C# code formatting for HTML 23/08/10
Here's a great online resource for formatting C# code as HTML. It's perfect for when you need to include code in your blog posts or email.
A feature request for Resharper Structured Search/Replace 23/08/10
I’ve been a big fan of Resharper for quite a while, and I’ve heard a few people comment on how cool the structured search and replace is. Two weeks into my new assignment at N4 Solutions, I had a need to change some code that I thought structured search and replace would be ideal for. Given some cod
I travelled up to Birmingham Science Park today and attended my first Open Space Coding Day, with the focus of the day being on Windows Azure. The format of the day was a new experience and completely different to what I have t
It outlines more than 45 jQuery based solutions to improving website user-experience, including iPod style drilldown menus, Facebook like dynamic input,
The posts can be found on his blog (permalinks and content abstracts below):
Sustaining Capacity in Maturing Agile Software Teams – Part 1: Nothing Fails Like Success
Mock-you... this is how I mock! 21/08/08
Mocking Frameworks are becoming more prominent in our development activities as unit testing, and hopefully test driven development, become much more mainstream. Like most technical topics, the choice of Mocking Framework can lead to long debates. I’ve been involved in these debates myself, and a f
Explicit or implicit interface implementation 06/08/08
I accidentally came across this blog post yesterday that discusses the use of explicit and implicit interface implementations in C#. I have to admit, although I’ve known about these two approaches of interface implementation, I’ve never really given them any serious thought. I normally implement int
Design for Test 05/08/08
As Developers we have quickly learnt how important unit testing is. Moreover we have also learnt, sometimes through hard lessons, that to implement unit tests we need to design and build our code so that it is actually testable. In my mind, this is a benefit, since it forces us to think about the co
“var”: a contentious little keyword 24/07/08
It’s old news but most of us will know that C# 3.0 introduced a new keyword: var. This tiny keyword brings with it a great deal of power behind the scenes, most of which was intended for use with another C# 3.0 language feature, namely LINQ. Simply put, what var does is tell the compiler to infer th
Six months later... 15/07/08
Well it's been six months since I last posted an entry, so let me begin by reassuring my readership (all two of them), that I have not been hit by a bus or anything like that. Things have been really busy since I started in my current role, and I just haven't found the time to post any new
Abstract Thinking in UML: the Russian Doll 06/02/08
Within my current role, I am helping the client interview candidates for both Senior .NET Developer and Architect positions. As part of the interview process I ask the candidate a few quick-fire questions regarding .NET (dependent on the position that they have applied for), and then I ask them to m
Setting up Team Foundation User Permissions 19/01/08
So you've installed Team Foundation Server and now you need to setup your permissions. There's quite a lot to follow in the TFS Installation Guide, so if you're using Active Directory, here's a digest of how I've recently defined permissions on a single-server deployment (th
Introducing Partial Methods (that's right... methods) 23/11/07
Since the early betas, and now with the final RTM release of Visual Studio 2008, developers have the opportunity to begin exploring some new language features. Perhaps the most talked about language feature is LINQ (Language INtegrated Query), that provides a ubiquitous way in which to query data so
T4 Template Editor for Visual Studio 2005/8 21/11/07
Clarius have released a new T4 Templating Transformation Toolkit that provides a better experience when working with T4 templates. Although T4 templates are predominately used for Guidance Automation and DSL work, with the T4 components being included out of the box in Visual Studio 2008, it is like
I have decided to abandon my attempt in building a Software Factory for 3-tier Enterprise solutions. I have decided to do this because of two principal reasons: The adventure w
Articles on building and packaging Software Factories 30/10/07
Jezz Santos has announced a mini-series of articles that will discuss the packaging and building of Software Factories. The first article discusses how the various assets of a Software Factory, such as the DSL's and Guidance Automation Packages, can be combined into a single MSI installer.
A well earned break (time to get more certifications) 25/10/07
Having looked over my current and past engagements recently, I have noticed that I have been working flat out for over three-and-a-half years. No breaks in-between assignments, and certainly no holidays - apart from the bank-holidays, but they don't count. I'm completing a short assignment
Free (and open-source) .NET Wiki software 15/10/07
I've touched upon Wikis before, but if you want an extremely comprehensive Wiki solution for FREE, then check out MindTouch. They have an open-source .NET Wiki product called Deki Wiki, which has a feature list that most of the commercial Wiki products would be proud of.
Guidance Automation Toolkit and Domain-Specific Language Tools for Visual Studio 2005: Integration Scenarios
This will most likely come in handy later on.
TechEd 2007 DVD's 08/10/07
I received my TechEd 2007 DVD's this morning. Their journey from the States took just over three days and ended with a delivery in a FedEx van. I haven't had much time to look over the contents of the disks yet (there are six of them), but I have watched the start of the Keynote presentati
This post represents the first, in what I hope, will become a series based on my adventure in developing a Software Factory. I have been very keen on the concept of Model Driven Development ever since I first started reading up on UML 2.0, and kept encountering t
Guidance Automation - Frameworks and Patterns first 26/09/07
I came across this old post on Tad Anderson's Real World Software Architecture blog that provides a perspective on Guidance Automation and its potential impact on architecture. I think it shares the same sentiment that I had in one of my earlier posts, in that Guidance Automation allows Archite
My first (ever) .NET User Group event 20/09/07
I am ashamed of myself. I have been working in IT for just over a decade at all levels of software development. I have been fortunate enough to be working with Microsoft .NET since the early betas, and I pride myself on my C++ heritage. However, in all this time working as a Developer, I have never
Making implementation knowledge explicit through Guidance Automation 19/09/07
I came to the end of a twelve month contract with a client recently, and as part of the exit strategy I spent an absolute age performing the hand-over process, and documenting my knowledge of the solutions that I touched during my time with them. The client recently introduced an internal Wiki allow
Agile Adverts 03/08/07
If you find youself with a few spare minutes, pop over to Agile Adverts for some agile based video entertainment. It's a competition hosted by Google, VersionOne and InfoQ, and all the entries can be found on YouTube. Here are a few of my favorites:
Agile development slashes time-to-market! 14/06/07
I came across this fairly short article on Computer Weekly earlier. It highlights an agile success story. Given the current hot-topic of off-shoring, there is an interesting quote in the article that will sit well with many home based IT people:
What is an Implementation Pattern 30/05/07
When we think "design-pattern", we are typically referring to logical level design-patterns, such as those presented in the seminal books on design-patterns ([1], [2] for example). These logical-level patterns provide structural and behavioural solutions to common problems when developing