Posts Tagged ‘community’

Richmond Code Camp 2009.1 Recap

Posted on April 28th, 2009 by Kevin

Another Richmond Code Camp has come and gone, and I really believe this was the best one yet. I did something this year that I’ve never done before at another code camp, and that was hang out in the Open Spaces area. My first experience with an Open Spaces room consisted of myself and another person being the only people in the room. Let’s just say it wasn’t what I was expecting.

However, Alan Stevens was the facilitator for the Open Spaces section at Richmond Code Camp. This was one of the most greatest experiences I’ve had in my professional life. In the morning, our group started with 6 people, but in the afternoon it was standing room only. The unstructured, but structured format of Open Spaces really gave me a chance to listen to people with different experiences talk about technology in a way I’ve never been exposed to. I’ve changed my way of thinking on issues, had methodologies I’ve been following re-enforced, and I’ve picked up new concepts.

I would say though that the proper way of having an Open Spaces section is to make it an all day thing. The major problem with my first Open Spaces experience was that it was a single session during the day, and not its own dedicated track.

My session went very well. I had a packed room (about 30-40 people I would guess), which contained 75% students. I was surprised to see that the students were of varying ages, from 20 to 50. It’s good to see people getting into the industry (or revamping their skills) at these community events. I’ve told people on more than one occasion that I’ve gotten more of an education at user group meetings and code camps than I did in college. The truth is you’ll learn a lot more about what the direction of the industry is by listening to and hanging around industry people. Professors in academia don’t have a clue.

A few of the speakers and attendees went out to dinner after the Code Camp. These are the hours that I really wish would never end. I’ve made so many good friends who share the same passion for their craft as I do. I just don’t see that same passion in my day job. People do what they need to do and go home. Why learn the latest and greatest when there is no pressure at work to do so? User groups and code camps are great way to revitalize yourself. I really need to start bringing actual work with me to these events, because that’s when I really have the urge to code.

NoVa Code Camp is right around the corner. Sign up today and be revitalized!
Richmond Code Camp 2009.1 THIS SATURDAY!

Posted on April 20th, 2009 by Kevin

I love code camp season, and this week is Richmond Code Camp. Richmond will always be a special event for me, because it was my first code camp experience. Of course, that was back when Richmond Code Camp was at ECPI. It was a great venue, but we outgrew it so quickly. Now we’re in the awesome J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College. Last year we were the first event to ever be held in their new technology building, and believe me, we have tons of room to grow.

This year is also special, because it’s the first Richmond Code Camp I’m speaking at. I will be giving my “Intro to WPF” talk (“What is this WPF Thing?”). I’m looking very forward to mingling with the community and the other speakers.

Are you going to Richmond Code Camp? You should be! It’s THIS SATURDAY (April 25th). Go to http://www.richmondcodecamp.org for registeration information. Hurry! There are limited seats and they are almost filled!

See you all there!
Richmond Code Camp 2009.1

Posted on April 3rd, 2009 by Kevin

Richmond Code Camp 2009.1 is Saturday, April 25th.

What is a code camp? A code camp is an all day event for developers by developers. The easiest way to think of a code camp is to think about a great developer conference (TechEd, DevConnections, etc) and take away the entry fee. Almost all the speakers are locals (or within a few hours drive). This means you’re learning straight from your peers, not some highly paid professional speaker. All the speakers are passionate about what they do and what they present on. A day at code camp is a day not wasted!

If you’ve never been to a code camp before, Richmond is the place to get started. There is a great speaker line up (including me). I will be giving my intro to WPF talk again. There will a lot of great people to meet and hang out with. Hope you all can make it!

Register At https://www.clicktoattend.com/invitation.aspx?code=136238 or go to http://www.richmondcodecamp.org for more information!
Presenting at HRNUG tomorrow night

Posted on February 9th, 2009 by Kevin

Tomorrow (2/10/2009) night I will be presenting at my user group, Hampton Roads .NET Users Group. If you’re in the area, please come down to join us! We’re being sponsored by TEKSystems this month. They’ll be providing food and drinks for anyone.

I’m going to be giving my “What Is This WPF Thing?!” presentation, which is meant to be a firestarter for getting started with WPF. It’s a basic discussion of what WPF is, how does it look, and what can it do. Since I’m not much of a powerpoint person, it’s all going to be demos (example apps and my own stuff). This is the same presentation I’m going to be giving in Roanoke next month!

http://www.hrnug.org
What Is This WPF Thing?!

Posted on January 28th, 2009 by Kevin

So at the next meeting of the Hampton Roads .NET Users Group, I’m going to be giving my first professional presentation. It’s a bit exciting, because I feel this is my next step in contributing to the developer community. Also, I have learned in the past that the best learning tool is to teach others.

Therefore, my first presentation is entitled “What Is This WPF Thing?!” and the subject is Windows Presentation Foundation (duh!). Here is the abstract I wrote to send off to Roanoke Code Camp:

WinForms have been good to us over the ages. In the world of rich media, however, WinForms falls flat. They do not have the aesthetic appeal we’re looking for in graphically appealing applications. Windows Presentation Foundation has allowed us to go to a whole new level by providing tools for developing powerful, easy to customize applications. In this presentation, Kevin Griffin will give you an overview of the features of WPF and the tools in Visual Studio and Expression Blend. He will discuss why you might want to consider using WPF for your next client application. This discussion is focused towards people with no WPF experience.

Here’s my idea behind this presentation: I love the idea behind WPF, but my knowledge level is at that point between newbie and familiarity. I’ve learned that WPF is a completely different way of thinking of when it comes to building client applications. My goal is to present the knowledge I have on how to get started with WPF, and explain why I fell in love with WPF.

My hope is that after my presentation, people will go home, create a WPF application, and try to relate what I showed them in my presentation to something real. My job is done if they can do that easily.

Of course, all my presentations will always start with this disclaimer: “I am not an expert. If you have a question, I will do my best to answer it. If I can’t, I will do my best to get the answer for you.” I think with that attitude, I’ll be able to help a lot of people out while reinforcing what I’ve already learned.
Hampton Roads .NET Users Group – First Meeting Success!

Posted on January 15th, 2009 by Kevin

The first meeting was a big success! We had over 30 attendees, which is outstanding for a first meeting. It’s amazing to see how big the .NET community really is.

Lessons learned:
– Don’t trust Google Maps or Live Maps to get people to your location. Give them step-by-step directions.
– There is no such thing as enough chairs.
– 25 ft VGA cables need high refresh rates to work properly.
– Have a plan B presentation lined up in case the speaker doesn’t/can’t show.

Guy Hurst was our guinea pig for this sessions, and special thanks to him. He did a awesome job, and we look forward to having him back for another session a few months down the line.

Next step for the Hampton Roads .NET Users Group is to get a website that can be better used to provide information to the public. I will be the speaker in February. My talk will be on Windows Presentation Foundation, and I’ll show some of the basic concepts that a WinForms developer will have to learn to make the leap.

I was going to post pictures, but 80% of them are of me and people wouldn’t appreciate that! Sorry!
Sharepoint Saturday 2009.1 Thoughts

Posted on January 11th, 2009 by Kevin

I had the opportunity to attend Sharepoint Saturday 2009.1 this past Saturday. I would like to think I had a unique perspective on the event because I am not a Sharepoint guy. You can talk lists and sites all day to me, and I’ll nod and pretend like I know what you’re talking about. This event showed me that Sharepoint is definitely a technology I need to keep my eye on.

Special thanks to the Sharepoint Saturday committee. You guys did a great job. Thanks to all the attendees. Without the community, an event such as this would have never been possible. I’m told that Sharepoint Saturdays are being planned all across the country. I would definitely recommend attending if you’re a total Sharepoint newbie or if you’re a seasoned Sharepoint administrator.

Most of my time was spent in the speakers lounge. I met tons of new people including: Dux Raymond Sy, Joel Oleson, Tim Yagla, Josh Carlisle, Becky Isserman,and Todd Bleeker. I was able to spend time with friends Susan Lennon, Kevin Israel, Jessica Moss, Robin Edwards, and Michael Lotter. Great conversations. I can’t wait for code camp season to start up full swings so I can have more great conversations with these folks.

Speaking of code camps, I guess I got talked into speaking at Roanoke Code Camp this March. My topic of choice will be Windows Presentation Foundation, and giving folks a simple overview of how WPF applications work and how they need to start thinking about client applications. So if that interests you, make plans to come out to Roanoke.
Possible WPF LOB & MVVM Training in the Mid-Atlantic

Posted on January 9th, 2009 by Kevin

I’m opening this up for discussion to all our community friends in the Mid-Atlantic.

I’ve been chatting with Karl Shifflett from Microsoft about possibility having a training event solely based around Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), and building Line of Business (LOB) applications.

We have several options for training:
- A one-day training event. Most likely held on a Saturday.
- A two or three day training event. This would have to be held during the work week. All the information in a one-day event would be covered, and the 2nd/3rd day would be used for additional training.
The price tag on this event would be FREE.

As for location, it would depend on the type of feedback I get from the community. It is being sponsored by the Hampton Roads .NET Users Group, so I’d like to keep the event in the Hampton Roads area. However, I’m willing to move the event higher north to accomodate Richmond and D.C. folks. I’m open to suggestions.

Would you be interested in attending a free training event like this? Would you prefer a single-day training, or a multiple day training session? Let me know in the comments. Thanks!