Tomislav Bronzin [RD&MVP]

Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5

Bootstrap version (downloads only what is missing)*: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=333325FD-AE52-4E35-B531-508D977D32A6&displaylang=en

Full redistributable: http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/0/f/60fc5854-3cb8-4892-b6db-bd4f42510f28/dotnetfx35.exe

Excerpt from the MSDN download pages:
".NET Framework 3.5 builds incrementally on the new features added in .NET Framework 3.0. For example, feature sets in Windows Workflow Foundation (WF), Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and Windows CardSpace. In addition, .NET Framework 3.5 contains a number of new features in several technology areas which have been added as new assemblies to avoid breaking changes."

Why use Bootstrap version?
.NET Framework 3.5 (as well as 3.0) is not a full replacement of previous version, it is upgrade that goes like this:

.NET Fx 2.0 is upgraded by .NET Fx 3.0 that is upgraded by .NET Fx 3.5, so if you have .NET 3.0 already installed you will get just few MB of assemblies!

MS Office 2007 Service Pack 1 really makes a difference!

I finally decided to install Service Pack 1 (after I had SP1 Beta for months) and I really see the difference - it affects not just Office applications but also whole Windows Vista system!

Because I am "bad" user (I have large Outlook PST files up to 8GB) and I use up to 20 open applications/instances/windows with several services up-and running - I had a problems with performance (and installing Vista with Aero support on my HP nc8430 with 2GB RAM/200GB HDD 7200 did not helped at all.

So, to summarize: I had more responsive Office applications - primarily Outlook and my Word does not crash every time I close a document, any more :-).

I am also happy that a lot of improvements was done in MS Project, but I did not have time to check it (holidays and family :-) ) as my colleague Luka is writing in his blog: http://live.mscommunity.net/blogs/lugospod/archive/2007/12/17/influence-of-microsoft-office-2007-sp1-on-microsoft-project-2007.aspx

Visual Studio 2008 Training Kit - Materials from METRO Jump Start program

This is not hyper new stuff, but it was recently made available and I found out that not a lot of people new about it: if you participated in 1-day METRO Jump Start training (or maybe even not being able to participate) - and wanted more materials about Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5, you can find a Training Kit that includes presentations, hands-on labs, and demos.

This content is designed to help you learn how to utilize the Visual Studio 2008 features and a variety of framework technologies including: LINQ, C# 3.0, Visual Basic 9, WCF, WF, WPF, ASP.NET AJAX, VSTO, CardSpace, SilverLight, Mobile and Application Lifecycle Management.

Link: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=8BDAA836-0BBA-4393-94DB-6C3C4A0C98A1&displaylang=en

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

A lot of happiness, health, personal and business success!

European Silverlight Challenge Map

ADO.NET Entity Framework Beta 3 & Tools CTP 2

If you are interesting to se what's new in ADO.NET Entity Framework and what Tools are available, go download the Entity Framework Beta 3 runtime and the Entity Framework Tools CTP 2.
This release works with the RTM releases of Visual Studio 2008 and the .NET Framework 3.5.

What's new? See below:

• Much quicker object query execution
• Simpler generated SQL
• Faster view generation

• Public, serializable EntityKey property on EntityReference
• ApplyPropertyChanges
• Attach on EntityReference
• Improvements to EntityKey serialization

• Partial methods in code generation for property changing and property changed events
• Load with MergeOption
• AssociationChanged Event

• Additional canonical functions for LINQ to Entities
• Apply operator elimination (makes more operations work in SQL Server 2000 and other databases)
• Compiled LINQ query
• ToTraceString() method on ObjectQuery<T> and EntityCommand to facilitate debugging

• Connection management refinements
• Provider interface allows better reasoning about primitive types

• Generate a model from a database with the wizard and display it on the designer surface
• Edit conceptual model properties (e.g. namespace, alias)
• Embed Entity Framework metadata artifacts (CSDL/MSL/SSDL) in the output assembly or copy them to the output directory without worrying about the connection string
• Cut/Copy/Paste entities and properties
• Undo/redo support
• Layout and control visual aspects of the design surface and persist changes
• Add, delete, and edit entities, scalar properties, associations, and inheritance
• Automatic set management
• Automatic navigation property management
• Control concurrency settings of properties
• Validate model and mappings using the Entity Framework Runtime
• Double-click on validation errors in the VS error window to take you to the right place in the designer where you can fix them
• Automatic entity connection management in App/Web Config when .edmx file is renamed/moved in Solution Explorer
• UI changes based on usability feedback, simpler context menu layout and icons

• View mappings for a C-Side Entity or Association
• View/Edit mappings using stored procedures (insert/update/delete)
• Rename or delete C-Side objects without worrying about mapping
• Map an EntityType to multiple tables
• Apply multiple conditions to a table mapping
• Map associations
• Automatic generation of conditions and referential constraints on associations
• Map an Entity hierarchy to a single table (TPH mapping)
• Map an Entity hierarchy to multiple tables (TPT mapping)
• Create and map abstract entity types in your model

• Understand and visualize the model in a tree hierarchy
• Create, update and delete FunctionImports in your model
• Update model and mappings if tables or columns in the database change
• Navigate to nodes in the model browser from entities and properties on the designer surface

• item template, model generation wizard, EntityDeploy MSBUILD task and Entity Framework validation on build

Other links

INETA Europe: European Silverlight Challange started!

On behalf of INETA Europe I would like to invite you to participate in a 1st European Silverlight Challenge!

Deadlines: starting December 4th, 2007, ending January 28th, 2008, publishing of winners: February 12th, 2008.
Competition web portal: http://www.silverlightchallenge.eu
Rules: http://www.silverlightchallenge.eu/downloads/INETA_EU_Silverlight_Challenge_RULES_1.6.pdf 
Prizes: Total found of 150.000,00 €!

This competition is taking place in different European countries at the same time starting right now. The winners of all national competitions (there are great local prizes as well) will get the chance to compete against each other on a European level and win one of our 3 master prizes – paid trip to MIX 08 in Las Vegas including conference passes and some more goodies!

Also, participants will be recognized by the Microsoft Developers Community - as a Top Silverlight Developer!

There are two levels of competition:
1. Country/National level (e.g. Italy, United Kingdom , Germany, The Netherlands, Ireland, Poland, France, Spain , Belgium, Croatia, Ukraine, Bulgaria)
2. European Grand Final

1. Prizes at the Country/National level:

• 1st Prize : 20-25 MSDN Subscriptions, 25 IdeaBlade's DevForce Professional Licenses, 25 JetBrains's ReSharper + DotTrace bundle, 5 Red Gate's ANTS Profiler Pro licenses (for UK, Germany, France, Netherlands & Ireland ), 25 Wrike - 2 year 5-user subscription, 25 Telerik RadControls for ASP.NET Developer Subscription and Source Code License.
• 2nd Prize : 25 Infragistic's NetAdvantage for .NET, 25 Jet Brains's ReSharper, 25 Wrike - 2 Year 1 user subscription, 25 O'reilly Book (to choose from this five books: Learning WCF Programming WPF Learning ASP.NET 2.0 Ajax Programming ASP.NET Ajax Head First C# - Please consider that this last book has still not been published and might not be available)
• 3rd Prize : 25 Component One's DemoWorks licenses, 25 Wrike - 2 Year 1 user subscription
• 4th Prize (Students) : 25 Silverlight Unleashed, 25 Wrike - 2 Year 1 user subscription

2. Prizes at the Euroepan level:

• 1st. Prize : MIX '08 ticket & travel, 1 DevForce Enterprise License (without BOS), 1 Telerik's RadControls for ASP.NET + WinForms + Reporting Developer Subscription and Source Code Licenses, 1 Component One's Enterprise Studio Subscription, Wrike  2 year 15 user Subscription
• 2nd. Prize : MIX '08 ticket & travel, 1 Telerik's RadControls for ASP.NET + WinForms + Reporting Developer Subscription and Source Code Licenses, 1 Component One's Enterprise Studio Subscription, 1 Red-Gate's NET professional bundle (ANTS Profiler Pro)
• 3rd. Prize MIX '08 : ticket & travel FC, 1 Telerik's RadControls for ASP.NET + WinForms + Reporting Developer Subscription and Source Code Licenses, 1 Component One's Enterprise Studio Subscription
• 4th. Prize (students) : 1 Telerik's RadControls for ASP.NET + WinForms + Reporting Developer Subscription and Source Code Licenses

How to join the competition?
Go to the your Country/National page and apply for competiton (Curently there are following national pages):
01. http://poland.silverlightchallenge.eu
02. http://bulgaria.silverlightchallenge.eu/ 
03. http://croatia.silverlightchallenge.eu
04. http://france.silverlightchallenge.eu 
05. http://italy.silverlightchallenge.eu
06. http://germany.silverlightchallenge.eu 
07. http://macedonia.silverlightchallenge.eu
08. http://unitedkingdom.silverlightchallenge.eu 
09. http://romania.silverlightchallenge.eu  
10. http://netherlands.silverlightchallenge.eu
11. http://spain.silverlightchallenge.eu (already finished) 
... and more to follow!

Where to find more info?
Send an e-mail to the main person in charge Jose Louis Latorre Millas (JoseLuis.Latorre@ineta-europe.org, VP Sponsorship, INETA Europe) who will be really glad to provide any further info you may need.

Architecture Journal Reader - developed with WPF

While I was browsing through some newsgroups I find interesting information both for Visual Studio Solution Architects and developers that are interested in developing application’s in WPF.

Not only that it enables readers to read digital edition of "The Architecture Journal" magazine but it also demonstrates many of the User Experience principles highlighted in recent issues.
It is .NET Framework 3.x application that is installed locally and enables you to take every issue of the Journal into a searchable, and easy to read experience.

Because it does automatic synchronization with "The Architecture Journal" content management services reader have access to the latest Journal issues without needing to download PDF files or checking online.
Architecture Journal Reader is still Beta - but it is already very useful and it does work without any problem.

So, lay back and read new issue on the screen of your computer, famous Simon Guest has interesting forward!:-).