Willy-Peter Schaub's Cave of Chamomile Simplicity

Technology Readiness Events - Moved off www.drp.co.za

We have moved off the events module from www.drp.co.za as it was creating unnecessary noise for site users outside of the Gauteng region and as the DNN events module itself is not the most intuitive module for the site users and administrators. We will be adding the community events to the new saArchitect site shortly. In the interim here is the current events list ... contact drpsupport@bbd.co.za or myself for further information.

The list of events to be scheduled in due course includes:

• Comparing the Microsoft and IBM reference architectures
• Team Foundation Server ... what's the Orcas and Rosario roadmap?
  

The "rough" list of registered events contains the event name, the presenter(s), location which is BB&D and the date/time.

• Enterprise Libraries...Exception EL
  Douglas
  BB&D - VC
  2007/03/30 09:00 AM
• Microsoft Project...a practical view
  Derek
  BB&D - VC
  2007/03/30 01:00 PM
• Enterprise Libraries ... Logging EL
  Douglas
  BB&D - VC
  2007/04/13 09:00 AM
• Enterprise Libraries...Exception EL
  Douglas
  BB&D - VC
  2007/04/13 01:00 PM
• ASP.NET... overview and good practices
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/04/20 09:00 AM
• Enterprise Libraries ... Logging EL
  Douglas
  BB&D - VC
  2007/04/20 01:00 PM
• Team Foundation Server ... what is it and why use it?
  JPF/Willy
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/04 09:00 AM
• ASP.NET... overview and good practices (Peet)
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/04 01:00 PM
• SSIS ... for developers
  Garret
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/11 09:00 AM
• Team Foundation Server ... what is it and why use it?
  JPF/Willy
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/11 01:00 PM
• SQL Analysis Services - Who, What, When, Where, Why and a bit of How...
  Roy
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/18 09:00 AM
• SSIS ... for developers
  Garret
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/18 01:00 PM
• ASP.NE... drill down
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/25 09:00 AM
• ADS Security Software Factory
  ?
  BB&D - VC
  2007/05/25 01:00 PM
• ATLAS ... What is it and why use it?
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/01 09:00 AM
• ASP.NET... drill down
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/01 01:00 PM
• Five Reasons To Love WCF
  WPS
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/08 09:00 AM
• ATLAS ... what is it and why use it?
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/08 01:00 PM
• Five Reasons To Love WF
  JPF
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/15 09:00 AM
• Five Reasons To Love WCF (WPS/JPF)
  WPS
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/15 01:00 PM
• 3rd Party Tools ... what is there and what should we use (Peet)
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/22 09:00 AM
• Five Reasons To Love WF
  JPF
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/22 01:00 PM
• 3rd Party Tools ... what is there and what should we use
  Peet
  BB&D - VC
  2007/06/29 01:00 PM

Professional Team Foundation Server Book

We have decided to include the "Professional Team Foundation Server (TFS)" book as a reference book with our TFS/VSTS readiness training handout pack, because it is the most comprehensive book on TFS today. A huge "thank you" from the community must be extended to Jean-Luc, Mickey and Erik for sharing their knowledge and consolidating it in such a great, comprehensive and professional book!

Title: Professional Team Foundation Server
Publisher: Wrox
ISBN-10: 0471919306
ISBN-13: 978-0471919308

VSTS Roadmap Announcement for Orcas and Rosario

Microsoft acquires TeamPlain

Make sure that you peruse http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2007/mar07/03-26VisualStudio.mspx which outlines the acquisition and the promise of improved application lifecycle management for development organizations. The press pass news is exciting, as TeamPlain is a great product and we have been using it effectively ... now the Extranet access to TFS will make twice as much fun!

TeamPlain is now available to users who own a Team Foundation Server and can be downloaded from http://www.devbiz.com/downloads.aspx and used any user licensed with a TFS CAL.

Visual Studio Team System Basics Training

If you are looking for the latest Team System Basics Training (level 200), read Rob's post on http://blogs.msdn.com/robcaron/archive/2007/03/20/1917884.aspx.

Article: Work Item Tracking

Brian A. Randell (Team System MVP) has written a great article on Work Item Tracking for MSDN ... make sure you read the article at http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/07/04/TeamSystem/#S5.

Well done Brian!

MVP Summit and TFS 510 Exam - Mission to Redmond is herewith complete

We reviewed the TFS 510 Exam items today and after some "interesting" discussions we concluded the exercise and ticked off both the MVP Summit and the TFS Exam. This is the end ... for the time being ... and we had to say the goodbyes ... until next time.

Martin, your teamprise shirt is great ... thank you very much! I also took a photo of the Alaskan Amber beer for my colleagues back home, because due to the "no liquid" rule at the airport check-in I will unfortunately not be able to bring back any beer, other than the picture. Believe me, the stuff is tasty as ever!

MVP's and TFS Product Team, thank you for the summit and the information exchange!

MVP Summit - T+2 and 3 ... the last two days were hectic

While many other MVPs probably had a relaxing two drill-down days, the Team System sessions were back to back and filled with exciting, new stuff for Orcas and Orcas+. The product team has done, is doing and will be doing more immensely great stuff ... our heads are still spinning.

We have not had much opportunity to give the team feedback as yet, so it is important that we say a "THANK YOU" and extend a huge "WOW" to the development teams! I am convinced I extend this on behalf of all the TFS MVPs and we will be giving feedback on the Champs list.

Tomorrow we will be reviewing the TFS BETA exam and will hopefully be able to ensure that we have a fair and appropriate exam ... we need to do a bit of "negotiating" and panel beating ... to bring the exam back to our original OD vision.

I will close the event and the posts on MVP Summit by including a few last photos and mug-shots of the "champions" and the amazing Campus surrounding.

MVP Summit - T+1: Museum of flight ... WOW!

Apart from the buzz of the MVP passion and brainpower humming through the museum of flight ... the experience of visiting the was simply "awesome".

I really, really wish I could have had my three sons with me this evening, because they would be on cloud nine for the rest of their lives. The blackbird ... my youngest son's favourite plane, the Phantom ... my oldest son's favourite plane, F14 Tomcat, Fiat, Sea Harrier, the infamous Starfighter and a gazillion other bits and pieces to be admired.

I am convinced that most of the MVPs forgot about computers this evening ... except the TFS MVPs, who discussed the exam of horrors and the exciting features looming in Orcas and Orcas+.

Thanks Martin (http://www.woodwardweb.com/) for the great flight on the flight simulator. Flying as bomber, with Martin as pilot ... going through a vertical, stall and several disorientating spins ... I now understand why the RAF pilots are feared around the world ... but we must have taken out most of the tanks and planes on any simulation flight tonight. Noah (http://blogs.msdn.com/noahc/) and Jean-Luc (http://weblogs.asp.net/jld/), sorry for looking and 'feeling' like a goof when we met you walking out, but the planes and especially the flight with Martin knocked me out q;-)

Below a shot or Hilton and Ruari getting strapped up in the same simulator.

Microsoft, thank you for tonight's excursion ... it was incredible!

MVP Summit - T+1: The Summit is heating up, while the weather is cooling

The day started at 2C ... quite "coolish" for us South-Africans. Last night we enjoyed the regional dinner, which resulted in most of us getting captured on a sheet or paper VISUALISATION and receiving a tattoo IDENTIFICATION ... relax, it only lasts a day.

Today was quite eventful, with Bill Gates delivering the Keynote and, both Chris Anderson and Don Box talking about modeling ... what energy, what passion ... WOW!

For those that believe that typed datasets are on their way out ... watch the space with LINQ complementing, not replacing, typed datasets! I must admit, that after today's mind-blowing session by the god-of-C#, aka Anders Hejlsberg, I am VERY interested in both the C# 3.0 enhancements and LINQ.

Tonight we will be going to the attendee party at the Museum of Flight ... an excursion I am really looking forward to and will report on separately.

Watch the space ...

MVP Summit - T-0: Registration

Day 1 is drawing to an end, after the completion of registration and the Expo, where I met some interesting people ... the most interesting obviously from the Team System Group, i.e. Etienne Tremblay from Canada (http://geekswithblogs.net/etiennetremblay/archive/...),  Chris Menegay from the US, David Mckinstry from the US and Martin Woodward from the UK.

View from the Washington State Convention & Trade Centre (Left) ... Etienne (Middle) ...  "Mo" on top of the world (Right)

Tonight is the regional dinner, after which we will hopefully be able to catch some "shut eye" ... unless our internal clocks decide that even though it is dark it is time to get up. Tomorrow is the "real" start of the summit and we are all looking forward to some interesting information, announcements and meeting more interesting MVPs.

To close a scary looking building in Seattle, the Rainier Square on 5th avenue ... which simply looks the wrong way round.

Noah's Search Work Items Team System Addin

Check Noah's post on http://blogs.msdn.com/noahc/archive/2007/03/08/sea..., which publishes an addin that allows you to "google", or "live search" your TFS work item store ... which is very, very "cool".

MVP Summit - T-0.2: Mohammed our hero

The summit has not started, but my South-Africa time clock has thrown me out of bed at 3AM ... good time to quickly post two pictures, from last night's MVP dinner arranged by Mohammed Seedat (goold old "Mo") at the Coldwater Bar and Grill in the Westin Hotel, and then to do some work before bracing the rain, wind and 11°C temperature outside.

Mo ... that's the guy on the left ... has been our lead in South-Africa and has done an immense job for the South-African MVP group and the community as a whole ... "thanks Mo, for a your efforts, the great dinner and all of the very best with your new responsibilities!".

The other snapshot shows another one of the South-Africans amongst the close to 2000 MVPs at the Summit ... Hilton, MVP/C# and saArchitect Lead, from Cape Town.

Looking forward to the summit starting in 9 hours :)

MVP Summit - T-1: Arrival

After an elapsed time of 26 hours, flying time of ~22hours from Johannesburg, via Dakar, via New York and finally landing in an overcast and foggy Sea-Tac Airport, I am finally in Seattle.

My bets are on that immigration back home will be far more efficient ... I nearly missed my connecting flight after spending 1.75 hours at immigration, connectign terminal re-checking and a brisk walk to terminal C this morning.

As promised, I will post one or two photos every day from the MVP Summit. As it is overcast today and I am too tired to go anywhere, I will limit today's pictures to the good-bye African sun picture taken from my seat in SAA206 just before leaving Johannesburg and to a big sign I noticed immediately in the hotel room ... never knew that there were earthquakes this far north.

It is now MVP Summit T-1 ... awaiting tomorrow's start of the summit with great anticipation, while really missing our sunny home and especially my family!

Developer Road Show across South-Africa

Eben de Wit, a Developer Advisor at Microsoft since January, is doing a Developer Road Show across South Africa. He will visit all major cities and present technical content around the .NET Framework 3.0 and ASP.NET AJAX. The purpose of the Road Show is to share exciting technology and meet the “developer life” outside of Jo’burg.

So, go on, and register online to book a seat.

19 March – Durban

22 March – Port Elizabeth

23 March – East London (Will update link once venue has been finalized)

26 March – Cape Town

29 March – Bloemfontein (Will update link once venue has been finalized)

30 March - Kimberley

Everyone is responsible for their own refreshments. So, bring your picnic basket.