Now I really have nothing against Objective C besides that fact that my brain is full and that I don’t want to learn yet another language.  So, when Novell announced MonoTouch last year, I was ecstatic.  Here was a tool that would let me use my existing C# and .NET skills to write applications for the iPhone.  That meant that all I worry about was the iPhone development environment and tools and that my hard-earned .NET knowledge would stay in place.

Documentation and examples were light at first but that void has been quickly filled by the MonoTouch team and a variety of bloggers. But what was really missing was a really great MonoTouch book.  Thankfully, one arrived last week, written by some of the same folks that have been blogging about MonoTouch since beta": Wallace (Wally) B. McClure, Martin Bowling, Craig Dunn, Chris Hardy, and Rory Blyth.

Overview

Here’s a quick overview of the books contents:

• Exploring the screen controls
• Working with data, controls, and tables
• Mappings
• Application Settings
• Working with the device hardware
• Working with multimedia
• Talking to other applications
• Localizing
• Programming the iPad
• Just enough Objective C
• How to work with the Apple App Store

Details

The book is really good at showing you the user interface as well as the behind the scenes code that makes certain things happen.  For me, that really ties things together.  They also show how to use the development tools to add functionality to an iPhone application while also showing how to perform the same task, strictly through code – another thing that I really like.

Finally, as with all Wrox books, you can download the source to the examples found in the book.  This book’s samples are found here.

This is a great book for a .NET developer who wants to branch out.  It’s not huge, 350 pages or so, but it will take me a while to work my way though it as I try out the examples and get used to the new programming tools and environment.

As Mark Twain once wrote:

I've never let my school interfere with my education.

So it was with James Marcus Bach, a high- school dropout.  James discusses his history and the methods he used to educate himself in the computer sciences.  James became an industry-recognized software testing expert and according to his blog, now “teaches, speaks, and writes about thinking and learning.â€?

In the book, James introduces you to his SACKED SCOWS process for learning:

1. Scouting Obsessively
2. Authentic Problems
3. Cognitive Savvy
4. Knowledge Attracts Knowledge
5. Experimentation
6. Disposable Time
7. Stories
8. Contrasting Ideas
9. Other Minds
10. Words and Pictures
11. Systems Thinking

As well as other non-conventional learning techniques.

In reading the book, I found many similarities in the way James educated himself and my own experiences.  Is this book for everyone?  Probably not.  But, I think it will appeal to people who do not learn in the “typicalâ€? manner provided by our educational system. 

Even if you don’t find the entire book valuable, there are some very interesting techniques found within that may cause a light bulb to appear over your head and make you say, “Now that makes sense to me.�

Anyway, at less than 200 pages, it’s a fairly quick read and should be well worth your time investment.

Additional Info

http://www.buccaneerscholar.com/

http://twitter.com/jamesmarcusbach

Sound familiar, anyone?

Overview

Keith explores the concept that an organization must face a period of disintegration before it can be reintegrated into something better and stronger – what he calls a Bounce.

The book consists of a main story which illustrates putting the principles of the Bounce in action and is followed by section where he outlines in more detail the key principles:

Six Key Principles of the Bounce:

• embrace the bounce
• manage the anxiety
• manage the mental factors
• manage the money
• manage the mission ( in the military style )
• manage the morale ( in the military style )

The book is compact and a quick read and the story is written in such a way that you have to remember that you’re reading a book about making your organization better.  I’ve read it twice and have enjoyed it equally both times.

The Bounce principles are right on the money and I have seen organizations that had they implemented them, could have changed the course of the company.

IDEAS DON’T HAPPEN because they are great-or by accident.

They happen for a reason, and with more than a little work and elbow-grease applied. As many of us have seen, both personally and professionally, ideas that are not cultivated and grown, die on the vine.  Making Ideas Happen outlines best practices to make sure that your ideas actually turn into reality taken from years of hands-on research and practical experience.

Overview

• You have to have ideas you want to make happen
• You can develop the capacity to make ideas happen
• Making ideas happen = Ideas + Organization + Communal forces + Leadership capability
• Organization enables you to manage and ultimately execute your ideas
• The forces of community are invaluable and readily available
• Fruitful innovation requires a unique capacity to lead

The book has plenty of real-world examples of how creative people organize and execute their ideas.

The Action Method

Scott also introduces you to their practice, the Action Method, which he developed while working at Goldman Sachs and further refined while pursuing his MBA at Harvard.

The Action Method reminds me a little of Getting Things Done (GDT), from David Allen, but it is slightly different in organization.

The Action Method breaks things down into Projects and Actionable Steps within those projects.  You can set deadlines for Action Steps or have them simply exist and a facility is provided for “backburnerâ€? items that may or may not be pursued at some point in the future.

Having used the Action Method ( the online version ) for over a month, I can testify their system it does indeed work – as long as you commit to your self that you will use it ( as with any such system ).  By constantly documenting, prioritizing, and rearranging both my ideas and the Action Steps required to realize those ideas, I feel that I'm one step closer to accomplishing many of the things that have, so far, just been on my to-do list.

Additional Resources

Behance ( Scott’s company ), has created a series of products that help you implement the Action Method in your day-to-day life. You can visit their site here.

The first is a set of paper products which help you record and manage your Action Items.  The second, called Action Method Online, puts the Action Method at your fingertips for every day use.  I’ll be reviewing Action Method Online later, since it is closely related to the book and very valuable in and of itself.

It is filled with extremely valuable information about the actually processes required to bring your newest, brilliant, iPhone application idea to life and is written by people who have been publishing iPhone apps for years.

Here’s an overview of the book’s contents:

• Exploring the App Store
• Validating your idea with
• Protecting your Intellectual Property
• Affiliate programs and in-app purchase.
• Marketing

• Azure Roles
• Table and blob storage
• Queues
• Moving from the Enterprise to the Cloud
• Security and authentication
• SQL Azure Services

but it also gives a very in-depth explanation of the inner-workings of the Windows Azure platform so you could actually understand what was happening physically, when you upload and publish your Azure solution.

There are plenty of nuts and bolts code segments and samples to show you how things are done and Wrox Press makes these samples available for download here.  Additionally, chapters 12 and 13, covering SQL Azure, are actually in an online-only format and can be found at the same site.

The only issues that I had with the book were some late-breaking technology changes that shipped in the final Windows Azure release which were different from the community technology preview (CTP) releases so their examples didn’t quite work the same.  Overall, these issues were quite minor and a little digging into the RTM examples showed me the new and proper way of doing things.

Overall, Cloud Computing with the Windows Azure Platform is a great addition to your programming library should you be leaning toward Windows Azure as a solution.

Final Note

Roger’s company, OakLeaf Systems, has a blog that posts a daily summary of Azure-related articles and announcements. I have no idea how long it takes someone to assemble each post, but I would imagine it takes quite a bit of time.  I find these posts invaluable and greatly appreciate each summary.

David is a fellow MVP with an extremely high level of knowledge of the Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform.

The book covers all development aspects of CRM including:

• Development best practices
• Client-side development
• ASP.NET and Silverlight extensions
• Plug-ins and workflow assemblies
• Performance tuning and troubleshooting

just to name a few.

More than a just a book about development, also included are assemblies and tools to enhance your development experience with Dynamics CRM ( downloadable from the web site, after you register ).

Think of the content of this book as the CRM SDK Part II.

If you are a developer working with Microsoft Dynamics CRM, you should have this book on your shelf.

In a nutshell, it's about a twelve-year old private detective living in Ireland trying to solve a case in which he finds himself a suspect in a crime.

While almost everyone in the book is under the age of 14, the author's style is very witty and he gives his all of his characters mannerisms and prose that really keeps you engaged. So much so that I'm having a hard time determining if this is a kid's book or one for adults.

Regardless, it's a wonderful distraction if you happen to find yourself in a place where you need one.

And yes, I've read it about three times since I purchased it.  It's not that it uses big words or that I'm slow or anything; it's the fact that some of what Seth has to say require a bit of self-examination and thought about your current situation and those from your past.

The book's main discussion point is this:

A Dip – a temporary setback that you will overcome if you keep pushing, or

A Cul-de-Sac – which will never get better no matter how hard you try.

So how do you know which is which?  Well, that's what the book addressees an why it may take you reading it several times as your sub-conscience has an internal debate between readings.

I could be wrong, but I really don't think this book has all of the answers, but I can tell you what it does have:  It has enough of the right information to get you thinking about where you are and where you need to be. That makes it well worth the $13 price of admission.

Additional resources:

the dip blog.

I'm sure most of you have never heard of Mind Mapping so you're really not sure what I'm talking about.  Here is how Wikipedia defines it:

A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks or other items linked to and arranged radially around a central key word or idea. It is used to generate, visualize, structure and classify ideas, and as an aid in study, organization, problem solving, and decision making.

It is an image-centered diagram that represents semantic or other connections between portions of information. By presenting these connections in a radial, non-linear graphical manner, it encourages a brainstorming approach to any given organizational task, eliminating the hurdle of initially establishing an intrinsically appropriate or relevant conceptual framework to work within.

A mind map is similar to a semantic network or cognitive map but there are no formal restrictions on the kinds of links used.

Mind Mapping really does work for people like me who are visually oriented.  It allows you to clearly and concisely organize your thoughts into a cohesive picture.

A couple of months ago I picked up a book called Idea Mapping, by Jamie Nast. In this book she covers how to utilize Idea Mapping ( a form of Mind Mapping ) to do everything from planning to note taking.

If you are new to mind mapping or you are using mind mapping and you'd like to see how to become more productive with your maps, I would recommend reading this book.  It has some background that is useful and some techniques that come from years of teaching the subject world-wide.

It also comes with a CD containing the demo version of the MindManager application.