RSS feeds are still the same:  http://feeds.feedburner.com/chriskoenig

the new link to the online version of my blog is http://chriskoenig.net

Maybe that will be easier for people to remember :)

In this tough economy, are you looking to get ahead? Do you want to stand out? Microsoft Certification can help you pursue a new career in IT, move from one job role to another, or become indispensible in your existing role. Microsoft Certifications are continually evaluated and updated to ensure their relevance in the marketplace. As a result, earning a certification not only helps you stay current on the latest developments in Microsoft technologies and platforms; it also enables you to demonstrate to employers your job skills.

To make it easier for you to get started, you can now take advantage of a new set of discounts that Microsoft is providing on select Microsoft Certification exams. Visit the website below to find out how to begin and to see whether the exam you’re interested in is 15%, 20% or 25% off.

This offer is available worldwide while supplies last, and you have to register, schedule and purchase your discounted exam by December 31, 2009.   

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/careeroffers

The official CTP for SQL Azure (a.k.a. SQL Data Services, a.k.a. SQL Server Data Services) has now been released into the wild!  Head over to the SQL Azure Team Blog to learn more, or directly over to the SQL Azure web site to request a token and get started!

For those that don’t know, SQL Azure is a cloud-based relational database service that’s part of our Windows Azure platform.  Based on SQL Server 2008, SQL Azure provides a highly-scalable cloud-based relational database for your application needs.  Head over to the Windows Azure web site to learn more about Windows Azure and SQL Azure.

Come spend a day with us to explore Windows Azure™ – Microsoft’s platform for building and deploying cloud based applications – from a real world point of view! During this event, we’ll review critical lessons Microsoft IT has learned migrating internal line-of-business applications to Windows Azure™. What is Windows Azure™? When should I use it? How does it apply to my job?  Whether you’re an IT Professional, Developer or Architect, we’ll address your top of mind questions about cloud computing.

TechNet Events Presents – for the IT Professional from 8:30am to noon

In this session, we will discuss:

• Azure architecture from the IT professional’s point of view
• Why an IT operations team would want to pursue Azure as an extension to the data center
• Configuration, deployment and scaling Azure-based applications
• The Azure roles (web, web service and worker)
• Azure storage options
• Azure security and identity options
• How Azure-based applications can be integrated with on-premises applications
• How operations teams can manage and monitor Azure-based applications

8/20/2009 - Dallas, TX

9/17/2009 - Houston, TX

9/24/2009 - Austin, TX

MSDN Events Presents – for the Developer & Architect from 1:00pm to 5:00pm

In this session, we will discuss:

• Cloud computing architectures in general and the Azure architecture in particular
• Several aspects of Azure from the developer’s and architect’s perspective
• Azure roles (web, web service and worker)
• Azure storage options
• Azure security and identity options
• How Azure-based applications can be integrated with on-premise applications
• Configuration, deployment and scaling Azure-based applications
• How development teams can optimize their applications for better management and monitoring

8/20/2009 - Dallas, TX

9/17/2009 - Houston, TX

9/24/2009 - Austin, TX

As you probably heard, Windows Marketplace for Mobile has been announced as a new offering for WinMo users.  In order to get some applications up there, The WinMo team at Microsoft has created a little friendly competition called the Race to Market Challenge.  When you submit your application to the Windows Marketplace for Mobile, you’ll be automatically entered into the competition that makes you eligible to win some fabulous prizes including your very own Surface Table!

Visit the Race to Market Challenge at http://www.mobilethisdeveloper.com to find out more and get your application out on the Windows Marketplace for Mobile today!

DevCares July - DotNetNuke

Click here to register

Session: DotNetNuke
With the advent of content management systems and the evolution of development tools, frameworks are everywhere.  DotNetNuke, an open source web platform based on Microsoft's .NET framework, has become more prevalent in the business environment.  It has quickly grown to become the most widely adopted open source framework for web CMS and application development in.NET.  In this session, we'll discuss how to leverage DotNetNuke in developing business applications without having limitations of frameworks to hinder you.  See real world examples of applications that leverage DNN's security, extensibility, and personalized content by using the DNN's portal framework as well as the full sets of skills in your .NET toolbelt.

Speaker: Jason Kergosien
Jason is president and senior architect at Ingen Systems, a Dallas-based development and consulting company specializing in DotNetNuke.  He speaks on regularly on various .NET and DotNetNuke topics at technical conferences including regional TechFests and CodeCamps.

When: July 31, 2009

8:30 AM - 9:00 AM - Sign-In
9:00 AM - 11:30 AM – Presentation
11:30 - Announcements and Give-Aways

Location:  TekFocus

TekFocus at the InfoMart
1950 Stemmons Freeway, Suite 3050 Dallas, TX 75207

To register, please call 214.800.5611 or visit www.clicktoattend.com

These are great sessions put on by great speakers at a great location!  You should definitely attend…

By using the Microsoft Tag Web Services API, you can programmatically access many of the same operations used on the Microsoft Tag Web site. Using Visual Studio and the .NET Framework, you can write programs to create, modify, and otherwise manage Tags for your business — including bulk Tag creation and updates — without having to use the Microsoft Tag Web site interface.

Get Started Right Now!

• Sign-up if you are a new Tag user
• Apply for an API key.
• Getting Started with Tag Web Services
• View the documentation
• Provide feedback or questions

Tag team blog post: http://blogs.msdn.com/tag/archive/2009/07/23/microsoft-tag-api-announcement.aspx

Tag team Twitter account: https://twitter.com/microsofttag

Hey everyone – the Houston TechFest site is opened up for registration!  You can visit http://houstontechfest.com and get signed up and registered for one of 12 tracks including .NET (2 tracks), Java (2 tracks), Methodology, Agile, ALT.NET, Silverlight/WPF-specific, SharePoint, IT-Pro and a couple of “Special” categories.  I’ll be presenting 2 sessions:

• A Tour of Visual Studio 2010
• Building LOB Applications with Silverlight 3

I hope you’ll come out an join us on September 26, 2009 at the University of Houston University Center!

Although the economic news is looking a little brighter, we know it’s still tough out there…. to help Microsoft has put together Thrive - a website that’s all about helping developers survive the recession and manage their careers in this tough economy. Thrive pulls together a ton of great resources to help you learn new tasks faster, get access to discounted training, and certification and connect you with your local community. Thrive has lots of interesting insights from members of our own developer community who are sharing their stories and advice about what they are doing to manage their career in the downturn. 

• .NET Rocks “Development in a Downturn” podcast series – 10 part podcast series focusing on developers in the community sharing their stories of how they have handled the recession, what they have learned and advice they have to share to others based on their personal experiences
  
• Step by step resources to help devs ramp quickly on new tasks. Developers are being asked to take on more with fewer resources and limited training, these step by step scenarios help save time and money.
  
• “How to be a better Developer” series – everything from community MVP’s weighing in with their advice, to how to leverage social networks to benefit your career, to “Driving your Career Forward” , a 32 part screen cast series on how to develop key soft skills that can help you be more successful on the job.
  
• Job search functionality on thousands of development job openings across the country
  
• Industry resources and articles on how to land a job; including a 4 part webcast series on “Getting a Development Job in the Current Economy”
  
• Community Connection to find local developer events and user groups

Head over to http://microsoft.com/thrivedev to get some more more information about this great program!