I enjoy working with two monitors. As a programmer, I always need multiple applications open, and while Windows gives us a convenient Alt-Tab shortcut to switch between windows, sometimes it’s easier to just look between two different monitors.

In this article from Microsoft at Home, the author walks you through the process to set up a second monitor on your system.

Have a look at the full article. If you need help, Dash Technical Solutions is available. Give us a call!

Two monitors are better than one

From Microsoft at Home, another very useful article for simple ways you can improve the reliability of your wireless netowrk. And these tips for for home as well as office. The tips are:

1. Position your wireless router (or wireless access point) in a central location
2. Move the router off the floor and away from walls and metal objects (such as metal file cabinets)
3. Replace your router's antenna
4. Replace your computer's wireless network adapter
5. Add a wireless repeater (maybe you have a BIG house…)
6. Change your wireless channel
7. Reduce wireless interference
8. Update your firmware or your network adapter driver
9. Pick equipment from a single vendor
10. Upgrade 802.11b devices to 802.11g (g stands for GOOD…)

I suggest heading over to the site to read up on the details of these tips.

10 tips for improving your wireless network

Sketchflow is a wonderful tool from Microsoft for prototyping websites and web applications. It is built on top of Expression Blend, part of the Microsoft Expression Studio. From the article:

…SketchFlow is part of Microsoft’s Expression Studio range of design tools. After a lackluster history with design tools, Microsoft seems to be finally getting their act together with Expression Studio (disclaimer: I’ve previously worked at Microsoft). Expression Studio is up to its third release and comprises four or five products depending on how you count them:

• Expression Blend: For building user interfaces for Silverlight, Windows, and Surface.

• Expression Blend SketchFlow (part of Blend): For prototyping user interfaces.

• Expression Web: For building user interfaces for web standards.

• Expression Design: For creating graphic assets for the Web or Silverlight, Windows, and Surface.

• Expression Encoder: For preparing video assets for the Web or Silverlight, Windows, and Surface.

This article walks the reader through how to rapidly prototype a web application using SketchFlow. I suggest heading over to the site and reading the full article. And be sure to read to the bottom of page 2 for some great links to other SketchFlow resources… Now to fire up Blend and give this one a try!

Rapid Prototyping with SketchFlow

I found this posted over on TheServerSide.NET. Yes, it’s a couple of years old now, but it's still a good resource if you are not up to speed on LINQ (like me). It consists of a series of links (no pun intended) to a variety of resources, including word docs, webcasts, code samples, etc.

From the site:

Language changes are a two-edged sword, as learning cuts into your time but sharpens and future-proofs your skills. Some new features are minor and can be gradually integrated into your routine, while others quickly impact your approach to coding.

LINQ (Language Integrated Query) is a set of .NET framework extensions that will definitely impact how C# and VB developers work with data in the future. These extensions provide a way to natively query any type of data without having to resort to other languages such as SQL or XQuery.

This learning guide provides a quick look at the LINQ extensions and the upcoming release of C# 3.0 in general.

Table of Contents

• General information
• Articles
• Webcasts
• Downloads
• Code Samples
• Community

Click on over to the original article for all the LINQ goodness!

Enterprise .NET Community: C# 3.0/LINQ Learning Guide

I love productivity… I find myself constantly striving to increase mine. This article from Microsoft at Work gives you tips and tricks to be more productive in Windows… who couldn’t use that? The tips include:

• Printing from Windows Explorer
• Pinning programs to the start menu (one of my favorites)
• Using small icons on your start menu
• Searching for files in a folder
• Sending an email attachment from anywhere on your computer

I suggest hitting the site to read the full details of how to do each one of these. It’s a good read, and worth the time.

5 productivity tips for Windows

Good podcast from Microsoft.

Find more great podcasts from Microsoft at: http://www.microsoft.com/events/podcasts/