If you’re interested in the Include method in a LINQ to Entities queries to be type-safe, then Joe Ferner has the answer for you in this post: Type-Safe Entity Framework Include: http://www.nearinfinity.com/blogs/joe_ferner/type-safe_entity_framework_inc.html

If you’re using Entity Framework Code First, then you may want to create an index on some of your table. The way to do this is to call “Database.ExecuteSqlCommand” in the “Seed” method of your database initializer. The sample below shows how it is done (thanks to Rolf for pointing me in the right direction):

            using System;

            using System.Collections.Generic;

            using System.Linq;

            using System.Text;

            using System.Data.Entity;

            using System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations;

            namespace CodeFirstPlayground

{

            class Program

  {

            static
            void Main( string[]
args )

    {

      Database.SetInitializer<CodeFirstSampleModel>( new CodeFirstSampleDbInitializer()
);

            using ( var model = new CodeFirstSampleModel()
)

      {

        var query = from c in model.Customers

            where c.Name != null

                    select c;

            foreach ( var item in query
)

        {

          Console.WriteLine( item.Name );

        }

      }

      Console.ReadLine();

    }

  }

            public
            class CodeFirstSampleModel
: DbContext

  {

            public CodeFirstSampleModel()

      : base( "CodeFirstSampleDB" )

    {

      Customers = this.Set<Customer>();

    }

            public DbSet<Customer> Customers
{ get; set; }

  }

            public
            class CodeFirstSampleDbInitializer
: DropCreateDatabaseAlways<CodeFirstSampleModel>

  {

            protected
            override
            void Seed(
CodeFirstSampleModel context )

    {

      context.Database.ExecuteSqlCommand( "CREATE
INDEX IX_Customer_Name ON Customers (Name) " );

      Customer c = new Customer()

      {

        Name = "Mark",

        LastOrder = DateTime.Now

      };

      context.Customers.Add( c );

            base.Seed( context );

    }

  }

            public
            class Customer

  {

    [Key]

            public
            int Id
{ get; set; }

    [Required]

    [MaxLength( 50, ErrorMessage = "Customer
name must be 50 characters or less." )]

            public
            string Name {
get; set; }

            public DateTime? LastOrder { get; set; }

  }

}

Just a quick service announcement:

Winxnet, in Portland, has started hosting the first Maine based SharePoint User Group.

For more information visit: www.winxnet.com/spugme

Just a quick service announcement:

Winxnet has started hosting the first Maine based SharePoint User Group.

For more information visit: www.winxnet.com/spugme

I’m honored to have been awarded the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional 2012 Award for contributions in the Visual C# technical communities. I’m honored to be counted amongst the 228 people world wide to receive this award.

“At Microsoft, we believe that technical communities enhance people’s lives and the industry’s success because independent experts, like you, help others extract greater value from products and technologies through the free and objective exchange of knowledge. As a Microsoft MVP, you are part of a highly select group of experts that represent technology’s best and brightest who share a deep commitment to community and a willingness to help others.”

    - Heather Kostes

Thank you Microsoft and thank you Heather! I’m looking forward to organizing more events again this year for the Maine Developer Network and hanging out with the Bangor Area .NET Developers and I’m looking forward to Maine Code Camp #3 and also to meeting my fellow MVPs and product groups in Seattle at the MVP Summit 2012.

- Mark

Sometimes you’re working on a website and you get some images with text in them, but no one remembers what fonts was used in the image. No fear! There is a website call “What The Font” that will take your picture and tell you what font was used: http://new.myfonts.com/WhatTheFont/

Silverlight 5 got released this weekend and can be downloaded here: http://www.silverlight.net/downloads.

Summary of the features

(from the Silverlight 5 download package)

Improved media support

• Low Latency Audio Playback
• Variable Speed Playback
• H/W Decode of H.264 media
• DRM Key Rotation/LiveTV Playback
• Application-Restricted Media

Improved Text support

• Text Tracking & Leading
• Linked Text Containers
• OpenType and Pixel Snapped Text
• Postscript vector printing
• Performance improvements for Block Layout Engine.
  
  

Building next-generation business applications

• PivotViewer
• ClickCount
• Listbox/ComboBox type-ahead text searching
• Ancestor RelativeSource Binding
• Implicit DataTemplates
• DataContextChanged event
• Added PropertyChanged to the UpdateSourceTrigger enum
• Save File and Open File Dialog
• Databinding Debugging
• Custom Markup Extensions
• Binding on Style Setters

Silverlight 5 performance improvements

• Parser Performance Improvements
• Network Latency Improvements
• H/W accelerated rendering in IE9 windowless mode
• Multicore JIT
• 64-bit browser support

Graphics improvements

• Improved Graphics stack
• 3D

"Trusted Application" model

• Multiple window support
• Full-Trust in-browser
• In-browser HTML support
• Unrestricted File System Access
• P/Invoke support

Tools improvements

• Visual Studio Team Test support

The next Maine Developer Network meeting will be in Augusta on Wednesday November 16th, starting at 9:00am finishing at 12:00 pm.

It is going to be a unique event about Windows Azure: "Playing Games in the Cloud" and will be hosted by Jim O'Neil, Microsoft Developer Evangelist. It will be more of a workshop than just presentation, so bring your laptop and make sure it is prepped to for the class.

For more info see: www.maine-devnet.org

The next Maine Developer Network meeting will be in Augusta on Wednesday November 16th, starting at 9:00am finishing at 12:00 pm.

It is going to be a unique event about Windows Azure: "Playing Games in the Cloud" and will be hosted by Jim O'Neil, Microsoft Developer Evangelist.

Here is a chance to learn about AND apply your Windows Azure skills during one of our events so nring your laptop (Windows Vista or Windows 7)*. Make sure to:

1. Install Visual Studio 2010 Pro (or higher) or Visual Web Developer Express 2010 (a free download)

2. Install the Windows Azure SDK (http://bit.ly/SDK4Azure)

3. Provision a Windows Azure trial account (http://bit.ly/Trial4Azure) – see the Channel 9 video for a walkthrough (http://channel9.msdn.com/posts/RockPaperAzure-Azure-Trial-Offer)

If you have questions or problems installing items, contact Jim at jim.oneil@microsoft.com. We’ll cover the rest at the meeting.

By now you’ve heard about Windows Azure, Microsoft’s Cloud Computing platform, but perhaps you haven’t yet kicked the tires and tried it out yourself. Well, here’s your chance. With this session on the RockPaperAzure Challenge, you’ll get an overview of the Windows Azure Platform and have a chance to try it out in a fun (and potentially profitable) way – by playing a variation of the playground favorite - Rock, Paper, Scissors - in the cloud!

Door prizes will be awesome: There’s a Kinect, Visual Studio 2010 license, and a $50 Best Buy gift card – so get ready to Rock (PaperAzure)!

*If you don’t have Windows Vista or Windows 7, don’t let that stop you from coming! You’ll still be able to participate, we just may buddy you up with someone!

Location:

Room 103

111 Sewall Street

Augusta, ME

Free pizza and soda will be provided by Microsoft, starting at 12:00 pm. Please RSVP via http://www.maine-devnet.org/Home/SignUpForEvent.aspx.

Richard Blewett reminded me that the XmlReader.ReadSubtree method makes it even easier to use LINQ to XML with a streaming approach. The code sample below will load nodes from an arbitrary XML files and yield them to the caller as they’re read from file:

            static IEnumerable<XElement> Load(string filename, string elementName)

{

    XmlReaderSettings settings = new XmlReaderSettings();

    settings.IgnoreWhitespace = true;

            using (XmlReader reader = XmlReader.Create(filename,
settings))

    {

            while (reader.ReadToFollowing(elementName))

        {

            // build element from subtree
          

            XElement element = XElement.Load(reader.ReadSubtree());

            yield
            return element;

        }

    }

}

I just rediscovered this blog post about reading and parsing XML as it becomes available in conjunction with LINQ to XML: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/xmlteam/archive/2007/03/24/streaming-with-linq-to-xml-part-2.aspx

It’s a little dated, but still relevant .

Just came across this great picture of what’s new in .NET Framework 4.5 (click for larger version):