Interview with BizTalk Guru: Boatseller, TechNet Guru Medal Winner

Namaste All,

Welcome to our Monday Interview with a Wiki Ninja!
Today the interview will be with Johns-305 (Boatseller), a TechNet Guru Winner and has been active on forums since March 2007.

He is one of the few people whom I have seen very consistent on BizTalk forums (since I joined), helping others to solve their issue and motivating others to get into the details of the problem. His command over BizTalk is commendable.

Lets begin the interview.

Mahesh: Who are you, where are you, and what do you do? What are your specialty technologies?
boatseller:  I am boatseller, but my name is John.  Professionally, I'm a BizTalk Developer for TwoConnect, Inc. (https://www.twoconnect.com)  My home base is beautiful Miami, Florida.

I've been working with BizTalk Sever since a HIPAA integration project based on BizTalk Server 2000.  Sometime around 2004, I joined the TwoConnect family and have maintained a focus on the integration space ever since.  I've worked on projects in all sorts of industries, each with interesting and unique aspects.

The nature of integration is specializing in whatever we need that day.

Mahesh: What are your big projects right now?
boatseller: Right now, I'm wrapping up some work for a major investment bank and looking forward to beginning a HIPAA integration project.

 Hopefully this will give me some time to finish my next Wiki article about BizTalk SQL Patterns.  (published and is competing in this month.)

Mahesh: What is TechNet Wiki for? Who is it for?
boatseller:  The best way I can describe the Wiki is as form of extended documentation.  The Product Groups do a great job at providing the base level of documentation but for obvious reasons, they lack the bandwidth to provide guidance for real-world scenarios or how various features can be used together for even greater benefit.  That's where we come in, providing the answers to "what does it really do?" questions.

The nature of the Wiki means it's for everyone and we each can get out of it what we want.

Mahesh: What do you do with TechNet Wiki, and how does that fit into the rest of your job?

boatseller: I try to mostly be a contributor.  In my 14 year career with BizTalk I've encountered dozens of odd scenarios, some frequently, some one time.  What I'm trying to do is take some of those common or not so common scenarios at share what I've done so hopefully another developer can save some time or implement a proven pattern.  Batter BizTalk apps are good for everyone.

Mahesh: What is it about TechNet Wiki that interests you?
boatseller: Seriously, it's easier and less pressure than maintaining a blog, with a built-in audience to boot.

Mahesh: On what articles have you collaborated with other community members on #TNWiki? What was that experience like?
boatseller:  None.

Mahesh: On what Wiki articles do you spend most of your time?
boatseller: As a contributor, my own. Editing's not really my style.

Mahesh: What are your favorite Wiki articles you’ve contributed?
boatseller:  Wow, that's like picking your favorite kid, so, in order:
1. https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/23924.biztalk-resource-dispenser-send-port-edition.aspx
2. https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/24389.biztalk-server-using-an-orchestration-sync-or-async.aspx
3. https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/23580.biztalk-detecting-a-missing-message.aspx

Mahesh: What are your top 5 favorite Wiki articles?
boatseller:  I don't know about specific articles, they're all pretty good.  With BizTalk specifically, it hard to focus on any one area because there are some many different areas, Business Process, BI, Rules, transformation, connectivity, programming techniques, setup & operations, industry standards, etc.  It would be great to more content related to my next project, whatever that may be ;)

Mahesh: Who has impressed you in the Wiki community, and why?
boatseller: Great question. Unfortunately, it's not that easy to see all that's going on with contribution, moderations, editing. I do see ?Sandro Pereira, Tord G. Nordahl and Steef-Jan Wiggers are pretty active with some great content.

Mahesh: What does success look like for TechNet Wiki?
boatseller: There's the obvious metric of Views and really, we don't have much more to go on. A successful article for me is one that presents original content and guidance.

Mahesh: Do you have any comments for product groups about TechNet Wiki?
boatseller: Upload from Word or actually posting from Live Writer.  The contributor experience is...well...umm....frowney face.

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Thank you, boatseller for all your contributions, and welcome to the community !!!

Feel free to ask him more questions in the comments!

 

-- BizTalk Wiki Ninja Mahesh