We have a fun session coming up on Monday.

Six VTdotNET members will show off some of their favorite productivity tools. Some of these tools are free, some are shareware and some are commercial. The demos will be fast and furious. Here’s the skinny:

·         Mike Soulia: XMLSpy (xpath features)   

·         Chris DeGuise: ReSharper

·         Dave Burke: CodeSmith  

·         Rob Hale: Beyond Compare

·         Bret Griswold: Code Charge Studio

·         Julie Lerman: SnagIt, PureText, TimeSnapper & 2 PowerToys 

·         Bob LoCicero: NotePad++, ExamDiff, SyncToy, XmlNotepad & Toad Free Modeller

PIZZA & SODA will be sponsored by ALTOVA, makers of XMLSpy.

Please rsvp for a pizza count! rsvp@vtdotnet.org

We got a big box of swag from Altova including:

Date: Monday, Jan 8th

Time: 6:00 – 8:30

Location: Vermont Tech, Williston Campus

More Info at www.vtdotnet.org

Are these really pictures of Vermont in January? Yes. I just took them in my front yard. Bah. I think ALL of the snow for planet earth is in Colorado right now.

I had a wierd problem with tabbed data in a TextBox and need to get around it. WPF offered a solution, but I had to opt for straight .NET 2.0 anyway. Read more...

[A DevLife post]

Dave Burke's Five Things ... listing some interesting personal details of his life that you probably didn't know (and I certianly didn't and was fascinated) has tasked me with trying to the do the same.

The problem is that I think anyone who reads my blog already knows anything that might be somewhat interesting about my deep dark past.

But now I realize that i'm not allowed to bail. I've also been tagged by Andy Beaulieu. So here goes:

1. I have been to a Playmate of the Year party at Hugh Hefner's mansion in L.A.
2. I was a Cosmo Girl for two years in a row - interviewed by Helen Gurley Brown for Cosmopolitan Magazine's annual "what are young, cosmopolitan women thinking about home, fashion, work, romance, money, etc."
3. I have written software for Macs.
4. My first programming experience was on home-built Heathkit computers (by the math profs at my college).
5. For about 10 years, I split my time between programming and pottery. I had space in studio near my apartment in Brooklyn and spent about 20 hours a week there. I hope to pot again someday.

Okay, now who am I going to tag? Hmmm.

1. Mike Gunderloy
2. Kate Gregory
3. hmmm Sam's been there and done that. Apparently, C was not his first language after all!
4. Camey Combs
5. Amanda Murphy

http://www.btobonline.com/article.cms?articleId=30259

There is a lot more info here.

Qualifications

4 year degree within appropriate Engineering/Science discipline or equivalent.

Several years of professional work experience as a software engineer

A proven technical aptitude required. Experience with Microsoft development tools (for example, Visual Studio, Visual Basic 6) and web application development (for example, VBScript, JavaScript, ASP, HTML, DHTML)
Good understanding of current software development technologies and methodologies.

Demonstrated experience on product releases throughout the entire development lifecycle. Practical program/project experience on the whole development lifecycle.

Able to communicate complex technical issues in a clear, concise manner, both orally and in written communication

Authorization to work in the US
Willingness to travel 10% of the time.

Desired

4 years work experience in the Healthcare industry
Experience with object oriented software development and associated technical standards
Experience with relational databases
Experience with .NET, especially C#
Knowledge of design modeling, documentation and communication (for example, UML, IDEF)
Knowledge of data Communication protocols and standards (for example, DICOM, HL7)
Work experience with RIS Imaging products (IDX legacy Imagecast products and/or GE Centricity RIS products) and Healthcare Enterprise products, which integrate with RIS products.
Clinical domain knowledge to include Radiology, Cardiology, Oncology, Orthopedics and related workflows
Familiarity with business planning processes. Demonstrated technical domain knowledge by being current on software engineering design principles, architectures and advancements in engineering concepts and technologies

I needed to use a monospace font in a report but did not want Courier as it looked too different than the rest of the text on the report. I did end up going with Lucida Console, but on the way to that decision, found a nice resource from someone who made a list of 22 monotype fonts along with some details about each and where to get them from.

Today, from IDEP, in Bali Indonesia, with whom I worked very closely during the aftermath of the disastrous tsunami two years ago. This is urgent and not on their website yet:

How you can help…

IDEP is urgently seeking immediate support for family support kits, temporary shelters, field kitchens, water an sanitation supplies as well as distribution and search and rescue logistics.

For emergency supplies IDEP is working with our partners CV Sarawsati (CVS) who helped us with supplies and delivery for the 2005 Tsunami, as well as the Jogyakarta and West Java Quake responses earlier this year. CVS can supply us with aid kits such as the following immediately should support be available...



To make a donation please go to our website: www.idepfoundation.org/idep_donate.php

Currently, IDEP can accept donations by two means:

1) Online Credit Card Donations through the National Heritage Foundation

Visit www.idepfoundation.org/idep_donate.php and select the ‘On-line Credit Card Donation’ option. You will be directed to the National Heritage Foundation website where you can process your donation through their secure site. Donations are accepted on our behalf by the National Heritage Foundation in the USA which is a registered 501-(c)(3) charity. Donation made through NHF are tax deductible in the United States.

Don’t forget, when you register your donation on our website, if you wish to earmark the funds for a particular project please indicate the project name.

2) Wire transfer to our bank account

Our bank account details:


If you are wire transferring funds please notify IDEP by filling in our donation registration form  on-line at: www.idepfoundation.org/idep_donate.php or emailing donate@idepfoundation.org. Please indicate the amount, the originating currency (i.e. US  dollars, UK pounds, etc), bank name and city from which the transfer was made, your name (as you would like to be listed on the donor list), and the date of the transfer. A receipt will be sent once the funds have arrived. Also, if you wish to earmark the funds for a particular project please indicate the project name.

Thank You so much to everyone who can help make this emergency response possible and for any support you are able to  provide.

While Jay Peak, in it's very own weather zone, is boasting snow (only 60 miles north of us) and Denver is getting another 30 inches on top of the coupla feet they got last week, poor little Mad River Glen (the reason we live in Vermont) is finally going to open this weekend with a minimal base and minimal snow on top of that. Most of the other resorts around here are suffereing as well, but now that the cold has set in at least they can confidently make snow. Mad River actually has some snow making equipment as well, but oh, how I hate skiing on that. There are about 2 inches of snow in our front yard and I just can't take it any more. I'm going to put in my old tele "rock skis" and go ski around the yard, grab the mail and then get back to work. No point in going out into the woods as there's never as much snow in there as there is out in the open. For that, I can't even justify snow shoes, though flip flops would be pushing it....

Charles in 3D on WPF on the web! Read more

[A DevLife post]

"LOCAL GIRL DOES GOOD"

Okay, can't be helped. She lives very nearby. So that means to me, she's a local yokel. Although, as I don't know her, I suppose that merely makes me a fan. (blush)

Alison's book, Fun Home, which I have blogged about, recommended and given to number of friends is on top of Time Mag's 10 Best Books for 2006. I dont' read Time, but I do peek at her blog occasionally which is where a typically hilariously titled post when she learned about this.

But it's not just Time. It's on a LOT of lists. From another of Alison's posts:

Doug Reilly, along with his family, has fought an invansive cancer for a number of years. This never stopped Doug from being one of the smiliest guys at TechEd, answering posts on ASPAlliance listserver from the hospital and writing and sharing so much with so many through many ASP communities. Doug passed away today, quietly and peacefully, at home with his wife and children at his side. His wife Jean has been keeping his blog updated with his status and even today, somehow, she took the time and love to share with us this very very sad news. Even still, this evening she added another post about arrangements.

While does was still physically strong, he was cycling and fundraising for the LIVESTRONG foundation. He never let up and he truly lived strong right up until the end.

We will truly miss you Doug. Thanks for everything.

I've written some more about Doug over here on my DevLife blog.

I only discovered the ability to initiate remote assistance from my end, rather than having my client's go through the "ask for remote assistance" steps in WinXP, using Remote Desktop and kicking the clients off, using PCAnywhere or using a Live Meeting/WebEx type solution. Read more...

[A DevLife post]

There are some beautiful falls that I can get to from my backyard, though they are a little off the beaten path.

I finally brought my camera back there yesterday. It's really hard to capture the full impact of the falls which are about 20 or 25 feet high, fall into a beautiful small pool of water and then go down a stream to meet a larger stream. So in addition to these pics, I took a short video. The high quality video is 24 MB, the low quality version is about 4MB.

is the American Heart Association's campaign to raise awareness of the fact that women get heart disease and heart attacks, too! We need to educate ourselves. A friend of my sister's had clear signs of a heart attack in her early 40's (along with a family history of both her father and grandfather dying from heart attacks in their 40's and the fact that she was already on heart medicine), but the obvious warnings were ignored by her doctor because she was a women and women don't get heart attacks. She called 911 when she was having her heart attack and they basically told her to take some indigestion medicine. She managed to get someone to take her to the hospital where doctor's had to immediately perform open heart surgery on her, which saved her life. So, I'm definitely a big supporter of this campaign.

There will be a Go Red for Women luncheon in Burlington on Feb 9th. A dear friend is one of the local Chairs of this and I am sponsoring a table of 10.

You can learn more about the Burlington event here, if you'd like to participate or donate a silent auction item.

Burlington's airport (BTV) just turned on free wi-fi today. Yay. Here's more from the Free Press

The January 8th VTdotNET meeting is shaping up with a LOT of people demoing their favorite tools.

Here's the roster so far:

VTdotNet'ers show off Developer Tools We Love
Chris DeGuise: ReSharper (20)
Dave Burke: CodeSmith (20) 
Rob Hale: Beyond Compare (10)
Bret Griswold: Code Charge Studio (10)
Julie Lerman: SnagIt, PureText, TimeSnapper & 2 PowerToys(15)
Mike Soulia: XMLSpy (xpath features) (15)
Bob LoCicero: NotePad++, ExamDiff, SyncToy, XmlNotepad & Toad Free Modeller (15)

It's going to be fast, furious and fun!

Thanks to Altova for steppinig up to sponsor the pizza and soda for the meeting.

Datamann is looking for a seven geeks!

Visual Basic / SQL Programming:
Seeking experienced SQL / VB Programmers. Candidate must be proficient in: Microsoft Transaction SQL programming language; SQL Server Enterprise Manager; Visual Basic programming of interfaces to SQL Databases; Microsoft Access programming with VBA. Should have knowledge of SQL database design and administration. Should know how to program database updates in T-SQL Stored Procedures with full input/output/error logging

Access / Crystal Reports Programming & Support:
Applicant must have in-depth experience with Access and/or Crystal Reports, basic IT experience, excellent written and verbal communication skills, and strong organizational skills.  

Database Administrator:
We are looking for an experienced Database Administrator to design and manage multiple Microsoft SQL Server Databases. The right candidate must understand relational database structure and possess the programming skills to develop and maintain customized databases. Must be proficient with Enterprise Manager, Query Analyzer, Transaction-SQL syntax, Data Transformation services and all Microsoft Tools relevant to the DBA role. The candidate should be able to assess databases with tables of 50,000,000+ rows for structural integrity and performance. Knowledge of Primary Key-Foreign Key relationships and ERDs is essential. Competency in Microsoft Office Suite products--particularly Access and Excel--required. Ability to program in Visual Basic, VB Net, VBA and other languages is desired. 

List Technician:
Wanted for first shift at data processing service bureau. Person needed to convert and process data files through merge purge and postal presort software. Knowledge of Windows 95/98/NT operating systems and MS-DOS required. Direct Mail experience preferred. Must be able to work quickly and accurately in a fast paced environment. Salary commensurate with experience, full benefits & 401k. 

PC Hardware Technical Support:
Applicant will be responsible for implementation, service, and support of customer networks. Will provide consultation and training to users on best practices for maintaining system integrity and more. Must enjoy working with others, be a fast learner, and have excellent diagnostic skills. Should be an enthusiastic individual, committed to customer satisfaction, able to juggle multiple tasks, and be able to manage a fast paced environment, as well as down times. Will require some weekend pager support. Must have experience in Microsoft networks. Experience in Unix, Linux, and WAN a plus.

Retail Point of Sale Software Support:
Applicant will be responsible for supporting CounterPoint software solutions. Will provide consultation and training to users on best practices for these software packages. Must enjoy working with others, be a fast learner, and have excellent diagnostic skills. Should be an enthusiastic individual, committed to customer satisfaction, able to juggle multiple tasks, and be able to manage a fast paced environment, as well as down times. Should have experience with CounterPoint. Knowledge of the retail industry and business/accounting is a major plus. 

Every time I go to check out the Vermont Flash User Group's site to see what their upcoming meetings are, I get flashed with envy at how groovy their website is. Even rescheduled meetings look cool!

Sadly, looking at VTdotNET (done by not-a-designer moi) and then looking at theirs, kinda makes me think of those "hi I'm a Mac... and I'm a PC ads". Bah...

January 09, 2007
SQL Developer Demo & Discussion
Come see SQL Developer in action.  SQL Developer is Oracle's FREE GUI PL/SQL Development tool.

www.gmoug.org