By Kent Sharkey on 9/12/2008 1:00 PM

Mark your calendar: Dec 4 marks Winnipeg's episode of TechDays 2008. For only $124.99 (until Oct 15), you get a full day of in-depth coverage on the products you use (or should be using), and enough software to build your future.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 9/9/2008 10:41 AM

Winnipeg has a long history of great participation in User Groups, so it's good to see a new Biztalk User Group forming in the city. Details are a little sparse at the moment, but stay tuned to this blog and http://www.winnipegdotnet.org/ for details.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 8/25/2008 3:46 PM

Like a lot of other people lately, I've been having a botnet play with my Web site. I decided to take a closer look at the attack, and how I can minimze its effect using the free tools LogParser and URLScan.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 8/21/2008 2:00 PM

I have to admit that I really like the upcoming ASP.NET MVC ("It will ship in a month ending in -ber") Web framework. It's not as mature as the existing Webform model, but I like how it gives more control over the pages, and navigation of the site. Now, to prepare, Microsoft has negotiated five free chapters out of some of the upcoming books on ASP.NET MVC. Definitely worth taking a look at if you're planning (or developing) a site using that technology.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 8/13/2008 3:14 PM

By now, I'm sure you've heard that Service Pack 1 is out for Visual Studio 2008
        and the .NET Framework 3.5. The arrival of SP1 for a development tool is often a
        sign that it is the moment that it is safe to start working with the product; so
        if you've been holding off, it's time to take another look at 2008.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 7/23/2008 3:48 PM

I have to admit: I've been a little slow to have a close look at Linq. I blame this on two opinions I developed on first looking at it. However, I guess it's time to start looking at it.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 7/22/2008 2:09 PM

New Media Manitoba is holding their second DemoCamp next Tuesday (the 29th). Come to see great prototypes, or come to show  your own.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 7/1/2008 8:34 AM

Are you test-driven? Agile? Are you up on all the latest three letter acronyms (IoC, BDD, DRY)? Or are you just a curious sort who wants to know more about developing using these technologies? If so, you should strongly consider heading to the ALT.NET Canada event. It's not your normal developer event, as it's actually designed by the attendees in a model that has become known as "Open Spaces".

Whoever shows up is the right group. Whatever happens is the only thing that could have. Whenever it starts is the right time. When it's over, it's over. 

The conference runs from August 15-17, 2008 in Calgary. Details at their Web site. I hope to see you there.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 6/26/2008 2:57 PM

Give Microsoft a problem, and you'll soon find them developing multiple solutions. Take synchronization. We've already covered the Synchronization Services, but there are many other teams working on this problem. The Windows Live team have provided their answer, in the form of a Beta of Live Mesh.

Read More »

By Kent Sharkey on 6/9/2008 3:26 PM

Just about every application you can imagine needs some way of storing data, thus the importance of tools like Access, Oracle and SQL Server. Lightweight applications can make use of a simple text or XML file, while larger, more complex applications need a full-fledged database. There are some applications that sit in the middle: too much data for a simple file, while you don't want to go through the effort of installing a service just to store some data. Enter the latest edition of SQL Server: Compact Edition.

Read More »