Zachariah Young

Topic

A three way conversation with the main collaborators who created NH Profiler. This tool enables developers to gain a deeper insight into profiling their applications communication from NHibernate(.Net) and Hibernate(Java) through to the database.

Who they are

Ayende Rahien contributed efforts on the back-end development.

Chris Bennage and Rob Eisenberg contributed their efforts to the front-end.

Time and location of the meetings

Times below are Central Daylight Time
Start Time: Oct 21 and 28, Each week 8:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
End Time: Oct 21 and 28, Each week 10:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
Attendee URL: Attend the meeting (Live Meeting)

Just some sample code of passing a action lambda expression into a method.

 

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;

namespace Func
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            string[] weekDays = {"Sun", 
                                    "Sat", 
                                    "Mon", 
                                    "Tue", 
                                    "Wed", 
                                    "Thu", 
                                    "Fri"};
            
            Display3(weekDays, s => Console.WriteLine(s + "hello"));
            Console.ReadLine();

        }

        private static void Display3<T>(T[] name, Action<T> action)
        {
            foreach (T s in name)
            {
                action(s);
            }
        }

    }
}

An Evening with Dona Bailey (Creator of Centipede) will be held in Harrison, AR, on Tuesday, November 3rd.  There's no cost, but you have to register to attend in order to win any prizes.

A lot of us grew up during the 70's and 80's, so this is going to be huge...
Dona Bailey, the designer and programmer of the video game Centipede, is coming to the Ozarks DNUG in Harrison, AR, on Tuesday, November 3rd. She will give a presentation on 3D Modeling and take questions about her days at Atari.
Here are links to a few articles about Dona...
Dona's Wikipedia Entry
An Interview with Dona
Dona at the Women in Games International Summit
Designing a game that impacted the whole world, using Assembly language and the 6502 processor...I'm amazed and can't wait to hear Dona's stories!

3D Modeling by Dona Bailey

Dona Bailey will give a 3D modeling demo, outline the elements for learning 3D modeling, and speak about the benefits of manipulating 3D space. Making 3D models improves spatial literacy, which is an essential 21st-century literacy. Until recently software packages for 3D modeling were prohibitively expensive, and thus available for only the privileged. Open source 3D modeling software is now accessible for anyone who is interested.
Bailey will also be glad to answer any questions about her work at Atari in Sunnyvale, CA, and the 1981 arcade game, Centipede.

Dona Bailey Bio
Dona Bailey grew up in Arkansas, then moved to California and New York before returning to Arkansas to be closer to family. During her years in California and New York, she worked as a computer programmer, systems analyst, database analyst, and academic data researcher. Since returning to Arkansas, Bailey has taught multimedia courses at the college level, and she is now a faculty member in the department of Rhetoric and Writing at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR). Bailey teaches writing courses that incorporate digital tools and new literacy elements.
Schedule

6:00 PM - 6:45 PM Social Networking
6:45 PM - 7:00 PM Prizes

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Presentation: "3D Modeling" by Dona Bailey
8:00 PM - 8:30 PM After Meeting Wrap-Up 

To register...

http://www.clicktoattend.com/?id=141461

You do want to register so you're eligible to win a prize.  There's no guarantees, but we're looking into giving away a vintage Centipede arcade game.  An Atari Flashback 2 and other gaming prizes are also possible.  You won't know for sure what we're giving away unless you come, and you can't win unless you register.

The Mobile Development Symposium with Dan Fergus will be held in Harrison, AR, on Friday, October 16th.  There's no cost, but you have to register to attend in order to win any prizes. 

To register...

http://www.clicktoattend.com/?id=141458

"I Need a Sword" by Dan Fergus
Writing mobile device applications with the Compact Framework may sometimes make you want to take a sword to your system out of pure frustration. The basics are easy but as always, the dirt is in the details (I was never very good at those little sayings). I do know how you can move beyond those simple windowed looking applications to cleaner more advanced looking applications. We will look at the basics because even the best of us need a refresher once in a while.
Once everyone is up to speed we will take our sword to the code and cut up something useful and interesting. We will cover some of the advanced graphics available, thought not always directly, in the compact framework. Not to belittle a good application but to an end user, speed and looks are often more important than functionality. Too many mobile apps have none of the above. This session will also give you an opportunity to look at the new Mobile 6.5 OS (Sorry, no Mobile 7. If I can’t see it, neither can you). As always we will have time to discuss and ask questions and perhaps even touch on your favorite topic instead of mine. My favorite is data and getting it from here to there and back again. It shouldn’t be this hard. But it can be. So sheath your sword, come by and learn about writing mobile apps with the .Net Compact Framework.
Dan Fergus Bio

Dan Fergus is a Device Application Development MVP, trainer, and the co-author of The Definitive Guide to the .NET Compact Framework by Apress. Dan has also written many articles, print and online, is a frequent speaker at conferences and user groups, and is a contributing editor for Visual Studio Magazine. Dan has worked on device applications ranging from medical patient tracking to delivery truck systems to applications for the professional sports industry.

Schedule

6:00 PM - 6:15 PM Social Networking

6:15 PM - 6:45 PM "Lightning" Presentations:  Quick Mobile Development Tips

6:45 PM - 7:00 PM Prizes 
7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Main Presentation: "I Need a Sword" by Dan Fergus
8:00 PM - 8:30 PM After Meeting Wrap-Up

 

For prizes, we will be giving away Resco Mobile Toolkit, Infragistics, ReSharper, CodeSmith, books and more.

---

About Ozarks .NET User Group

The Ozarks DNUG is made up of software professionals in Harrison, Arkansas, and surrounding areas who are interested in gaining technical knowledge and making contact with like-minded professionals.

using System; 

namespace Func 
{ 
    class Program 
    { 
        static void Main(string[] args) 
        { 
            string[] weekDays = {"Sun", 
                                 "Sat", 
                                 "Mon", 
                                 "Tue", 
                                 "Wed", 
                                 "Thu", 
                                 "Fri"}; 

            Display(weekDays, s => s.StartsWith("S") );
            Console.WriteLine();
            Display2(weekDays, s => s.Length > 2);
            Console.ReadLine();
        }

        private static void Display<T>(T[] name, Func<T, bool> func)
        {
            foreach (T s in name)
            {
                if(func(s))Console.WriteLine(s);
            }
        }

        private static void Display2(string[] name, Func<string, bool> func)
        {
            foreach (string s in name)
            {
                if (func(s)) Console.WriteLine(s);
            }
        }

    }
}

Topic

In the spirit of Open Spaces we will be bringing in David Laribee to facilitate a discussion of opinions on Domain Driven Design.

 

Who is Dave?

He is a coach for the product development team at VersionOne. He has 12 years experience designing and developing enterprise applications and coaching Agile teams. David has worked on internal IT, product development, consulting, and rapid prototyping teams across a wide variety of industries. David is a frequent speaker at local and national developer events. He was awarded a Microsoft Architecture MVP for 2007 and 2008 and writes about Agile and Lean methods, coaching, and software design on the CodeBetter blog network.

 

Meeting Details

Times below are Central Daylight Time
Start Time: Wed, Oct 14, 2009 8:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
End Time: Wed, Oct 14, 2009 10:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
Attendee URL: Attend the meeting (Live Meeting)

 

This was the email my wife sent out this morning.

For those of you who know about the events of yesterday, just wanted to let you know—we are all okay.  Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers.  For those of you that don’t know:  Yesterday afternoon/evening, I was at home with the girls and Zach was on his way home from work.  Between 5:10 and 5:15 p.m., I went into the nursery and changed Charlotte’s diaper while Caroline sat at her little table in our kitchen.  I walked out of the nursery and put Charlotte in her exersaucer in front of the TV armoire in the living room.  When I stepped into the kitchen, I heard an “explosion.” The baby monitor in the office was up to almost full volume as Charlotte had just gotten up from her nap at 4:30 and I was working in there, so I wanted to listen for her. It started roaring.  Our smoke alarm started shrieking.  Caroline started crying and screaming “What is that, Mommy?” I ran back through the house to the nursery and smoke/dust was pouring out everywhere.  I saw headlights through the debris and realized that vehicle has crashed through our house.  I immediately had visions of it bursting into flames.  Caroline had followed me, so I turned around, grabbed her arm and led her to Charlotte, who amazingly wasn’t even crying. I picked up the baby, got my cell phone off the kitchen counter and we all three went outside.  (I even had enough wits about me to put Zoë in the back yard!) I called 911 once we got out the door, and as I walked further out in front of my house, I saw my next door neighbor was also on her cell phone (with 911). Another neighbor asked if anyone else was in the house and if I’d seen the driver of the vehicle.  He went inside to see if he could see anyone.  About that time, the driver tried to put the vehicle in reverse—which of course, got her nowhere.  I stepped around the side of the house and saw the end of a black, Jeep Cherokee barely sticking out.  It had driven through the nursery, shattering the crib against the wall leading into the hallway, and crushing the changing table into the wall adjoining Caroline’s room.  That wall was also knocked down and Caroline’s dresser was pushed on top of her bed.  I cannot imagine how fast the driver must have hit our house to have that much force and to get almost her entire Jeep inside the house. The driver somehow got out of her Jeep and was unharmed.  When the police, fire dept, EMS arrived, a crowd of neighbors and friends had as well.  They ordered everyone back, as gasoline was leaking from the Jeep.  They also turned off the power, gas and water to our house.  The police administered a sobriety test to the woman, and she failed, so she was immediately driven away in handcuffs.  Zach pulled up about 15 minutes after “impact,” but our neighbor had called him on his cell phone and warned him what he would be coming home too and also that the girls and I were okay.

We are so fortunate to have such wonderful friends, family, church family and neighbors.  Zach’s aunt went to McDonald’s and got us dinner a little after 7:00, as we’d completely forgotten about dinner time!  Caroline went to play with some other kids at one neighbor’s house, and Charlotte went to another neighbors, where we brought them a bottle from the fridge and the bottle warmer and they were able to feed her.  People immediately starting picking up pieces of furniture and moving them out of the way.  They grabbed little things (picture frames, stuffed animals) out of the debris, and by 8:00 last night, we had 2x4’s, 4x4’s, plywood and tarp up so there is not a gaping hole on the side of the house.  Neither one of the doors to the girls’ bedrooms are still attached, so there is a tarp on the other side, covering those as well.  I haven’t really been in the rooms, and we won’t start official clean-up until an insurance adjuster gets out here to assess the damages, but I believe most everything in both of the closets is okay.  We did get a couple drawers of clothing from Charlotte’s dresser, and the 3 drawers of clothing from Caroline’s.  After the adjuster comes, we’ll go through the rooms more thoroughly and see what can be salvaged, as far as items like toys and décor.  All furniture (including the bookshelf Zach stained himself) and bedding in Charlotte’s room are a complete loss, as is the dresser and Caroline’s bedding. Again, it could’ve been SO much worse, though. No damage was done to any other part of the house. We have water and electricity and were able to stay here last night.  (Charlotte slept in the pack-n-play in the living room and Caroline slept on a borrowed toddler mattress beside our bed.) We are doing okay this morning, and are actually headed to take Caroline to her first day of gymnastics.  (Zach is staying here with Charlotte and guys getting estimates to fix things.)

-Dara

 

The Grand Cherokee is almost completely INSIDE the house.

 

ALMOST missed that tree.

Looks like snow on the hood.  The railing at the bottom is the baby crib!

The wind shield is broken.

Now that is a tow truck.

See the crib (in pieces) on the opposite side of the room, and part of the changing table towards the left.

The "nursing" chair (with stereo from the floor) and crib mattress, where Charlotte was asleep 45 minutes before.

My neighbor starting the repair process to the wall. The lamp in the corner is on CAROLINE'S nightstand.

Parts of the car left in the yard. Part of the crib to the right.

The blue patch.

The patch from the inside, standing by Caroline's bed. The mirror was knocked off her dresser.

Caroline's room

Topic

Jeremy Miller will be speaking again on Virtual ALT.NET this Wednesday (Aug 12, 2009), but this time on Screen Architectures and Separated Presentation patterns (MVP, MVVM). 

Who is Jeremy Miller?

Jeremy is the Chief Software Architect at Dovetail Software, the coolest shop in all of Austin. Jeremy is also the author of the open source StructureMap tool for Dependency Injection with .Net and the forthcoming StoryTeller tool for supercharged acceptance testing in .Net. Jeremy is also the author of the Patterns in Practice column in MSDN Magazine. Jeremy's thoughts on just about everything software related can be found on his weblog The Shade Tree Developer part of the popular CodeBetter site. Jeremy is a Microsoft MVP for C#, and very active within the ALT.NET community.

What is VAN?

Virtual ALT.NET (VAN) is the online gathering place of the ALT.NET community. Through conversations, presentations, pair programming and dojos, we strive to improve, explore, and challenge the way we create software. Using net conferencing technology such as Skype and LiveMeeting, we hold regular meetings, open to anyone, usually taking the form of a presentation or an Open Space Technology-style conversation.

Please see the Calendar to find a VAN group that meets at a time convenient to you, and feel welcome to join a meeting. Past sessions can be found on the Recording page.

To stay informed about VAN activities, you can subscribe to the Virtual ALT.NET Google Group and follow the Virtual ALT.NET blog.

Meeting Details

Times below are Central Daylight Time
Start Time: Wed, August 12, 2009 8:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
End Time: Wed, August 12, 2009 10:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
Attendee URL: Attend the meeting (Live Meeting)

The first thing that you should do to set up LiveWriter is download the application from here.  After you have it installed, you are ready to set it up to your blog.

Step one is to go to the menu called Blogs.  At the bottom of this menu you should see an option called “Add blog account…”.  After clicking on this you should see the following dialog box.

Notice I have selected the last option called “Other blog service”.  After you have selected that option then click the next button.

Next you will need to supply your web address, username and password.  This should be pretty straight forward.

 

If you have entered in everything above correctly, it will start the process of setting everything up.  You should see a green progress bar moving towards the right of the dialog box.  This process should only take a few seconds.

 

After it has been set up you will get the above dialog box.  At this point all you need to do is click finish.

The last step is to enter a tile in the top and write your body.  After that just click the Publish button and your post will added to your blog.

Note: You must have the XML-RPC turn on before LiveWriter will work.

Topic

Jeremy Miller will be talking about Screen Activation Lifecycle.  On his blog he posted the following about the talk:

I will be presenting some preliminary material from my "Presentation Patterns" book on Virtual ALT.NET during the first two weeks of August.  For August 5th I'm going to talk about what I call the "Screen Activation Lifecycle."  Think of an application like Visual Studio that is constantly loading and destroying screens.  How can we activate a new screen and synchronize the application shell to reflect the options for the new screen?  How do you locate and activate an existing screen for a requested subject instead of opening a duplicate screen?  How do you remember state to do web browser type navigation?  And oh yeah, how can you do this in a way that enables you to easily add all new screens later (OCP baby!)?  To start some answers going, I'd like to present some reocurring design patterns I've found useful for these problems.  I'll definitely be talking about a "Tabbed MDI" application shell for the first talk and maybe a web browser style shell (depends on how I do in prepping).  I'll also touch on "View First" vs "Presenter/ViewModel First."

I'm really hoping for some feedback on the material here and I'd love to have any and all criticism or suggestions.  I've got 5 days to prepare as well, so if there's anything in specific about this topic that you're interested, please drop me a comment and I'll see what I can do.  I'm thinking that the second week of August to talk about Separated Presentation patterns.  There's an almost infinite store of good content on these patterns and the important differences between them, but not many developers have a strong understanding of these differences.  I think I'm going to give up and go with MVVM in my nomenclature.  I do think it just MS's renaming of Presentation Model, but I think far more people are familiar with the term MVVM and well, that matters. 

Who is Jeremy Miller?

Jeremy is the Chief Software Architect at Dovetail Software, the coolest shop in all of Austin. Jeremy is also the author of the open source StructureMap tool for Dependency Injection with .Net and the forthcoming StoryTeller tool for supercharged acceptance testing in .Net. Jeremy is also the author of the Patterns in Practice column in MSDN Magazine. Jeremy's thoughts on just about everything software related can be found on his weblog The Shade Tree Developer part of the popular CodeBetter site. Jeremy is a Microsoft MVP for C#, and very active within the ALT.NET community.

What is VAN?

Virtual ALT.NET (VAN) is the online gathering place of the ALT.NET community. Through conversations, presentations, pair programming and dojos, we strive to improve, explore, and challenge the way we create software. Using net conferencing technology such as Skype and LiveMeeting, we hold regular meetings, open to anyone, usually taking the form of a presentation or an Open Space Technology-style conversation.

Please see the Calendar to find a VAN group that meets at a time convenient to you, and feel welcome to join a meeting. Past sessions can be found on the Recording page.

To stay informed about VAN activities, you can subscribe to the Virtual ALT.NET Google Group and follow the Virtual ALT.NET blog.

Meeting Details

Times below are Central Daylight Time
Start Time: Wed, August 5, 2009 8:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
End Time: Wed, August 5, 2009 10:00 PM UTC/GMT -5 hours
Attendee URL: Attend the meeting (Live Meeting)