Desert Code Camp is coming up on Saturday June 13th. I’m pretty excited about this one because I’m going to present for the first time. I’m actually diving in deep because there are quite a few subjects that I want to speak about. The four sessions that I have proposed are below.

MVVM and WPF

This first session will introduce the Model-View-ViewModel pattern with regards to WPF. There’s another session that is going to deal specifically with Silverlight. The main features of MVVM for WPF versus Silverlight is that there are more built-in interfaces that provide additional functionality for supporting line-of-business applications. I’m going to cover data binding and command handling with ViewModels, notification chains between Models, ViewModels, and Views, and I’ll be introducing the concept of the collection view model. I’ll also show off some applications that use the pattern.

Developing Composite Applications

The second session will build on the Model-View-ViewModel pattern and will discuss how to build applications using Microsoft’s Composite Application Guidance, or Prism. I’ll specifically be demonstrating applications using Prism V2, but if you’re still using Prism V1, the ideas will still apply. I’ll explain about the architecture of composite applications and discuss strategies for building applications using the framework.

Debugging with Visual Studio

The third session will discuss advanced debugging techniques using Visual Studio. I’m planning on discussing how to configure Visual Studio’s debugger to download symbols and source code for the .NET framework, advanced breakpoints and trace points, debugger visualizers, the object test bench, and writing macros to automate many debugging tasks. If time allows, I’d like to discuss using remote debugging to debug a test application running in a Virtual PC instance.

Debugging Production Code using Debugging Tools for Windows

The fourth session will discuss advanced debugging using Microsoft’s Debugging Tools for Windows. Specifically, I’ll be spending a lot of time discussing PDB files, what they are, and what you do with them. I’ll be demonstrating how to build your own symbol library, how to add version control and source code information to your PDB files to support source debugging, and using mini-dumps and crash dumps to analyze problems in your code. I’ll be introducing you to the SOS extensions for WinDbg for debugging .NET applications. I’d also like to demonstrate remote debugging with a Virtual PC instance if time allows. I’ll have to see as I plan out the session.

I’m still debating whether to promote a fifth session about cloud computing. I’m not really sure yet. I’ll have to see how I feel about carrying four sessions.