My Toolbox column in the October 2009 issue of MSDN Magazine is available online and includes the following reviews:
- nukeationMachine - nukeationMachine is a Visual Studio Add In that streamlines implementing WPF, WinForms, and ASP.NET user interfaces. nukeationMachine includes 1,600 UI bits, which are common groupings of user interface elements, such as Ok, Cancel, Retry buttons. You can add any UI bit to a design surface with a click of the mouse and in a fraction of the time it would take to add and position each user interface element separately.
- Podcasts of Note: .NET Rocks - each week hosts Carl Franklin and Richard Campbell spend about an hour exploring a particular technology, product, or person of interest to the .NET community. Franklin and Campbell are both natural interviewers and do a great job picking the brains of their guests while maintaining a smooth and natural flow to the discussion. Listening to a .NET Rocks podcast is a lot like overhearing a conversation among experienced developers at a user group meeting or conference - you're bound to learn something new, hear an interesting anecdote or two, and discover how other knowledgeable developers are using .NET and related technologies in their daily jobs.
- Fluent NHibernate - NHibernate is a popular ORM for .NET whose relational to domain mapping is typically specified via XML. Fluent NHibernate is an open source library that enables developers to specify these mappings using a fluent interface, an API design style that aims at maximizing readability through the use of descriptive names and method chaining.
This issue reviewed The Nomadic Developer, by Aaron Erickson. An exerpt from my review follows:
If you currently work for a technology consulting company, or are weighing the pros and cons of doing so, then Aaron Erickson's book "The Nomadic Developer" is for you. ... [It] should be required reading for anyone currently seeking a job at a consulting company, especially those who have not previously worked as consultants. The book's second chapter, "The Seven Deadly Firms," describes seven dysfunctional traits that, if present, will negatively impact your time at the company. For each dysfunction, Erickson supplies a detailed description, explains what life is like at a consulting firm when that trait is present, and provides tips for spotting the dysfunction during a job interview. There are also chapters on the top 10 traits a technology consulting firm is looking for in applicants, and another chapter that suggests questions applicants should ask during the interview process.
Enjoy! - http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/ee309513.aspx
As always, if you have any suggestions for products, blogs, or books to review for the Toolbox column, please send them to toolsmm@microsoft.com.