http://www.vbug.net/ en-gb Fri, 09 May 2008 16:42:22 GMT http://www.vbug.net/News/April-2008/VBUG-Peterborough-Coordinator-Finalist-in-the-DesignIT-Competition--Vote-Now.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/April-2008/VBUG-Peterborough-Coordinator-Finalist-in-the-DesignIT-Competition--Vote-Now.aspx Tue, 08 Apr 2008 12:15:14 GMT VBUG Peterborough Coordinator, Jyoti Majithia, recently entered the Microsoft DesignIT Competition and has been selected as one of the five finalists! The DesignIT Competition is run by Microsoft TechNet and has over the last three months invited IT professionals to submit their designs for computer systems that demonstrate creativity as well as tackling real social, human interest problems experienced by charities large and small: such as contributing to the battle to reduce carbon emissions; bringing conservation closer to the people that use technology; opening channels of communication for abused and vulnerable children and identifying new opportunities for disabled people. In so doing have teamed up with four charities: Leonard Cheshire Disability, Global Action Plan, Flora and Fauna International and NSPCC. Jyoti's design is for the Flora and Fauna International Charity and in Jyoti's submission her proposal is for : "Simple in its concept and delivery, development of this solution would allow live information on conservation projects across the globe to be accessible on the web by leveraging the capabilities of mobile networks in emerging markets.Countries where you wouldn’t expect mobile access have more mobile stations than fixed line cables so providing these facilities would not be an obstacle." Voting is now open and will close at 5pm on Friday 11th April 2008. The winning contestant will see their design implemented for the charity of their choice to the sum of £15,000 and the winner will be announced on Monday 14th April 2008. http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Fritz-Onions-Silverlight-20-Presentation-in-London--Get-the-demos.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Fritz-Onions-Silverlight-20-Presentation-in-London--Get-the-demos.aspx Fri, 28 Mar 2008 07:47:58 GMT The March presentation of Silverlight 2.0 was an overwhelming success, if you attended (or indeed if you missed out) you can now download his demos. Cick on the link below. Don't forget that if Silverlight is your thing dont miss the VBUG Spring Conference on the 24th April in Birmingham. A day packed with Silverlight, VS2008, MOSS, WPF and Workflow. View the session outlines and reserve your tickets on the link below. http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/VBUG-Developer-Conference--April-2008.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/VBUG-Developer-Conference--April-2008.aspx Mon, 17 Mar 2008 13:55:05 GMT Details have now been uploaded and tickets now on sale for VBUG's 1 Day Conference in April, at the Quality Hotel, Birmingham. Join us for an exciting day of: Visual Studio 2008 with Mark Quirk Workflow Foundation with Maurice De Beijer WPF Business Apps with Oliver Sturm Silverlight Showcase with Richard Costall MOSS with Dave McMahon Keep the 24th April free and book early to avoid missing out on this special Spring Conference. For full details please click onto the link below. http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/IT-Market-Overview--by-Mike-Smith-of-the-Anteo-Group.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/IT-Market-Overview--by-Mike-Smith-of-the-Anteo-Group.aspx Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:47:42 GMT At the VBUG London Silver light 2.0 seminar last night (12/03/08) we started by Mike Smith of the Anteo Group giving a current overview of the UK IT market. We thought you would be interested in hearing what he had to say: · Over 100,000 IT specific companies in the UK · Nearly 1 in 20 Jobs in the UK are IT – 1.5 Million IT Professional · Employment in IT has doubled since 1992 · Employment in IT is predicted to grow at 5 times the national average · Over 141,000 new entrants are needed to fill IT roles in the UK each year (This does not take into account those leaving the industry) · 55% of IT Professional have a degree or above qualification – compares to 32% of the UK workforce as a whole · Average weekly income for IT professionals is £690 compared to £420 for the UK workforce (More than 50% more than the national average) · GVA (GROSS VALUE ADDED )per job is estimated in the UK at £81,400 – compared to UK average of £33,300 (Contribution to the economy of each individual) · Proportion of people aged between 16 -29 in the IT profession has dropped from 32% in 2001 to 21% in 2007 · 50% reduction in the uptake of Computing Degrees over the last 5 years · Half of Europe’s productivity gains over the last few years can be attributed to IT · 80% of the productivity advantage of US multinationals is due to better use of IT What does this mean to you – Good news – On a personal / ego level – you are some of the smartest and best paid professionals in the UK. On a business / ego level – IT is the number 1 reason for increased productivity in your organisation On a career / ego level – There is a major shortage of young professional coming into the sector and as such your long term career is more secure. There will also be more opportunities for promotion and increases in salary. Organisations are only now coming to realise the implications of the shortage of IT professionals and very few have put in contingency plans / processes / true partnerships to ensure that they can attract their future IT workforce. You are in a great position to make the most of this situation. http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/A-Developers-Life-for-Me.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/A-Developers-Life-for-Me.aspx Wed, 12 Mar 2008 15:00:27 GMT To help launch VS2008 Microsoft have come up with a pirate game - not sure what the actual marketing angle is here (answers on a post card!) Find instructions, download the map and game pieces by clicking on the link below.. shiver me timbers and all that! http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Read-Andy-Westgarths-IIS7-book-review.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Read-Andy-Westgarths-IIS7-book-review.aspx Thu, 06 Mar 2008 11:04:47 GMT VBUG Chair, Andy Westgarth, has just posted a book review of Professional IIS7 and ASP.NET Integrated Programming (Wrox). See what Andy has to make of this book, plus cast your eyes over the rest of his blog by following the links below. Also Andy has just signed up to undertake the Bupa Great North Run on the 5th October. Check his blog for further updates on his progress, as well as to view details of (and to support) his chosen charities. Well done Andy! If you or someone you know are also signed up to take part why not contact Andy direct - his email is Andy@vbug.co.uk. http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Microsoft-Catch-up-on-the-big-launch.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/March-2008/Microsoft-Catch-up-on-the-big-launch.aspx Mon, 03 Mar 2008 09:28:18 GMT Keynote, free trials, breakout sessions, and more This week Microsoft launched Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008, and SQL Server 2008, and celebrated the role of IT professionals and developers who have much to gain from the new releases. Attend the virtual launch by clicking on the url below.. Also, watch out for VBUG's regional launch events too! http://www.vbug.net/News/February-2008/VBUG-Silverlight-20-London-Meeting--VENUE-CHANGE.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/February-2008/VBUG-Silverlight-20-London-Meeting--VENUE-CHANGE.aspx Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:16:00 GMT Due to massive demand for the next VBUG London Meeting (Silverligth 2.0 with the excellent Fritz Onion), we have had to change the venue. Thanks as ever to the guys at the Anteo Group for providing this venue for us, the new venue is: 150 Minories, London EC3N 1LS Limited spaces are available for this event on the 12th March 2008 but they are going FAST! http://www.vbug.net/News/February-2008/VBUGs-SQL-Server-2008-Whats-New-Launch-Event-in-London.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/February-2008/VBUGs-SQL-Server-2008-Whats-New-Launch-Event-in-London.aspx Fri, 22 Feb 2008 10:18:07 GMT On Wednesday 20th VBUG London, in conjunction with Red-Gate Software and the Anteo Group, were pleased to introduce Andras Belokosztolszki and his excellent presentation on SQL Server 2008. For those of you unable to make this event Andras has uploaded the presentation and the T-SQL scripts from the night onto his blog. To access please just click on the link below. Andras will present SQL Server 2008 to the joint VBUG / NxtGenUG community on Cambridge on the 26th February 2008. Places are still available so make sure you register in time using the link below. http://www.vbug.net/News/January-2008/New-developer-titles-from-Sams-Publishing--sample-chapters-available.aspx http://www.vbug.net/News/January-2008/New-developer-titles-from-Sams-Publishing--sample-chapters-available.aspx Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:46:59 GMT VBUG has just heard that Sams Publishing Released several new titles; ISA Server 2006 Unleashed Administrator's Guide to Microsoft Office 2007 Servers. ISA Server 2006 Unleashed provides insight into the inner workings of the product, as well as providing best-practice advice on design and implementation concepts for ISA. In addition to detailing commonly requested topics such as securing Outlook Web Access, deploying ISA in a firewall DMZ, and monitoring ISA traffic, this book provides up-to-date information about the new enhancements made to the 2006 version of the product. The author draws upon his experience deploying and managing enterprise ISA environments to present real-world scenarios, outline tips and tricks, and provide step-by-step guides to securing infrastructure using ISA. Along with the release of Windows Vista and the revamped suite of Office 2007 products, Microsoft has released a line-up of new servers. Exchange Server 2007 and SharePoint(r) Server 2007 are two of the major players, but there are also seven additional Office 2007 Servers of which you may not be aware that can add productivity to your environment in a variety of ways.Each of the seven servers is unique and requires distinct assessment to determine if your company can benefit from any given server. Administrator's Guide to Microsoft Office 2007 Servers: Forms Server 2007, Groove Server 2007, Live Communications Server 2007, PerformancePoint Server 2007, Project Portfolio Server 2007, Project Server 2007, SharePoint Server 2007 for Search provides you with the knowledge you need to determine the use of each server, the prerequisites and procedures of server installation, the post-installation configuration options so you can set it and forget it, and finally, a look at the client-side applications that interact with the new servers. To view more information click on the links below!