Start Dreaming. Start Building.

There has been a tremendous amount of buzz and excitement in the developer community as we get ready to launch Windows Phone 7. There have been over 300,000+ downloads of the Windows Phone 7 developer tools as developers are eager to take advantage of this next wave of computing. To help you along the way, my team is sponsoring a number of *free* Windows Phone 7 Boot Camp training events across the area. The purpose of these boot camps is to provide guidance around building apps and games that target Windows Phone 7 and lead  you down the path to start earning money in the Windows Marketplace.

Training and Hands-on Labs

Throughout the day, we’ll dive deep into the Windows Phone developer tools along with the services and components that allow you to light up your apps on Windows Phone 7. Bring your laptop! In the afternoon, we’ve set aside time for people to walk through various hands-on labs and give them an opportunity to get their hands dirty with the tools. We’ll have experts on hand to answer your questions as well.

Prerequisites for the Hands-on Labs

Unfortunately training machines will not be provided. You are welcome to bring your own machine with WiFi capability. To prepare for the labs, please download the Windows Phone Developer Tools and Windows Phone 7 Training Kit prior to the event. (Note: please check the system requirements on the Windows Phone Developer Tools download page)

App Testing – Bring your XAP!

Have you been working hard over the past few months building the next Angry Birds or the next great Social App? Bring your XAP (or your source code) and we’ll provide an opportunity for you to test it on a real device!

Windows Phone 7 Boot Camp Agenda

8:00 am – 8:30: Registration Opens

8:30 – 12:00pm:

• Overview of the Windows Phone 7 Platform
• An In-Depth View of Building Applications for Windows Phone 7 with Microsoft Silverlight
• WP7 + Data

12:00 – 12:30pm: Lunch

12:30 – 2:30pm:

• Building Games for Windows Phone 7 with XNA
• Making Money with the Windows Marketplace

2:30pm – 5:00pm:

• Hands-on Labs and App testing

Sign me up!

The event is FREE – to register, all you need to do is click on a link representing one of our cities below:

My colleagues over on the East Coast are running a series of Windows Phone training events as well. Check them out!

• Glen Gordon – Windows Phone 7 developers – free training and app building workshops!
• Joe Healy – Windows Phone Garage East Coast Tour – Fall 2010

(Thanks to Dave Bost for letting me copy some of his content for this post)

Are you ready to gain access to the latest tools, turning your hobby into a source of revenue, or expand your network?

Stop dreaming. Start building. Join us for a new series of Windows Phone 7 Bootcamps where you can get an inside track on how to be part of the next step of Microsoft’s mobile strategy and get hands-on training for building Silverlight-based applications.  These free, live learning sessions explore the latest tools, discuss tips and technologies, and provide access to Windows Phone 7 experts.

ATTEND these special events and learn about:

• the Windows Phone 7 platform
• building Silverlight Applications for Windows Phone 7
• submitting your application to the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace

Take advantage of this opportunity to explore with a Hands-on Lab where you can leverage the Windows Phone 7 Experts and your peers as you build your Windows Phone 7 Application.

Events run from 8am–5pm

Seating for the live event is limited, so register today.

https://microsoft.crgevents.com/Register2010

Here are all the launch dates

• Denver – April 20, 2010
• Miami – April 20, 2010
• Milwaukee – April 20, 2010
• Orlando – April 22, 2010
• Boston – April 29, 2010
• Chicago – April 29, 2010
• New York City – May 13, 2010
• Dallas – May 18, 2010
• Washington, D.C. – May 18, 2010
• L.A. (Costa Mesa) – May 18, 2010
• Atlanta – May 20, 2010
• Houston – May 20, 2010
• San Francisco – May 20, 2010
• Detroit – May 25, 2010
• Philadelphia – May 27, 2010
• Minneapolis – May 27, 2010
• Seattle – May 27, 2010

Head over to the registration site and get signed up today before time runs out!  The first event is only few short weeks away!!!

Free “State of .NET” Event coming to Dallas and Houston

• Dallas: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 1:30 – 4:30 PM
  Microsoft Dallas Office – 7000 SR-161 (George Bush Turnpike), Irving, TX 75039
• Houston: Thursday, April 1, 2010 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.

Exact list of topics is under NDA until after MIX announcements have been made.

Dallas Signup Link – Thursday, March 30, 2010 1:30 – 4:30
Houston Signup Link – April 1, 2010 1:30 – 4:30

Our good friends at EPS Software are hosting a FREE event during the month of December in both Dallas and Houston, focused on what�s happening with the .NET platform.  Of special interest to most is that there is some Silverlight 4, Windows 7 and Visual Studio 2010 content included!

Here�s the full info:

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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.

Topics include:

• Silverlight 3.0 and 4.0
• WPF 3.x and 4.0
• Expression Blend
• Windows 7
• Windows Azure and Cloud Services
• Techniques and Paradigms
• ASP.NET MVC
• WCF & SOA
• Visual Studio 2010

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.

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I�ll definitely be at the Dallas event, and Zain will be at the Houston event.  If you come, please make sure to stop by and say Hello to us!