I'm getting around to it! A while back I did a MSDN Webcast on this topic, and I also presented upon this at the Australian Teched 2006. During my sessions I used a whole bunch of demo code etc. It is my mission to make this available to you (took me around 15 months to design + implement this for a client). I want to make available a demo version for you folks to enable to you get in a get your hands dirty. The two worlds live together quite nicely! BTS 2006 and WinWF.You dont have to decide whether I'll write lines of code with WinWF or for those 'enterprise' solutions...time to use BizTalk. Not a chance. I'll show you how to drive Workflow Solutions from within a BizTalk framework enabling things like BAM, HAT etc etc for the whole story. Stay tuned and watch this space!.....within the week! I promise!
You know the tags....Minority Report...intelligent fridges and washing machines knowing how to wash your clothes for you (guys...this could be our moment of fame! rather than everything coming out 'pink' and then you get banned from the washing machine for life!) David McGhee ran an RFID session at the Sydney BizTalk User Group and a big thanks!! (Slide deck linked below)And a big thanks to Matt Eschbach from Intermec.com in coming to the Party with some hardware goodies, gadgets (mobile readers and fixed readers to come) AS WELL AS A SAMPLE RFID Application that runs within the framework. How good is that!!!! I'll be developing some apps going forward so that initially the User Group members each get their own tag and can use that as an attendance indicator for each meeting. These results will eventually be sent back to the User Group Site. Who know we may even get some sort of live voting going during sessions......(if you enjoyed the session go down this line to a beer.....if you didnt....go down this beer line :) Here's some technical specifications from Matt about the devices - once again thanks Matt.
7X1a_spec_web.pdf (356.49 KB)
IP4_spec_web.pdf (114.22 KB)
David's Slide Deck (PDF format) :
rfid_overview_sydney.zip (2.9 MB)
Hey folks - I couldnt pass this one up to let you all know about the great things that are in store for Sharepoint 2007. Angus Logan has once again done a great job of highlighting them.....I reckon he's got one of the best jobs!!! :) click HERE to check it out.
I'm sharing a trade secret in enabling you to get efficent and optimised WebCast type presentations from your machine. You need: (1) Windows Media Encoder (2) Custom Optimised WebCast Settings - Blogcast.zip (2.02 KB) (these arent mine, they just get handed down through the generations) When I first used media encoder to record a presentation, I found that there was a fair few settings that were thrown in my face, from source/destination Video/Audio feeds, to interlacing and dithering with dropped frame rates and whether you wanted YYUV or something else (then my mind drifted back to biology with some XX, YY + blue or brown eyes..) I fumbled through the options and said 'Record' as I was doing my presentation on stage.......started well......then within about 10 secs my machine was dying a slow death and not responding what so ever.....I later found out, that default-ish settings when recording locally to a file are recording at DVD quality etc etc. (you do that ONCE) So I came across these settings (2) and they work a treat. As per usual, when recording for viewing over the web, (1) stick your resolution to max of 1024x768 (2) on some machines, you may need to adjust the video driver 'Hardware acceleration' setting to be either on none, or 1 bar. Otherwise you mighten be able to see your mouse during the recording (the MSDN folk gave me that tip during a webcast I did) You're on your way - AVI, WMV etc etc recordings.
Seems like it's the night for a braindump over the last couple of weeks..... Hotfix 923632 will do the job. Also be sure to follow these steps
after applying hotfix 923632:
1. Open regedit and go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\BTSSvc$<HostName>
Make sure host name is the name of
the BizTalk host which is publishing messages which are routed to multiple
req/resp subscribers.
2. At that key, add the DWORD value
AllowMultipleResponses and set it to a value of 1.
3. Restart the host service after
making this change.
Onsite the other day I noticed the Admin Console running poorly. Fiddling around with SQL Native Client settings, if we put TCP first on both SQL Server + BizTalk machine - all's fine (as opposed to Named Pipes) Not sure what's going on there...but one to watch out on. Mick.
While surfing the web the other night ..this Ad came up....anything wrong with it :)
I'm wondering if it was an Ad by AMD?? ;)
(Imagine being the company actually paying for these Ads)
I decided to put these down somewhere as I always keep losing them. Basically part of .NET Framework, you can retrieve config values from registry. Great for BTSNTSvc.exe.config etc. There you have the best of both worlds - keys that are accessible via the AppSettings, but the values are stored away from prying eyes...... Here's the go <appSettings> <add key="InternalApprovalUrl' value="registry:HKLM\Software\SomeKey,someValue" /> .... </appSettings> Also for .NET 1.x there is a hotfix KB329250 that allows entities like ProcessModel username/pass to be stored in the Registry - encrypted! Enjoy Mick.
Well I finally submitted a good enough business case for financial controller at home and got an XBOX 360...cool.
Using Media Center (on the kids PC, running RC1 of Vista), I promised that all the kids videos, pictures etc. could be played through the lounge TV.
I finally got all the components talking to each other and entered a couple of IDs that the XBOX gave me to pair up with Media Center.
I went looking on the XBOX 360, through the libraries to play videos........alas!!!! Only 3% of them were there. What's going on!!!??? I thought.
I (later) found out that XBOX 360 only plays WMV/MPEG video files, no *.avi's or quicktime ......
So I did a little digging and came across a couple of cool articles.
One - to run a NES emulator on the XBOX 360 - here - through Media Center to the XBOX, pretty cool...
Two - to play different video types, there's one article here about using Media Encoder 9 on the fly to encode what you have into WMV for Media Center, the other is to run an app that already does it - both free!!!
Three - the easiest solution of them ALL - MCE Video Encoder
Now I'm putting my home network to better use than the office ;)
Mick.
A while back I was part of the reviewing process for this book - it's pretty solidy around the MCMS and ASP.NET 2.0 space. Some great authors were all over this - the book is a breath of fresh air with some great ideas for MCMS enhancements. Great work guys, your trusty reviewer...... (I now can get back to a family....and there's no note on the fridge ;) There's an e-book version tooo!! Grab it HERE Here's the details:
Language English
Paperback 180 pages [191mm x 235mm]
Release date
August 2006
ISBN 1904811523
Author(s)
Lim Mei Ying, Stefan Goßner, Spencer Harbar
Topics and Technologies
Content Management, Microsoft & .NET
Get Microsoft Content Management Server Service Pack 2 up and running,
and start using the most talked about features of ASP.NET 2.0 like
master pages, site navigation, themes, and the membership provider
model, in your MCMS development.
The release of Microsoft Content Management Server (MCMS) Service Pack
2 opens up the world of ASP.NET 2.0 to MCMS developers. Written by the
masters of MCMS, this book shows you how to use the new features of
ASP.NET 2.0 that everyone is talking about in your MCMS development.
You
will first learn how to install and configure MCMS SP2. There are two
approaches to setting up a development environment for SP2: an upgrade
from a previous SP1a installation or starting from scratch and building
a fresh installation including SP2. Of course, both approaches are
covered.
You will become familiar with the MCMS Service Pack 2
development environment, and create custom Visual Studio 2005 templates
to overcome some of the issues which are present with the templates
shipped with MCMS SP2.
After that, its time to look at some of
the most exciting features of ASP.NET 2.0, and how you can make use of
them in MCMS: master pages, site navigation, themes, and the membership
provider model.
One of the coolest features introduced with
ASP.NET 2.0 is master pages, which allow developers to enforce common
layout and behaviour across pages within an application. You will learn
about the benefits of using master pages and see a step-by-step guide
for implementing them in your MCMS applications, where they become
master templates!
ASP.NET 2.0 introduces a whole new way of
implementing site navigation, driven by site maps. By programmatically
adding channels and postings to a site map you will see how to smoothly
integrate these controls to any MCMS site.
To customize the look
of your site, we will see how a common look and feel can be applied
efficiently to a MCMS site by using ASP.NET 2.0 themes. An essential
customization required for themes to work correctly in an MCMS site is
a must-read feature of this chapter.
MCMS has its own role based
authorization and user management system which cannot be extended.
However, the new ASP.NET 2.0 Membership Provider Model and the shipped
controls can be used within MCMS applications to improve the
implementation of Forms Authentication and provide a more elegant
solution for authenticating against an external store.
A
collection of tips and tricks round off the book, including using the
Provider Model design pattern to ease migration to Office SharePoint
Portal Server
ASP.NET 2.0 and MCMS, together, for the first time.
- Install and configure MCMS Service Pack 2
- Become familiar with the MCMS Service Pack 2 development environment
- Master ASP.NET master pages and make them master templates
- Integrate ASP.NET site navigation controls into your MCMS site
- Customize the look and feel of your MCMS site with ASP.NET themes
- Apply the ASP.NET membership provider model to enhance MCMS authentication
- Tips and Tricks to get ASP.NET and MCMS living together in peace
The book is written for developers who work with Microsoft Content
Management Server, and want to update their skills to take advantage of
the latest offerings in ASP.NET. If you are an MCMS developer who
hasn't yet got into ASP.NET 2.0, this book is an ideal introduction to
the most exciting features of ASP.NET 2.0, and how you can make them
work for you.
Over the weekend I did a MODL (Microsoft Official Distance Learning) assessment, where myself, Mike and Source Forge Borty (VSTS/TFS GURU)hammered over poor audio lines, U.S. delays but I managed to keep them all together and on track. We used a variant of Live Meeting with a whole bunch of 'interactive slides' where (once mike found his pen from his tablet pc), we all drew and discussed some of the finer points of Maintaining a W2K3 environment (sample module required to present for the assessment) Just to let you guys know who are going to do this: - you dont need to have the media clips etc from the course, just use a made up one. funnies or other wise.All in all an interesting experience - will let you know in 60-days if I pass. Mick.
I thought I'd share an experience or two around this space. Since being on the beta program for Vista (and installing the thing toooooo many times), it's looking pretty good as Vista is now in RC1. I'm not much for the whole IPv6 stuff - where as I think it's great from a technology perspective, I mean...I can have 700 000 IP addresses per square meter on the earth (dont know what I'll do with all those devices....but hey, my IP enabled Fridge wont be lonely :)) Vista comes out of the box with IPv6 enabled - you CANT uninstall it, you just disable it. And there's a couple of other network items as well in each adapter bindings that relate to IPv6. From doing training + presenting on IPv4 + IPv6 a few years ago (IPv6 isnt new, just legislation has caught up), the govts. wanted to track and capture internet purchase transaction details so essentially they could tax you on your purchases (e.g. GST/VAT etc.). The problem with IPv4 is that the addresses are no assigned in any country order, ISPs get given blocks and that's what you get. Then there was the big scare that we're running out of IP addresses and we all should move to IPv6....then proxies/nat/reverse proxies etc. all saved the day. The argument has been quiet since. Back to Vista....I was getting 'POOR' wireless performance with the IPv6 components active (even though there's no IPv6 near home at the moment) So I removed the 'Logical Link Layer Transport' and his friend, then deselected IPv6 on the Wireless Adapter.... now my Wireless performance is 'Great' - go figure. Mick.
Mike sent me an email today (I know I was lucky, I got one!) After he mentioned that he got a Dual Quad Xeon 64 bit....Mac Machine, he told me about driver issues (not a good sign). So Mike was going to have to wait a little longer for the crunching of those holiday snaps..... This little nLite is a .NET 2.0 app that can create bootable CDs/DVDs from your O/S Source material. It will (1) incorporate special drivers - so for on 64 bit machines....SATA drives....nVidia RAID drivers and they usually give you a floppy disk (or in my case I had to download some). Now with a floppy disk....who's seen a machine that has a floppy drive lately??? they seem to be history. So good luck on the floppy disk! So being able to add drivers to the installation media is just a gem!! Especially for ALL your wacky devices....Boot CD that does the entire lot. (2) nLite will REMOVE the apps that you dont want e.g. Outlook Express, Windows Messenger..... so the actual install size is smaller. (so nLite doesnt just not install them, they are not on the cd) (3) slip stream service packs + updates + hotfixes (nice!!!) - so I havent tried adding BTS to the install mix, but I'm working on it :) (4) unattended/silent installs. Nice app - save you a stack of time if you're in the business of building base O/S's etc. Dev/Test/Stage/Prod environments. Thanks Mike! Check it out here (best of ALL it's FREE!) Cheers, Mick.
Earlier this week I was onsite with a Sharepoint 2007 project (I know....BizTalk is the NEXT stage...)
Basically the conversation went:
Client: "We want to implement Sharepoint by December"
Me: "You'll want to look at Sharepoint V3" (why waste time on V2??)
Client: "Let's install it and talk more before lunch. Whatever it is....it's got to be 'FREE' as I have no budget left"
So I installed WSS V3 and configured a couple of WebApplications - one for 'test/play' and another for the 'live' site.
At lunch we spoke - I found out they wanted aggregated Search, Audiences, Roles, Profiles....basically ALL the things in PORTAL and not WSS!
But it had to be free.......
So the Partner I was working with (www.avc.com.au) told me all about their involvement with MS's new licensing model - SPLA.
Sort of like a leasing model, rather than a huge upfront cost!! My mind wondered........HOW GOOD!
So for this Client, they could quite easily pass off the per monthly leasing costs and not be slugged.
What this means for you/us:
- one of the biggest blockers to projects/solutions is the initial outlay (some folks call it 'Investment') for something that is not even generating returns. e.g. VSTS etc.
- you can now setup a development team for 6 months, paying something like a per developer per month price. End of the project you pay no more!
I've done alot of work over the years with the AVC crew, and they can explain further.
Here's a snippet from Andy Every (main AVC SPLA contact) that I asked for around a BizTalk 2006 example. (Aussie dollars)
SPLA is a subscriber licensing agreement where you effectively rent your licenses on a monthly basis. The benefits are:
- Off balance sheet expense i.e. full tax write off, you never own the licenses.
- You only pay each month for what you are using. No need to forecast maximum usage over multiple years
- You can upgrade to the latest version of any product you are paying for at any time.
- Greater visibility of your operational expenses
- Project costs are only incurred for the duration of the project
To use your example licensing Biztalk Std Edition would be as follows:
Open Business Corporate = $20,625.45 ex GST (RRP) for one processor license inc SA for the first two years, then $6,875.45 SA every two years
SPLA = $710.27/month ex GST (RRP) for one processor license (includes SA)
Please
Note - there is a monthly
Network Services Management Fee (usually we charge a standard $25.00 ex GST)
that AVC has to charge to be in
compliance with the SPLA
Agreement
Nice to have some returns in life! Here's a useful offer if you're sitting exams from now until Christmas
Use this voucher number when booking for an exam with VUE - MSAU11711C74
Here's a snippet from the email I received earlier.
-------------------
Your MCT ID code is the key to your participation in the MCT Rewards Program. With this unique code, (used as a voucher number in the Pearson VUE registration system) your students will receive a 15% discount for every exam registered for and delivered between now and December 31, 2006.
Your code (MSAU11711C74) and the student discount are active today, so start sharing them immediately with students in your classrooms as you discuss the personal and career benefits of skills validation.
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