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20 Years of Blogging

Apparently, I missed it by a couple of days, but the 22nd of February, 2023 was the 20th anniversary of my very first blog post. I was fortunate enough to be one of the first set of folks with a blog on weblogs.asp.net, which ran on the .TEXT blogging software written and operated by Scott Watermasysk.

The post itself is unremarkable, just an introductory musing. What is remarkable is that 20 years later, that blog is still online, thanks to the folks at Microsoft keeping it up and running. It has been transitioned to Orchard in the meantime, but given how many blogs and sites have long since disappeared from the web, it’s amazing to see things I wrote 20 years ago still online.

Over the subsequent 2 decades, I’ve moved my blog to different places, first moving to blogs.msdn.com when I joined Microsoft as a Developer Evangelist (that site now redirects to https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/archive/blogs/gduthie/, but the content is still online), and eventually stood up my own independent blog here on devhammer.net.

My thanks to Scott for his role in helping me get started in the blogging world, and kudos to Microsoft for keeping this resource alive. If you’re interested in seeing all the blogs from weblogs.asp.net, here is a list of all the bloggers on that site:

https://weblogs.asp.net/blogs/bloggers

I should note that I was reminded of my 20th anniversary by a post from my friend Frank La Vigne on the 19th anniversary of his blog FranksWorld.com. 19 years of blogging on the same domain is an impressive feat!

Resources for my OSDC Talk

OSDC Banner

Recently, I gave a talk at the OutSystems Developer Conference (OSDC) on integrating external code and services in an OutSystems application, entitled “A Little Help From My Friends: Integrating External Code in OutSystems”.

Here are some relevant resources that I discussed during the talk:

OutSystems Forge

The Forge is the first stop for OutSystems developers looking for additional functionality for their apps, and you can access it online at: https://www.outsystems.com/forge/, or via the Forge tab in Service Studio.

The Forge offers thousands of components, ranging from full demo apps, reusable UI widgets, to connectors to popular services from Microsoft (Azure Cognitive Services, etc.), AWS (S3, Lex, etc.), and more.

Integration Builder

Integration Builder is a web-based interface for easily connecting to logic and data from a variety of sources, including Salesforce, SAP oData, SharePoint Online, and more. Learn more about getting started with Integration Builder.

I also mentioned that my colleague Cristiana Umbelino did a Decoded: Quick Hits video covering Integration Builder:

I’ll also add a link to the Integration Builder deep dive session from this year’s OSDC, once the recording is available.

Using JavaScript

During the discussion of custom JavaScript, I mentioned a couple of videos I did on using JavaScript in an OutSystems app. I have videos for both Traditional Web (“Dude, Where’s My JavaScript?”), as well as for Reactive Web Apps, both of which you can see below.

Using JavaScript in OutSystems Traditional Web Apps
Using External JS Code in an OutSystems Reactive Web App

Integrating C# Code

Finally, I mentioned in the section on integrating C# code that I had created a simple .NET extension for reversing a string, and I have a video demonstrating that component, and how you can (in a self-managed OutSystems environment) debug that code using Visual Studio. You can view that video below:

Debug a .NET Component in OutSystems

Wrap-up

My thanks to all who attended my talk. If you’d like to see all of the OutSystems content my team produces, check out our playlists:

Windows 8: Making VirtualBox and Hyper-V Play Nice

I got a new shiny this week (actually arrived on Friday, but since I was heading to Roanoke Code Camp over the weekend, I did not have time to set it up before I left). As an aside, pictures don’t do this machine justice…I’ve always thought that ThinkPad was synonymous with chunky business laptops with squared edges, and a look only a CPA could love (sorry CPAs, no offense meant). The Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch is flat gorgeous. And fast.

X1Touch_2

After getting home from the code camp, I started the process of migrating data from my current day-to-day machine (thankfully, data migration is pretty automated and painless these days), and installing the various bits and pieces I need.

Continue reading Windows 8: Making VirtualBox and Hyper-V Play Nice

So You Wanna Make a Game?

WindowsCyan_Web_2There’s a new kid in town, maybe you’ve heard of him…Windows 8? Or maybe you’ve heard about his sibling, Windows RT. Maybe you’ve heard that over 60 million licenses for Windows 8 have been sold as of January, and recognize what that means in terms of a large and growing potential customer base.

Or maybe you’ve heard about the Keep the Cash offer, which provides $100 per eligible app published to either the Windows Store or the Windows Phone Store between March 8th and June 30th, 2013 (for up to $2000 per developer), and want to take advantage.

Or maybe you’re a student, and you’ve heard about the Windows 8 App Madness Challenge, in which students can receive $100 per app (up to 5) they successfully submit to the Windows Store.

However you got here, you may have the question…how do I get started? I’m here to walk you through, step-by-step.

Continue reading So You Wanna Make a Game?

Quick Hits Issue #5: Resources for App Developers and User Groups

In this issue, I’ve got some great resources for app developers, as well as for user groups:

Get up to Speed on HTML, CSS3, and JavaScript

If you’ve done some web development, but want to kick your skills up a notch, check out Learn HTML5 with JavaScript & CSS3 Jump Start Training, a course from Microsoft Virtual Academy. The course covers HTML Semantic Markup, CSS3 Selectors, Layout and Animation, JavaScript Core and DOM Interaction, and more.

Continue reading Quick Hits Issue #5: Resources for App Developers and User Groups

Quick Hits Issue #3: New Meetups, Game Development, and more!

New Meetup Group

I’m pleased to announce a new Meetup group for Windows App Developers in the DC area. The group will focus on local workshops, hackathons, office hours, and other events featuring myself and other local technical evangelists.

If you’re not in the DC Area, check out these other meetups, featuring some of my peers in the east region:

Continue reading Quick Hits Issue #3: New Meetups, Game Development, and more!

Quick Hits Issue 2: Privacy is Paramount (and easy)

In this second issue of Quick Hits, I want to share a couple of good posts on the topic of privacy policies for Windows Store apps. You may have heard already that if your app connects to the internet (and many, if not most, apps do), you are required to provide a privacy policy for your app, one that is accessible both from within the app (via the Settings charm) and from the app’s store listing.

Continue reading Quick Hits Issue 2: Privacy is Paramount (and easy)

Building Back-end Data and Services for Windows 8 Apps: ASP.NET Web API

In this series, I’m exploring a variety of ways to build back-end data storage and services for Windows 8 apps (many of which, BTW, can also be used for other mobile and web apps as well). Here are the posts so far:

Continue reading Building Back-end Data and Services for Windows 8 Apps: ASP.NET Web API

Building Back-end Data and Services for Windows 8 Apps: OData – Part 2

In part 1 of this post, I showed how to create a SQL database in Windows Azure, create a schema for adding leaderboard functionality to a game, create an Entity Framework model for the database, and then create and test a WCF Data Service on top of the model that provides a rich REST-style interaction model with great query support via OData. If you have not yet read part 1, you should do so before continuing.

Continue reading Building Back-end Data and Services for Windows 8 Apps: OData – Part 2