INETA Live!

2011 April Meeting: David Kelley on Animations

April 2011 BlendSIG Presentation. David Kelley, Silverlight MVP, presents on using Blend to create Keyframe animations.

Build Your Own App Harbor

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2011 March Meeting: Frank LaVigne on SketchFlow

Recording of the March BlendSIG meeting with Frank LaVigne.

2011 February Meeting: Adam Kinney on Importing Graphics and Media into Blend

Recording of the February BlendSIG meeting with Adam Kinney.

2011 January Meeting: Dante Gagne on Behaviors

Recording of the January 2011 BlendSIG LiveMeeting webcast. BlendSIG is a free online user group for Expression Blend users.

WebMatrix and the Razor View Engine

WebMatrix WebMatrix is everything you need to build Web sites using Windows. It includes IIS Express (a development Web server), ASP.NET (a Web framework), and SQL Server Compact (an embedded database). It streamlines Web site development and makes it easy to start Web sites from popular open-source apps. The skills and code you develop with WebMatrix transition seamlessly to Visual Studio and SQL Server. http://www.asp.net/WebMatrix Razor View Engine ASP.NET MVC has always supported the concept of “view engines” – which are the pluggable modules that implement different template syntax options. The “default” view engine for ASP.NET MVC today uses the same .aspx/.ascx/.master file templates as ASP.NET Web Forms. Other popular ASP.NET MVC view engines used today include Spark and NHaml. The new view-engine option is optimized around HTML generation using a code-focused templating approach. The codename for this new view engine is “Razor”. http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2010/07/02/introducing-razor.aspx

Developing Applications for Windows Phone 7

Join Developer Evangelist Chris Koenig for a detailed look into Microsoft’s latest offering in the mobile space - the revolutionary Windows Phone 7. Based primarily on Silverlight and XNA, Windows Phone 7 provides a very rich and powerful development platform, making it easily accessible to all .NET developers. In this session we’ll explore the Windows Phone 7 architecture, development patterns, design and development tools, and more. We’ll walk through some of the WP7-specific controls and components that enable you to build amazing mobile applications. You’ll leave this session with a solid understanding of what Windows Phone 7 is all about, and what it takes to build killer applications today!

State of .NET

A free, unbiased look at the current and future development with .NET. Brought to you by Microsoft, CODE Training & EPS Software, this free afternoon event presents an unbiased look at the current and future development with .NET. Join MVP and RD Markus Egger, for an afternoon of free and independent information about current Microsoft development technologies! What is the state of .NET today? Which of the many .NET technologies have gained traction? Which ones can you ignore for now? What's new in .NET? What other Microsoft technologies should you include in your development efforts? This event is completely free of charge and is designed for developers as well as IT decision makers. Specific prior knowledge is not required. Attendees of this event will come away with a clear understanding of which technologies to use for various technical challenges. This is NOT Microsoft marketing hype! This is based on our real-world professional development experience with various techologies. Topics: •Visual Studio 2010 •Silverlight 4.0 •LightSwitch •Expression Studio •ASP.NET MVC 3.0 •WEBMatrix •Azure •Windows Phone 7 •Razor •and more!

Windows Identity Foundation

In this talk Tuc will cover the basics of WIF

Office 365

In this talk Ram will introduce us to Office 365

Hour 4 of Teach Yourself C# 4.0 in 24 Hours

We are working our way through the book, chapter by chapter.In this talk we will take a look at Hour 4: Inheritance, Intefaces, and Abstract Classes

10 Reasons your software sucks (and how to make it better)

Fresh off of the European tour of ?So you think you can code? *, we bring you the hit sensation, 10 Practices Every Developer Needs to Start Right Now. Recently, off Broadway you are not only going to learn something new, you are going to have a fun time learning it! (Seriously, Caleb recently gave this talk at the Microsoft office in New York? right off Broadway) Yes friends, this is the talk that kicked off a controversy at the Dallas Tech Fest (http://developingux.com/dallastechfest2010), read the blog, see the slides.. then come see and learn for yourself! Based on years of consulting, and working with some of the largest (and smallest) software companies in the world.. these are the 10 practices that if you started doing today, would drastically improve the quality and delivery of your software! Also, be sure to hang around afterwards in the Open Spaces area.. Caleb will be around to discuss any of the areas from his talk in more detail. It?s going to be great time! Topics hit on: Object Oriented Principals, SOLID Coding, Security Concerns, Software Patterns, Automated Testing, Source Control - Branching and Merging Strategies, Continuous Integration, Agile | Scrum | XP | Lean, Team Dynamics, Continually Learning * - Caleb was never in Europe, but it?s still going to be a great session!

iPhone Development

in this talk Chris will talk about iPhone Development

Developing Real World Applications on Windows Phone 7 with Silverlight

This talk will take a look at a what it?s like developing a real world application that is currently being showcased by the Windows Phone 7 team. Even if you?re not planning on doing any mobile development, we?ll dig in to practices and skills to that apply to all Silverlight developers. Microsoft?s recently released user controls and toolkits, design constraints and practices - working with Blend and leveraging your .NET skills. Microsoft has opened up an exciting world of opportunity to .NET developers ? this talk will help jumpstart your Silverlight skills for that world!

Computure: Our Computing Future

We will take a look ahead at the technologies and trends that will shape computing solutions and systems on a 1-5 year horizon. Covering evolution of silicon architecture, new form factors for consumers and business, race to the cloud, server technologies and embedded products: these are the forces that will influence software requirements for OEMs, developers, businesses and consumers: and will shape the nature of what we build, deploy and service. The talk will cover broad technology trends and how they will influence computing in the future. We are at a point of accelerating innovation that is delivering increasing functional, performance and cost reduction for consumers. Changes in silicon, business models, software and cloud services are driving benefits for customers, both commercial and consumers. Anticipating the effect of new hardware and silicon capability on customer requirements, building the software to capitalize on demand and fully realize potential is part of devising a winning strategy. The new technologies promise greater functionality, lower costs and improved reliability for businesses and end users.

Usability in Practice: 10 Keys to a Better User Experience in XAML Platforms

In today's Internet age, the functionality of an application has equal weight to the overall usability and experience. Flashy colors and simple animations won't cover the flaws in an application that wasn't designed with usability in mind. In this talk, we'll cover 10 key areas that can help you deliver better user experiences, with a focus on XAML platforms, like the new Windows Phone 7 platform. You'll see examples of how small changes can make a big difference in the interactions your customers have with the software you build. You'll also be introduced to a simple, iterative process that can help you get to the 10 keys to a better user experience on your own.

Blendlet: Path List Box

In 15 minutes Ram will tell us everything we wanted to know about using the Path List Box in Blend.

MVVM Smackdown: MVVM Light

As developers it’s always exciting to explore new frameworks; while with Silverlight we are in our 4th release we are now seeing more tools being released to assist us in our development. Among these tools are Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) frameworks. So, without further ado we are excited to announce that our next meeting will be an MVVM Smack Down. In this smack down your presenters will be demoing a subset of features from each of 4 MVVM frameworks. The 4 frame works will be: Prism 4 with MEF – Tim Jones, Caliburn Micro – Justin Weinberg, MVVM Light – Bonas Khanal, and Jounce – David Yancey.

MVVM Smackdown: Prism

MVVM Smackdown: Caliburn Micro

MVVM Smackdown: Jounce

LINQ 360: Getting More From Linq to Objects

In this talk Rob covers the basics of working with LINQ to Objects.

Building and Consuming a REST API Using ASP.NET MVC, IoC, and Good ol' JavaScript

A solid REST API is essential to any modern web application. Yet a REST API alone is of little value. We are going to walk through an example of how to use ASP.NET MVC and Inversion of Control (IoC) to create a framework for delivering a sustainable REST API. Then, we will demonstrate a JavaScript pattern for consuming the API to enable rich user experiences in the browser. All you need to bring is your brain. Let's have a conversation.

NWA Code Camp Recap

This month's presentation we have something for everyone. I am speaking at a couple of events in Arkansas and I thought it would be fun to present the hightlights from each of my talks at my own user group. 1) Adding MVC to a Web Forms Application: In this presentation I will show you how to add MVC to an existing web forms application. 2) jQuery Essentials: In this presentation I cover selectors, filters, effects, properties, writing extensions, AJAX, and the new jQuery templating. 3) What's New in Enterprise Library 5.0: The Enterprise Library has been completely rewritten. In this presentation I describe the changes and demonstrate the new features in the Data Access Application block that allow you to retrieve data as objects and to perform asynchronous data access.

Delegates, Lambda's And Expressions (Oh My!)

The .Net framework has slowly evolved to allow for different programming paradigms. Over the recent versions, there have been a number of features added to allow for more declarative and functional programming options. In this session, we will explore the concepts of Delegates, Anonymous Delegates, Lambda Expressions, and Expressions and see how using them can add flexibility and functionality in our applications.

Taking The Pain Out Of Web Deployments With MSDeploy

Admit it. You always wait until the last minute to work out your deployment strategy. And invariably, it comes back to bite you when the app that worked perfectly on your machine crashes and burns when you push it out to production. The way to eliminate the pain associated with deployments is to make them predictable, repeatable, and automated. Microsoft's latest deployment tool, MSDeploy, along with Visual Studio 2010, can help make this possible for you. We will cover: 1) Creating web content packages 2) Including database and IIS settings with deployment packages 3) Importing and exporting packages 4) Integration with a build system 5) Using Web.config transforms for different deployments 6) Integration with Database Projects 7) One Click Publish

ASP.NET MVC: How We Got Here

What is this ASP.NET MVC stuff anyway? How did we come to this, and why should I care? In this session, we will discuss the progression of ASP.NET architectural patterns and what each one did to further the maintainability and extensibility of the Active Server Pages web page development platform.

Stop Drowning In Technical Debt!

Technical Debt is a metaphor introduced by Ward Cunningham to describe the result of “Quick and Dirty” Software Design. Eventually, software projects will incur either accidental or strategic Technical Debt. What is the price of accumulating to much technical debt? How do we measure our Technical Debt? How do we pay down our Technical Debt? This session will provide the answers to these questions through a balance of presentation and real-world examples using various code analysis and metrics available within Visual Studio 2008.

Real World Usability: Design For Everyone

The word usability usually brings to mind stopwatches, boring checklists and webcams focused on nervous testers. This session is not about that. Using examples from the wild we'll learn the right way and wrong way to design for your users. We'll also learn how following a few simple rules while designing or coding any site or app will save you tons of time and effort over the life of your product.

Hands-on MVVM

As people apply data binding to real applications, patterns have emerged. One of the most prevalent is Model-View-ViewModel. In truth, MVVM is not just one pattern. It is a collection if interrelated patterns. Each person has a different idea of what MVVM actually looks like. This is my opinion. We will walk through the emergence of MVVM in a WPF application. The goal of this exercise is to understand why it is good to follow these patterns. We are going to start with direct data binding. We won’t add any code until we need it. When we find that things don’t work, we’ll add code to make them work. When things start to get messy, we will refactor to clean them up.

MEF and MEF for Silverlight

This will be a full training session on the Managed Extensibility Framework! Ken will start with a general introduction to MEF, followed by how to utilize MEF in Silverlight, there is some really cool stuff that applies only to Silverlight.

Pointy Haired Bosses and Pragmatic Programmers

Houston Tech Fest Keynote - Pointy Haired Bosses and Pragmatic Programmers

Design Patterns

Design Patterns are often used every day by every developer in one way or another. A basic understanding of patterns and how to implement them is very useful for all .NET developer, and this session tries to clarify design patterns in a way that everybody can understand and start thinking about patterns in a more natural way. Attendees will learn: The definitions of some of the main patterns, How patterns improve code quality, How to implement and use the patterns, Patterns covered such as Strategy, Decorator, Factory, Template, etc

VS 2010 tips and Tricks

VS2010 Tips and Tricks from the Master

Getting Started with the ADO.NET Entity Framework

While most enterprise applications are object-oriented, the data upon which they depend is not. Often, binding these two platforms together can result in significant amounts of lost productivity and a less than optimal solution. Come see how you can resolve this recurring theme with the newest release of the ADO.NET Entity Framework. In this session, we’l: Explore the Entity Framework 4.0, its related components and show how it all works, Demonstrate how to build a business object model (Entity Data Model) and database mappings, from a database, from a model or from code, Walk through a variety of examples of how to interact with the model, Take a close look at how and why EF 4.0 implements “Persistence Ignorance”, Show how to implement Entity Framework in a multi-tiered application. You’ll walk-away with a clear understanding of how the Entity Framework 4.0 can greatly simplify your DAL and enable you to program against a conceptual model of your data, versus the actual data store itself

Design Patterns for Parallel Programming in .NET 4.0

The transition from single-core to multi-core technology is altering computing as we know it, enabling increased productivity, improved performance, increased responsiveness, and reduced latency. This presentation is aimed at the experienced software developer who is relatively new to the parallel computing space but who expects to it to become more important to their work. Topics will include Task Parallel Library, PLINQ, and new coordination and synchronization primitives.

Adopting the Rich Standard: HTML5 in ASP.NET

The web is getting richer. Plug-ins, like Silverlight, are a big part of the richer web, but standards like HTML5 and CSS3 have evolved to enable equally rich, standards-based web applications. Learn how to leverage HTML5 in ASP.NET applications, which HTML5 features are available and ready for use today, and how IE9 is adding power to HTML5 applications in this demo-heavy session. Jumpstart your HTML5 development and leave with the tools needed to adopt the rich standard immediately.

Building Setups with Windows Installer and WiX

So, you’re ready to ship that Windows application. Now what? How does the product get from the build machine onto the customer’s computer? Where does SETUP.EXE come from? What’s in those MSI files, anyway? Join us for a primer on deployment, one of the most overlooked, yet most arcane problems in software development. We will cover the core topics of Windows Installer, the standard deployment technology on Windows. Then we will explore WIX, Microsoft’s open-source toolset for authoring Windows Installer packages. Download slides at http://www.jeffreysharp.org/2010/10/13/setup-with-windows-installer-and-wix

Networking and Communication Options in Silverlight

Networking and communication usually sounds like bits and bytes, but it will actually be an interesting eye opener for most of us. In Silverlight, there are numerous connectivity options including out-of-the-box WCF, commercial API's, web service protocols, third party components, and socket development just to name a few. This meeting will cover the more common communication technologies that we need in typical projects. In this meeting we'll quickly demonstrate the most common implementations including WebRequest, Sockets, and HTTP Polling Duplex using WCF.

Sharing the Light - Victor Gaudioso dives into Silverlight Development with Blend Day 2

We are very excited to have Victor Gaudioso join us in DFW for a two day seminar in Silverlight techniques with Blend and VS2010. The exact structure of the training and focus points will depend on how attendees answer a few questions when they sign up. The basic outline for both days will contain the following: Blend IDE, Objects and Timelines, Storyboards, Drawing, Event Handling, Sample Data, Data binding, Visual State Manager, and New Features of Silverlight 4. With special Guest Bill Moore talking about 3rd party controls and MVVM.

Sharing the Light - Victor Gaudioso dives into Silverlight Development with Blend Day 1

What is new in C# 4.0 and VS 2010

In this talk Shawn will highlight some of the coolest features of C# 4.0 and VS 2010.

Hour 2 of Teach Yourself C# 4.0 in 24 Hours

We are working our way through the book, chapter by chapter.In this talk we will take a look at Hour 2: Understanding C# Types.

Share what you know . . . Learn what you don't.

In this session Tuc and the group will talk about some tools and resources they use on a daily basis.

Practical Expression Blend and OData

In this talk our very own Teresa Burger and Shawn Weisfeld will use a media player they recently created to talk about how to practically skin your applications and how to bind it to an OData Service for data retrieval. The talk will begin with Teresa showing us how to use Expression Blend to edit templates and modify the look and feel of existing controls. Then Shawn will show us how to expose your video library using an OData service and consume it in the Silverlight Media Player.

Visual Studio DBPro

Most developers face the tasks of managing and updating database schemas as part of their daily jobs. Even in organizations with a dedicated team of DBAs, the developers have to manage changes to table structures, views, and stored procedures to match the logic of their systems under development. While the Microsoft Visual Studio Team Edition for Database Professionals (aka DBPro) was originally built for DBAs to use to manage sophisticated database schemas, Microsoft has made it easy for developers to embrace the DBPro tools as an extension to the core Developer Edition tools. And with Visual Studio 2010 you don’t even have to install DBPro separately. In this talk, which is applicable to developers and DBAs alike, learn how to use the power Visual Studio database projects to get your schema definitions in source control, manage changes to databases across multiple environments, generate test data, write executable database test cases, and more. No matter which version of Visual Studio you use, you’ll find tools that will make your life with data much easier to manage.

Mono, MonoTouch, and MonoDroid

Mono is an open-source, cross-platform implementation of the .NET framework based on the ECMA standards for C# and the Common Language Infrastructure. With Mono, users can run applications written and compiled in Visual Studio.NET on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. Recently, the Mono project has found additional notoriety for projects such as Moonlight, the open-source implementation of Silverlight for Linux, and MonoTouch and MonoDroid, SDKs for building iPhone and Android applications with C#. This session will provide an introduction to cross-platform development and deployment with Mono. Participants will see how they can leverage their existing skills and tools to write .NET applications that will run on multiple platforms and architectures with Mono. The presentation will also include a discussion of cross-platform considerations for leveraging Mono, demonstrate how to use MoMA, the Mono Migration Analyzer, to determine how ready an application is for cross-platform deployment. Additional demonstrations will examine how best to leverage Visual Studio to develop and deploy to Linux and OS X, and take a peek at the current state of iPhone and Android development with Mono.

Windows Phone 7 Up Close

Join Microsoft Senior Evangelist Chris Koenig for an up-close look at the Windows Phone 7 experience, including phone functionality and user experiences based on smart design. Learn about key phone features, customization, applications and connected experiences. See how the Windows Phone has evolved into a unique, new user experience designed for Life in Motion.

Introduction to Telerik’s Sitefinity CMS

Sitefinity CMS is a flexible ASP.NET-based content management platform that is used for the construction and management websites. Sitefinity CMS is engineered with flexibility and extensibility in mind. It gives web owners the freedom to adapt the system to their unique needs. In this session, Developer Evangelist Gabe Sumner will demonstrate how to create a brand new web site using Sitefinity and then add social features to the web site.

Build a Basic Website with DotNetNuke

Session attendees will learn how to build a basic business website in DotNetNuke using only core modules provided with the framework. Session attendees should have a basic understanding of online CMS systems and an interest in building websites.