Speaking
I am a Microsoft MVP in ASP.NET development with a specialization in the MVC Framework.
Here are the current abstracts for speaking engagements that I am delivering. I am open to travel and enjoy speaking with groups of 5 or more folks, including corporate teams, brown-bag lunches and user groups.
Asp.Net MVC vs. Ruby on Rails SMACKDOWN
(co-presented with RoR guru Marc Jeanson)
The gloves come off and we do as many 'rounds' as possible in the side-by-side comparison and walkthrough of two competing MVC frameworks: Asp.Net MVC3 and Ruby on Rails. After a brief introduction to the MVC pattern, we walk you through everything from project creation to publishing your app. Along the way, we talk about database strategies, testing, scaffolding, tools, models, views, controllers, filters, routing and more. Come for the content, stay for the Q&A!
NuGet: The Open Source Package Manager for VS.NET 2010
Brace yourselves, people: There's an package manager for the .NET stack that is actually some kind of awesome. Come for a quick tour of NuGet and see the first glimpses of our escape from DLL hell. We'll look through package composition, build a simple package, deploy it LIVE and finally use it in another project. We'll also look at some of the trending packages, possibly code you're already using, now in a shiny NuGet package.
ASP.NET MVC 101: Intro to the MVC Framework
Get a basic understanding of the MVC pattern and how it's been translated to the .NET world as an extension to ASP.NET. We'll have a look at some of the project templates, how the VS2010 IDE has been tooled to help you do your job, and some of the features that the latest build brings. Oh yeah, we're totally going to destroy a data-driven web site. That's right, start to finish in less than 10 minutes. And it'll be something you can actually use.
ASP.NET MVC Ninja Boot Camp (Workshop)
Fear not, tireless web warriors, you too can get started in the MVC Framework, it's as simple as File -> New -> Project! Bring your laptop and take a break from Web Forms while we walk through the key components and add them to your battle arsenal. Know Ruby? Great! Cross train for a bit and get a good feel for what your .NET brethren are up to. A hands-on lab that will walk you through Razor, routing, model binding, filters, authentication and authorization, the MVC tool chain (including NuGet) and complimentary bits (like jQuery). We'll build a site with all of the above. Come for the pattern, stay for the framework!
Living Online
(This is a presentation for high school students) What does it mean to be living in an always-connected world? What things have really changed, and how will they affect our future? It's possible that the things that seem to keep us connected - Facebook, iPhones and BBM - could also drive us further apart. We're going to cover the gamut, talking about everything from the environment to digital sins, the eternal preservation of you online and even dive in to digital bullying.
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
Asp.Net MVC vs. Ruby on Rails SMACKDOWN @ CodeCamp Winnipeg
February 25, Time TBA
Marc Jeanson and I go head-to-head in round 2 of the Battle of the MVC Frameworks. We'll try to settle the score once and for all: Is RoR or MVC the toolokit of choice for modern web developers?! More information here.
Prairie Dev Con 2012 - Calgary
March 13-15, TELUS Convention Centre
Bring your laptops! I'll be presenting MVC 101 and then doing my MVC Dojo for those who want a deeper dive. Check out the abstracts above and register at the Prairie Dev Con site.
Previous Speaking Engagements
January 25 Winnipeg .NET User Group - Asp.Net MVC vs. Ruby on Rails SMACKDOWN
November 21-22, 2011 Prairie Dev Con - Presented my MVC 101 talk and my MVC Dojo
October 17-19, 2011 - SDEC11 - Presented my talks on MVC and NuGet.
June 24, 2011 HTML5 Fest in Winnipeg - Gave an introduction to the new Semantic, Audio and Video tags in HTML5, assisted with JS presentation with MVP David Wesst
June 13-14, 2011 Prairie Dev Con - Presented my talks on the MVC Framework and NuGet.