Articles : Page 1 of 3
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Using an alternate JSON Serializer in ASP.NET Web API
Mar 1209The new ASP.NET Web API that Microsoft released alongside MVC 4.0 Beta last week is a great framework for building REST and AJAX APIs. I've been working with it for quite a while now and I really like the way it works and the complete set of features it provides 'in the box'. It's about time that Microsoft gets a decent API for building generic HTTP endpoints into the framework. DataContractJsonSerializer sucks As nice as Web API's overall design is one thing still sucks: The built-in JSON S...
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Scott Hanselman's 2011 Ultimate Developer and Power Users Tool List for Windows
Dec 1101Everyone collects utilities, and most folks have a list of a few that they feel are indispensable. Here's mine. Each has a distinct purpose, and I probably touch each at least a few times a week. For me, util means utilitarian and it means don't clutter my tray. If it saves me time, and seamlessly integrates with my life, it's the bomb. Many/most are free some aren't. Those that aren't free are very likely worth your 30-day trial, and perhaps your money. Here are most of the contents of my ...
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Using the West Wind Web Toolkit to set up AJAX and REST Services
Nov 1103I frequently get questions about which option to use for creating AJAX and REST backends for ASP.NET applications. There are many solutions out there to do this actually, but when I have a choice - not surprisingly - I fall back to my own tools in the West Wind West Wind Web Toolkit. I've talked a bunch about the 'in-the-box' solutions in the past so for a change in this post I'll talk about the tools that I use in my own and customer applications to handle AJAX and REST based access to servic...
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Microsoft dev stack vNext from Build
Sep 1115Unless you are living under a rock, you have probably heard that two days ago, at Build, Microsoft unveiled the new version of Windows, named Windows 8. Windows 8 This is revolutionary both from the consumers’ and developers’ perspectives. The UI is deeply based on the concept of the tiles of Windows Phone 7.5 “mango” and the Metro design language, and the API are now allowing applications to be written either in C#/C++ and the usual .NET/Win32, or using WinRT, basically an Object Oriented v...
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Learning about Progressive Enhancement - Supporting Mobile Browsers with CSS3 Media Queries
Aug 1125I blogged about how happy I've been working with designer Jeremy Kratz on my recent site redesign. We've been meeting lately about small improvements and tweaks. One of the core goals was to support many screen sizes from 30 down to a small smart phone screen. You can see the results on the right in a Windows Phone and iPhone. My team is doing a lot of work on Mobile lately, not just with things like jQuery Mobile and what that means not just for ASP.NET but the mobile web in general. We've...
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Studio for Wijmo MVC Review
Aug 1122I was recently asked to review Studio for Wijmo MVC by Component One and, overall, I am impressed. There are 2 major components of this. The first is Wijmo Complete which is a collection of over 30 UI widgets (very similar to jQuery UI). The second is Wijmo Scaffolding for MVC which builds upon the scaffolding that was released as part of the MVC 3 Tools Update (note: is does *not* build on top of powershell-based MVC Scaffolding which Microsoft released earlier this year). Some of the Wijmo...
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Text templating using Razor the easy way
Aug 1102As a web guy, I’ve slung more than my fair share of angle brackets over the tubes of the Internet. The Razor syntax quickly became my favorite way of generating those angle brackets soon after its release. But its usefulness is not limited to just the web. The ASP.NET team designed Razor to generate HTML markup without being tightly coupled to ASP.NET. This opens up the possibility to use Razor in many other contexts other than just a web application. For example, the help documentation fo...
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NuGet Package of the Week #9 - ASP.NET MiniProfiler from StackExchange rocks your world
Jul 1122I LOVE great debugging tools. Anything that makes it easier for me to make a site correct and fast is glorious. I've talked about Glimpse, an excellent firebug-like debugger for ASP.NET MVC, and I've talked about ELMAH, and amazing logger and error handler. Now the triad is complete with MiniProfiler, my Package of the Week #9. Yes, #9. I'm counting System.Web.Providers as #8, so phooey. ;) Hey, have you implemented the NuGet Action Plan? Get on it, it'll take only 5 minutes: NuGet Action...
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Windows Azure Accelerator for Web Roles
Jul 1113One of the questions I often get around Windows Azure is: “Is Windows Azure interesting for me?”. It’s a tough one, because most of the time when someone asks that question they currently already have a server somewhere that hosts 100 websites. In the full-fledged Windows Azure model, that would mean 100 x 2 (we want the SLA) = 200 Windows Azure instances. And a stroke at the end of the month when the bill arrives. Microsoft’s DPE team have released something very interesting for those situati...
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A first look at Windows Azure AppFabric Applications
Jul 1107After the Windows Azure AppFabric team announced the availability of Windows Azure AppFabric Applications (preview), I signed up for early access immediately and got in. After installing the tools and creating a namespace through the portal, I decided to give it a try to see what it’s all about. Note that Neil Mackenzie also has an extensive post on “WAAFapps” which I recommend you to read as well. So what is this Windows Azure AppFabric Applications thing? Before answering that question, le...
