RVNUG

Roanoke VA - MSDN MidAtlantic Roadshow is coming back in December

Robin Edwards — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:10:06 GMT

Thanks to everyone that came out for the MidAtlantic MSDN Roadshow in Roanoke in September. Your attendance and enthusiasm were noticed. I am happy to share that the Roadshow is returning for the afternoon on December 8th to the Roanoke Higher Education Center (it's a really nice venue too!)

Registration is required - do it NOW and do it HERE! Oh, and be sure and share this with a friend or two or three. We'd like to surpass our attendance last time.

G. Andrew Duthie (@devhammer) and crew return for the 4th quarter edition with the following:

Data Access and Network Options in Silverlight

Wondering about the most effective way of getting data into your Silvelright application? Trying to sort out the different options available? Then this session is for you. We will provide an overview of the different networking and data access techniques available in Silverlight. We’ll show examples of using each of these technologies, and along the way, we’ll also look at the role these technologies can play in other .NET applications, as well as look at the Sample Data feature in Expression Blend 3, and how to transition from Sample Data to production data in your applications.

200 Level | 1 hour 45 mins

What’s new in Windows 7 for Developers

Windows 7 has many improvements in both performance and user interface that you can take advantage of in your applications. This session will give an overview of how to code in those features users will expect such as Libraries, the new Taskbar, and Jump Lists. We will also look at taking advantage of several performance improvements like Trigger Start services and the new Windows Troubleshooter. Finally, we will look at adding some of the new interface options available such as Multi-Touch and the Ribbon Menu to your existing applications.

200 Level | 1 hour 45 mins

.NET University - Great Presentation Info for User Groups

Robin Edwards — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:25:45 GMT

Doug Turnure has recently provided a lot more content to .NET University. .NET University is a site where user groups (or individuals) can download presentations, complete with spiffy slide decks and demos/labs. There are now over 40 downloads (both C# and VB.NET - Yay!)

RV.NUG used .NET U back when .NET 3.0 was first released. We found the slides and demos were both excellent. (You can even see us on the alumnus page on .NET U!)

This resource provides many opportunities to user groups. Here's my quick list

Provides content for a meeting presentation - seasoned speaker can prep and deliver quickly
Provides content for a meeting presentation - NEW SPEAKER - great time to help mentor/coach an rising star in your UG
Hands on workshops - Work with a local community college and prep a lab so attendees can all do the labs (This is what RV.NUG did - Big Thanks to Virginia Western Community College for the labs and lab setup)
Lunch and learn event - Change the time of day you are presenting content to expose others to the UG

BIG THANKS to Doug (and his team)! This is a valuable resource.

Mid-Atlantic MSDN & IT Pro RoadShow - Roanoke Edition

Robin Edwards — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:39:54 GMT

G. Andrew Duthie (and company) received a great welcome from the always passionate and involved Roanoke attendees at the Fall 2009 edition of the Mid-Atlantic MSDN & IT Pro RoadShow. I know I say it over and over, but presenters really enjoy the Roanoke crowds; their passion, their hospitality and their enthusiasm. So thanks to everyone that attended. If you missed it, start hanging out with the cool kids from RV.NUG and you'll be one of the first to know about the next event.

Thanks goes to Andrew and company also for delivering good content and welcoming participation from the audience. Bonus points to Andrew for extending the day and presenting at the September meeting of RV.NUG.

You can find the slide decks on Andrew's blog here:

Next up: Planning for Roanoke Code Camp 2010 started last week. It will be in early March at Virginia Western Community College. Stay tuned - we hope to announce the date soon.

INETA Mentor - WV TN KY

Robin Edwards — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:10:37 GMT

I am the newest member of the INETA membership team (yay!). I've worked with INETA for over 5 years as a user group leader and have met some really great people as a result. I look forward to working with them and meeting even more (I met a few new people on the very first day I was appointed). I will be focusing on the states of WV, TN and KY.

Our user group in western Virginia (Roanoke Valley .NET User Group – RV.NUG) has used some of the resources that INETA provides, but certainly not all of them. I know if the user group I run can benefit more from INETA, if I just took time to see what all is available. One of the reasons I do not know is lack of time. I feel certain this applies to other user groups also. My first self-assigned task is to become more knowledgeable on what INETA already offers. With that, I hope to help RV.NUG and other user groups meet some of their needs with what is already available.

Mid-Atlantic Roadshow Visits Roanoke VA - Sept 10

Robin Edwards — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 03:21:50 GMT

While western Virginia has more mountains, northern Virginia has more technology events. They might have more events, but when we have them, we have the best. Don't believe it? Sign up and attend a Developer or IT Pro session on September 10th. Better register now or you will only get to attend via the tweets from those of us that registered early :)

Microsoft Roadshow visits Roanoke

Thursday, September 10th
Location: Roanoke Higher Education Center
Registration is required

Our very own, Microsoft Developer Evangelist, G. Andrew Duthie (and crew) is coming to Roanoke for a half-day Developer Road show. In addition, the IT Pro team will be here for a Road Show that morning. Sign up for one or both events. Then join the RV.NUG at our September meeting as Andrew is our guest presenter. Registration is required and you can find more details on MSDN Flash here or on Community Megaphone or the RV.NUGweb site.

IT Dev high-level agenda - Building Compelling Rich Internet Applications (RIAS) on the Microsoft Platform (Register here)

Sesssion1 - Creating Rich Internet Applications on the Microsoft Platform Using Silverlight 3 and Expression Studio 3
Session 2 - Building Composite Silverlight and WPF Applications Using Prism and MVVM
Session 3 - Introduction to .NET RIA Services

IT Pro agenda: TechNet Unleased: Game on Tour! (Register here)

1st down - Migrating Windows XP to Windows 7: Get it Done with the Microsoft Deployment Tools
2nd down - DirectAccess™ With Windows 7: No More VPN!!
3rd down - Optimizing Your Environment with Remote Desktop Services™ and Virtual Desktop Infrastructure
4th down - Score!

Growing a User Group with a Yard Sale

Robin Edwards — Sat, 09 May 2009 07:44:52 GMT

This month the RV.NUG decided to hold a yard sale right before the monthly meeting. The reaon for this was to

encourage attendance (following Code Camp and winter drop in attendance)
give some older books and accumulation of geek items a good home

The yard sale worked. We had the highest attendance since Code Camp, found good homes for the books. We even met our secondary goal of making a little bit of money.

In addition, we realized a bigger (and unexpected) benefit.

We had the most networking before a monthly meeting ever!

It didn't matter that the books were old or that the collection of items from trade shows were not high-tech gadgets. Everyone still rummaged through the items and networked. There were a lot of comments of "who still uses this?", "who would want this?", but it was fun. I noticed a lot of contact information being traded between members during the yard sale.

Looks like we will be adding a yard sale to the RV.NUG annual events.

Roanoke Code Camp 2009

Robin Edwards — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:38:01 GMT

NOTE: This post is VERY late. Here's lessons I learned. Next year it will be more timely!

I admit, I am biased but RV.NUG is the best UG ever! Roanoke Code Camp 2009 showed why I think this.

Leadership TEAM. It was the leadership team’s idea to meet for lunch once a week for 8 weeks to plan the event. I thought it was too much to ask; but they wanted to do it because they wanted a great Code Camp and they like networking with each other.
RV.NUG and RVSPUG membership GROUP as the core group of attendees. The UG members promoted the event with enthusiasm. They showed up with enthusiasm early on a spring-like Saturday morning and helped make every attendee welcome. The members know how to network and used their skills throughout the day.
Attendees. They showed up with enthusiasm and a passion to learn. They also showed up with appreciation for the opportunity. Many of the presenters say that Roanoke is their favorite place to present and it’s because of the attendees.
Presenters. Many are presenters from prior years. They include local talent and talent from as far away as Philadelphia and Minnesota. Each have contributed countless volunteer time learning and preparing presentations simply to share their passion and knowledge with communities (both their own and others).
Volunteers. The volunteers were willing to do anything to help make the event run smoothly – anything from registration to carrying boxes or emptying trash. Many of the attendees became volunteers simply because they saw a need and helped out without being asked.
Contributors. It’s nice to have books to give away in each session; raffle prizes at the close; food to eat all day (and the night before if you’re a presenter or volunteer).

Thanks to every person that participated. Each and every person was a contributor in making this a great event.

Now for some proof that I am not totally biased. Here are comments from others on Roanoke Code Camp 2009.

Twitter

Getting ready to head home from #RoanokeCC. Had a great weekend everyone.
Had a great time at #RoanokeCC today. Thanks to everyone that attended my sessions.
Home. Great day at #RoanokeCC.
Leaving Roanoke Code Camp after party. awesome Code Camp. Farewell my friends in the valley.
#RoanokeCC rocked. See you again next year!
#RoanokeCC was well worth!
Done with my class at #RoanokeCC. It was worth the six hour drive :-)

Speaker Comments

Thank you very much for your generous hospitality this weekend. You and your team put in a great deal of hard work and it showed! Yesterday’s Roanoke Code Camp was truly the best code camp I’ve attended. It was a pleasure presenting and teaching my topic. I would be very happy to present again at the event in the future.
When I got back home last evening, the first thing I told my wife was that Roanoke, VA is the most hospitable place on the planet! My entire experience, ranging from the Hyatt hotel staff, the folks at Shakers, your user group members, the other speakers, event attendees and even the Virginia Wesleyan baseball team that I ran into at Burger King on the way home (only I could pick the only restaurant along I-81 where an entire college baseball team is stopping for dinner), was one of friendliness.

Attendee Comments

My favorite presentation was “everyone I saw”
Thank you!
Job Well Done RV.NUG/Code Camp Committee!
Developers != Mornings, otherwise Great Job

Blog Posts

Andrew Duthie
- Why I love my job and wouldn't want to do anything else
Brian Hartsock
- I attended my first Code Camp this past weekend. Overall, it was a great experience, although for a few reasons you might not expect. I learned a little about new .NET features, but the biggest benefit for me was the networking… Through Code Camp, blogging, and Twitter I have joined a community of developers much larger than Mailtrust’s. More

Photos:

Kevin Hazzard: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wkhazzard/sets/72157614876475269/
Susan Lennon: http://www.flickr.com/photos/susanlennonmct/sets/72157615045688716/

Code Camp Lessons Learned – Post Implementation

Robin Edwards — Mon, 04 May 2009 19:54:32 GMT

Much thought and effort goes into planning and executing a Code Camp. Hopefully these efforts are distributed among a team. Code Camp team members volunteer their time (while continuing on with their day job and personal life). During the final days leading to the event, priorities of other items in team members lives get lowered (such as “real job” items and personal items). These items naturally get behind. While the Code Camp event is rewarding (and fun!) it is also tiring. There is a natural (well-earned) energy drop following the event.

But, as with any project, there is still work to be done following the implementation. There are post-implementation tasks. The priority of other items (“real job” and personal) naturally increase (since they are now behind) and the Code Camp tasks drop in priority; in some cases, they just don’t get done.

Expect the team to have very limited time following Code Camp. Therefore, the closeout tasks must be identified early in the planning. Even better, complete as many closeout tasks as possible prior to Code Camp. Minimize the closeout effort. These are all simple tasks. As with any collection of small effort items; the hardest part is creating the list.

Here’s a list of some closeout items, along with ideas on minimizing the effort required following Code Camp.

Do as many tasks as possible before Code Camp and assign any remaining tasks (with due dates) in advance of Code Camp.

Thank you notes (speakers, volunteers, contributors, attendees)
- You have been communicating with these groups all along. Draft thank-you emails as you go. (You can add one or two lines after Code Camp if you like, but most of the work can be done prior to the event).
Post speaker content to the web
- Get speaker content early (if possible – even if you only get 2 or 3, it’s helpful).
- Leave a flash drive in the speaker room so they can easily leave content the day of Code Camp.
- Have everything in place to easily upload files.
Connect prize winners with vendors
- See thank you notes. Have the emails drafted and ready to go so all you have to do is add the winner’s contact information.
Cleanup
- If you put one person in charge, this usually is not a problem. Everyone wants to leave and we’ve never had a problem getting people to pitch in – IF we have someone asking for help.

Roanoke Code Camp 2009 - Registration Now Open

Robin Edwards — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 20:25:46 GMT

Roanoke Valley .NET User Group
invites you and all of your friends to
Roanoke Code Camp 2009

SATURDAY, MARCH 7th 8am - 5pm

The Roanoke Valley .NET User Group (RV.NUG) , with support from Microsoft, the International .NET Association (INETA) is hosting the third Roanoke Code Camp on Saturday, March 7th at Virginia Western Community College. This is an all-day, all-free event consisting of 4-5 tracks for a total of 20-25 presentations. Topics will include Visual Studio 2008, .NET Framework, SQL Server 2008 and SharePoint.

Directions

Chances to win many prizes!
You must be present to win

Registration is required

Roanoke Code Camp 09 - Call for Speakers

Robin Edwards — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 02:48:54 GMT

We are now accepting speakers / presentations for the third Roanoke Code Camp (western Virginia) being held on Saturday, March 7th at Virginia Western Community College.

If you have presented at a past Roanoke Code Camp -- welcome back! Our past reviews tell us we want you back. If you've never presented at a RCC, welcome!

We will be having 4-5 tracks this year with topics including .NET anything and everything, SQL Server and SharePoint. If you would like to present this year please submit the following information

SPEAKER: Name, Email, Bio
SESSION: Title, Level (100,200,300), Abstract