If you attended one of the many Microsoft InstallFest events, then you received a copy of Visual Studio 2008 Profession, but it was a trial copy with a time limit on it (mine was 90 days).

When your permanent copy comes in, use the following steps to upgrade your VS2008 to a licensed version.

To upgrade the Trial Edition:

1. On the Start menu, choose Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel, choose Add or Remove Programs.
3. Choose Microsoft Visual Studio Codename Orcas Professional and then click Change/Remove.
4. On the Visual Studio Codename Orcas Maintenance screen, enter the product key in the section Upgrade to Visual Studio Codename Orcas Professional and then click Upgrade.

Note: Product keys are found on the sleeve of the DVD or CD, or if you ordered a product key online, sent to you in email.

I should caveat this note to say that there MAY BE a hotfix for this problem, but I am not willing to pay MICROSOFT money to get the hotfix - that seems to be the only way I can get it. For some reason, Microsoft does not think my O/S product for Vista Ultimate, on an HP computer purchased at Best Buy (where the O/S was installed), is valid? 

Or, my other choice is to pay $99 to send an email saying "I NEED THE HOTFIX".

Here is what I need a hotfix for. I cannot run a "debug" session for scripts on SSIS. I am running Vista Ultimate 64 bit. You would think that Microsoft would have worked this out by now. The fact that there may be a hotfix available, but I cannot get to it unless I pay for it is just infuriating.

Short but good article on adding events to your SSIS Scripts by Colin Kirby. I use the firing of OnInformation events in more complex scripts to assist in tracing the operation of the script for debugging.

SSIS: Event Firing with Script Tasks

I recently worked on a project where I was unable to use breakpoints in the scripts due to the configuration of the customer's computers. By using various script events, I was able to track the progress of my scripts and determine where I had an error.

I found this great link that describes international address formats. I will be using this information to help generate some realistic XML content in an upcoming article for MS SQL Tips.

BitBoost Systems International Mailing Address Formats

Working with Microsoft MVP, Jeff Schoolcraft, we have organized a wonderful developer learning event on Saturday, March 29th at Strayer University in Woodbridge, Va.

CodeCamp SOUTH

Speakers include:

• Brian Noyes, Microsoft MVP
• Jonathan Cogley, Microsoft MVP
• Sahil Malik, Microsoft MVP
• Frank LaVigne, Microsoft MVP
• Antonio Chagoury, DotNetNuke Team Lead

and many more.

Topics to be covered include a host of new technologies along with some introductory courses. Here is a sample (you can see the rest at the NovaCodeCamp site).

• Visual Studio 2008
• SQL Server 2008
• SharePoint 2007
• DotNetNuke Module Development
• Office 2007 Development
• Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) Development
• Ajax
• Silverlight

For you developers, this is a golden opportunity to see presentations that would typically be presented at high priced conferences like Microsoft TechEd and VSLive. And it is FREE. However, registration is limited to the first 100 that sing up - so make your reservation today!

Here is a great editorial on something I have been saying for some time - Global Warming researchers were "cooking the books" with regards to their statistical analysis and prediction of increasing global warming (and laying it at the feet of Mankind).

Climate Panel on the hot seat, by H. Sterling Burnett, Washington Times

Please note the commentary on the mathematical analysis conducted by Dr. Ed Wegman, George Mason University. For those not familiar with him, Dr. Wegman is a brilliant and respected researcher in Statistics.

Shame on Governor Kaine of Virginia. He appears to be going down the path of promoting Global Warming and reprehensibly pursuing punishing regulations and, perhaps, taxpayer-based funding (i.e. taxes) so that the great state of Virginia can be on the bandwagon when it comes to detering MMGW (Man-Made Global Warming). This has all the appearance of contemptible pandering to those that know little about science but a lot about political extremism. When you see politicians embracing science issues you'd better hold onto your wallets!

The Governor's blue ribbon commission states that they are asking for input. Well, I made my thoughts known after the Governor's Secretary for Natural Resources, L. Preston Bryant, published a letter in our paper recently.

Here is Mr. Bryant's bio. He is an accomplished politician with an English major background. He is certainly eloquent, but it does appear he is somewhat light on the sciences. That is not going to help him if he has to explain how unimportant things like error factors are in weather measurements directly related to the climatological statistical models used to prognosticate the potential calamities associated global warming.

Here is my response to Mr. Bryant's article: