I know how some people feel about certifications, but preparing for one teaches you a lot. I already have the Windows and Web Microsoft Certified Professional Developer certifications, but there are three more MCPDs available. One that I will be going for soon is the Windows Azure MCPD.
Microsoft recently updated the Windows Azure Platform Training Kit. Anyone wishing to learn Azure can train themselves using this kit. It contains many presentations and labs to get you programming Azure applications in no time.
Here’s a list of the hands-on labs:
- Introduction to Windows Azure
- Building ASP.NET Applications with Windows Azure
- Exploring Windows Azure Storage
- Deploying Applications in Windows Azure
- Windows Azure CDN (Content Distribution Network)
- Worker Role Communication
- Debugging Applications in Windows Azure
- Federated Authentication in a Windows Azure Web Role Application
- Web Services and Identity in Windows Azure
- Windows Azure Native Code
- Advanced Web and Worker Roles
- Connecting Apps with Windows Azure Connect
- Virtual Machine Role
- Windows Phone 7 And The Cloud
- Windows Azure Traffic Manager
- Introduction to SQL Azure
- Migrating Databases to SQL Azure
- SQL Azure Tips and Tricks
- Build Your First Report with SQL Azure Reporting
- Introduction to Windows Azure Marketplace for Applications
- Introduction to Windows Azure Marketplace DataMarket
- Introduction to the AppFabric Service Bus
- Service Remoting With AppFabric Service Bus
- Eventing On The AppFabric Service Bus
- Introduction to the AppFabric Access Control Service 2.0
- Use Access Control Service to Federate with Multiple Business Identity Providers
- Authenticating Users in a Windows Phone 7 App
- Building Windows Azure Applications with the Caching Service
That’s a total of 28 labs, and the kit contains a multitude to demos, samples, presentations, and links to Channel 9 videos on Azure. There are even more videos than provided in the kit, so if you want to obtain even broader knowledge through video, visit this Channel 9 link.
To get started, install the Windows Azure Tools for Visual Studio 2010 through the Web Platform Installer. If you would prefer more control over the installation, you can download the Azure tools here.