ASP.NET
Introducing Practical .NET
Peter Vogel signs off on his last Practical ASP.NET column, as he shifts focus to a new column, called Practical .NET, addressing broad .NET development.
This is the last Practical ASP.NET column, but just the beginning for some exciting news things going on at Visual Studio Magazine. I've had a ball writing this column for the last two and half years. In the process of writing it (and thanks to the many readers who've taken the time to comment) I've learned a lot, too -- always the best part. It's also been cool to see how popular that column has been.
Along the way I've always tried to stay true to this column's mandate: ASP.NET and nothing but ASP.NET. And, with a few digressions (hem-hem), I've managed to stay true to that. The problem is that there is so much cool .NET stuff to talk about that isn't ASP.NET-specific that I couldn't include it in the column. As a writer, that drives me nuts. When I think that I know something and can't tell anybody about it, I get frustrated.
Just to pick one example: LINQ. This is a powerful technology but I keep running into developers who haven't started using it yet. However, since LINQ isn't ASP.NET-specific, as far as the Practical ASP.NET column went, I had to keep my mouth shut.
You can imagine the pain.
Broader Pastures
So, I'm moving on to a new column, called Practical .NET, which looks at all things .NET-related. Beyond any benefits for me, this change will let Visual Studio Magazine get a little more diversity out of the space that I occupy: it won't just be ASP.NET all the time. Visual Studio Magazine readers use a lot of different technologies and I'll be able to address all of them.
The column's format is also getting some restructuring. Practical ASP.NET usually appeared on the VSM Web site four times per month, but Practical .NET will appear online every other week. However, I am also writing a version of Practical .NET in each issue of the print magazine. These print columns are two or three times longer than my Web explorations, so there will still be plenty to go around. Of course, articles published in the print issues of Visual Studio Magazine are available on the Web site. Look for April's issue, which will feature my inaugural Practical .NET column for print, to appear on the first of the month. And not surprisingly, I'll be looking into LINQ.
Finally, I offer two words for ASP.NET developers: Don't panic! The bread-and-butter for my consulting practice remains ASP.NET, so there will still be lots of ASP.NET content. I suspect that at least one of the two online columns every month will be ASP.NET related.
I'm looking forward to this. I hope you are, too.
About the Author
Peter Vogel is a system architect and principal in PH&V Information Services. PH&V provides full-stack consulting from UX design through object modeling to database design. Peter tweets about his VSM columns with the hashtag #vogelarticles. His blog posts on user experience design can be found at http://blog.learningtree.com/tag/ui/.