Sketching is one of the best ways to convey ideas and concepts, and is best for idea persuasion. Below is a list of sketch icons and images I used previously in some presentations. These are my drawings where I used a simple tablet and Expression Design to draw and color. Enjoy!
Why XAML and Why SketchFlow for Prototyping–in Sketch!
No worries, no reading required. If you are wondering why Microsoft came up with XAML (the eXtensible Markup Language) with the release of .NET framework 3.0 – which included Windows Presentation Foundation and Silverlight – then this sketch will help you understand that in 14 mins. This is my try to explain the rational behind XAML and designer/developer concerns using a sketch. Also, it has a glimpse of why prototyping is important and how SketchFlow (which is part of Expression Blend) addresses this important stage of system and UX design and development.
This is part of a session I delivered in TechEd MiddleEast 2010 which you can watch in full here: Prototyping the UX: Expression Blend + SketchFlow.
شارك مايكروسوفت في فعاليات "أوبن دور ٢٠١٠"
شارك مايكروسوفت في فعاليات "أوبن دور ٢٠١٠" في المملكة العربية السعودية حيث سيفتتح الرئيس التنفيذي لشركة مايكروسوفت ستيف بالمر الحدث ويلقي الكلمة الرئيسية في الرياض بتاريخ ٢ نوفمبر الموافق ٢٥ ذو القعدة ١٤٣١.
شارك في حضور هذا الحدث المشوّق واكتشف كيفية الانتقال إلى الحوسبة السحابية واطّلع على أحدث تطوّرات تقنية المعلومات لدى مايكروسوفت. فعاليات "أوبن دور" هي فرصتك لتطوير مهاراتك التقنية والمهنية ولتعزيز التواصل مع العديد من خبراء تقنية المعلومات.
تفضّل بزيارة www.microsoft.com/saudi/about/opendoor للتسجيل* والحصول على المزيد من المعلومات حول الحدث.
مايكروسوفت المملكة العربية السعودية
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*يجب التسجيل عبر الإنترنت للتمكّن من حضور الحدث. |
Join us at the Microsoft Open Door 2010
Join us at the Microsoft Open Door 2010 event in Saudi Arabia, which will kick off in Riyadh on 2nd November with a keynote address by Microsoft’s CEO, Steve Ballmer.
Attend this exciting event and learn about the transition to Cloud Computing and the latest information on Microsoft’s technology roadmap. Open Door is an opportunity to advance your business and technical skills, and network with many IT professionals.
Visit www.microsoft.com/saudi/about/opendoor to register* and for more information on the event.
Microsoft Saudi Arabia
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![clip_image001[1]](http://aqahtani.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/clip_image00112.jpg?w=100&h=26 "clip_image001[1]"){kind=small}
*Please be advised that online registration is required in order to attend the event.
Know more about our sponsors here.
TechEd Middle East 2011 – Save The Date
Tech∙Ed Middle East returns to Dubai in 2011, March 8 – 10, for 3 full days of deep technical education, hands-on-learning and opportunities to connect with Microsoft and Community experts one-on-one.
Join the Tech∙Ed Middle East email list and be among the first to receive event announcements and notification when event registration opens.
Why attend Tech∙Ed?
Tech∙Ed provides the most comprehensive technical education across Microsoft’s suite of released, or soon to be released, products, solutions and services. Tech∙Ed is for IT professionals and developers who are involved in implementing, deploying or building solutions using Microsoft technologies.
InfoPath is native to XML – Building an XML Editor
Hello again, it’s been a busy time closing the year (I mean the fiscal for Microsoft). I have been off for a while, but I promise not to do that again – seems like another fake promise 
When we say that InfoPath is native to XML, we really mean it. One of the areas that some ignore about InfoPath is its ability to be an authoring tool for XML files. What do I mean by that? read on…
We’re establishing a solution for Sheraton Riyadh, where hotel guests can experience the new multi-touch experience of Windows 7 in an e-Concierge solution. The e-Concierge is basically a solution for guest relations to show hotel guests Points of Interests in Riyadh and surrounding area, with categories and mapping (using Bing Maps) functionality. The solution simply takes in an XML file with categories Points-of-Interest (POIs), like the below:
1: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><Categories xml:lang="en-us">
2: <Category id="1" title="Culture" color="#91c1bc" iconUrl="/Resources/cat-icon-culture.png">
3: <PointOfInterests>
4: <PointOfInterest>
5: <Title>Culture item 1</Title>
6: <ImageUrl> http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/1674416.jpg </ImageUrl>
7: <Latitude>0.43102538</Latitude>
8: <Longitude>0.81709864</Longitude>
9: <WebSiteUrl> http://www.google.com </WebSiteUrl>
10: <Description>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet sed diam nonummy nibh eui....</Description>
11: </PointOfInterest>
12: <PointOfInterest>
13: <Title>Culture item 2</Title>
14: <ImageUrl> http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/1674416.jpg </ImageUrl>
15: <Latitude>0.43402538</Latitude>
16: <Longitude>0.81409864</Longitude>
17: <WebSiteUrl> http://www.google.com </WebSiteUrl>
18: <Description>endrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat....</Description>
19: </PointOfInterest>
20: </PointOfInterests>
21: </Category>
22: <Category id="2" title="Restaurants" color="#9e7a78" iconUrl="/Resources/cat-icon-restaurant.png">
23: <PointOfInterests>
24: <PointOfInterest>
25: <Title>Restaurant item 1</Title>
26: <ImageUrl> http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/1674416.jpg </ImageUrl>
27: <Latitude>0.43102538</Latitude>
28: <Longitude>0.81709864</Longitude>
29: <WebSiteUrl> http://www.google.com </WebSiteUrl>
30: <Description>...</Description>
31: </PointOfInterest>
32: </PointOfInterests>
33: </Category>
34: <Category id="3" title="Transport" color="#a3b041" iconUrl="/Resources/cat-icon-transport.png">
35: <PointOfInterests>
36: </PointOfInterests>
37: </Category>
38: <Category id="4" title="Government" color="#e69553" iconUrl="/Resources/cat-icon-gov.png">
39: <PointOfInterests>
40: </PointOfInterests>
41: </Category>
42: </Categories>
The challenge now is that, Hotel IT need to author this file for the solution to pick up and plot on the map. Well, that’s not an easy task. We could do an authoring tool using the solution itself (which basically is based on WPF), but thought we can use a simpler version – InfoPath.
I asked the developer of the solution to give me a sample XML file, and the schema. I simply started InfoPath and started to design a new form by choosing (XML or Schema:
InfoPath will ask you a couple of questions to choose the XML and schema document, I did give it two files in the following order:
- XML Sample file – PointOfInterests.xml
- XML Schema file – PointOfInterests.xsd
It will also ask you if you want to load the sample data as part of the design, say yes to make it easy for changing the UI with real data.
Once done, you’ll be presented with any empty design and the following Fields (data source):
Before I proceed, let’s change the style of the form, by choosing layout template:
All you need to do is to drag the top element, and drop it on the design surface.
As you can see, InfoPath consulted the schema file, and inserted the data accordingly. What’s left is just styling the controls so they can look better and usable. I have inserted a couple of tables, and moved the controls and labels around. The final design is below:
If you fit F5 (or preview), you’ll see the following:
And that’s it. Once the author is done, filling up the fields and adding/deleting the points, he only needs to save, and an XML file will be the result.
I’m including all the files for your own testing, so feel free to download and improve: POIEditor.zip
Enjoy InfoPath, and remember that the fact that it’s XML-native.
WebsiteSpark – A program that offers visibility, support and software for professional Web Developers and Designers
WebsiteSpark is a program geared towards small web developer companies. The goal is to accelerate the speed of web development & help companies to get websites up and running by providing 3 years of free software, guidance and marketing to build your web properties.
What’s the catch? First, you have to be a small upstart company and there is criteria on what defines a small upstart – less than 10 people including owners. Secondly, since the program is geared towards building web businesses, you need show that you used the software for the purpose of building a website and if you don’t deploy a site within 6 months, there is a $100 withdrawal fee from the program. Aside from that, that’s it! I’m surprised more people aren’t taking advantage of it. You can even use the software for up to 2 additional people at your company besides yourself.
Even better, if you are a hoster or very well connected with web development companies, you can be a provider yourself (as a Network or Hosting Partner) – this makes you the go to source for people wanting to deploy web applications – this is especially useful for small hosting companies to gain a competitive edge. How? As a network partner, you receive marketing support directly from Microsoft & become listed in our catalog of partners as the choice go-to platform for companies looking to build a web presence.
WebsiteSpark is not just for ASP.NET Web Developers
Following up on my previous post about migrating from PHP on Linux to Windows, WebsiteSpark can also help ramp up PHP development companies. Here a few samples from MSDev- our portal for training partners.
WebsiteSpark: Get Web Apps like WordPress and Drupal Running Within Minutes!:
In this short video we will show you where to find and give an example of how to use the Windows Web Application installers for common apps such as Drupal and WordPress.
WebsiteSpark: Move an Existing LAMP Site onto Windows:
In this short session we discuss what resources you have available to help you transition existing LAMP sites onto the Windows Web platform.
Please, reach out to me in case you want to join WebsiteSpark as a web professional or as a network and I’ll be glad to help. My email address is aqahtani<at>microsoft<dot>com. For more information on WebsiteSpark, please visit the following link: WebsiteSpark Home
[this post is originally posted by Asli Belgin]
Sparklines in Excel 2010
Arabic video cast I have recorder to show how the amazing feature of Sparklines is used in Excel 2010. Sparklines are cell-bounded charts that show trends or value summaries in an effective way. Enjoy the video.
Sparklines in Excel 2010 from Abdurrahman on Vimeo.
Arabic video cast on how charts that fit in a cell, or what’s called SparkLines help identify trends and summarize data in an effective way.
فيديو بالعربي عن ميزة السبارك لاينز التي تساعد على اختصار البيانات على شكل رسوم داخل خلية واحدة في إكسل 2010
