel to its completion in Visual Studio, so you can see how the new integration capabilities work on a practical level. The intended audience for this webcast includes architects, business analysts, and project managers.

Would you like to write for the Architecture Journal?

smguest — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 21:46:00 GMT

From Issue #7 (Feb 2006) I’ll be taking over from Arvindra Sehmi as editor, and I’m looking for the best architects in the world to write for the magazine. Writing for the Architecture Journal gives you the opportunity to get your thoughts and ideas in the hands of enterprise, solution and infrastructure architects around the world – that’s a growing number of over 10,000 print subscribers and many more that download the issue online. In addition, your article will be localized into 7 languages and distributed at major events and conferences worldwide.

The theme of Issue #7 is workflow (orchestration, human workflow, rules engines, activity monitoring, business processes). I’m looking for great architect-focused articles that not only fit this theme, but are pragmatic in today’s challenging environments.

If you think you have what it takes to write for Issue #7 of the Architecture Journal send a 1 – 2 paragraph abstract and a bio to archjrnl@microsoft.com. The cut off date for the next issue is Dec 15^th.

Beta of Scrum Add-In for VSTS available

smguest — Tue, 22 Nov 2005 07:56:00 GMT

A few guys at Conchango (for whom I used to work :-) have created a Scrum plug-in for VSTS. Good reading if you are interested in agile development.

http://blogs.conchango.com/howardvanrooijen/default.aspx