Bill and the gang down in Charlotte have opened up registration for their spring Code Camp on Sat May 17th. A number of people from the Raleigh area are thinking of carpooling down, and a number of us are speaking at the event. I will be presenting a session on Silverlight 2 control customization.

Code Camps are a great way to get training on a variety of topics, as well as to meet peers in the community and benefit from the energy and excitement that goes hand in hand with these events.

To attend this event you must pre-register: http://www.developersguild.org/Default.aspx?tabid=240 

Posted in Rant  | Comments [0] 

The details are finally in place for the beginnings of the Raleigh/Durham Dot Net User Experience / Silverlight group. We will be meeting on Tuesday April 22, 2008 at 6:00 PM. We will be meeting at 1143 Executive circle, suite H, Cary, NC 27511.

[*****pushpin estimated may not be exact]

Please help us spread the word! If you know of people working with or interested in Silverlight/WPF in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area please forward this along.

What is the purpose of a new group?

The purpose of the group is to bring together individuals who share an interest in exploiting the Microsoft .NET platform to create Rich Interactive Applications that provide the end user with the best possible user experience. We will be focusing on  using technologies such as Silverlight, WPF, etc., as well as the related design user experience topics that are related.

Who should attend?

As suggested above, the audience really isn't limited to any type of individual; however, for the sake of providing "labels", the group is targeting Microsoft Silverlight / WPF / Expression  developer and designer audience. While we will be started off with some basics of Silverlight, the goal of the group is going to be to focus more on intermediate and advanced topics. We will be working jointly with the Triangle .Net User Group (www.trinug.org) which is starting to offer a Silverlight 101 focus group.

Where do I sign up?

There are a number of logistical issues that we need to work out getting this group going, such as a website, etc. If you are planning attend the next meeting, please leave a comment or drop me an email so that we can plan for numbers and hopefully have some discussions beforehand on what people would like to see.

What will be covered?

At the first session I will be presenting some work I have been doing relating to styling and Control Templates in  Silverlight 2 controls and have a Q&A. At that time we will also get some ideas of what we'd like to see in future events.

Why DNUX?

I met Cory Smith who has started the DNUX (www.dnux.org) groups in the Dallas Texas area and I thought the idea was brilliant. While our initial topics will likely be Silverlight related, I did not want to bind us complete to one technology. Dot Net User Experience provides a much better description of the direction I'd like to see. Hopefully I'll find him again so I can official ask to "borrow" the name idea.

Posted in Silverlight | wpf  | Comments [1] 

I've been talking with a number of people about starting a Silverlight focused group here in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area. If you're interested, se if you can come out to the presentation I'm giving for the Triangle .Net User Group Web Applications SIG on Wednesday and we can maybe chat afterwards as well about setting another meeting up later in April. I'm thinking maybe April 22nd, 24th, or 29th?

On the topic of SIlverlight meetings.... I think there are a few of us that may soon need a local meeting more like this....

Silverlight Rehab - You're not alone

Stay out of the dark and go into the light!

Posted in Silverlight  | Comments [0] 

If you're interested in some FREE Silverlight 2 training, on Wednesday evening (April 2, 2008 6:00 pm) I will be giving a presentation on Silverlight 2 Controls for the Triangle .Net User Group's(TRINUG) Web Application SIG. The meeting is being held at Compuware in Durham, NC. I'll be covering the controls currently included in Silverlight 2, as well as creating User Controls and Custom Controls, and also styling and skinning existing controls.

Posted in Silverlight  | Comments [1] 

On Wednesday April 9, 2008 Brad Abrams will be presenting at the Triangle .Net User Group in Raleigh/Durham, NC. The presentation will be "Sort of think of it like Mix08 in 1.5 hours" covering Silverlight 2, the MVC Framework, and other new exciting technologies from Microsoft.

In addition to the fun of having Brad in town, our friends at FarPoint are sponsoring the event and treating us to a traditional BBQ feast! Space is limited so please register soon.

Again to rephrase, YOU MUST REGISTER TO ATTEND!

Posted in  | Comments [0] 

One of the fun parts of Mix08 was seeing the Code Trip bus set sail on it's voyage around the western US. It's a bunch of Microsoft DE's and prominent members of the developer community that will be holding a series of events as they travel from city to city. I look forward to seeing the bus again at it's final destination at the MVP summit in Seattle in April. 

The Code Trip site has a listing of the events taking place, real time bus GPS tracking, and a travel log. Anybody recognize the two in the preview image?

Happy trails Code Trip Team!!!

Posted in Rant  | Comments [0] 

Wednesday, March 12, Chris Eargle will be presenting on Continuous Integration using MSBuild and CruiseControl at the March Meeting of TriNUG. Chris has an excellent grasp on this topic, and this presentation, while easily approachable for those new to CI, has plenty of technical depth for those more familiar with the topic. Chris is a great speaker, and this event will leave you well-versed and capable in setting up your own CI solution.

[Direct scrape from Dug's blog but I wanted to make sure we got the word out!]

Posted in TRINUG  | Comments [0] 

Was this the Microsoft Research showing at TED that had Scoble in tears?

See the video HERE of Photosynth and related technologies that they're working on. Very cool.

Posted in Rant  | Comments [0] 

Are you thinking about going to Tech Ed in Orlando this June? One of the best parts of the event are the Birds-of-a-Feather sessions put on by the INETA and Culminis communities. They're a lot of fun, and a great chance to chat face to face with peers in the community. Go ahead an submit a topic if you have some ideas, and plan to attend if you're in the neighborhood!

The official info....

Submit your ideas as topics for Birds-of-a-Feather (BOF) discussions and volunteer to be a moderator!

According to some of last year's attendees, BOFs were one of the 3 best things about Tech Ed 2007. While it may seem far in the future, it's time to start thinking about topics for the Birds of a Feather sessions at Tech Ed Developers in June.

With the conference split into two consecutive Tech Ed events for the first time this year, INETA is organizing the Birds-of-a-Feather sessions at Tech Ed 2008 Developers in Orlando June 3-6, 2008 while our sister organization, Culminis, is organizing the BOF sessions at Tech Ed IT Professionals, June 10-13.

If you're not familiar with the concept, a Birds-of-a-Feather session is an open discussion lead by a moderator who is not a Microsoft employee. The sessions are not presentations, there are no projectors. Unlike the Keynotes and Breakout sessions which are mostly one to many communication, Birds-of-a-Feather sessions are many to many communication and don't necessarily focus on Microsoft products or technology.  They are about people talking with people - connecting, sharing, networking, and creating community. It's that simple, and that's what we do best.

Over the past several years Birds of a Feather sessions have become fully integrated into the Tech Ed agenda.  This means you'll see them in the online scheduling tool and they'll be listed in the mini-guide.  There will be daytime sessions along with the other conference technical tracks, as well as an All-BOF Night on Wednesday, June 3rd from 6:30 to 9:00 PM.

As a result of this integration, BOF Submissions and Voting close on March 19th!

The BOFs are all about community participation, and community is a critical part of their success. INETA and Culminis solicit session proposals - you submit topics you would like to have discussed - your peers vote on they you want to see as BOF sessions - and then the organizers select, schedule, publicize and organize the Birds-of-a-Feather sessions.  If your BOF topic submission is selected, you are then asked to moderate the session.  You are welcome to submit more than one topic!!  Anyone attending a BOF can contribute to the discussion.

Do your part to continue the community tradition and get involved now!  Here's how you can participate:

1. Get the word out.  Blog about the Call for Topics, or post the Call in forums you participate in.  Let folks know about the voting and about your favorite topics.

2. Propose a Topic. If you're going to be at Tech Ed - if there's a topic you'd like to discuss with your peers and you'd be willing to moderate that discussion- click through and submit the topic.

3. Vote.  Check the Tech Ed Developers BOF Voting Page and as you see topics appear that interest you, vote for them!

4. Stay Tuned. As BOF session ideas come in, they will be added to the Tech Ed Developers BOF Voting Page for you to select. When the Tech Ed Schedule Builder goes live in April, mark your calendars and plan to attend and join in great discussions. We'll also have more to say about how you can volunteer to be a Host at one or more BOF sessions in the next INETA newsletter.

For Instructions check out: http://www.ineta.org/newsletters/misc/2008-02/bof_instructions.pdf

Posted in INETA  | Comments [0] 

Are you thinking about going to Tech Ed in Orlando this June? One of the best parts of the event are the Birds-of-a-Feather put on by the INETA and Culminis communities. They're a lot of fun, and a great chance to chat face to face with peers in the community. Go ahead an submit a topic if you have some ideas, and plan to attend if you're in the neighborhood!

The official info....

Submit your ideas as topics for Birds-of-a-Feather (BOF) discussions and volunteer to be a moderator!

According to some of last year's attendees, BOFs were one of the 3 best things about Tech Ed 2007. While it may seem far in the future, it's time to start thinking about topics for the Birds of a Feather sessions at Tech Ed Developers in June.

With the conference split into two consecutive Tech Ed events for the first time this year, INETA is organizing the Birds-of-a-Feather sessions at Tech Ed 2008 Developers in Orlando June 3-6, 2008 while our sister organization, Culminis, is organizing the BOF sessions at Tech Ed IT Professionals, June 10-13.

If you're not familiar with the concept, a Birds-of-a-Feather session is an open discussion lead by a moderator who is not a Microsoft employee. The sessions are not presentations, there are no projectors. Unlike the Keynotes and Breakout sessions which are mostly one to many communication, Birds-of-a-Feather sessions are many to many communication and don't necessarily focus on Microsoft products or technology.  They are about people talking with people - connecting, sharing, networking, and creating community. It's that simple, and that's what we do best.

Over the past several years Birds of a Feather sessions have become fully integrated into the Tech Ed agenda.  This means you'll see them in the online scheduling tool and they'll be listed in the mini-guide.  There will be daytime sessions along with the other conference technical tracks, as well as an All-BOF Night on Wednesday, June 3rd from 6:30 to 9:00 PM.

As a result of this integration, BOF Submissions and Voting close on March 19th!

The BOFs are all about community participation, and community is a critical part of their success. INETA and Culminis solicit session proposals - you submit topics you would like to have discussed - your peers vote on they you want to see as BOF sessions - and then the organizers select, schedule, publicize and organize the Birds-of-a-Feather sessions.  If your BOF topic submission is selected, you are then asked to moderate the session.  You are welcome to submit more than one topic!!  Anyone attending a BOF can contribute to the discussion.

Do your part to continue the community tradition and get involved now!  Here's how you can participate:

1. Get the word out.  Blog about the Call for Topics, or post the Call in forums you participate in.  Let folks know about the voting and about your favorite topics.

2. Propose a Topic. If you're going to be at Tech Ed - if there's a topic you'd like to discuss with your peers and you'd be willing to moderate that discussion- click through and submit the topic.

3. Vote.  Check the Tech Ed Developers BOF Voting Page and as you see topics appear that interest you, vote for them!

4. Stay Tuned. As BOF session ideas come in, they will be added to the Tech Ed Developers BOF Voting Page for you to select. When the Tech Ed Schedule Builder goes live in April, mark your calendars and plan to attend and join in great discussions. We'll also have more to say about how you can volunteer to be a Host at one or more BOF sessions in the next INETA newsletter.

For Instructions check out: http://www.ineta.org/newsletters/misc/2008-02/bof_instructions.pdf

Posted in INETA  | Comments [0]