One very exciting and often overlooked aspect of the Microsoft community in the NY/NJ area is the large number of events such as:
- User Group Meetings
- MSDN Events
- Technical Conferences
- and much more!
These in-person activities don’t just offer great opportunities to learn about technology but they also help build the kind of spirit that is often lost in our hectic day-to-day jobs. If I have learned anything over the last year it would be that with excitement for ones career and a sense of inspiration from others the possibilities are simply endless. You’ll loose weight, gain new friends, and increase your net-worth 120%. Ok, so I am exaggerating a little, but I hope you get the general idea!
So, what now?
Now that I have you all fired up about events you must be asking yourself, so where does one start? First I highly recommend getting to know your local Developer Platform Evangelist (DPE) blog that will put you in touch with what is going on locally. Peter Laudati is our local NY/NJ DPE and has two great posts on the subject of “August events”:
If you’re not in the local area then I highly recommend finding your local DPEwebsite or looking at more generic listing of events such as Community Megaphone which lists gatherings happening all over the United States.
September VSLive – Broklyn, NY
Also I would not overlook VSLive in Brooklyn, NY: http://vslive.com/2008/newyork/. This event will be covering a very large number of exciting topics and will feature some excellent speakers from both within Microsoft and other leaders in the field. Here are just some of the topics to be covered:
The event will also include some free activities in the evenings and I will keep you posted as that part of the event gets finalized.