Windows Installer XML (WiX) toolset

Last month at the Windows Developer Day event Microsoft announced MSIX as the future for Windows application installation. The technical details were pretty light during the presentation. But that lack of detail means some pretty crazy conjectures are thrown about. So, I thought I'd posit some of my own theories before real details came about.

The Crystal Method has been my favorite band since I discovered them as an intern at Microsoft. That's 30 years ago now! Well the next album drops September 28th. Based on the first single "Holy Arp", I feel echoes of "Vegas". That fact plus the ... [More] album title "The Trip Home" makes me very, very excited. Listen to "Holy Arp" below. Pre-order information here. [Less]

Last year I mentioned that I've felt like I am 28. That still holds true today. But, for the last year, I was somehow convinced that I was 42. It wasn't until something like September--discussing plans for my wife's birthday if I recall correctly--that I realized I was mistaken. But, today I actually turn 42. So here's to a second year as 42!

Today I turn 43! That means it is time to take a moment and reflect on last year and what is to come. Now last year I signed off with the hope that today's birthday review would be "a lot more interesting".

I want to talk about reciprocal Open Source licenses for a minute. Most major projects are permissively licensed so you might be thinking, "Why should I care about reciprocal licenses?" Well, there is one very important difference between reciprocal ... [More] and permissive licenses: how they support their community. That difference in community support is why corporations promote--and sometimes require--permissive licenses. My thesis is the rise of corporate Open Source projects have led us away from reciprocal licenses and that project maintainers should not follow blindly. [Less]

Today I turn 44. Like each year before this, I want to take a moment and reflect on the last year and look into the next. In particular, I haven't written about life here during the COVID-19 pandemic and I want to capture some memories. I'll also look ahead a bit.

It is my great pleasure and relief to finally announce the WiX Toolset v4-preview.0. The road for WiX v4 has been long, and while work remains, this -preview.0 release marks the beginning of the final stretch. To be clear, WiX v4-preview.0 is a sneak peek at the new command-line build experience. Curious what that means? Read on.

My son plays in a year round soccer club. The pandemic shut down games for all of 2020 after March. When games resumed in 2021, only one parent was allowed to attend. I was already recording practices for my son to review using my phone when I ... [More] decided to level-up my technology to record his games. I figured with a bit better technology, I could capture the boys' games and share the video with all the parents via YouTube. Everyone was very appreciative and a couple parents asked about the technology I use. So let's break it down. [Less]

After I wrote most of this blog post the night of October, 5th 2021 I wasn't sure I would post it. After the events of the last 36 hours, I felt I needed to capture my experience on my website where it can only be edited by me. After reading this, I ... [More] hope you will have a clear set of datapoints from my point of view. After this is all over, I hope something good comes of it. [Less]

Last year I wrote about turning 44 and our life during this pandemic. I signed off with "Here's hoping life gets more back to normal by this fall." And life did get more back to normal. Today I turn 45. Let's recap the last year.