The Benefits of .NET University

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Robin highlights some of the great stuff that comes out of running and attending a .NET University:

The Roanoke Valley .NET User Group (RV.NUG) is using .NET University for their September meeting.  We had to make a few adjustments from the normal monthly meeting but it has received great reviews and benefits.  Check out .NET U here.  A big thank you to the .NET U Team for providing us with an easy way to grow the User Group.

ATTENDEE BENEFITS:

  • Separate presentations on an introduction to each component of the .NET 3.0 Framework: Windows Communication Foundation, Windows Presentation Foundation, Windows Workflow Foundation and CardSpace.
  • Really cool PowerPoint slides (animation was especially cool).
  • Hands-on-lab for each of the components that can be completed in 30 minutes.  The labs are simple, but you can quickly see how easy it is to use the 3.0 Framework.
  • FREE T-Shirt and certificate :)

RV.NUG BENEFITS

  • Maintain  current members by providing a  totally different meeting format and an opportunity to work in Visual Studio for members that have not convinced their employer that .NET Rocks.
  • Recruit new members.  We had 7 - SEVEN - attendees that had never been to a UG meeting before!
  • Increased involvement of current members.  The .NET University had slide decks with notes and a prepared lab.  We were able to recruit a different member to present each topic. 

MODIFICATIONS TO THE UG MEETING FORMAT

  • Worked with a local community college.  Not only did they provide a lab, they created virtual machines and loaded all the workstations - BIG THANKS to Gilbert at Virginia Western Community College.
  • Scheduled two meetings for the month.  The first one occurred on our regularly scheduled night (Topics of WCF and WF).  The second occurred one week later (WPF and CardSpace).
  • Extended our normal meeting length from 2 hours to 3 hours.  We started 30 minutes early and ran 30 minutes late (we always run late anyway).
  • Obtained names and T-shirt sizes on night 1.  This made it easy to submit T-shirt sizes and have them for "graduation"

If you haven't checked out the .NET U site, you should. As my colleague Doug Turnure (who came up with the whole idea) just announced, they've added BizTalk courseware to the .NET U repertoire. So now there's even more reason to jump on the .NET U bandwagon. Coming soon will be Sharepoint and Silverlight materials...so stay tuned!

.NET University - Night 1

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