The Cutting Edge

G'Day Developers!

Do you allow users to check for a new version easily?

It is important to give users the ability to check for a new version of the application they are using and, once located, it should be easily downloaded and installed.
We place:

1. A tick or a cross on the main menu
2. and a "Check for Updates" option in our Help menu.

Remember:

• This is mainly for Windows Forms, but you can do the same for the new versions of Web Applications - e.g. a knowledge base package or Reporting Services Application.
• You can do a complete check of your PC at the click of a button using SSW Diagnostics
• Since this check occurs over the web, you should use threading to avoid slowing down the form's responsiveness. This is a generic component that is available in the SSW .NET Toolkit
• If the UI is a Windows Service, be aware that they don't open up the UI very often. Therefore you can't rely on this method. In a coming release, Diagnostics will ask for your email and let you know when updates are available for your PC.

More on Rules to Successful Projects...

Cheers until next time,
Adam
SSW Chief Architect and Microsoft Regional Director, Australia

Got a comment for Adam? 6164616d636f67616e407373772e636f6d2e6175

Sydney .NET User Group - The best place to learn .NET for free in Sydney

8 days to go!

Sydney .NET User Group
Wednesday 21st June 2006
5:45pm - 9:00pm
Location: Microsoft, Sydney

Darren Neimke from Readify will be presenting - An Introduction to Windows Presentation Foundation

This introductory session will start with an Overview of Windows Vista and show how Windows Vista is fundamentally different from earlier versions of Windows. Windows Vista introduces development advances that help developers create next-generation applications that take full advantage the operating system, including:

• WinFX: A managed-code programming model
• Windows Presentation Foundation: The Microsoft unified presentation subsystem for Windows
• Windows Workflow Foundation
• Windows Communication Foundation: The next-generation web services technology by Microsoft

The session will pay particular attention to a technology called Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). WPF introduces significant changes such as being able to take advantage of your video card's power and being written in a simple XML based mark up language called XAML. We will walk through this new runtime, the mark up language XAML and the new development paradigms being introduced such as coding into panels that can automatically flow your controls, animations and even video; demos will be done from both Visual Studio 2005 and Sparkle.

Also this month Peter Ward from Wardy IT Solutions will be presenting SQL Management Object

Do you find that day-to-day in your job you are 'fire-fighting' issues that could have been prevented if you had the time to perform proactive monitoring of the SQL Server instances in your enterprise; Or maybe that you would like to implement an enterprise management solution but are restricted by budget constraints. In this session, Peter Ward from Wardy IT Solutions will introduce SQL Management Object (SMO) and how applications and scripts can use this object to access the management features of SQL Server 2005. Peter will also demonstrate how SMO can be applied in the enterprise to assist in automating common administrative tasks as well as to extend the function ability of SQL Server.

Advertise with SSW | Unsubscribe | Previous SSW Updates | Got a Hot Tip to share? | Got a comment to make?

Adam Cogan Presenting: SSW Tech Breakfast in San Francisco Visual Studio 2005 Team System

10 days to go!

SSW US Tech Breakfast
Friday 23rd June 2006
9:00am - 12:00pm
Location: Microsoft San Francisco

Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System is an integrated development platform to build mission-critical applications that businesses depend on. It extends Visual Studio's integrated and productive experience from the developer to the entire development team by delivering new role-based tools for software architects, developers, testers and project managers.

Let Adam Cogan, SSW Chief Architect and Microsoft Regional Director for Australia, guide you through these tools and show you how they can improve your software development cycle.

Register NOW

Employment Opportunities at SSW

Due to the tremendous growth that our business has experienced over the last few months, we are seeking enthusiastic people to join the SSW team.

Our Company is based in Neutral Bay which is one of the most elegant and scenic areas of Sydney. SSW is an Australian owned progressive consulting firm specialising in building, implementing and maintaining Microsoft .NET software applications.

We are currently looking for:

• .NET (and OLAP) Developer
• Marketing / Admin Assistant

Read more and Apply NOW...

Featured Product: SSW Performance PRO

Validate your Access application before deployment and eliminate common binding problems in your front-end with SSW Performance PRO!

SSW Performance PRO! isolates performance bottle-necks in your Access 97, 2000, 2002 or 2003 app. It checks every form, combo and list box, and reviews SQL statements. It reports exactly what to fix to improve the speed of your applications. SSW Performance PRO is especially useful after you've upsized an application to SQL Server to pinpoint black spots in your app.

More on SSW Performance PRO!...