Microsoft Developer Evangelist
Archive for February, 2010
Technically Speaking coming to DFW
Feb 28th
Attention all current and potential public speakers! Are you a technical person with loads of great information to share with your peers? Do you get nervous speaking in front of crowds? Would you like to develop your public speaking, demonstration and group interaction skills? Then DFW Technically Speaking is for you!
Led by some of our top local presenters, here�s a summary of what Technically Speaking will help you learn to do:
- Overcome public speaking nervousness by gaining confidence in your presentation skills
- Present technical ideas and speak more effectively at user groups or technical events
- Communicate your ideas more effectively using stance, gestures, movement, and voice
- Structure your presentations to emphasize and reinforce key points.
- Create visual aids and improve your use of them while interacting with your audience
- Target your presentations to match your audiences by use of research techniques
Featured speakers include:
- Dave Gunby �The successful speaker: Techniques for �Techies�
- Chris Koenig � Art of the Demo
- Caleb Jenkins � Gauging and engaging your audience
- Tim Rayburn � Let�s get started!!
The first Technically Speaking event will be held on March 27th, 2010 from 9am � 5:00 pm at 4121 International Parkway in Carrollton. The cost to attend is $50 per person, which will include a nice lunch.
Seats are limited so sign up soon by going to http://technicallyspeaking.dfwnav.com or contact Teresa Burger at tburger@woot.com.
New OKC SharePoint User Group
Feb 23rd
My friend and teammate John Weston (a.k.a. @technetguy) just told me about a new SharePoint user group in OKC.
Their first meeting is Thursday, March 11th at the Dell facility in OKC:
3501 SW 15th
Bldg A, Hudson Hall
Oklahoma City, OK 73108
Eric Shupps, the SharePoint Cowboy, will be presenting at this first meeting, giving an overview of MOSS 2010. For more information see the OKC SharePoint User Group website (coming soon!).
MVP Cowboys at the MVP Summit
Feb 17th
Our team bought cowboy hats for all of our MVPs in TX, OK, LA and AR (what we call South Central District). These are a few of the first folks to get their hats yesterday afternoon at the MVP Summit kickoff meeting/mixer/meal. The bandanas say �MVP Summit 2010 South Central District�. Rest assured, a good time was had by all!
Windows 7 RC To Expire Next Month
Feb 17th
It�s time to upgrade from the Windows 7 Release Candidate.
While most people who tested Windows 7 have now moved to the final version, some are still running the Release Candidate. If you haven�t moved yet, it�s time to replace the RC. Starting on March 1, 2010 your PC will begin shutting down every two hours. Your work will not be saved during the shutdown.
The Windows 7 RC will fully expire on June 1, 2010. Your PC running the Windows 7 RC will continue shutting down every two hours and your files won�t be saved during shutdown. In addition, your wallpaper will change to a solid black background with a persistent message on your desktop. You�ll also get periodic notifications that Windows isn�t genuine. That means your PC may no longer be able to obtain optional updates or downloads requiring genuine Windows validation.
SharePoint Saturday in Harrison, AR
Feb 17th
![SharePointSatOzarks[3]](http://chriskoenig.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/SharePointSatOzarks3.png "SharePointSatOzarks[3]")
June 12, 2010
Harrison, Arkansas
North Arkansas College
SharePoint Saturday Ozarks is a FREE, educational, informative & lively day filled with sessions from respected SharePoint professionals & MVPs, covering a wide variety of topics focused on Microsoft SharePoint technologies. If you�re a SharePoint developer, or power user, SharePoint Saturday is for you. If you use SharePoint for your job, then SharePoint Saturday is for you. If you want to learn more about SharePoint, then SharePoint Saturday is definitely for you. I�ve been to a couple of these events, and they�re always very well run, have great content, and fill a great void in the typical .NET developer user group meeting or community conference event. This event is ALL SharePoint, ALL day long.
Besides, it�s being run by the SharePoint Hillbilly � who doesn�t want to learn about SharePoint from him? 
Dallas TechFest 2010
Feb 17th
Hey everyone � just wanted to share the good news that Dallas TechFest is on the books for 2010! We�ve secured a date and a location for the event, and are in the process of determining our session plan. Here�s what you need to know:
July 30, 2010
Addison Conference Center
The call for speakers is also open � you can find the information on how to submit your session ideas, as well as keep up with all the other announcements coming out of the planning team at http://dallastechfest.com.
Visual Studio 2010 RC is now released!
Feb 8th
The RC has JUST been released � so get out there and get it!!!
Cool Upcoming Events
Feb 8th
There are quite a few interesting (and cool) events coming up in SCD over the next couple of weeks� Check these out, mark your calendars and let ALL your friends know about them!
Launch Event � Visual Studio 2010, Office 2010 and SQL Server 2008 R2
Tuesday, May 18, 2010 8:00 AM � 5:00 PM
The event date is now SOLID, but the location is not. We�ll be showing off VS2010, Office 2010 and SQL Server 2008 R2. More to come on this launch once we have the info � I only just got the final word on dates this evening.
MSDN Events Presents: Visual Studio 2010, .NET Framework 4.0 and SharePoint Development
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 1:00 PM, North Little Rock, AR
Join your local Microsoft Evangelism team for a lively tour our latest version of Visual Studio and the .NET Framework. We�ll start with an overview the IDE and explore how you can use the latest features to develop great applications in a flash. Next, we�ll look at the newest changes to the .NET Framework and how you can leverage them today. Finally, we end the day by looking at the new tools in Visual Studio that will supercharge your SharePoint development.
SESSION 1: What�s New in Visual Studio 2010
SESSION 2: What�s New in the .NET Framework 4.0
SESSION 3: SharePoint Development using Visual Studio 2010
[ Event Details | Map & Directions | Add To Calendar ]
Software Engineering 101
Saturday, February 27, 2010 8:00 AM � 5:00 PM
This is a one-day, FREE event focused on core skills that modern developers need to have to be successful today. This isn�t about learning the basics of Silverlight, WPF, or <insert_new_tech_of_day>, rather, this conference will help you understand how to build software that is better designed, more maintainable, and more testable. They�re spending the morning on fundamentals around object-oriented programming, the SOLID principles and a few other important skills, while the afternoon is all about hands-on skills development using Pair Programming techniques to work through a series of challenges.
If you�re in Nashville, you can attend in person, but for those of you not in Nashville, there is still a chance to participate! The event will have an associated webcast that will allow people to play along from home. You will need your own laptop with Visual Studio 2008 (or 2010) pre-installed before arriving.
There is more stuff on the horizon, but I�ll save that for later blog posts. If you have any questions about these events, just let me know!
