I run a very humble free event, called Day of Patterns & Practices, which is a day long event in Tampa, Florida where we discuss various proven practices as well as tools and technologies that support those practices. The event has a website, called PnPGuidance, that started out as a support site for these events but has grown into a resource on Patterns & Practices in general. Although a little known fact, the Day of Patterns & Practices was the first "Day Of" event established in Florida :)
I snag two of the coolest and generous people you will ever meet on this planet, Jeff Barnes and Stan Schultes, to help me deliver material that is practical and useful to day-to-day development. Although not necessarily the goal, the event in the past has had a Microsoft Patterns & Practices focus where we talk about Enterprise Library and the numerous software factories.
For example, the first event in May 2007 focused on the following:
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Enterprise Library
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Smart Client Software Factory
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Web Client Software Factory
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Web Service Software Factory: ASMX and WCF
The second event in Jan 2008 focused on:
Recently with the release of Enterprise Library 4.0, ObjectBuilder 2.0, and Unity 1.1, I am already thinking about the next event with presentations such as:
As I think about the possible topics and the timeframe of the next Day of Patterns & Practices, a few things come to mind:
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I don't want to do these events too often so that they lose their value.
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I worry about too much of a focus on Microsoft Patterns & Practices.
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I don't know if the developer need is breadth or depth on these topics.
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How can I expand this to more than just Tampa, Florida?
Since doing these events, I have received hundreds of emails from various developers, developer groups, and events both locally and internationally, to present on these topics as well as asking if I offered training or had an event schedule where I might be traveling on these topics. Truth be told, although I consult and present on these topics to clients, the Day of Patterns & Practices Event is just a once or twice a year event that has been focused in Tampa, Florida ( closest Microsoft venue to my house :). I prefer to keep them free, informal, but very pragmatic and useful for day-to-day development.
The original idea was to present these topics as more of a road show across Florida, but If you aren't familiar with the Florida .NET Developer Community, we literally have code camps, developer groups meetings, geek luncheons, geek laagers, "Day Of" events, launch events, pub clubs, etc. happening all the time. Florida is a very close knit and busy .NET Developer Community which makes it difficult to find the time and a venue for the Day of Patterns & Practices Events, because the presenters present at other events all across Florida. You can thank the very cool Joe Healy, Russ Fustino, Dave Noderer, Shawn Weisfield, etc. and others that suport the cool development environment. Btw, Kyle Baley's Bahama .NET Developer Group is an honorary Florida .NET Developer Group :)
That being said, I will be at TechEd 2008, the Florida Tweener, and Party at Palermo in Orlando next week and I would love to hear from others as to what you would like to see from the Day of Patterns & Practices Event.
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What would you like to see as the next topics?
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Are you looking for breadth or in-depth talks?
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Would you prefer a single day event, multiple days, or possibly a series of evening events?
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Would you be interested in a Day of Patterns & Practices - ALT.NET Version?
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How often would you like these events?
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Would you prefer it to be run as a paid course event with more structure?
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Would you like to see it in your city?
I would love to talk with other developers next week about anything :) as well as what you would like to see from the Day of Patterns & Practices Event. I am considering the next event to be in August in Tampa, Florida with the above presentations, but I am open to ideas and feedback. If you are interested in speaking, I am also always looking for knowledgeable developers to talk on such topics.
See you next week,
Dave