I write this as I’m sitting here working on a .NET CF 2.0 project in Visual Studio 2005 while installing Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 onto my laptop which is running windows 7 installed on a vhd file booted natively. I look at the list of components being installed with 2010 Beta 1 and I’m just left feeling inadequate. The one that really tipped it was Visual F# 1.0. F# has been out in for a while now and I’ve only seen talks on it. I haven’t written a line of code in it. I can also say the same for Work Flow and many other MS/.NET technologies.

I sat in on an interview today with a rock star programmer. His code sample he sent in to us was the best we’ve ever seen. He’s got strong ASP.NET (and MVC) skill along with HTML/CSS-fu. Then I ask the questions about what else he has done in .NET.. barely any WinForms, no compact framework, little WPF. I do not hold any of this against him, I know full well what it is like to try and keep up with things when your current job doesn’t entail them. Here at Sierra Bravo my job does entail them, sometimes. We do such a large variety of projects I’ve had to learn almost everything under the .NET sun and I still feel like I’m behind.

I’ve spent the last few months trying to write a talk on Visual Studio 2010 Extensions and I sure hope my talk goes well but I’m not optimistic. After getting into doing the extensions, hoping for a nice easy to use SDK as was promised, I found still a complex system of interfaces, attributes and unclear APIs. Mind you, it is still beyond  what was available in 2008. I also gave a talk on SQL CLR programming and have been working on learning ASP.NET MVC. Beyond that, reading a WPF certification book and hoping to one day expand my certifications passed the VS 2005 realm. I spend nearly every minute of my spare time reading, coding and learning.

Things I have done

• .NET CF 1-3.5 (about 10 applications)
• ASP.NET 1.1 – 3.5 (lost count of how many sites)
• .NET WinForms 1.1 – 3.5 (about 20 applications)
• Windows Services (around 10)
• ASMX (lost count)
• WCF ( a few)
• SQL Server 2000-2008 (full and express)
• SQL Reporting Services
• SQL CLR
• SharePoint integration (2)
• Visual Studio Extensions (a few)
• Command line Programs (20+)
• Library development (HtmlAgilityPack, Sierra Bravo Connector aka PickDB)
• TCP Client/Server protocols
• Serial Port controlled vending machines
• RFID integration
• Surface
• Silverlight 1.1-3.0
• C# and VB.NET
• Dabbled in XNA
• Dabbled in MVC
• Office Integration
• LINQ to SQL, LINQ to Entities
• T4 programming
• Got MCTS WinForms/ASP.NET 2.0 and MCPD ASP.NET 2.0 certified

Things I still need more experience in, have yet to do, work with or even look at

• TDD/DI/IoC – I’ve dabbled a bit but feel like I’m really falling behind with these dev patterns
• Micro Framework
• F#
• Work Flow
• TFS
• Full WPF Application
• Full Mono application
• M/Oslo
• Parallel Extensions
• Tons of the new stuff in VS2010/.NET 4.0 (like the asp.net 4 features)
• Write a LINQ provider

While the latter list seems small, I’m sure it will grow again. The first list covers 4 1/2 years of work. To me it is mind boggling that I’ve done so much and also a testament to how powerful the .NET framework is. In the PHP world there are a couple great frameworks these days but it has taken many many years to get to that point. Also PHP 6 is turning into PERL 6 with it being on the horizon for many years now. It also has the issue of only being a web language.

I really hope after VS2010 Microsoft slows down for a bit and waits until VS2015 or something. I’m not sure if I can keep up on this pace much longer. Some days I wish for a job where I’m working on a product, or in a slower paced project. Other days I think I’d go crazy if I was working on the same thing all the time. One thing is for certain, I need to start doing things outside of work again.