TIME TO GO PRO!

This is my notes for 70-563 PRO – Designing and Developing Windows Applications using .NET Framework 3.5

I created it using several resources (various certification web sites, msdn, official ms 70-548 book). The reason that I created this review is because

a) I am taking the exam.

b) MS did not create a book for this exam. Use the(MS 70-548)book.

c) To make sure I am familiar with each before the exam.

I hope that it provides a good start for your own notes. I hope that someone finds this useful. At least, it will give you a starting point of what to expect to know on the PRO exam. Also, for those wondering, the PRO exam does contains very little code. It is basically all theory.

1. Validation Controls – How to prevent users from entering invalid data on forms. (MaskedTextBox control and RegEx)

2. ServiceController – used to start and control the behavior of existing services.

3. User Feedback (know winforms Status Bar, Tool Tips, Color, Error Provider, Context-Sensitive and Accessibility)

4. Specific (derived) exceptions must be handled before general (base class) exceptions. By moving the exception handling for the base type Exception to after exception handling of ArgumentNullException, all ArgumentNullException thrown by the Helper method will be caught and logged correctly.

5. A heartbeat method is a method exposed by a Web service that allows external applications to check on the status of the service.

6. New users must master key tasks quickly. Giving these tasks context and appropriate detail will help. However, advanced users will demand quicker paths. Shortcuts, accelerators, or toolbar buttons will speed things along for the advanced user.

7. MSBuild uses project files to instruct the build engine what to build and how to build it. MSBuild project files are XML files that adhere to the MSBuild XML schema. The MSBuild project files contain complete file, build action, and dependency information for each individual projects.

8. Evaluating whether or not to fix a bug involves a triage process. You must identify the bug's impact, set the priority, categorize it, and assign a developer. Many times the person doing the triage work will assign the bug to a developer for further investigation. In fact, the workflow for the bug work item inside of Team System supports this step. Developers are often asked to assess the impact of a given bug. This assessment helps the person doing the triage make a decision on how to proceed. When assessing the impact of a bug, you should consider time and resources to fix it, bug risk, and impacts of the bug.

9. In large projects it is generally impossible and unfeasible to fix all bugs because of the impact on schedule and budget.

10. Code reviews should be conducted by a technical lead or a technical peer.

11. Testing Applications

12. WCF Services – application state

13. SQL Server 2005 / 2008 Express Edition – reliable storage of data / Microsoft SQL Server 3.5 Compact Database– used for client computers to retrieve and save data from a shared location.

14. SQL Server 2008 Compact Edition – used for minimum possible memory and can synchronize data with a corporate SQL Server 2008 Database. Supports offline user and minimum dependency on external components.

15. MDI and SDI Forms (specifically IsMDIContainer)

16. GUID – in the case of data warehousing, it is important to define unique keys.

17. Encrypting / Security Data

18. Understanding of Isolated Storage/Proper location to store items

19. LINQ to SQL

20. Multithreaded access

21. ADO.NET Entity Framework model

22. Marshal.ReleaseComObject

23. Common User Interface Layout (ComboBox, ListBox, Listview, MaskedTextBox, TextBox, RichTextBox, SplitContainer, TableLayoutPanel, TabControl)

24. DataSets Class - http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.data.dataset%28VS.71%29.aspx

25. SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services (SSRS)

26. SystemIcons.Shield (Vista UAC)

27. Leverging stored procedures to perform data manipulation for a database schema that can change.

28. DataContext

29. Microsoft Windows Installer Packages, ClickOnce(bootstrapping features), XCopy.

30. Client Application Services – will authenticate users by using the same data source as a ASP.NET web application.

31. SQL Server 2008 Caching

32. StringBuilder

33. Accessibility Guidelines for Windows Applications http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms228004.aspx

34. Logging erros

35. Testing performance related issues.

36. Role Based Security, GenericIdentity and GenericPrincipal

37. System.Net.CookieContainer will store session data for webapps (see isolated storage for winforms)

38. .NET CLR Profiler tool will identify objects that cause performance issues.

39. ADO.NET Synchronization (SyncGroup)

40. Globalization - CultureInfo

41. IDisposable Interface- reports on several questions relating to this.

42. Adding timestamps to determine whether data has changed or not.

43. Converting applications to .NET Framework 3.5

44. MicrosoftReportViewer

45. Composite Controls

46. Windows Vista KNOWN folders.

47. Microsoft Sync Framework

48. TypeConverter -Provides a unified way of converting types of values to other types, as well as for accessing standard values and sub properties. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.componentmodel.typeconverter.aspx

49. Concurrency control mechanisms The main categories of concurrency control mechanisms are:

• Optimistic - Delay the checking of whether a transaction meets the isolation rules (e.g., serializability and recoverability) until its end, without blocking any of its (read, write) operations, and then abort a transaction, if the desired rules are violated.
• Pessimistic - Block operations of a transaction, if they may cause violation of the rules.
• Semi-optimistic - Block operations in some situations, and do not block in other situations, while delaying rules checking to transaction's end, as done with optimistic.

50. AutoResetEvent

51. Microsoft Messaging Queue (MSMQ) 4.0

52. Bulk imports

53. KeyDown event of controls

54. WPF UI components

55. UI process layer

56. GAC (installing, removing and queuing)

57. Use a local database cache to reduce the network bandwidth used by applications.

58. Sound can easily be annoying and distracting to users, so use it judiciously. Always give users the option to turn sound off. Because a user might have sound off, never convey important information through sound alone.