Technical Discussion on Vista Kernel

I mentioned in a previous post that I will be attending a technical discussion at Microsoft Dubai office hosted by a Vista Hero ( Salahudin Khan). So the event went great. I reached there along with one of my colleagues at 3 PM but couldn't find any one besides Salahudin himself and a couple of other fellows. After usual greeting Salahudin suggested we could get some coffee or snacks and he will start the discussion @ 3:15. So @ 3:15 talk started and people started asking questions. Whats different and good about the discussion was that there was no typical slide deck. so the spirit of discussion (a two way communication) was maintained. Not every one was really talking about things related to Vista Kernel. Us (my self and my colleague) and couple of others participants did ask quite a few questions related to Vista as in OS and its Kernel's advancements. For few questions Salahudin said that he will get back to us with detailed response. But all in all it was nice being there and i would love to participate again!

SQL Server 2005 SP2 Now Available

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 (SP2) enables SQL Server 2005 customers to take advantage of the enhancements within Windows Vista and the 2007 Office system. Specific enhancements include, but are not limited to:

•Enhanced BI Capabilities
•Interoperability Enhancements
•Performance and Manageability Enhancements

Review what's new in SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 for information on new or improved features in Analysis Services, Database Engine, Integration Services, Reporting Services, and Shared Tools.

Tech Talk with Vista Hero

I have been invited to attend Tech Talk with Vista Hero @ Microsoft Dubai.

TechTalk session with one of Microsoft Corp’s Software Design Engineer part of the Windows Vista Kernel Development team.

Salahuddin J. Khan is a Software Design Engineer based in Redmond, he is a part of the core team for development of the Windows Vista Kernel and named as a Vista Hero.

It is a great chance for you to find answers to all your
questions with regards to the newest released Microsoft Operating System.

Following topics maybe addressed during this
session:

o Changes in the development of the
core kernel of Windows Vista.
o Compatibility of Windows Vista
with legacy applications.
o Converting Legacy applications to
support Windows Vista.
o Security and reliability of the
Operating System.

Product Excellence Awards

Check out Jolts Product Excellence for the finalists. It was good to see Microsoft .Net 3.0 and XNA Development studio amongst the finalists.

MSF Agile : Writing good scenarios

At my work, these days, we are going through the process of requirements gathering and feature list freeze for the upcoming release of our product. Today i was explaining to one of the business analysts, that are port of our product team, (non-IT background) the importance of use cases. I was telling him that why do we need use cases and why are they important for requirements capturing. We follow agile methodology and i wanted to hand him over not only the template for use cases (story board) but also some thing that would help him write good scenarios. So I turned to MSF Agile home page at MSDN and found this article by Rand Miller. It was just exactly what I was looking for :) I am sure its a good read for all of you who are enthusiastic about Agile Development or are practitioners of the same!
Agility Rocks!

Geek 2.0 ... Return to the Code!

Last year Dubai saw for the first time a hugely successful Microsoft Developer Conference which was titled as Geeks. It was absolutely great experience being there. I got to meet speakers from Microsoft Corp & .Net Palm was also launched during this event.

So far so good so good for the history :) .

Now the good news, Microsoft is coming up with the second episode of Geeks developer conference in the end of March. Itenerary hasnt been finalized but i am sure it will be bigger and better this time.

So keep your fingers crossed and get ready for another GEEK event!

5th Annual Microsoft Financial Services Developer Conference

I missed this conference due to delay in my visa application. This time I am not sure if my company would release me for this. But for all of you who are involved in financial services industry, this event is a must attend.

Following are the details:

5th Annual Microsoft Financial Services Developer Conference

Now in its 5th year, the Financial Services Developer Conference is the leading event for developers and architects in the financial services industry. This annual event offers the opportunity to gain insight into Microsoft’s latest and upcoming technologies for the banking, insurance and capital markets industries. You will learn best practices for using the best of breed technology to bring you from where you are today to where you want to be tomorrow. Come learn about the latest user experience enhancements in the .NET Framework 3.0 that will ensure that your applications are people ready. Hear how you can take advantage of Microsoft Office 2007 Excel Services and Visual Studio 2005 Tools for the 2007 Office System to build powerful financial and analytical systems. Gain in-depth knowledge on leveraging Windows Communication Services to route your messages and business logic efficiently. Learn how you can automate your business and human workflow with the easy-to-use tools in Windows Workflow Foundation. These are just some of the technologies that will be covered at this two-day industry event! In addition, we will have a Microsoft Partner solution showcase, networking opportunities and great prize drawings! It promises to be an event you won't want to miss!

Open SOA : Service Component Architecture

Service Component Architecture (SCA) is a set of specifications which describe a model for building applications and systems using a Service-Oriented Architecture. SCA extends and complements prior approaches to implementing services, and SCA
builds on open standards such as Web services.

SOA road to Reusability?

I just read this excellent article from David Chappel. Its a very useful since it raises questions about promises of SOA and compares them with ground relaities.

I fully agree with David Chappel when he says:

With SOA as with objects before it, the reality is that removing
technical barriers to reuse is just the beginning. The human challenges that emerge once these more obvious problems are solved are more difficult to overcome. Whatever we might wish, the barriers to pervasive reuse of business
logic remain high.

I will not comment any further and will let you read this article.

Architecture Ideas

Architect looking for ideas?
Look no further click here !