First, I'd like to apologise for not updating my blog for just over a month now. It's been a very busy time for me with work and lecturing a course (which is what this blog post is about). I plan to continue updating my blog at least once a week from now on regardless of how busy my life gets. 

Well, as I've already indicated, I've been lecturing on a topic of Windows Forms Development in .Net 2.0 at the UTS (University of Technology Sydney) for just over a month. This is something that I've never done before....lecturing in front of 25+ students and all of whom I see as my peers. It was and still is a daunting task to get up in front of this class and talk.

The first night was quite a buzz but it wasn't like that for the entire night. At the start of the session I was so nervous that I was having difficulty talking due to my mouth being so dry. After about 30 mins. I began to realise that the people I was talking to were actually listening to me and that I was 'meant' to be there for them to listen to. It was the revalation that I needed for me to start to relax.

Yes, after that first 30 minutes of stressfully forcing out my words I began to relax. I can tell you that the first 30 minutes felt like hours and looking directly at the faces listening to me wasn't helping. Eventually I noticed that some of those faces were nodding, some had puzzled looks about them and others were just listening....just listening. It was then that I understood that I was simply talking and passing on knowledge to others prepared to listen. I began to look at each of those faces as individuals instead of as a crowd. What I mean is that each face I saw was to me a single person that I was having a conversation with (a one-on-one chat with a co-worker). I started directing my words to just a couple of people and that really helped me to focus and relax. As the night progessed I expanded my horizons by including many more faces into the conversation. By the end of the night the students were asking some really great questions and it was a great feeling to be asked those questions and even better to be able to answer them. I was on a high by the end of the night and was really looking forward to next week's session (could this be my True Calling?). To date I have lectured only 6 classes and each time I have had some initial jitters but nothing like the first night. I have found each subsequent class easier to do and each experience has been unique and enjoyable.

Each session has required me to do A LOT of study and research into what the lecture is going to be about. It's not that I don't know anything about the topic itself but more of a refresher and surprisingly, during these periods of study, I too learn a great deal more. Researching a topic, especially one that you already know quite well, can be very eye-opening as more and more people write their experiences up on the web.

The course has so far covered topics including ClickOnce, Security, Threading, Better Forms Design, ADO, Inheritance, Classes and DataBinding. There are actually two parts to this course so that not only Windows Forms is covered but also Web Forms. Windows Forms is covered by myself and Web Forms is covered by a fellow work colleague. I'll be attending the Web Forms lectures to assist in the practical lab when students need a hand. It'll also give me an opportunity to brush up on my Web Forms development skills

In addition to the Windows Forms lectures I'll be assisting with other lectures or filling in for someone when required. So far, I've only had to cover for one other lecture about SQL Server 2005 Full Text Searching.

I hope that what I've written here helps you to overcome your own fears about standing up in front of a group of people (it that's what you're here for). I can tell you that I plan to continue lecturing whenever the opportunities present themselves.

Until next time....

Since I'm going to make myself known to the WWB I might as well let you know where I am, what I do and why I do it.

First, Where Am I?
I am in Sydney, Australia. It's a nice enough place with plenty to do and no time in which to do it. Before living here in Sydney I was located in Adelaide also in Australia. I grew up in Adelaide and then grew up again in Sydney. Adelaide is like one big country town and is generally quiet. Sydney on the other hand is constantly go go go! When I say that I grew up a second time in Sydney it isn't much of an exaggeration. If you've ever lived in the country where it's peaceful and quiet and then moved into a city where it's constantly 'alive' with activity then you'll have an appreciation of what I'm saying. But then some of you might even consider Sydney to be a big country town too in comparison to where you live and/or work in the world.

What Do I Do?
I'm currently a senior software developer for a transport company. This company is using a database called UniVerse and it's their primary database for the moment. Recently the company has started migrating the database and its application over to SQL Server 2005 and .Net. I've been developing in .Net 2.0 for over 2 years now and prior to that I was cutting code in VB. My main role now is developing a .Net application to replace the existing legacy application and to also maintain the company's web site. It's been quite a challenge so far I must say as getting the data out of UniVerse is not an easy task. For the moment, two databases have to be maintained until the .Net application is completed. So data is required to be sent between the two databases and this is where the challenge is.

Why Do I Do It?
Simply put 'I enjoy programming'. I consider myself lucky in that I am able to work in a field that I really enjoy doing both as a profession and as a hobby. I've been programming ever since I was 12 years old.

Well, I hope that this gives you a tiny glimpse into where I am and what I do. Sometime in the future I plan evolve into .Net 3.5 but for the moment it can wait.

Hello and welcome to the first of many blogs from me.....hopefully.

I've spent many hours reading through other bloggers ramblings and a lot of it is interesting, informative and on occassion thought provoking. My intention with this blog is not to compete with the wealth of good blog material already being amply provided but, to simply 'speak' my mind and where possible provide an insight into the revelations I get now and then in my life as a software developer.

So where to begin? Well, for me this is easy and it's really a big THANK YOU to team that has made this blog possible at all. I'm referring to the team that is responsible for BlogEngine.NET without which, this blog will not have been born. If you're thinking about developing a blog engine of your own (like I was doing and not getting anywhere fast) then I highly recommend checking out BlogEngine.NET. It's almost painless to install and setup and you can be up and running within a couple of hours - including the time it takes to learn the ins/outs of the admin pages!

Blogging was something that I just couldn't quite get my head around. I didn't understand the point in people filling up the Internet (that's a joke BTW) with ramblings about, well, nothing. It just didn't make any sense! One day I was introduced to a couple of blogs by some friends of mine and I decided to sit down and read through a couple of postings. After a short while I realised that I was wanting to read more. It was then that I finally understood that not everyone in the blogging world has pointless, mindless ramblings about Britney Spears and how she's '...done it again...'

This revelation occurred about a year ago. Now that I'm enlightened with the world of blogging I feel that I too may have something to contribute from time to time. If anything that I post is of some benefit to anyone out there then great! If no-one ever finds and reads this blog then it doesn't matter as I'll then have a kind of diary that may come in handy later on.

So until next time....