News & Announcements

03/10/2010 Meeting - Hands-On WF 4.0

tstone — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 03:34:00 GMT

The D/FW Connected Systems User Group's next meeting format will be a slightly different from previous meetings. Todd Stone will lead the group through a hands-on lab on Windows Workflow 4.0 using Visual Studio 2010 RC. So please bring you laptop if possible. Those without laptops will still be engaged in the discussions and experience. For those who have not worked with VS2010, this will be a great opportunity to become more familiar with it before it's officially launched next month.

As of the last meeting, Zach Bonham stepped down as Vice-President of Membership due to other commitments. He has done an outstanding job and the time he has committed to the group each month will be missed. If anyone is interested in filling this role during the interim until elections are held in June, please let me know at the meeting.

See you there!
Todd Stone, President

Pre-Meeting Preparation
Please prepare for this meeting by having the following installed on your laptop.

Visual Studio 2010 RC - http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=183179
.NET Framework 4.0 - http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=183186
Visual Studio 2010 Training Kit - http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9665216
WCF/WF Samples - http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=150780

Visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vstudio/dd441784.aspx#Workflow for more info on WF 4.0

Meeting Details

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Lab: Hands-On Windows Workflow 4.0 using Visual Studio 2010
Date: Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#
Maps: Bing, Google
Cost: It's free thanks to our sponsors!

The meeting location has a parking garage where you will need to enter the code 5000# for entry.
The Improving offices are located in building II.

Sponsors
We will have FREE food, drinks and a meeting room, courtesy of Improving Enterprises, and let's not forget the drawing for door prizes for those who attend! The food will arrive by about 6PM which offers plenty of time to socialize before the event start time at 6:30PM.
We have several sponsors that have generously donated product and/or services to our user group community.

Microsoft has donated some books and a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate.
Pluralsight is offering a 1 month free subscription to their Pluralsight On-Demand! training for unemployed user group members. All other members can receive a free Guest Pass into the Pluralsight On-Demand! library by requesting it directly from here.
JetBrains has donated a ReSharper license.
TechSmith has donated a copy of SnagIt along with some nice swag!

Be sure to swing by this week for your chance to win!

The D/FW Connected Systems user group is a member of INETA. INETA provides structured, peer-based organizational, educational, and promotional support to the growing worldwide community of Microsoft® .NET user groups. Visit their website for more information and to sign up for their newsletter.

Abstract
Come join us as Todd Stone leads a hands-on lab on Windows Workflow 4.0 using Visual Studio 2010 RC.

Bio
Todd Stone is a Senior Software Developer for HBS Systems in Dallas, TX. He works with communicating and converting data from a variety of different platforms including Windows, UNIX, LINUX, and the IBM iSeries (AS/400). He's active in the local .NET community as President of the DFW Connected Systems User Group, member of Microsoft's South Central District Community Guidance Council, and as a speaker at local user groups and regional events.

02/10/2010 Meeting - A Look at WF 4.0

zachbonham — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 03:58:00 GMT

We will have FREE food, drinks, courtesy of Improving Enterprises, and lets not forget the prizes for those who attend! The food will arrive by about 6PM which offers plenty of time to socialize before the event start time at 6:30PM.

We have picked up several new sponsors that have generously donated product and/or services to our user group community. Pluralsight is offering a 1 month free subscription to their Pluralsight On-Demand training for unemployed usergroup members and $500 off the subscription price of On-Demand. JetBrains has dontated a ReSharper license. Apress has dontated copies of select titles and are offering discounts to user group members on e-book purchases. Techsmith has dontated copies of their software along with some nice swag! Be sure to swing by this week for your chance to win!

The meeting location has a parking garage where you will need to enter the code 5000# for entry. If you get there before 6:30PM, there is usually plenty of parting out front.

The Improving offices are located in building II.

See you there!

Presentation: A Look at Windows Workflow 4.0
Date: Wednesday, Feburary 10, 2010
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Maps: Google

Abstract

Come join us as Anderson Imes gives us an overview of Workflow 4.0 features, including Workflow Services and the Windows Server Application Fabric.

Bio

Anderson Imes is a Senior Programmer for Mary Kay and an active member of Microsoft's Connected Technology Advisor program. Anderson is currently delivering software solutions built on .NET, including Windows Communication Foundation and Windows Workflow. You can learn more about Anderson from his blog http://theimes.com/.

01/13/2010 Meeting - Modeling with "Oslo" (now SQL Server Modeling Services)

zachbonham — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 15:07:00 GMT

Looking for help in meeting your New Years resolution to get up to speed on the new technology coming down the pipeline? Join us January 13th 2010 as Stuart Celarier, an INETA speaker, presents on Sql Server Modeling Services (formerly "Oslo").

What a great way to kick off the New Year!

The meeting location has a parking garage where you will need to enter the code 5000# for entry. If you get there before 6:30PM, there is usually plenty of parting out front. The Improving offices are located in building II.

See you there!

Presentation: Modeling with "Oslo" (now SQL Server Modeling Services)
Date: Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Maps: Google

Abstract

Microsoft project codenamed "Oslo" was recently branded as SQL Server Modeling Services, but don't get tripped up by the name. SQL Server Modeling still contains textual and graphical modeling tools and a language for modeling data and creating domain specific languages (DSL) and is still being developed by the Connected Systems team. It is a good choice for building enterprise-level data-driven applications and it is also contains general-purpose technology for raising the level of abstraction for creating other types of systems. We'll explore where "Oslo" has been and where it appears to be going, discuss what it means to model in the first place, and then dive into demos using the November 2009 SQL Server Modeling Community Technology Preview (CTP) and Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2.

Bio

Stuart Celarier is a software architect and technical lead in Portland, Oregon. He is a Microsoft MVP on Connected Systems and a member of the INETA Speakers Bureau. He is a director of Portland Code Camp and a chair of the Birds-of-a-Feather track at seven Tech·Ed and PDC conferences. Stuart is passionate about new and emerging technologies that fundamentally transform software systems and how we create them.

11/11/2009 Meeting - .NET iPhone App Development using MonoTouch

zachbonham — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:51:00 GMT

Please note that the DFW Connected Systems User Group meeting location has moved from Microsoft, Las Colinas, to Improving Enterprises, in North Dallas! The new meeting location has a parking garage where you will need to enter the code 5000# for entry. If you get there before 6:30PM, there is usually plenty of parting out front. The Improving offices are located in building II.

See you there!

Presentation: .NET iPhone App Development using MonoTouch
Date: Wednesday, November 11th 2009
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Maps: Google

Abstract
MonoTouch is one of the most exciting developments in the iPhone apps world. Use your .NET skills to build beautiful mobile apps on the worlds most successful and lucrative mobile applications platform. We’ll start out with and introduction to MonoTouch and then move on to using program navigation, web services and the current state of WCF in MonoTouch.

Speaker Bio
Todd Stone is a senior software developer at HBS Systems in Dallas, TX. He works with communicating and converting data from a variety of different platforms including Windows, UNIX, LINUX, and the IBM iSeries (AS/400). He's active in the local .NET community as President of the DFW Connected Systems User Group, member of Microsoft’s South Central District Community Guidance Council, and as a speaker at local user groups and regional events.

10/14/2009 Meeting (Canceled)- BizTalk Server and WCF

zachbonham — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:47:00 GMT

All,

I apologize for the late notice, but we need to cancel the user group meeting tonight. We will be back next month!

Thanks,

10/14/2009 Meeting - BizTalk Server and WCF

zachbonham — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:54:00 GMT

See you there!

Presentation: BizTalk Server with WCF
Date: Wednesday, October 14th 2009
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Maps: Google

Summary

Beginning with BizTalk Server 2006 R2 a Windows Communication Foundation adapter has been available. This presentation will take a look at using BizTalk as both a provider, and consumer, of WCF services.

Speaker Bio

Zach Bonham is a Technical Consultant with Mary Kay and has been developing software for the Microsoft platform for over 15 years. You can reach Zach through his blog at zachbonham.blogspot.com.

Free "State of .NET" Event

zachbonham — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 13:14:00 GMT

Free "State of .NET" Event

Two Locations - Dallas & Houston:

Dallas: Thursday, December 3, 2009 1:30 - 4:30 PM
Microsoft Dallas Office - 7000 SR-161 (George Bush Turnpike), Irving, TX 75039
Houston: Thursday, December 10, 2009 1:30 - 4:30 PM
Microsoft Houston Office - 2000 W Sam Houston Pkway S, Houston, TX 77042

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 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 is new in .NET 3.5 and the coming .NET 4.0? 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 development experience with varous techologies.
Exact list of topics is under NDA until after PDC announcements have been made.
Topics may include:

Silverlight 2.0 and 3.0
WPF and Visual Styles
Expression Blend 3
Windows Azure and Cloud Services
Techniques and Paradigms
ASP.NET MVC
WCF
SOA
Preview of .NET 4.0 with "Dev10" (Visual Studio 10)
Windows 7

Dallas Signup Link - December 3, 2009 1:30 - 4:30
Houston Signup Link - December 10, 2009 1:30 - 4:30

Questions? Please e-mail info@eps-software.com or call 832-717-4445 x32. This event is co-hosted by EPS Software Corp. and Microsoft Corporation. EPS is responsible for all content presented at this event.

Training by the Most Trusted Source in .NET

CODE Training has the most extensive and advanced network of experts. Think of all the authors and presenters we have on our payroll for CODE Magazine, CODE Consulting, CODE Staffing, and for the presentations at the numerous events we are involved with. CODE employs more MVPs, Influencers, Gurus, and RDs than any other company. Thanks to our community involvement, we have access to the best experts for each technology. Not only do our trainers have plenty of training and speaking experience, but they also bring real-world expertise to the table. They don't just teach, they also "do". Can you think of a better setup for your training? Available on-site and remotely.

WPF, Silverlight, iPhone, AJAX and more - Visit www.code-training.com for more information and a complete list of upcoming classes.

Austin's Monospace Conference - 20% Discount

zachbonham — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 17:28:00 GMT

If you find yourself down in the Austin area October 27-28th of this year why not checkout Monospace?

Monospace is the open source and cross-platform software development
conference for .NET and Mono, teaching .NET developers and
organizations how to use the Mono framework and Microsoft .NET to
leverage existing investments in skills and applications on a broader
array of platforms for a broader array of opportunities.

Monospace starts with two days of immersive half-day tutorials taught
by industry and open source leaders like Ayende Rahien, Ted Neward,
Miguel de Icaza, Larry Ewing, on topics ranging from iPhone
development in C# using the MonoTouch framework, to advanced
NHibernate development. Check out the conference program for all the
great content offered at Monospace: http://monospace.us/program

The conference starts on Tuesday, October 27th and runs through
Friday, October 28th. It all happens right here in Austin at the
beautiful Austin Convention Center.

For a limited time, you can claim a 20% discount on registration using
the discount code MONO199.

Attendees will also enjoy discount coupons on MonoTouch, NHibernate
Profiler, and Telerik products!

Sign up at: http://monospace.us

BizTalk Resources

zachbonham — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:43:00 GMT

If your new to BizTalk, check out these great resources:

These are just a few of the quality BizTalk content sites out there!

Source Code for WCF Service Quality

zachbonham — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:22:00 GMT

Ken Byrd has made available the source from his presentation on WCF Service Quality delivered on September 9, 2009. You can download the source code from here.

Thanks, Ken!

An Evening in the Cloud with ....

zachbonham — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 14:27:00 GMT

David Chappell and Cumulux

Join cloud experts David Chappell, Paddy Srinivasan and Ranjith Ramakrishnan for an evening diving into Windows Azure™ – Microsoft’s platform for building and deploying cloud based applications. David will talk about the Cloud Computing environments available today, specifically focusing on Windows Azure™, while Paddy and Ranjith will provide many demonstrations of Windows Azure™ including:

The fundamentals of building and deploying applications to Windows Azure™
When to use Windows Azure™ Table and Blob storage vs. SQL Azure Database
How to reuse your existing SQL Server skills and programming approaches with SQL Azure
How to expose data SQL Azure in a RESTful manner using Windows Azure™ + ADO.NET Data Services
How to connect on-premise and cloud applications using .NET Services

And much more! No prior knowledge of cloud computing or experience using Windows Azure™ is required, and this *free* event is open to the public.

Date & Time

Monday, September 28, 2009

6:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Location

Microsoft Office
7000 N. State Hwy. 161 (George Bush Turnpike)
Irving Texas 75039

MPR 1200 (first floor)

Registration Options

By web - http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032424706&Culture=en-US

By phone – 1-877-673-8368 and reference Event ID: 1032424706

Pizza and refreshments will be provided.

We hope you’ll join us!

Register for the Windows 7 Launch Event

zachbonham — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 22:51:00 GMT

Take home your copy of attending this event!

DALLAS, TX
NOVEMBER 04, 2009
AMC NORTHPARK CENTER 15

8686 N Central Expressway - Inside Northpark Mall
Dallas, 75225

See Map

Source Code for WS Discovery in .NET 4.0

zachbonham — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 00:18:00 GMT

Anderson Imes, the presenter for last months session on WS-Discovery in .NET 4.0, has released the source code and slide deck for the presentation.

You can download them from here.

Thanks, Anderson!

New Location @Improving

zachbonham — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:25:00 GMT

Our group location has now moved to the Improving Enterprises headquarters in Dallas, TX! Our meeting times will remain the same, only the location has changed. Just like at our old location, there are two buildings on the property. Improving's offices are located in Building II.

There is likely plenty of available parking in front of the building if you arrive early, however, if none is available, please feel free to use the parking garage! The garage code is 5000#.

The address:

Improving Enterprises

15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas,TX 75248

Parking Code: 5000#
Maps: Google

09/09/2009 Meeting - WCF Service Quality

zachbonham — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:17:00 GMT

We will have FREE food, drinks, courtesy of Improving Enterprises, and lets not forget the prizes for those who attend! The food will arrive by about 6PM and which offers plenty of time to socialize before the event start time at 6:30PM.

See you there!

Presentation: WCF Service Quality: Understanding Instancing, Concurrency, and Throttling
Date: Wednesday, September 9th 2009
Time: 6:00PM
Where: Improving Enterprises, Dallas (15950 Dallas Parkway Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75248)
Parking Code: 5000#

RSVP: rsvp@dfwcsug.com or via Codezone (new users use Access Code 'BizTalk2006' - see Join Us On Codezone for more info!)
Maps: Google

Summary

Beginning with a overview of how to create a basic Windows Communication Foundation service, host and client application, our discussion will quickly move into an in-depth study of how service instancing, concurrency, and throttling options can be used to maximize service quality and throughput. With lots of code and examples, you'll learn how to use each of these options as well as pitfalls to avoid when writing your own services.

Speaker Bio

Ken Byrd is a .NET consultant and mentor with more than 20 years of experience designing and building client/server and web-based distributed database applications. He has worked with a variety of languages including C, C++, Delphi, C# and VB.NET and has worked extensively with Microsoft .NET since the initial Beta releases.

Ken graduated from Baylor University in 1986 with a B.S. degree in Computer Science and currently works in Dallas with TekFocus, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner for Learning Solutions where he teaches development classes in C#, VB, ASP.NET, Silverlight, WCF, Workflow, ADO and WPF.