Azure & DevOps Podcast

Today’s guest is Mark Miller, a five-year C# MVP alumnus with strong expertise in decoupled design, plug-in architectures, and great user interfaces. He is the Chief Architect of the IDE Tools division at Developer Express, as well as the visionary force behind productivity tools like CodeRush. Mark is a top-ranked speaker at conferences around the world and has been creating tools for software for almost four decades. Mark is also the creator of “The Science of Great UI” and “Design Like a Pro” courses on DevIQ.com. On top of all that, Mark also streams live C# and typescript coding and design on Twitch.TV/CodeRushed!   In this episode, Jeffrey Palermo and Mark Miller are discussing developer productivity and UI. Mark explains what he believes makes for great design, the power of simple language, his three key approaches to maximizing productivity and creating appealing UI, the guidelines he sees getting broken the most often, what you should avoid, and where and how to learn more!   Topics of Discussion: [:45] Jeffrey shares some news about the Microsoft Build Conference and his book, .NET DevOps for Azure. [1:44] About today’s episode and featured guest, Mark Miller! [3:12] Mark speaks about how he originally got into software. [8:43] How Mark’s interest in the efficiency of motion ties into his work at CodeRush; and the two things he believes make up great design! [11:37] Mark’s thoughts on the power of simple language — both in UI and everyday conversation. [14:14] What it comes down to when it comes to good design. [16:55] Mark summarizes his three key approaches to maximizing productivity and creating appealing UI. [17:20] Mark’s favorite set of guidelines, where to find them, and the guidelines he most often sees broken. [23:20] A word from Azure DevOps sponsor: Clear Measure. [24:47] With these types of principles and guidelines, are there any templates or style sets Mark would recommend? [27:43] Why Mark says to avoid combo boxes. [30:47] Mark’s view on general navigation in business applications. [37:22] Mark’s pitch on why you should try CodeRush! [41:20] About Mark’s Twitch channel, CodeRushed. [44:00] What Mark recommends listeners should follow-up on.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) — Reach out if you have a user group or conference and would like some free copies of .NET DevOps for Azure! Microsoft Build Conference .NET DevOps for Azure, by Jeffrey Palermo Mark Miller on Crunchbase Developer Express CodeRush ”The Science of Great UI” by Mark Miller (at DevIQ.com) “Design Like a Pro” by Mark Miller (at DevIQ.com) Twitch.TV/CodeRushed .NET Rocks! Podcast A/B Testing SGUI.com   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

20 Maj 201947min

Joining Jeffrey Palermo today is Jeff Fritz! Jeff is the Senior Program Manager in Microsoft’s Developer Division working on the .Net Community Team. He's a long-time web developer and survivor of the .com era. He has built large software-as-a-service applications in every version of ASP.NET, with a focus on performance and scalability. Four days a week you can catch Jeff writing code and teaching folks how to get ahead in the software industry on a live video stream called, “Fritz and Friends” on Twitch! You can also catch Jeff on a previous episode of The Azure DevOps Podcast; “Party with Palermo at the Microsoft MVP Summit!”   This week, the two Jeffreys will be discussing .Net Core and Blazor! They talk about Jeff’s background in the industry and what he’s currently up to, his current findings in the space of .Net Core 3.0 and Blazor, his experimentation with Blazor and Akka.NET, and whether or not the Blazor model will become the norm for web applications. Jeff also reviews what’s available for developers to use today vs. what they may have to wait a bit for, and gives his recommendations on what listeners should follow up on to learn more about Blazor and Akka.NET.   Topics of Discussion: [:42] About today’s episode. [2:05] Jeff gives his background; how he came to work at Microsoft, caught the “speaking bug,” and how he decided to become a video streamer on Twitch. [7:50] Jeff talks about the logistics of some of the longer format video streams he conducts. [9:10] What Jeff is finding in the space of .Net Core 3 and Blazor. [15:21] Jeff deciphers what is available for developers to use right now vs. what they have to wait a bit for. [20:19] Will the Blazor model become the norm for web applications? [26:49] About Jeff’s experimentation with Blazor and Akka.NET. [33:01] How Akka.NET is architecturally different (from Hub-and-spoke or a bus pattern). If you’re an an ASP-controller, what does it look like? [34:44] Resources Jeff recommends to learn more about Blazor and Akka.NET.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) .Net Core 3 Blazor Jeff Fritz Jeff Fritz’s channel on Twitch: CSharpFritz Jeff Fritz’s Twitter: @CSharpFritz Jeff Fritz’s GitHub: @CSharpFritz JeffreyFritz.com (Jeff Fritz) Visual Studio channel on Twitch The Azure DevOps Podcast Episode: “Party with Palermo at the Microsoft MVP Summit” MVP Summit TechEd .Net Conf 2019 Microsoft Build Conference 2019 C# 8.0 WebAssembly The Azure DevOps Podcast Episode: “Rockford Lhotka on Software Architecture” Akka.NET LearnAkka.net Docs.Microsoft.com Blazor.net Live Coders Team on Twitch NinjaBunny9000 on Twitch   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

13 Maj 201940min

This week is a special solo-edition episode with your host, Jeffrey Palermo! Recently, Jeffrey published his fourth book, .NET DevOps for Azure, on April 26th, 2019. This book has been a long-time coming for Jeffrey and his hopes for it are to address some really big issues in the current industry.   Almost fifteen years ago, Jeffrey gained a passion for helping developers succeed, for making the complex simple, and for finding rules of thumb that would work for 80% of teams and situations out there. With too many options in the software world and too many answers of “it depends,” the industry has been starved for the ability to do something “by the book.” .NET DevOps for Azure seeks to provide that text where a .Net developer can say: “I’m doing DevOps with .NET and Azure by the book.”   If you are a .NET developer or a Microsoft shop using .NET Core or SQL Server and you’re looking ahead to Azure, then this book is for you.   Join Jeffrey this episode to further explore the topics in his upcoming book and to learn more!   Topics of Discussion: [:53] About today’s episode. [2:37] Jeffrey reads a couple sections from his book, .NET DevOps for Azure. [4:31] What Jeffrey's book sets out to solve & the scope that it covers. [10:34] Who this book is for! [12:40] A word from the sponsor: Clear Measure. [13:05] More details about the book and the upcoming versions to be released. [13:41] Jeffrey gives a preview of one of the techniques (from the book) on operations. [16:42] They key differences between the often-used (and overused) glyph of DevOps vs. Jeffrey’s version, and how Jeffrey’s version helps increase productivity and cycle time. [22:04] The other key features of Jeffrey’s book that help further illustrate his ideas and techniques. [24:06] How to follow the guidance in this book. [27:50] How to get a hold of the book!   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) Microsoft Build Conference Microsoft Build Conference Sessions Microsoft Ignite .NET DevOps for Azure, by Jeffrey Palermo Jeffrey Palermo’s Other Books Dev.Azure.com/ClearMeasureLabs/Onion-DevOps-Architecture The Azure DevOps Podcast Ep. 03 - “Sam Guckenheimer on Testing, Data Collection, and the State of DevOps Report”   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

6 Maj 201929min

Today’s guest is Rob Richardson — a software craftsman building web properties in ASP.NET, Node, Angular, and Vue. He’s a software developer, a community leader, a mentor, and a business owner (of Richardson & Sons.) Rob is also a Microsoft MVP; published author; frequent speaker at conferences, user groups, and community events; and a diligent teacher and student of high-quality software development.   As an expert on Containers in Azure, Rob gives his insights and recommendations. In this episode, he explains the critical steps when creating a container, what developers should consider when looking to run and support Containers through Azure, and much, much more.   Topics of Discussion: [:47] About today’s episode and guest. [1:26] Jeffrey welcomes Rob to the podcast. [1:52] What are Containers ready for so far in Azure? [4:15] How did Rob come to focus on Containers? [5:56] Does Rob consider Containers more of a Dev concept or an Ops concept? [8:42] Rob’s advice to those with existing .NET framework applications looking to run and support Containers through Azure. [11:29] What should developers consider for .NET framework applications that are tied to Windows? [17:22] Rob outlines the critical steps for creating a container that packages up their application. [22:33] What the term ‘Image’ means in Containers. [23:31] About the Azure DevOps Podcast’s sponsor: Clear Measure. [23:57] If a build succeeds (from a continuous integration process starting with the container), does Rob recommend continuing by promoting the container to various environments along the way to production? [25:50] How many application components should go in a single container? And if you’re doing a .NET build, should you intentionally do it only on a few projects or should you do it at the solution level? [30:25] How do Containers affect what your monthly Azure bill might be vs. using PaaS services? [33:27] Resources that Rob recommends listeners follow-up on to learn more about this topic! [35:50] Where to find Rob online and find him at upcoming conferences!   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) Windows Containers Rob Richardson’s BlogRob’s Twitter: @Rob_RichRichardson & Sons AZGiveCamp The Azure DevOps Podcast Ep. 10: “Talking Azure DevOps at the Microsoft Ignite Event 2018” ASP.NET Node Angular Vue Azure Kubernetes (AKS) Azure Container Instances (ACI) Azure Web Apps Docker Docker Hub Azure Container Registry Platform as a Service (PaaS) Rob’s upcoming presentations DockerCon   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

29 Apr 201938min

Today’s guest is Rockford Lhotka. Rocky is an open source architect, professional author, speaker, Microsoft Regional Director, MVP, and avid outdoorsman! He’s written numerous books on Visual Basic, C#, and CSLA .NET; and regularly speaks at major technical events.   Rocky has been a mover and shaker in this industry for a long time. He got started in the late 80s, jumped onto the Microsoft bandwagon, and has never looked back since. Most notably, Rocky is the the CTO of Magenic — the leading modern application development firm that addresses the toughest, most complex software development challenges and delivers results. He is also the creator of CSLA .NET, one of the most widely used development frameworks for Microsoft .NET.   This week, Jeffrey and Rocky are discussing software architecture. They discuss what Rocky is seeing transformation-wise on both the client side and server side, compare and visit the spectrum of Containers vs. virtual machines vs. PaaS vs. Azure Functions, and take a look at microservice architecture. Rocky also gives his tips and recommendations for companies who identify as .NET shops, and whether you should go with Containers or PaaS.   Topics of Discussion: [:48] About today’s episode and guest. [1:10] Jeffrey welcomes Rocky to the podcast. [1:57] Rocky introduces himself and gives a rundown of how he’s gotten to this point in time. [3:15] About Rocky’s popular open source library called CSLA now on .NET Core. [6:53] Where Rocky sees the client side transformation heading on the web. [16:34] Rocky’s recommendations (for companies who identify as .NET shops) to do today. [21:20] What Rocky is paying attention to on the server side transformation. [24:07] A word from The Azure DevOps Podcast’s sponsor: Clear Measure. [24:33] How Rocky views the spectrum of Containers vs. virtual machines vs. PaaS and Azure Functions? [26:10] Which is more forward-looking? Containers or PaaS? And if someone doesn’t understand either one and is just looking to modernize, which does Rocky recommend? [28:50] Does Rocky believe that 10 years down the line, a Linux format Container is going to become the defacto standard .NET Core package format? [30:30] Why Rocky (and many other developers) are looking to Linux from a Container perspective. [34:30] What does Rocky think a microservice is? And some of the problems with the current mixed definitions. [42:12] How many pipelines are really needed to maintain and operate this overall microservice architecture? [44:08] Resources Rocky recommends listeners follow-up on to learn more.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) Rockford Lhotka (LinkedIn) Magenic MVP Summit CSLA .NET WebAssembly Angular React Uno Platform Blazor Kubernetes Node Python PaaS Azure Functions Amazon Web Services (AWS) “Why Microservice is a Terrible Term,” by Rockford Lhotka Rockford Lhotka’s Blog NextGen Reader Gitter.im   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

22 Apr 201946min

This week Udi Dahan is joining The Azure DevOps Podcast! Udi is the founder of NServiceBus, the CEO of Particular Software, and Microsoft’s Regional Director. He is one of the world’s foremost experts on service-oriented architecture and domain-driven design.   He started programming when he was just 8 years old and got his first professional gig at 19 years old. Soon after, he got involved with .NET, then, a number of years later, became an independent consultant. Over the years, he saw that many of his clients were struggling with building their distributed solutions, and so he founded NServiceBus — “the most developer-friendly service bus for .NET.” Soon, that became part of a bigger project; his company, Particular Software.   In this episode, Jeffrey and Udi are discussing microservices and some of the trends, challenges, and problems in the software industry today. Udi gives his advice and recommendations to developers and teams on how to go about making decisions around microservices while giving examples of common mistakes and problems he often sees. He also gives advice on those looking to move forward with an existing legacy system they are trying to modernize as well as those who are looking to build something entirely new.   Topics of Discussion: [:38] Make sure to visit AzureDevOps.Show for past episode and show notes. You can also find the podcast on Twitter @AzureDevOpsShow. [:56] About today’s guest, Udi Dahan. [1:33] Udi explains his journey in the software industry up to present day. [6:36] What are microservices? And in the industry, what are some of the trends, challenges, and problems of today? [18:48] A word from The Azure DevOps Podcast’s sponsor: Clear Measure. [19:14] How big is a microservice? How does Udi recommend going about making decisions around them? What are some problems and mistakes he often sees? [25:18] Udi gives advice to developers and teams on how to move forward with an existing legacy system that they’re looking to modernize (or, if they’re in the midst of building something entirely new)… who do not want to end up with an inflexible, monolithic system! [39:40] Udi’s resources that he recommends listeners take advantage of! [40:44] Udi’s last pieces of advice. [42:00] What Udi recommends listeners follow-up on.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) Udi Dahan (LinkedIn) Udi Dahan’s Blog Twitter @AzureDevOpsShow NServiceBus Particular Software MVP Summit WCFRabbitMQ Azure Service Bus Amazon SQS .NET Rocks! Podcast Domain-Driven Design: Tackling Complexity in the Heart of Software, by Eric Evans Patterns of Enterprise Application Architecture, by Martin Fowler Eventual Consistency Loose Coupling   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

15 Apr 201946min

This week Jeffrey has a special episode for you all! It is recorded live, from the night before the Microsoft MVP Summit, at Jeffrey’s annual “Party with Palermo!” get-together for MVPs.   Jeffrey gives an introduction to a number of MVPs who are attending the conference and reconnects with friends and colleagues in the software industry — 19 to be exact! You’ll want to stay tuned for this one to learn about what they’re currently up to in the industry and what they’re most looking forward to at this year’s MVP Summit!   So what is the MVP Summit?   The MVP Summit is an exclusive multi-day MVP event that is hosted in Bellevue and at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington. It is an exclusive event for all active MVPs to have in-depth technical discussions and feedback sessions, combined with networking opportunities   Attending this conference are Microsoft’s Most Valuable Professionals. MVPs are technology experts who passionately share their knowledge with the community. They’re always on the bleeding-edge and have an unstoppable urge to get their hands on new, exciting technologies. They have very deep knowledge of Microsoft products and services, while also being able to bring together diverse platforms, products, and solutions to solve real-world problems. MVPs make up a global community of over 4,000 technical experts and community leaders across 90 countries and regions and are driven by their passion, community spirit, and quest for knowledge.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) MVP Global Summit Julie Yack Microsoft Dynamics 365 David Corbin Dynamics Concepts Development Corporation (David Corbin) Richard Hundhausen Accentient (Richard Hundhausen)   Jeff Fritz Jeff Fritz’s channel on Twitch: CSharpFritz Jeff Fritz’s Twitter: @CSharpFritz Jeff Fritz’s GitHub: @CSharpFritz JeffreyFritz.com (Jeff Fritz) Visual Studio channel on Twitch Microsoft Build Event 2019 Simon Timms The Azure DevOps Podcast episode 23: “Simon Timms on Azure Functions and Processes” Simon Timms Twitter: @STimms Simon Timms Blog: Blog.SimonTimms.com ASP.NET Monsters David Neal David Neal’s Twitter: @ReverentGeek David Neal’s GitHub: @ReverentGeek ReverentGeek.com (David Neal’s website) Philip Japikse SkiMedic.com (Philip Japikse’s Blog) Philip Japikse’s Twitter: @SkiMedic Philip Japikse’s Email: SkiMedic@Outlook.com The Dallas ASP.NET User Group (the user group Toi B. Wright runs) Toi Beveridge Wright Toi Beveridge Wright’s LinkedIn Toi Beveridge Wright’s Twitter: @MissToi Eric Smith CodeSmith Tools (Eric Smith) Exceptionless.com (Eric Smith) Blake Niemyjski Blake Niemyjski’s Twitter: @BlakeN Blake Niemyjski’s GitHub: @Niemyjski Jonathon “J” Tower Trailhead Technology Partners (Jonathon “J” Tower) J Towers’ Twitter: @JTowerMI Stack Overflow LinkedIn Learning Onion Architecture Damien ________’s Twitter: @Damien_BOD DamienBOD.com (Damien  ________’s website) Richard Campbell .NET Rocks! (Richard Campbell’s Podcast) RunAsRadio (Richard Campbell’s Podcast) Mike Benkovich BenkoTips.com (Mike Benkovich) Mike Benkovich’s Twitter: @MBenko Mike Benkovich on LinkedIn Learning Matthew Renze MatthewRenze.com (Matthew Renze) @AzureDevOpsShow on Twitter

8 Apr 201941min

Your host, Jeffrey Palermo, is excited to bring you this week’s episode with his guest, Ted Neward! Ted is an Independent Consultant and Architect, as well as a long-time columnist of CODE Magazine. He also teaches Android Development (using Java) and iOS Development at the University of Washington as a Guest Lecturer.   In this week’s episode, Ted and Jeffrey are going to be talking about the ‘Ops’ (AKA the operations) side of DevOps. They discuss how operations is implemented in the DevOps movement, the role of operations, how Dev and Ops should work together, what companies should generally understand around the different roles, where the industry is headed, and Ted’s many recommendations in the world of DevOps.   Topics of Discussion: [:44] About this week’s episode with Ted Neward. [1:55] About the MVP Global Summit in Ted’s hometown! [3:10] Ted’s take on how ‘operations’ is getting implemented in this DevOps movement. [9:48] Ted’s small tangent about the making of Office Space. [10:45] Ted’s thoughts on using the Cloud with operations. [12:35] Ted discusses the role of operations, gives a recent example from his position at Smartsheet, and compares Dev and Ops and how they should be working together. [21:14] Jeffrey and Ted discuss where the industry is headed, and the value of Ops. [27:10] What should companies and teams (QA, Devs, and Ops) know, put in place for their regular applications, and learn and understand around this space? [29:16] A word from The Azure DevOps Podcast’s sponsor: Clear Measure. [29:42] Jeffrey and Ted’s recommendations for mastering C# and .NET development, as well as Ted’s hopes for the future of coding schools and what developers should be taught. [34:49] Talking DevOps diagnostics and general rules of thumb for developer teams for configuring and building an effective enterprise system. [43:00] The benefit of including the Ops and the QA team as a part of the project discussions with the Dev team. [49:40] What Ted recommends listeners follow-up after today’s podcast. [52:08] Where to find Ted online.   Mentioned in this Episode: Azure DevOps Clear Measure (Sponsor) Ted Neward (LinkedIn) MVP Global Summit CODE Magazine iSchool at the University of Washington Office Space (Film, 1999) Smartsheet LinkedIn Learning CLR via C# (Developer Reference), by Jeffrey Richter CoreCLR page on GitHub Shared Source CLI Essentials, by David Stutz, Ted Neward, and Geoff Shilling Douglas E. Comer’s Amazon Book Page Richard Steven’s Amazon Book Page Advanced Programming in the UNIX Environment, by W. Richard Stevens and Stephen A. Rago The Azure DevOps Podcast episode: “Eric Hexter on DevOps Diagnostics” Effective Enterprise Java, by Ted Neward Windows Management Instrumentation The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master, by Andrew Hunt and David Thomas @TedNeward on Twitter Blogs.TedNeward.com Neward & Associates   Want to Learn More? Visit AzureDevOps.Show for show notes and additional episodes.

1 Apr 201954min