MSDN Flash - Volume 10, Number 4: February 20, 2006

Article
03/15/2017

From the Editor

If there's one thing that holds universally true among developers, it is this: We like free stuff.

I have seen senior-level programmers very nearly come to blows over T-shirts. I have seen people who have not run in a decade sprint to get the last blinking LED keychain. I have seen stampedes at show booths for an SDK the stampeders will never use.

Why do we do it? Well, because it's free! Isn't that enough?

With this in mind, I think you'll like some of the stuff I've got on tap for you today. For example, how many chances in life do you get for a free do-over? Well, right now, you can take any Microsoft certification exam and, if you don't pass, for - you guessed it - free.

As long as I'm on the subject of training, Rick Dobson is offering . This one is not free, but it's a great value for the price. Nice.

Want more free stuff? Microsoft Certified Professional Developer exam series is offering a free beta. You can try out the Web (70-547), Windows (70-548) and Enterprise Application Developer (70-549) versions of the exams. You'll also get a voucher for another free exam, making this extra-free. See the Training section of this newsletter for the exam promo codes and links to register.

Not to be left out, the patterns & practices group has released the - a reusable, source code-based component based on the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0. Build complex, smart-client user interfaces based on well-known design patterns such as the Composite pattern, in which simple user interface parts can be combined to create complex solutions, but at the same time allowing these parts to be independently developed, tested, and deployed.

In fact, partners are releasing extensions based on the Composite UI Application Block. , the makers of NetAdvantage, have released a free white paper to show you how to extend this application block and couple it with their popular Windows Forms components.

Oh, and one more thing in this week's free-stuff theme: Mobile & Embedded DevCon 2006 is coming up. There, in addition to learning new and existing mobile and embedded technologies through hands-on labs, sessions, and one-on-one discussions with industry experts, you'll get - free - Visual Studio 2005 Standard Edition, the Windows Mobile 5.0 Resource Kit and more.

There you have it - lots of free stuff and no need to elbow your co-workers, climb over smaller developers, or stampede a booth.

Happy coding!

Brad McCabe

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Web Resources

March 20 - 24, San Jose, CA
Enjoy free, hands-on workshops for both Xbox 360 and DirectX 10, including Performance Tuning, XACT Audio, HLSL, and Direct3D 10 Shader Model 4.0.

MSDN Magazine Special Issue - Visual Studio: A Guided Tour

April 2 - 5, Orlando, FL
April 24 - 27, Nice, France
Get four conferences for the price of one and experience the latest on ASP.NET, Visual Studio, SQL Server 2005, and Exchange from Microsoft and industry experts.

May 9 - 11, Las Vegas, NV
Get the latest on building and bringing to market the next wave of devices, applications, content, and services for the Windows Mobile and Windows Embedded platforms.

Calling All Office Developers

Kim Cameron shows how InfoCards bring identity architecture to the Internet, how it works, and how you integrate it into a Web page. See Kim's full session at .

Windows Presentation Foundation templates allow application authors to build beautiful user experiences by customizing the appearance of controls and arbitrary data.

Influence future smart-client development frameworks and tools. Join the patterns & practices Smart Client Workspace on GotDotNet and let your opinions (and requirements) be known.

The Back Room: Where System Builders Talk Shop

Find everything from technical tips to insights on growing your business.

Security for Developers

We're looking for developers who have developer/code-related security stories that they would like to share with the world.

Case Studies, KB Articles, & How-tos

Global Air Freight Company Analyzes Mission Critical Logistics Data with SQL Server 2005

Jettainer tracks 9 million container moves a year, 25,000 movement messages a day and more than 150,000 items of flight data.

Xerox Develops Scalable, Hosted Solution to Optimize Global Print Fleet Management

Early adoption of Visual Studio 2005 made development of its worldwide, centrally hosted, Web-based solution faster and easier, and simplified its code base.

Mortgage Lender Greatly Improves Client Service with Contact Management System

Using Visual Studio 2005, in less than six months, one developer and one business analyst at Quicken Loans/Rock Financial developed a contact and resource information solution.

Training

Did you attend a Visual Studio 2005/SQL Server 2005 launch event? Dig out your goodie bag - there's a voucher to take one of 5 new generation exams for free, and 70-431 is one of them. Redeem your voucher and be among the first to get your TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Implementation for free.

Beta Exam Invitation for MCADs and MCSDs
Through March 12
Registration is open for free beta exams, which count toward certification in the same way as the final version of the exam. Candidates who achieve a passing score in the beta exam will receive a free exam voucher* for any Microsoft Certification Exam. Vouchers will be sent after exam scores are tabulated.

• Exam 71-547 Pro - Designing and Developing Web-based Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework (promo code: PRO547)

• Exam 71-548 Pro - Designing and Developing Windows-based Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework (promo code: BTA548)

• Exam 71-549 Pro - Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework (promo code: 549BTA)

Seating is limited. Pre-register via or .

about the new generation of developer certification.

Note: Beta exams will not be available in China, India, and Pakistan.

* Offer good only for people who pre-register for, and pass the beta exam. Limit one gift per person. This offer is non-transferable. This offer expires on March 12 2006, or when registration closes for this Beta exam. Beta exam registration has limited availability. This offer is not redeemable for cash. Taxes, if any, are the sole responsibility of the recipient. Any gift returned as non-deliverable will not be re-sent.

Hot off the press!

Three hours of training, a US$115 value.

Three free sample lessons are now available. For a limited time, you can purchase courses at 40% off (North America only).

MeasureUp MSDN Practice Test Question of the Month

Test your development knowledge of Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition with a question from Certification Exam 70-229. Preparing for the MCAD or MCSD? Make sure you're ready with MeasureUp Practice Tests and save 25%.

Visual Studio Team System Training for ISVs

February 28, 1:00 P.M. Pacific time
Explore the breadth and depth of the unit, Web, and load testing technologies that are bundled with Visual Studio Team System.

Partner News

Developers Helping Developers - Visit Business Objects' Developer Resource Site

Access top BI and Crystal Reports resources, or register for the Peer Source Road Show.

Free Visual Studio 2005 .NET Web Services Management Software

Newly updated: download AmberPoint Express for Web services diagnostics and SOAP message testing.

Proposion N2N, an ADO.NET data driver for accessing Lotus Notes databases, now has added functionality, including support for Visual Studio 2005.

International Events

Through May, worldwide
Microsoft and Intel's joint 64-Bit Computing Advantage migration program is tailored to the ISV technical community. This free and comprehensive program includes a worldwide series of 3-day migration labs, with concentrated follow-up and ongoing technical support.

Meet the architects behind Microsoft's patterns & practices, and explore Microsoft's recommendations for .NET application architecture and development. Highlighted speakers include Alan Cooper, Anders Hejlsberg, and Chris Sells.

22 - 24 February, Barcelona, Spain
Join PASS for the third annual European Conference bringing together SQL Server professionals from around the globe.

20 - 22 March, Las Vegas, NV
Explore a wide range of Web technologies Microsoft is delivering to help you unlock new revenue opportunities and lower development costs. Test-drive "Atlas," the powerful new framework for building cross-browser, cross-platform AJAX applications. Explore Windows Live!, Microsoft's new consumer services strategy. Find out how to extend your content, media, and services into the living room with Windows Media Center and Xbox 360. Watch Bill Gates go one-on-one with Tim O'Reilly, the CEO of O'Reilly Media who coined the term "Web 2.0". Hear how Web pioneers Amazon, PayPal, MySpace, and eBay will navigate the Internet's next set of challenges. Choose from over 50 sessions for Web developers, designers and business professionals.

20 - 24 March, Bad Ems, Germany
Get to know the fundamentals to write applications with Visual Studio 2005 and the .NET Framework 2.0, and become productive from the very beginning. This 5-day course gives you a solid foundation and teaches you the fundamentals about the .NET Framework, Visual Studio 2005, C#, ASP .NET, Web services, security features, and much more. Enjoy 50 hours of basic training, code walks, hands-on labs and everything else you want to know to get started. Register through 3 March and save €699.

24 - 27 April, Nice, France
Get four conferences for the price of one and experience the latest on ASP.NET, Visual Studio, SQL Server 2005, and Exchange from Microsoft and industry experts.

24 - 27 April, Toronto, Ontario
Check out VSLive!, a conference for developers using Microsoft technologies. Topics include Visual Studio, ASP.NET 2.0, SQL Server 2005, and WinFX.

8 - 12 May, Montreal, Canada
Check out this conference, jam-packed with advanced developer sessions on the latest versions of Microsoft products. This year, we have 68 .NET sessions and 34 SQL sessions. DevTeach 2006 is the training you can't get any other way. The is now available.

15 - 19 May, Munich, Germany
In this 5-day, bring-your-own-notebook course, Juval Lowy covers advanced .NET 2.0 programming, design guidelines, best practices, pitfalls, original techniques, and breakthroughs. Topics include advanced C#, C# 2.0, multithreading, advanced serialization, transactions, .NET security, and an introduction to WCF.
Register before March 20 and save €799.

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MSDN Events

SmartClients combine the best elements of both Windows and Web applications. But SmartClient means so much more than just a Windows Forms application. In this free, half-day event, see three different SmartClient approaches in action.

• Building Mobile Applications with Visual Studio 2005

• Creating Office Solutions with Visual Studio 2005 Tools for Office

• Introduction to the Windows Presentation Framework