Real World Minimal APIs

In .NET 6, Microsoft introduced us all to Minimal APIs. But, if you're like me, determining how (and if) to move from Controllers wasn't without some challenges. Since that initial release, some quality-of-life changes have come to make Minimal APIs a real option for building APIs with .NET.

In this talk, Shawn Wildermuth will show you how Minimal APIs work and some strategies for organizing and testing these new APIs

Getting Some of Nuxt without Using Nuxt

Nuxt is a powerful framework for Vue developers. Many new project opt to Nuxt as it comes with a lot of the features a new project might need. But for some projects, Nuxt is overkill.

But, what if I told you that you could get many of the benefits without having to rely on Nuxt? Let's see what plugins can help you get features like page-based routing, layout pages, auto registered dependencies and components. This talk may have everything you really want from Nuxt without the weight of the framework.

Demystifying Composables in Vue 3

As Vue has matured, many of us have moved from the Options API to Composition API. During that process, the Vue team and 3rd party plugins have realized that it might be useful to have something similar to `script setup` for other parts of the application. This is where Composables come in.

Understanding how Composables work and how to write them can be really useful in your own Vue projects. Let's see how they work!

Build a Web App with ASP.NET Core 8 and Vue 3

Building for the web can be daunting as there are so many different technologies to choose and integrate. Sometimes it's best to see how it all fits together. In this full-day workshop, Shawn Wildermuth will walk you through building a web app from file->new to completed project.

The topics covered include:

- What is ASP.NET Core
- Creating Your First Project
- Building the Data Model with Entity Framework Core
- Designing the API
- Securing the Web App
- Building the Client with Vue 3
- Integrating TailwindCSS
- Hosting Vue in ASP.NET Core

This workshop will build the project step-by-step (and you should be able to follow along). With eight hours, you will be presented with the smorgasbord of technologies that will give you the ramp up to using each of these technologies.

For the course, it is recommended that you bring a laptop with either Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code or Rider installed on the laptop. Please have the following installed as well:

- .NET 8 SDK
- Node.js LTS

This workshop cannot be taught in less than 8 hours. There isn't a shorter version of this workshop.

Nullable Reference Types: It's Actually About Non-Nullable Reference Types

Isn't `null` the bane of many of a developer's life? Working with nullable data has always required some amount of understanding this third state of data.

Recently, Microsoft introduced Nullable Reference Types to .NET developers and for many a long-term C# developer, the change was daunting. In recent iterations, Nullable Reference Types are now the default for new projects. But once you understand the reason to use Nullability, you'll see how it can simply your code and have to use less safeguards around your code. Instead of turning it off, let me show you why Nullable Reference Types exist and how they could make your code better.

Diversity for Better Software: Pragmatic Reasons to Have Diverse Teams

In my past three years, I’ve been investigating and interviewing a series of developers about the problems of diversity in software. Both women and people of color still represent a smaller share of developers than they should. In this keynote, Shawn will talk about pragmatic reasons to diversity and add inclusion to make software better, not just for the social justice reasons.

Design Your APIs First: Avoiding the Technical Debt of Cowboy API Design

Thinking ahead is one of the tenets of a good developer. But, we don't always have the time to plan well. When it comes to designing REST APIs, this is especially important as you'll be making decisions that you'll have to live with for a long time. Just striking forward, coding up your API is likely a mistake. Let's talk about what API design really encompasses.

In this talk, Shawn Wildermuth will design an API so you can see how REST really works and everything you need to consider before you deploy your first API.

All About C# Source Generators

If you're using modern .NET, you have undoubtedly heard about Source Generators. Source Generatators are powering a new way to create code with code. It's time you understand how they work.

In many cases, Source Generators are a better solution than using Reflection when speed, AOT builds, and better tooling for you development teams. The Roslyn source generators are a compelling way to write code while your users are writing their code. In this talk, Shawn will build a source generator from scratch to show you all the gory details.

Lock It Down: Using Azure Entra ID for .NET APIs and SPAs

.NET developers are thrown a lot of jargon when it comes to securing REST APIs: Identity, OAuth, JWT, OpenID, Cookies, and more. But for many of us, we just want a way to protect our Azure apps to well-known users inside and outside of our organization. That's where Azure Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) comes in.

What if I told you that it wasn't that hard? Would you really believe me? In this talk, I'll walk through adding Entra ID to a Vue App and the backend .NET API server.

Aging in Software Development

As I enter late middle age, I am starting to think about my role in software development. Questions like: "Am I as sharp as I used to be?", "Can I compete with younger developers?", and "Do I want to do more than coding?" haunt me. But I feel like I might be turning a corner to see how my experience can be an asset to any team. The trick might be just believing in my self.

In this talk, I'll talk frankly about what it is like getting older in tech. How can I future proof my life in this last chapter of my working life. And, how I can actually enjoy where I am at instead of just fearing the future.

This could be a session or a keynote.

Aspiring to Connect: Using Aspire to Orchestrate Connected Applications

When I heard about Aspire, it took me a while to really get my head around what the .NET team is trying to do. While there have been existing ways to deploy complex connected applications (e.g. microservices, serverless, hybrid, and modular monoliths) like Kubernetes, Docker Compose and Podman. These are all great to use, but are not that friendly to .NET developers. This is where Aspire attempts better enable you to make cloud native applications in a more comfortable environment.

In this talk, I'll add aspire to an existing application that uses a mix of .NET and non-.NET components to see how it works!