April 2008 - Posts

Query a web site with LINQ to XML.

More LINQ goodness. Big Smile

From the Microsoft Coding4Fun site:
Scrape that screen with LINQ
http://blogs.msdn.com/coding4fun/archive/2008/04/29/8439727.aspx

You have to admit Beth Massi is really kicking it. Yes
http://blogs.msdn.com/bethmassi/

Microsoft just asked me to pass this great news on to everyone. . .
The new 2008 Express products are Ready, Willing and Able:
http://www.microsoft.com/express/interest/

Take a look at the new Visual Web Developer 2008:
http://www.microsoft.com/express/webdevelopment/Default.aspx

Lots of new features with very nice CSS designer tools.
Both VWD 2008 and the new Expression Web have exceptional CSS editing capabilities.

Ready to try Windows Server 2008?
Need an incentive?
Have you been following the news about the award winning services at http://DiscountASP.NET ?

How about 6 months free?
Go to https://www.discountasp.net/signup
Use this promotion code: WISEMX
(You'll get an entire year for the price of just 6 months.)
And I promise to help you with whatever is needed, I'm there for ya. Wink
  Salute,
    Mark Wisecarver
    Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

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Great Espresso on the job

No tricks, this Blog post is about making really good Espresso at work.
I've been a developer for several companies where an Espresso machine was not allowed.
That always made sense to me, from a safety standpoint, I didn't mind.

But what if you can create a really great cup of Espresso at work safely, in less than 10 minutes?

First of all you absolutely must start with good water.
Do all you can to filter your water at work or bring in your own clean water for this.
Something I did was to use those handy pitcher filters from Brita.

Next you need a good source of fresh beans and a grinder.
You do not need an expensive burr grinder for this, we're going to grind course.
At home you will always benefit from a good quality burr grinder, one that can create a consistent fine ground.

As you may have seen in one of my previous posts I prefer the Code Brown blend from http://www.coffeeemergency.com/espresso.php

OK, now that you have your fresh water, beans and a grinder...
How are we going to get this all together at work with only a Microwave oven to cook with?

The answer is the AeroPress!
http://www.amazon.com/AeroPress-Coffee-and-Espresso-Maker/dp/B000GXZ2GS/

I guarantee it will be the best $25 you've spent at work.
The instructions included are easy to follow.

For great Espresso while traveling or when at work it can't be beat.

Note: I'm not getting any sort of kickback for mentioning these products.
In all honesty I'm simply sharing a great tip for you Espresso lovers, for when you're away from your machines.

Please let me know if you try the things I mentioned, I'd love to hear from you.
  Salute,
    Mark Wisecarver
    Microsoft Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

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Beth Massi brings LINQ to the VB Gladiators

Continuing my Microsoft LINQ alerts...

This time LINQ to SQL for VB developers.
I'm a big fan of the way Beth Massi presents these technical articles and videos.
Thanks for all you do for the community Beth. Wink

LINQ to SQL N-Tier Smart Client - Part 1 Building the Middle-Tier
http://blogs.msdn.com/bethmassi/archive/2008/04/12/linq-to-sql-n-tier-smart-client.aspx

LINQ to SQL N-Tier Smart Client - Part 2 Building the Client
http://blogs.msdn.com/bethmassi/archive/2008/04/14/linq-to-sql-n-tier-smart-client-part-2-building-the-client.aspx
 

That's all for today but I am working on a distraction for this blog.
People are contacting me asking more about how to make "good Espresso".
Gosh, I'm more than happy to share the labor of my love.
In a few days I'll be posting an article for Developers who want to make really great Espresso at work.
Yes, I've done that working on-site at several companies and know how difficult it can be.
  Salute,
    Mark Wisecarver
    Microsoft Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

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ASP.NET Dynamic Data Preview

Oh man! This bit of news Rocks!

Scott Guthrie just announced today that the ASP.NET team has released an updated ASP.NET Dynamic Data Preview.
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2008/04/10/asp-net-dynamic-data-preview-available.aspx

Read about the changes, and download the releases:
http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/dynamicdata

My favorite improvements are for LINQ and the awesome ListView component.
Something that will probably excite a lot of developers is the Dynamic Data Website Wizard.

Notice in the bottom section of Scott's article he has posted links to Screen Casts and other helpful resources.
A good place to get help all day long is the ASP.NET Dynamic Data Forum:
http://forums.asp.net/1145.aspx

There are Dynamic Data samples on MSDN:
http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/dynamicdata/Wiki/View.aspx?title=Samples%20Page&referringTitle=Home

Silverlight Screen Cast of the Dynamic Data Wizard:
http://silverlight.services.live.com/invoke/63271/DynamicDataWebsiteWizardScreencast/iframe.html

These are exciting times. Wink
  Salute,
    Mark Wisecarver
    Microsoft Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

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SharePoint SUSHI

Codeplex rocks! Wink

SharePoint SUSHI – It’s not raw fish!

A Good Clink and a Link about a neat little open source SharePoint Utility out on CodePlex.com.

I highly recommend you take a look at this FREE tool and even the source code to get a better understanding of SharePoint Innards. Run from your SharePoint Server and it will do most of the work for you around sites, users, reports.

“SUSHI is a powerful, user-friendly SharePoint application enabling you to accomplish common SharePoint administrative and development tasks. You can think of SUSHI as a Swiss army knife for SharePoint.
What does the name SUSHI stand for?
SUSHI = SharePoint Utility with a Smart, Helpful Interface”
http://blogs.msdn.com/tadd/archive/2008/04/07/sharepoint-sushi-it-s-not-raw-fish.aspx

 

btw...
Visual C++ 2008 Feature Pack Released
http://blogs.msdn.com/usisvde/archive/2008/04/07/visual-c-2008-feature-pack-released.aspx

  Salute,
    Mark
    Microsoft Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

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Remotely Monitoring Web 2.0 Applications

Microsoft Research members Emre Kiciman, Ben Livshits and Himanshu Sharma have released a handy project...

Ajax View
The goal of the Ajax View project is to improve developer's visibility into and control over their web applications' behaviors on end-user's desktops.http://research.microsoft.com/projects/ajaxview/

*If Ben Livshits rings a bell it may be because of his Stanford projects:
http://suif.stanford.edu/~livshits/work.html
Which will be moving here soon:
http://research.microsoft.com/~livshits/

Emre has some very interesting Web 2.0 research papers you may be interested in:
http://research.microsoft.com/~emrek/#papers

 

My final entry today is not related to the "goodness" above...
Shaan has published an article many of you SharePoint developers will enjoy:

Downloading data from SharePoint List to Database in 27 lines
http://blogs.msdn.com/shaan/archive/2008/04/07/downloading-data-from-sharepoint-list-to-database-in-27-lines.aspx

 Salute,
   Mark Wisecarver
   Microsoft Technical Evangelist for http://DiscountASP.NET

 

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Coffee May Reduce Risk of Dementia

I knew it!

What took so long long to prove this? Big Smile

Drinking that daily cup of coffee has a new benefit besides jolting you awake in the morning.
It could also reduce your risk of dementia; it is being reported by BBC News.

According to a study in the Journal of Neuroinflammation...
Caffeine reduces the risk of dementia by blocking the damage cholesterol can inflict on the body.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,345531,00.html

Study: http://www.jneuroinflammation.com/content/5/1/12/abstract

Note: I just had to create this post!
When people notice the tag above, "Espresso Junky"...
...they often ask how much Espresso I drink each day.
Well, I go through 2 pounds of beans each month, "Code Brown Espresso" from http://www.coffeeemergency.com/
I'm not a nut, no way! Simply enjoy fresh ground, strong, Espresso.
...so much that I don't drink any colas or alcoholic beverages, this way I can truly enjoy my one Vice.  Wink

Hey, I do look forward to having a cup with each of you someday...

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Visual LINQ Query Builder

Soups up! Stick out tongue 

Visual LINQ Query Builder
http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/vlinq

Visual LINQ Query Builder is an add-in to Visual Studio 2008 Designer that helps you visually build LINQ to SQL queries. Functionally it provides the same experience as, for instance the Microsoft Access Query Builder, but in the LINQ domain. The entire UI of this add-in uses Windows Presentation Foundation. The goal of this tool is to help users become more familiar with the LINQ syntax.

It's also a project that could help you to see how to create your own Visual Studio 2008 add-in using Windows Presentation Foundation.

Requirements

You will need to have Visual Studio 2008 installed. You can use the Visual LINQ Query Builder in any kind of project that supports LINQ to SQL.

Visual LINQ Query Builder is only supported with C# and VB.Net projects.

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