Abstract: Come and play with me.

Abstract: WCF has been in production for some time now, and many enterprises are using it productively. But many developers have not yet had an opportunity to learn and use this exciting new technology. This session will show you the basics of WCF to get you started. We will create a service, host it and demonstrate it being called with several different endpoints. An overview of bindings, channels, behaviors and WCF security will also be provided.

Abstract: Microsoft Presence is the ability to allow users to see if others are available via Windows Live IM or Office Communicator along with contact and other information about the user directly inside custom applications. Chris will demonstrate how this service will allow developers of Windows and web applications to integrate Windows Live Presence and/or Microsoft Office Communicator inside their application to bring more communication and collaboration to the end user

Abstract: Windows Workflow (WF) was introduced as one of the four pillars of .Net 3.0 and it provides a rich set of tools to embed workflow within your applications. Sometimes you have to provide more than just a simple workflow though. Sometimes you have an intricate set of business rules involved that may change quickly over time due to changing laws, industry trends, sales reports or the whim of pointy haired bosses. WF provides the Policy activity to wrap rules that can be dynamically generated or declaratively included with your workflows. This presentation will focus on the rules engine provided by WF and how it can be leveraged both within and outside your workflows.

Abstract: Inversion of Control a.ka. Dependency Injection opens the doors of application design to greater flexibility and testability. Learn how to break the dependencies of your application enabling easier implementation of OO best practices, Unit Testing, and greater flexibility throughout a multi tiered architecture.

Abstract: Test Driven/Test First Development is more than writing your unit tests first. It requires a very different thought process. We’ll dive into that process with a completely code driven session

Abstract: This session provides an overview of the history of IronRuby, as well as DLR concepts. The talk applies these principles to show how to quickly apply IronRuby and the DLR in a Silverlight environment with some simple code examples. The session ends with a demonstration of Silverlight Deep Zoom with IronRuby.

Abstract: Nobody likes writing CRUD. After writing an obscene number of methods and stored procedures you are left with a mountain of repetitive, error-prone, data access code. Wouldn't it be great if you could spend that time writing actual business logic instead of being a plumber and writing the same old data access code? In this talk Michael Eaton will introduce you to an open-source framework called Castle ActiveRecord that will help you write less data access code and be more productive.

Abstract: XML is a valid data type in VB.NET 9. Learn to use literal XML and embedded expressions like LINQ queries right in your VB code.

Abstract: Thanks to the pervasiveness of GPS data, developers today are being asked to incorporate geospatial information into their data-driven applications. Working with spatial data, though, involves using complex geometric formulas that are difficult to implement in SQL queries. What developers need is a common abstraction layer running on the database itself that softens the complexity of working with geospatial data, yet is straightforward enough to incorporate directly into queries to provide spatial-based filtering and distance calculations. Microsoft introduced two new spatial data types (Geometry and Geography) in SQL Server 2008 that provide an implementation of Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) standards.

Abstract: This session is an introductory look at using LINQ to SQL as an application's data access layer. We will look at how to easily create custom objects that parallel your database and create, read, update, and delete data. This session will preview some of the techniques introduced in the upcoming book, "LINQ Unleashed" by Paul Kimmel.

Abstract: Thinking of starting your own software company? In this high-level session for entrepreneurial software developers, learn how to leverage the Microsoft platform to its fullest and how to partner with Microsoft for long-term business success.

Abstract: The benefits of Object Relational Mapping are well known. So why choose NHibernate? We'll delve into features of NHibernate that can make your Domain Model beautiful, your application perform better and enable Rapid Application Development.

Abstract: SQL Server has been around for many years with each version bringing more features, and for 2008 it's no different. The current beta version has many new features specific for developers aimed at producing more effecient code. Some of those features include Table Value Parameters, Hierarchy ID, and Grouping sets. Attend this session to be prepared when SQL Server 2008 is released later this year.

Abstract: In this session, Patrick will introduce you to Monorail – an open source MVC implementation for ASP.NET from the Castle Project. You’ll learn how the MVC approach is different than WebForms. Monorail enforces things like separation of concerns leading to better code reuse, easier maintainability and testability and reduced time to market. You’ll also see how Monorail integrates with other parts of the Castle Project such as ActiveRecord.

Abstract: Regular Expressions is a very powerful tool when used correctly. It is generally avoided by developers because they don't understand it, of find it too hard and cryptic. This session will take out some of the mystery of regular expressions, and give you a basic understanding to get you going. It will also show you the possibilities. It will also talk of the various implementations. Once you understand and master this technology you will wonder how you ever did without it!

Abstract: This session is a high-level look at the Windows Presentation Foundation and how it fits with the rest of Microsoft’s presentation-layer technologies. Do you think that WPF is just about 3D eye candy? Not so! I will walk through the Healthcare Monitoring demo, which illustrates the many cool features (documents, video, ink support, 3D) of WPF.

Abstract: Nearly everyone is aware of OOAD and MVC (Model, View, Controller). Some people have found that they can trim a lot of time off their IT projects by using an ORM tool or a code generator to build objects (code) to wrap the data layer. The Entity Framework (codename Jasper) is Microsoft’s answer to ORM tools. It is an add-on for Visual Studio. It is the successor to "Strongly Typed DataSets" and it is twenty times better.

Abstract: Inversion of control or IoC is about enforcing isolation. IoC can help you write more maintainable code that is highly decoupled and easy to test. Remove boilerplate code by using Castle's Windsor IoC container. Improve your designs by thinking about IoC and testability. Writing these big, apps should be easy and not so complex. Learn how Windsor makes easy things trivial and makes hard things easy.

Abstract: SVisual Studio is an outstanding tool when it comes to building applications on the .Net Framework. It can be confusing for users when trying to initialize a new software deliverable though. For example, how do you name your projects? Where do you put third party assemblies so they can be re-used? How do you set things up for an n-tier architecture? And the list goes on. I've given various talks throughout the US and it never fails that I end up in a conversation with multiple people on what are the best ways to organize projects within Visual Studio. This session should answer these questions and provide some proven guidance that works. In this session we'll cover some best practices on how to organize your projects and solutions. We'll also look at some tricks and guidance on how to map your folder structure to your namespaces. During the session we are going to build a new application from scratch and cover how to initially incorporate an n-tier design when initializing your project. Even if you are an experienced .Net developer this is one session you will not want to miss! o

Abstract: The DLR has been getting a lot of buzz recently. But what is it and why should you, the C# or VB.NET developer, care about it? In this session we will tackle that difficult question. We will talk about dynamic languages, such as JavaScript, Python and Ruby, and how they are different from static languages, such as C#, VB.NET or Java. We will also delve into the strengths and weaknesses of static and dynamic languages so that we can determine when one would be preferable to the other. This talk is not designed to teach you one of these languages, but to tell you why you should investigate them.

Abstract: An introduction to Agile Project Management with Scrum. We will go over the Agile Manifesto and dive into the core principles that make up Scrum and how it can be used to help your development processes.

Abstract: In this session, we will introduce the ASP.NET MVC Framework (MVC Framework) architecture and development style. One of the core requirements for the design of the MVC Framework is to enable effective Test Driven Development. We'll introduce the core principles and practices of Test Driven Development (TDD). Because this is an introductory talk, we will limit our demonstration of TDD to exclude mock objects and dependency injection frameworks. This talk will focus on understanding the concepts behind the MVC Framework architecture and the practice of TDD.

Abstract: If we trust Wikipedia, Web 2.0 is all about "a perceived second generation of web-based communities and hosted services — such as social-networking sites, wikis and folksonomies — which aim to facilitate creativity, collaboration and sharing between users." Well, the Windows Live SDK is all about collaboration. These are Web Service APIs – and occasional desktop APIs as well – for building tools that collaborate, usually through the context of Windows Live Spaces. These APIs include: Windows Live Contacts API; Virtual Earth SDK; Live Search API; Windows Live ID SDK; Windows Live Data; Microsoft Silverlight Streaming SDK; Microsoft adCenter API; Windows Live Alerts SDK; Windows Live Custom Domains SDK; Windows Live Expo API; Windows Live Messenger SDK; Windows Live Spaces; Windows Live Toolbar Custom Button SDK; and Windows Live Writer SDK. In this session, we’ll look at these APIs, and see what you can build with them. We’ll browse the services available through each one, and we’ll discuss what you have to do to develop for Live. And we’ll look at sample code for some of the APIs, especially the Windows Live Messenger SDK