Best Practices Conference Slide Deck and Recap

Wow. What a week! It’s been a while since I have been able to make it out to the Best Practices Conference. The last time I was there was back in San Diego last year. After coming back from that conference last year, I knew that I wanted to get more involved with the SharePoint community, as well as get a chance to speak at the BPC down the road. Those goals were based on both the content, and the conversations that took place at the conference.

I sat in on Christian Buckley’s session (ok, so I may be in the slide deck… but even being sick – which he was – and is a fantastic presenter, and he delivers great content) He was talking about data within an organization, specifically the conversations around content – a project, for example – which are as important, if not more important, than the content itself. I feel the same way regarding conferences. Yes – the content there was top-notch, and a lot of great information was given, however, the conversations that happen within sessions, and, outside of the session rooms, is where the real magic happens.

I am lucky to be part of a community that is so enthusiastic, not just about a product, but, what they do. I’ve made some great friends in the SharePoint community, who I know and trust, even after a few meetings, and it is this passion that everyone in the community has, that made me want to be a part of it, and I am happy I took the steps to do so, starting out with speaking at SharePoint Saturday Boston in March of 2009.

With that being said – it was a great conference, again. Great job by Bill, Meryl, and the rest of the team that ran the show, and thanks again for letting me be a part of it.

Below is the slide deck from the session that I did with Mark Rackley.

SharePoint Customization: Overcoming Hurdles and Avoiding Pain

Presenters: Mark Rackley and Geoff Varosky
Duration: 60 – 75 minutes
Audience: Developer

Abstract: "Why am I getting a security error?" "Why does my code work sometimes, but not others?" "I wonder if McDonalds is hiring." Writing custom code in SharePoint opens up unlimited possibilities but also throws many hurdles in your way that will slow you down if you don’t take them into account. So, before giving up and searching for careers in the fast food industry, equip yourself with the knowledge you need to succeed in writing custom code for SharePoint.

In this session you will learn:

• Best practices for avoiding performance issues
• Best practices for avoiding memory leaks
• Best practices for elevating privileges
• Avoid not disposing of SP Objects