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TechDays: Colin Bowern and “Introducing ASP.NET MVC”

Colin Bowern doing his presentation at TechDays

It’s Day 2 of TechDays Toronto! and after a hearty breakfast, we’re kicking off the Developing for the Microsoft-Based Platform track – my track, and thus to my mind the best one – with Colin Bowen doing his presentation, Introducing ASP.NET MVC, which takes a look at the new web development framework, ASP.NET MVC. If you’ve done development with Rails, Django, CakePHP or Catalyst, you should find ASP.NET MVC familiar.

gang_of_foreheads If you’d like to learn more about ASP.NET MVC programming, the best place to get started is chapter one of the “Gang of Foreheads” book, a.k.a. Professional ASP.NET MVC 1.0, which I covered in the article The Best “Chapter One” I’ve Ever Read. This particular chapter walks you  through the construction of an entire site using ASP>NET MVC – NerdDinner.com – from start to finish.

You can get a free copy of chapter one of the Gang of Foreheads book [14 MB PDF] – er, I mean Professional ASP.NET MVC 1.0 – which is more than enough book to get you started.

Want the source code for NerdDinner.com? Not a problem – it’s an open source project on Codeplex released under the MS-PL license (and yeah, it’s Open Source Initiative-approved!).

Want to learn more about building applications using ASP.NET MVC? Watch this space!

This article also appears in Canadian Developer Connection.

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TechDays: Anthony Vranic on Optimizing Your Application for the Windows 7 User Experience

Anthony Vranic doing his presentation at TechDays

My photos from Anthony Vranic’s session at TechDays, Optimizing Your Application for the Windows 7 User Experience, are a bit dark because I used a different camera; my main camera was on video recording duty. I’m including them anyway, because I’m trying to keep a complete record of TechDays.

Anthony Vranic doing his presentation at TechDays

The original version of this presentation from TechEd North America is somewhat different – its target audience was C++ developers, and TechDays is more of a managed code audience. Since the original TechEd presentation, Microsoft released the Windows API Code Pack for the .NET Framework, and Anthony added it to his presentation.

The Windows API Code Pack for .NET gives managed code access to a lot of features, including some new ones introduced in Windows 7, such as:

  • Windows 7 Taskbar Jump Lists, Icon Overlay, Progress Bar, Tabbed Thumbnails, and Thumbnail Toolbars
  • Windows 7 Libraries, Known Folders, non-file system containers
  • Windows Shell Search API support, a hierarchy of Shell Namespace entities, and Drag and Drop functionality for Shell Objects
  • Explorer Browser Control
  • Shell property system
  • Windows Vista and Windows 7 Common File Dialogs, including custom controls
  • Windows Vista and Windows 7 Task Dialogs
  • Direct3D 11.0, Direct3D 10.1/10.0, DXGI 1.0/1.1, Direct2D 1.0, DirectWrite, Windows Imaging Component (WIC) APIs — (DirectWrite and WIC have partial support)
  • Sensor Platform APIs
  • Extended Linguistic Services APIs
  • Power Management APIs
  • Application Restart and Recovery APIs
  • Network List Manager APIs
  • Command Link control and System defined Shell icons
  • Shell Search API support
  • Drag and Drop functionality for Shell objects
  • Support for Direct3D and Direct2D interoperability
  • Support for Typography and Font enumeration DirectWrite APIs

Anthony Vranic doing his presentation at TechDays

Watch this blog – I’ll posting some example code for the Windows API Code Pack for .NET in the coming weeks!

This article also appears in Canadian Developer Connection.

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Why the “Developing for the Microsoft-Based Platform” Track is the Hippest Track at TechDays

It’s because we have the best obscure pop culture references, as seen in Rob Burke’s presentation on Developing Composite Applications with Silverlight and WPF:

Slide showing John Oxley and Damir Bersinic on cell phones, doing the "Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell" song

(That’s a photo of my manager John Oxley and co-worker Damir Bersinic, used to illustrate heavyweight layer communication in Prism. If you don’t get the pop culture reference, this article on my Accordion Guy blog will help you.)

Here’s Rob Burke, striking his GQ magazine pose, just before his presentation:

Rob Burke posing onstage

And here’s Rob in action:

Rob Burke during his presentation
And here’s Rob answering a lot of additional questions at the end of his session:

Rob Burke answering walk-up questions after his presentation

Want to know more about building composite applications using Silverlight and WPF? Check out the Composite WPF site on Codeplex and as well as Glenn Bock’s article on building composite applications with WPF.

This article also appears in Canadian Developer Connection.

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How to Get to FailCamp Toronto 3 from Union Station

Most of you will be heading to FailCamp via public transit, and many have asked how to get to FailCamp’s venue, the South Building of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, from Union Station – here’s how!

First, go up to the main level of Union Station, which looks like this:

skywalk 1

On the west end of the station – the side with the Harvey’s – you should see a sign marked “Skywalk”. Go down that hall!

skywalk 2

Keep going…

skywalk 3

There’ll be a slight twist to the left, but keep following the hallway! You’ll get to a tunnel like this:

skywalk 4

Keep going! At the top of the steps at the end of the tunnel, it’ll turn left and you’ll see this:

skywalk 5

That’s the entrance to the actual Skywalk, which looks like this. Follow the signs to the door on the left that says “Convention Centre”…

skywalk 6

…then follow the signs that say “South Building”…

skywalk 7

…and follow the arrows that lead you to the TechDays conference. FailCamp is in room 716, which is on the 700 level of the South Building. Note that the 700 level is below the 600 level, not above it.

skywalk 8

See you at FailCamp!

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Barry Gervin: Expression Blend for Developers @ TechDays Toronto

barry gervin 2

As I write this, we’re well into Day 1, Session 2 of the Toronto edition of the TechDays Canada conference, and ObjectSharp’s Barry Gervin is doing his presentation, Expression Blend for Developers.

expression blend

Since Expression Blend is a UI building tool that is separate from Visual Studio, it’s typically seen as a tool for designers rather than developers. However, as Barry pointed out in his presentation, the division between designers and developers isn’t so simple, especially here in Canada, where developers often wear many hats, including that of UI designer. Besides, UI design isn’t just a bit of flourish you add to a software project at the end – it’s something you’ve got to consider from the very beginning.

barry gervin 3

Expression Blend makes the development of front ends, whether Silverlight or WPF, a great deal easier. You can do in minutes with Blend what might take hours in Visual Studio, driving yourself insane with XAML editing.

barry_gervin_1

Watch this space in the coming weeks – I’m going to be writing articles on Expression Blend and using it to build rich internet user interfaces for Silverlight.

expression blend room

This article also appears in Canadian Developer Connection.

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TechDays Toronto 2009 Begins!

techdays_thumb Here are a couple of shots from the Toronto edition of TechDays, taking place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre right now.

The Room

I’m the lead for TechDays’ Developing for the Microsoft-Based Platform track, which I like to think of as the best damned track in the entire conference. The pre-registration numbers for this track were pretty high, so they gave me room 718A, a large room with a capacity of about 400 or so. The rows near the front of the room have table space for the people who like taking notes with their laptops, while the back rows have more conventional lecture-style seats.

Here’s the room as seen from the back:

View of a large presentation room, as seen from the back.

And here’s the speaker’s-eye view:

View of a large presentation room, as seen from the podium at the front.

Day 1, Session 1

At the time of this writing, I’ve just finished my opening monologue in which I introduced the track and explained what it’s all about. I handed the stage over to Cory Fowler, who’s doing the What’s New in Silverlight 3 presentation. Here’s a shot of Cory in action:

Cory Fowler doing his "What's New in Silverlight 3" presentation

I like what Cory’s done with the presentation: he took the original presentation from the Microsoft TechEd conference and spiced it up with graphics from the new XBox game Halo 3: ODST, adding his own personal touch.

Cory Fowler doing his "What's New in Silverlight 3" presentation

If you’re interested in finding out what’s new in Silverlight 3, there are a couple of things you can do:

  • If you’re in or near Halifax, Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal or Winnipeg, you can still register for TechDays in those cities at the early bird rate of $299.
  • Watch this blog! I’ll be posting articles on Silverlight 3 development in the coming weeks.

A Vending Machine We Can’t Refuse

On the 600 level of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre’s South Building, right by the registration booths, are two of these machines:

The hot dog vending machine at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Its signs say: "Freshly grilled / Maven's Kosher Foods / Sizzlelicious!"

That’s right, it’s a vending machine that makes kosher hot dogs, on the spot, for the low, low price of five dollars. In spite of the fact that TechDays provides a free lunch, we cannot resist the siren song of this machine (Sizzlelicious!). We’ll be shooting some video around noon of us ordering and tasting a hot dog from this machine. Watch this space!

This article also appears in Canadian Developer Connection.

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The Manifesto of Fail and FailCamp Toronto 3

failcamp_toronto_3 

In honour of tomorrow’s event, FailCamp Toronto 3, I present The Manifesto of Fail, which was published for the FailCamp held in Philadelphia last summer.

The Manifesto of Fail

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Failure is the default

From biological species to companies to government policies, there appears to be an Iron Law of Failure, which is extremely difficult to break.

Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail

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Failure can be intrinsically valuable

The knowledge that you have emerged wiser and stronger from setbacks means that you are, ever after, secure in your ability to survive. You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships, until both have been tested by adversity. Such knowledge is a true gift, for all that it is painfully won, and it has been worth more to me than any qualification I ever earned.

J.K. Rowling, Harvard Commencement Speech

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We can bond through our failures

But there is an even stronger reason why we can learn from the failures of others, beyond the simple pleasure of knowing that an expert can fail too. It has to do with our ability as human beings to relate better to people in their failures than in their successes, and to learn more in the process.

Richard Farson, Management of the Absurd

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And bonding over failure is a good thing

Over and over again, when people ask how they can achieve the Silicon Valley-type of opportunities in their areas, I tell them, "Celebrate failure."

Tara Hunt, Losercamp

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Also, beer is a good thing

Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.

Ben Franklin (allegedly)

FailCamp Toronto 3

fail-owned-candle-fail

FailCamp Toronto 3 takes place tomorrow night – Tuesday, September 29th – at the South Building of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, room 716 at 7:00 p.m.!

fail-owned-special_offer-fail

It’s a FREE event in which you’re invited to share your tale of epic fail with your peers, whether the failure was personal, business or technical. By celebrating failure, we hope to overcome the fear of failure, which in turn leads to fear of trying. We want people to unlearn the moral that Homer Simpson taught his children: “You tried, and you failed. So the moral of the story is: never try.”

failcat

We’ll start FailCamp with an opening monologue talking about failure in general, some well-known and obscure failures throughout history and why we fear failure. Then we’ll turn the microphone on you, the audience, and challenge you to tell your most spectacular and epic story of FAIL. Our “Judging Panel of FAIL” featuring Justin Kozuch of Refresh Events and Meghann Millard of Unspace will preside and decide which stories are most worthy of winning valuable FAIL prizes.

epic_beer_fail

After FailCamp, we’ll make our way to the pub. FAIL demands beer!

For more information about FailCamp Toronto 3 and to register (remember, it’s free!), visit FailCamp’s event page.