Archives
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[Tools] Cropper the C# Screen Capture Program
It doesn't really matter what language the tool is written in, but this program happens to be one of the smoothest screen capture utilities around, and it happens to be written in C#. I've been using it for months, and I have no plans to replace if for another cropper/clipper/capture tool.
It's available on CodePlex and there's also a Cropper Plugins project there with a bunch of more or less useful plugins :)
(picture from the Cropper CodePlex site)
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[Tools] Microsoft SharedView Beta2
I just tried it out with Eric, and it worked like a charm.
Connect with up to 15 people in different locations and get your point across by showing them what's on your screen. Share, review, and update documents with multiple people in real time.A Windows Live ID (Passport, Hotmail, or MSN) is required to start sessions, but not to join sessions. New in Beta2: now even easier to use, with group chat and performance improvements!
Download details: Microsoft SharedView Beta2
I think I'll use it as a support tool when my dad has computer probs. Problem is, it's usually his broadband connection that is the source of the problem... :)
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IIS Web Deployment
Note to self: Try out the Web Deployment tool. I wonder if I can hook it on to MSBuild or CruiseControl.NET in a good way...
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Support for Core Form Controls in Silverlight 2.0
Happy to see this announcement on ScottGu's webby:
The next Silverlight preview release will add support for core form controls (textbox, checkbox, radiobutton, etc), built-in layout management controls (StackPanel, Grid, etc), common functionality controls (TabControl, Slider, ScrollViewer, ProgressBar, etc) and data manipulation controls (DataGrid, etc).
.NET Web Product Roadmap (ASP.NET, Silverlight, IIS7) - ScottGu's Blog
A rich set of controls for Silverlight is sure needed if Silverlight is to be used for more than creating flashy video players... :)
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ScottGu on the ASP.NET MVC Framework Road-Map
ScottGu blogged about the roadmap for the ASP.NET MVC Framework, and it sure looks like this framework is shaping up to become quite a diamond with all the new features. I especially like this:
Starting with this upcoming preview release we will enable applications to instead directly reference the System.Web.Mvc.dll assembly from the application's \bin directory. This means that no setup programs need to be run on a sever to use the ASP.NET MVC Framework - you can instead just copy your application onto a remote ASP.NET server and have it run (no registration or extra configuration steps required).
We are also doing work to enable the ASP.NET MVC framework to run in "partial/medium trust" hosting scenarios. This will enable you to use it with low-cost shared hosting accounts - without requiring the hosting provider to-do anything to enable it (just FTP your application up and and it will be good to run - they don't need to install anything).
They've also changed the default behaviour of a few things, like not having to explicitly mark controller action methods with an attribute. I think too that was a request from the community which the MVC-team has taken to ther hearts and implemented.
This framework will sure be widely used...
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www.NServiceBus.com is Online
Udi Dahan just blogged about the new site for nServiceBus:
www.NServiceBus.com is online.
It’s not “done” yet, but I’m pretty sure it’s past time that nServiceBus had its own site separate from this blog. I’m still working out the DNS and other domain forwarding and hosting stuff, but we’re live.
There is some information on the “overview” page about one-way messaging, store-and-forard, and why those patterns were chosen for nServiceBus.
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[Vista] SP1 Available for MSDN Subscribers
Lots of people have now blogged about the availability of Vista SP1 on MSDN Subscription, but what is new and when will it be available for the public? I Googled around a bit...
Mike Nash on the Windows Product Management group blogs on the Windows Vista Blog:
With Service Pack 1, we have made great progress in performance, reliability and compatibility.
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...with SP1, copying or moving files around your PC, your home network or your corporate network should now be much faster.
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In addition, on many kinds of hardware, resuming a Windows Vista-based PC from sleep is faster on Service Pack 1.
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we will begin making SP1 available through Windows Update in mid-March
Mike also writes about better support for hardware, which is about time ;) There's a pretty good page on Technet which describes the Notable Changes in Windows Vista Service Pack 1.
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[VS2008] New Serviec Reference Settings
Eric blogs about the new Service Reference Settings dialog in VS2008:.
There are some great possibilities in this dialog as for example to control what type of collection or array taht will be used. In previous versions it have been very difficult to reuse classes from projects in the solution when setting the reference.
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Differentiated UX
I cannot help to smile when reading Udi Dahans view on "Differentiated UX":
As if there wasn’t enough stuff for developers to deal with.
After the grand release of WPF, and the industry’s collective shrug and back to business, Microsoft stirs the pot again.
Yes, a compelling user interface may sell and 3D-views may help get a better understanding or a new insight of complex data, but showing the right data, at the right time is more important. Having said that, some of the new features of WPF and Silverligth migth actually help you with that, but application designers/architects should know what to prioritize.
I've always been interested in trying out new stuff, but .NET developers are getting swamped with too many new things from Microsoft now. Being a generalist gets harder and harder - I've no idea when I will find time to sit down and have a look at all new stuff. I used to find time to install and test new frameworks and tools, but it's mostly down to reading blogs and looking at webcasts for me nowadays.
