Debugging Complex Classes with the [DebuggerDisplay] Attribute

Here's a scenario I ran into just last week. I was working on some code to edit PowerPoint PPTX files using C# and the OpenXML libraries. If you've ever tried using them before, you know that the OpenXML libraries are impossibly complex and nearly impossible to understand. And as much as I might have wanted to keep my code simple, I was losing and the complexity was growing.

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Posted by Benjamin Day on 10/17/20240 comments


Integration Testing in ASP.NET Core with WebApplicationFactory

Integration testing is a crucial step in ensuring that your application behaves correctly when different components interact with one another. In ASP.NET Core, the WebApplicationFactory<TEntryPoint> class makes it easier to test your web applications by allowing you to spin up an instance of your app in-memory and run integration tests against it.

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Posted by Benjamin Day on 09/23/20240 comments


Curvey Stone Steps Graphic

Cross-Platform Readiness, Straight from the Experts

In today's diverse development landscape, cross-platform readiness isn't just a nice-to-have -- it's a necessity. Developers are increasingly tasked with ensuring their applications run smoothly across multiple operating systems and environments. Python and Blazor, both designed with cross-platform capabilities in mind, are indispensable tools in a modern developer's toolkit.

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Posted on 09/12/20240 comments


Building Applications with the Modern SQL Using AI and Microsoft Fabric

Devs surely do still love their SQL, but Microsoft executives are touting what they call "modern SQL" for building applications using the latest and greatest data technologies.

So what are those technologies that provide a new take on your beloved and familiar SQL? You start off with, of course, AI, specifically generative AI -- Copilots at Microsoft -- that has transformed software development along with the rest of IT. Then, being firmly in the Microsoft development camp, you add Microsoft Fabric, which is an end-to-end analytics/data platform that encompasses data movement, processing, ingestion, transformation, real-time event routing and report building.

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Posted by David Ramel on 07/08/20240 comments


Getting Started with GitHub Copilot Chat

Hey Y'all! VSLive @ Microsoft HQ is happening the first week of August. While I won't be there, my good friend Brian Randell will, and he has a couple of Copilot sessions you won't want to miss. One of the things I'm betting will come up in those sessions is GitHub Copilot Chat.

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Posted by Mickey Gousset on 06/24/20240 comments


Monorepos: Are They a Good Thing?

In the world of software development, managing source code effectively is crucial for the success of projects, especially as they scale. One of the most important decisions teams must make is how to structure their codebase: using a monolithic repository (monorepo) or multiple repositories (multirepo).

This article explores the advantages and disadvantages of adopting a monorepo, with a focus on how platforms like GitHub and Azure DevOps support this model.

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Posted by Mickey Gousset on 05/23/20240 comments


Getting a Grip on Dependency Injection

.NET supports the Dependency Injection (DI) software design pattern, which Microsoft describes as a technique for achieving Inversion of Control (IoC) between classes and their dependencies, such that components receive their dependencies from an external source (usually a framework or container), allowing the caller to provide necessary dependencies rather than the component creating them internally.

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Posted by David Ramel on 05/21/20240 comments


How To Harness AI from the Command Line

Back in January, I predicted this would be the year of AI. In February I gave you an introduction to GitHub Copilot. Now, with the general availability release of GitHub Copilot in the CLI, you can have all the power of AI and GitHub Copilot while never having to leave the safety of your command line.

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Posted by Mickey Gousset on 04/25/20240 comments


Upgrade Your Git Game in Visual Studio 2022

It only takes 20 minutes to upgrade your Git game in Visual Studio 2022, and Jessie Houghton, Visual Studio Program Manager at Microsoft, will show you how at the August 5-9 Visual Studio Live! developer conference being held at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash.

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Posted by David Ramel on 04/18/20240 comments


Managing Dependencies in Your Codebase: Top Tools and Best Practices

As software projects get more complex, managing dependencies becomes an increasingly critical task for developers. Dependencies, the external packages or libraries that your project relies on, can significantly impact your application's security, maintainability and compatibility. This is particularly true in the .NET ecosystem, where projects often rely on a vast array of NuGet packages.

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Posted by Mickey Gousset on 03/26/20240 comments


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