I need your help!

I need everybody's help. I need people to look at the announcement on the Cloud storage task, I need people to actually do this. It will only take a few minutes to do two of the activities, and I need to get a lot of people to do these. I need *you* to do them. it will take more time to watch the video than to do the activities. See the announcement in this forum, or go to http://www.codeguru.com/azure_activities/ and see the information there.

Please take a look and try the first couple of activities.

Brad!

submitted comment(s)

David -

Did you submit an activity?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dglienna

submitted comment(s)

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not yet. watched at silly o clock last night

Didn't see how to submit for Activity #1

Also: video stops at 43 minutes in. Audio continues

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dglienna

not yet. watched at silly o clock last night

Didn't see how to submit for Activity #1

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Activity 1 is just to watch the video. No other things needed in there.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dglienna

Also: video stops at 43 minutes in. Audio continues

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I haven't had any issues with neither audio nor video. Perhaps your media player needs updating.

OK, this is a separate post ( that is why I posted 2 times ).

I did the activities and they were actually quite fun to do :)

Activity 1 shows you a great video concerning the cloud, and specifically storing data in the cloud. For those not knowing what the cloud is, do not be afraid, as it is very very easy.

All you need to do beforehand is to get the Free Trial of Windows Azure. You can get it here :

http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/pricing/free-trial/

You will need either VS 2012 For Web, or VS 2013 For Web. You can find them here :

http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/downloads/?sdk=net

This will also give you the very nice SDK - and all of us should know the value of the SDK.

This whole process didn't take me long to do - that includes obtaining the free trial and downloading VS For web

When starting this activity, I had to register with developer.com - that is just a little form that I had to fill in, and then I could start with the activities.

After that was done, the real fun started!

I followed the steps as outlined in the Video ( Activity 1 ) to create my data sources. Windows Azure is very simple to use, and setting up three data storage facilities took me about 10 minutes - that includes the creation of the fields and storing the info. I followed the instructions on the video ( activity 1 ) verbatim, and I submitted it through this page :

http://www.codeguru.com/azure_activities/#activity_2

Then I did the third Activity

Because I already played around with creating data storage facilities I was half-way through the third activity.

I then created the Activity 3 Service project, and published it.

The only thing that takes long about this is the fact that it takes some time to get published and created on Windows Azure. It took about 10 minutes for me ( my internet is slow in South Africa )

I then submitted Activity 3.

Please people there is nothing to be afraid of, it is easy! If I can do it, anyone can!

Now I can use all these badges :

Attachment 31975 Attachment 31977Attachment 31979 Attachment 31973

But the sign in page says Please enter valid credit card information for identity verification purposes only. Your credit card will not be charged for this offer unless you explicitly remove the spending limit. What is the meaning of this?

Where, on the Microsoft site?

It does ask for credit card info, it makes a temporary charge with a code. This code is needed ( unfortunately ) in order to proceed. They do refund you. I promise. The trial period ends in 30 ( I think ) days, and if you choose not to extend the offer, Microsoft leaves you alone.

Does that help?

I had to enter the CVV code too , I think they will draw money when they need...How to scrap this after downloading azure?

Hopelessly, It needs Windows 8 or later Operating system, I am & always will be using XP.

It is not wise putting some of your card details into a public forum.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dsrahul

I had to enter the CVV code too , I think they will draw money when they need...How to scrap this after downloading azure?

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Where are you now? Are you downloading Azure? You do not need to, as the services will be available to you. MS just made sure that you are in fact a living person. The 3 digit number they have put on your account must be used to activate your Azure account. Afterwards you will have access to everything needed ( in Azure ) for your data etc.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dsrahul

Hopelessly, It needs Windows 8 or later Operating system, I am & always will be using XP.

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No, they do not. I have Windows 7 on my work PC, and as I mentioned in an earlier post, all that is needed is VS 2012 or 2013. If you use 2012 you should have at least Windows 7. VS 2013 You should have at least Windows 8 or 8.1

Attachment 31999VS2012 & VS2013 I have downloaded them both, but It says Requires Windows 8 or higher!!!
I am sending you the Picture.

The Credit card details were not at all posted.I had X'd the number,The CVV number they wanted is the Main Security number of my Card, till now the money did not refund back, $10 is not a joke.

East or West XP is the best.!!!

I have to callup My Credit Card department & dispute the Issue, I think My Card company will not accept my request,coz I punched in the CVV number of my card to get that proceed. So stupid of me.

Attachment 31999VS2012 & VS2013 I have downloaded them both, but It says Requires Windows 8 or higher!!!
I am sending you the Picture.

Are you still using XP? Read post #11.

I am still using XP, I love it , Its remarkable & Excellent!

Hannes
Please help me with the Thread I posted today.
Thanks
Rahul

Your last post doesn't belong in this thread.

You're running XP, so there is your problem ( for this thread ).

Ok, I understood, I can not accept new stuffs at the age of 47 !!
any way my last post is here

HTML Code:

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http://forums.codeguru.com/showthread.php?540711-Help-wanted!!

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by dsrahul

But the sign in page says Please enter valid credit card information for identity verification purposes only. Your credit card will not be charged for this offer unless you explicitly remove the spending limit. What is the meaning of this?

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This is a part of the sign up for Azure. I'm not exactly sure why Microsoft asks for a credit card, but there might be an FAQ on that somewhere. I'd speculate that it shows you are a real person and it shows you have the potential intent to possibly use this in the future.

What I do know is that when you set up an account, it defaults to no billing. This means that even though you entered a credit card, you will not be charged unless you make an actual change to your account saying you can be billed. What will happen when you go over your allotted 'free' trial is that the account will disable until you either turn on the credit card or until another free credit (MSDN subscribers get monthly credit) happens.

As Hannes said, you have to enter a credit card, but nothing gets billed to it without you telling them later that they can.

Brad!

Dear Brad, Hi,
I did not opt for billing me or even allowed then to charge me, I just logged into live.com account then there was a message saying fillup your details & on the 3rd or 4th process Credit Card was required that message was also there under tiptool.
I ,seeing everything is fine, & thot no harm in trying for 30 days, I entered the Credit Card details,immediately it asked for CVV number which means that they want to do transaction,I also read the message that they will not charge anything from my card.
But, after the CVV number was typed, a transaction of $10 was done !!! That's a big money, I could not stop the transaction from CC Company as because I had typed the Secure Transaction Code(CVV). Till this time of writing there was no refund but, A Lady called up from USA Saying She is from Azure Microsoft..The number says:+1(678)905-2217 GA,USA, She thanked me for downloading Azure & wished me happy Trial of the same software,When I told her that why that money was taken, she said we will keep that money till the evaluation ends!!!
Regards
Rahul
That is why I posted the Credit Card details in the thread masking my number.

Dear Citibank Cardmember,

Thank you for banking with Citibank.

We are pleased to provide you details pertaining to your Citibank Credit Card Account.
10.00 USD was spent on your Credit Card XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX on 01-NOV-13 at MSFT *ONLINE.Final FX rates and charges are applicable.
Get your latest statement related information by sending an SMS. SMS STMT YYYY to 52484*.

YYYY are the last 4 digits of your credit card.
If you are not on Aircel/Airtel/Vodafone/Idea, send the SMS to 09880752484.
Assuring you of our best service at all times.
Warm regards,
Manager- Customer Service
Visit us at www.citibank.com/india or call CitiPhone.

The statement indicates that this is not the full amount Foreign Exchange rates & charges are also to be added.

Ah. I missed a few posts in this thread when I last replied.

Your experience goes against everything I've been told about how the Azure billing operates. I'll raise this issue directly with Microsoft.

Brad!

Thanks Brad, you are always a fine Buddy :)

In the mean time....

You really should consider upgrading to Windows 7. It is actually better than XP. ;)

Lets See, Too much of Graphics & Memory Hungry OS
Thanks.

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It is actually better than XP.

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:thumbd:

I Trust you ! ;)

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Originally Posted by 2kaud

:thumbd:

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LOL. Okay, at least *I* believe it is better. ;)

Here's some data

Pic Link

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Originally Posted by Brad Jones

LOL. Okay, at least *I* believe it is better. ;)

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Hmm, better security, more stability, faster startup times, support from Microsoft.

Or you could just stick with a 13 year old OS.

Tough choice.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 2kaud

:thumbd:

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Well, XP can't run Azure so if you want to stay current with the latest technologies in your career, you kind of have to stay up on the more recent OS's.

Hey Arjay - There are a surprising number of people on this forum/site that don't think the Cloud is important. They don't realize that it is actually really taking off and with "the Internet of Things" (IoT) become critically important for people to know. Sticking with XP seems to indicate that if they are developers, they are ready for their career to be winding down just like the mainframers of the 80s and early 90s..... :eek:

Slam!


Windows Desktop is like the DOS of the 80s.

David -

Can you take a screen shot of the data you added on Azure? I'll post an example later today!

Here are images of data I stored. You can see it is the same example used in the eSeminar, but you can also see it is my data because I have my name in the people and a few different items. I'm looking for creative, fun items to award!

Attachment 32021

Attachment 32023


As a general note -- The above is all that is needed for submitting Activity 2. Activity 3 can be done the same way, but just needs to be a different database and data, so it is pretty simple too!

Brad!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Brad Jones

Hey Arjay - There are a surprising number of people on this forum/site that don't think the Cloud is important. They don't realize that it is actually really taking off and with "the Internet of Things" (IoT) become critically important for people to know. Sticking with XP seems to indicate that if they are developers, they are ready for their career to be winding down just like the mainframers of the 80s and early 90s..... :eek:

Slam!

Windows Desktop is like the DOS of the 80s.

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I don't mean to sound harsh, but in the development business, I believe you have to stay up on current technologies; otherwise, it's going to be tough the next time you look for a job.

Sticking to one OS or relying on one version of a compiler scares me.

For me personally, I feel like I have to [re]invest in myself to learn some of the latest technologies. I've been a software professional for close to 19 years now, and it would have been really tough to stay employed if I had stayed with the technologies I first learned when getting in the business (C++ MFC apps on NT3.51 and 4.0 - although I guess not impossible if I was willing to move to Indiana).

My opinion is, you have to go with the latest tech. There is no other way for a developer to stay more current. I have been looking for a different job for quite some time now, unfortunately, and my biggest set back was that I didn't embrace the cloud, Windows 8. That has since changed. I cannot believe I took so long to embrace the newer tech. I cannot imagine my life without it now.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HanneSThEGreaT

My opinion is, you have to go with the latest tech. There is no other way for a developer to stay more current. I have been looking for a different job for quite some time now, unfortunately, and my biggest set back was that I didn't embrace the cloud, Windows 8. That has since changed. I cannot believe I took so long to embrace the newer tech. I cannot imagine my life without it now.

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Agreed.
Look at it another way - if you don't remain current on technology some other developer will.

By and large the newer technologies allow software to be developed more quickly with less maintenance. If you keep up on latest (or relatively latest) technologies, you'll be more valuable to employers. For me, I don't want to stay in a company that uses 10 year old technology, because if that job is lost for whatever reason, I'm 10 years out of date.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dsrahul

I did not opt for billing me or even allowed then to charge me....

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dsrahul - Can you send me your live ID in an email (bjones<at>internet.com or webmaster<at>codeguru.com)? I'm going to pass this to Microsoft. They would like to investigate this. I was told that you should not have been billed. To quote what they said to me, "we don’t charge a single penny to anyone’s card unless they explicitly tell us to do so."

(oh - and since you have an account, you should do the activities!)

Brad!

Sorry if I already posted this. To make things easier, we posted articles showing how to set up the Azure account and build the database. The first step-by-step article is at:

Storing Data in the Cloud
http://www.codeguru.com/win_mobile/w...-the-cloud.htm


Do what is in this article, capture a screen shot and send it in and you can get the badges, plus have a chance to be awarded a gift card to ThinkGeek. Pretty easy!

Brad!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Arjay

I don't mean to sound harsh, but in the development business, I believe you have to stay up on current technologies; otherwise, it's going to be tough the next time you look for a job.

Sticking to one OS or relying on one version of a compiler scares me.

For me personally, I feel like I have to [re]invest in myself to learn some of the latest technologies. I've been a software professional for close to 19 years now, and it would have been really tough to stay employed if I had stayed with the technologies I first learned when getting in the business (C++ MFC apps on NT3.51 and 4.0 - although I guess not impossible if I was willing to move to Indiana).

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I agree. Anyone who wants to get ahead in todays market place needs to embrace all these latest technologies. I've been programming computers for over 40 years and I'm now winding down. I gave up trying to keep abreast of things when 8 came out. I remember hand coding programs in octal and entering them direct via toggles on the front panel of the computer. Those were the days... Nowadays I mainly undertake maintenance of c/c++ 'legacy' systems that don't interest the younger programmers as it not the latest 'kool' technology and act as a 'mentor/father figure' to the younger programmers to encourage them in their career.

PS What was wrong with DOS?:D

I posted the following over at VBForums. I'll post it here too:

As most of you know, we recently were gathering data from our sites via an audience survey. We've been talking about the cloud in this thread and I know a lot of you are resistant to messing with the cloud. Our survey results were very interesting in this regard.

In 2012, 22% of our audience said they were working with cloud storage. 19% said they were working with cloud computing.
In 2012, 30% projected they'd be working with cloud storage in the next 12 months (so by now), and 40% predicted they'd be working with cloud computing.

In our new survey, the numbers were actually higher than the projections. 43% are working with cloud storage now and 41% are working with cloud computing. Another 25+ percent (putting it well over half) expect to be working with both of these in the next 12 months.

Cloud is definitely coming into the mainstream and is past the early adopter stage.

We've made it easy with the articles on Codeguru and the presentation to learn a bit about Cloud Storage. Read the article and give yourself 30 minutes to play with Azure. You'll be surprised at how much you can do!

Brad!