When? THURSDAY, February 21, 2008, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Where? Microsoft Canada, 1950 Meadowvale Blvd , Mississauga (north of 401 at Mississauga Road exit)
Is this meeting CATERED? NO.
6:00 p.m. - Meet and greet! Arrive early! Great Prize give aways!!
6:30 p.m. - Opening Remarks
6:40 p.m. - TOPIC: The .NET Skills Marketplace Today
Get some real world Toronto market industry data for what's hot and what's not in .NET. How do you stay up to date with the latest trends? What will make you most marketable and/or how does your current compensation stack up? And then HOW should you be marketing yourself? Finally, some of the considerations will be discussed for contract versus full time employment. Here is your chance to get all your questions answered from industry expert Drew Linsday.
7:00 p.m. - TOPIC: Power up your game development with XNA and TorqueX!
XNA is Microsoft's framework for platform independent game programming leveraging the power and flexibility of .Net 2.0. TorqueX is the professionally developed game engine from GarageGames that Microsoft arranged to be released free with XNA. This demo driven presentation will explain how all the bits fit together providing hobbyist and indie game programmers with a robust toolset comparable to what's used by the big game studios.
We will start with a quick exploration of the XNA programming model then dive right into several live examples of game development leveraging the added power of TorqueX. To conclude the session, we will review the online and offline resources available to help take your games to the next level!
This session will be fun and fast paced with lots of explosions peppered throughout. Bring your imagination; the next blockbuster game could be yours!
8:15 p.m. - Wrap up and Prizes!
BIO - DREW LINDSAY:
Drew Lindsay provides the overall strategic direction for GuruLink. In addition to developing new business, contract negotiation, training, marketing, and managing and delivering onsite recruitment services, Drew manages the development, implementation and support of GuruLink’s proprietary Applicant Tracking System, the GuruRMS. Drew graduated from Queen’s University in 1998 with a B.Sc. in Life Sciences. From an early age Drew worked in various capacities at family-run business, as well as several large, well-respected companies including CIBC, Addison Wesley Longman Publishing, eHarlequin and CSIO. Drew’s superior business expertise and quest to improve our service offering and quality of service has taken GuruLink to new heights. Drew’s interests include traveling, reading, and sports. His travels have taken him through Central America, North America, Europe and to Spain for language study. His interest in sports, particularly baseball led him to multiple city and provincial championships, as well as 3 major league baseball training camps.
BIO - JOSEF ROGOVSKY:
Josef Rogovsky is co-owner and General Manager of Lifeline Total IT Solutions, a Microsoft Certified Partner since 2000 and President of Sprite House Games, a new startup exploring opportunities in the "casual" video game sector. Industry experience includes: automotive, financial services, payroll/workforce management, high and low tech manufacturing, travel/tourism, property management, culinary education, camping/recreation, various not for profit/charitable organizations and, most recently, interactive digital media.
Having focused on the Microsoft .Net framework since its first release in 2002, Josef is passionate about architecting solutions that marry the power of .Net with a strong foundation in Computer Science theory. Josef specializes in designing and leading the implementation of complex multi-tiered "Enterprise class" development projects.
Some of the new tools and technologies that Josef is especially excited about include XNA/TorqueX, Visual Studio 2008, SQL Server 2008, ASP.Net/AJAX, Silverlight, WPF, Microsoft Robotics Studio and the .Net Micro Framework.
SPONSOR MESSAGE:
Navantis is very proud to sponsor the Toronto .NET User Group. We look forward to contributing to the .NET user dialogue and to sharing best practices and our development expertise with members. As a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and an award winning provider of premium IT professional services, Navantis designs, develops and deploys innovative business solutions developed using the .NET framework for some of North America's largest organizations including; Honda, CIBC, Microsoft, CBC, Magna Entertainment Corporation, The City of Hamilton and Allstate Insurance. Our mission is simple; to deliver exceptional client service and quality every step of the way. We are always seeking passionate, client-focused and exceptionally talented individuals who share our philosophy to join our team. Please visit us at www.navantis.com