Visual Studio 2010 Extension Contest

You could win a Zune^® HD, a copy of Windows^® 7 Home Premium Edition, or even a Sony VAIO^® Notebook

Build a great Visual Studio 2010 Extension, post it on The Code Project and the Visual Studio Gallery. The highest rated and judged extension win!

Here's how:

1. Build a great new Visual Studio 2010 Extension or expand on an already built Visual Studio 2010 extension template (you can get the Visual Studio 2010 beta here)
2. Submit a great article on The Code Project – complete with code – explaining how you built or the extension
3. Make sure your article includes the keyword "VSX" (submission guidelines)
4. Submit your extension to the Visual Studio Gallery

Each "month", we'll calculate the highest-rated articles on The Code Project and highest-rated extensions on the Visual Studio Gallery and choose a winner in the first three categories, and choose three winners in the fourth category:

1. Best Use of Editor to Improve Productivity
2. Best Data Visualization
3. Most Useful Extension: What Makes Our Development Easier?
4. Best Project and Item Templates (Three monthly winners each get a copy of Windows 7 Home Premium)

In other words, on January 31, February 28, and March 31, we'll choose the best winners in each of those categories to win a monthly prize. (We're giving you a little extra time in the first "month" to get your extensions and templates underway.) Simply submit your articles in each category to The Code Project and post your extensions to the Visual Studio Gallery.

After the contest ends on March 31st, we'll choose a grand prize winner based on article and Visual Studio Gallery rankings. The judges' (The Code Project staff and advisors) decision is final.

• Your article should include screen shots and code samples
• Your article must use Visual Studio 2010 Beta
• In order to be eligible for the grand prize, make sure your tools & templates work with the RTM bits (when available)
• Post your article by March 31^st on The Code Project, and submit your extension or template to the Visual Studio Gallery and you will be entered automatically
• If yours is the highest rated article by both The Code Project community and our judges, you could win!

What You Could Win

Zune^® HD
With a touchscreen, HD Radio™, and HD video out (Zune HD AV dock required), the new Zune HD is the best Zune yet.

Windows 7 Home Premium Edition
Simplify everyday tasks: find something instantly, compare documents side-by-side, or open your favorite file in just two clicks. Make new things possible: watch Internet TV, pause, rewind, and record TV or use Touch to interact with your PC in new ways.

GRAND PRIZE: Sony VAIO^® Notebook
Our sample system (subject to change) includes an Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor P8800 (2.66GHz) and an upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium

• DDR2-SDRAM (DDR2-800, 1GBx2)
• 250 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [5400 rpm]
• WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n) with integrated Bluetooth^® technology
• DVD +/- R DL / DVD +/- RW / DVD-RAM Drive
• LCD 14.1" WXGA+ (XBRITE-ECO™) with integrated video camera
• 14.1-inch widescreen LCD, 5.7 pounds
• CD/DVD burner
• Up to 4.5 hours standard battery life
• Built in 1.3 megapixel camera and microphone
• Thin and portable at 5.7 lbs.

One prize will be awarded each "month" for the top article/tool in each of the first three categories. Three prizes will be awarded each month for the three top articles/templates in the Template (fourth) category. Prizes will be awarded based on member voting in the Visual Studio Gallery, on The Code Project articles and the Code Project judges’ final selection.

Winners of the previous month’s prize will not be eligible for subsequent monthly prizes, except for the grand prize. All participants will be eligible for the final grand prize.

Some Sample Resources to Help You Get Started

• Install Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2
• Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 SDK

Sample extensions to help you get started:

• RegEx Editor Extension
• IntelliSense Presenter
• Image Insertion
• Gradient Selection
• IE 8 Accelerator (CS)
• Italic Comments

The Rules

1. Articles must follow the guidelines listed above.
2. The articles can use any programming language but must focus on one of the Visual Studio tools and template features.
3. No cheating, lying, stealing code, naked bobsledding, or biting.
4. The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
5. Only those who live in jurisdictions in which this contest is legal may enter.
6. Any breach of the rules and the prize will be awarded to the runner up.
7. The contest runs from 11 December 2009 to 31 March 2010, at 11:59:59 PM US Eastern Standard Time.  After the contest closes, no additional entries will be permitted.
8. By entering the contest you agree to the rules, conditions of entry, and agree that your name, member profile information, article, code and any other submitted material can be used for promotional purposes by The Code Project and Microsoft.
9. By entering your article in the contest you agree that The Code Project and Microsoft can link to your article and all accompanying data or information for promotional purposes.

Microsoft Visual Studio, and Zune are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corp.. VAIO, and “Sony” are registered trademarks of Sony Corporation. Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation. HD Radio is a trademark of iBiquity Digital Corporation. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Competition Winners!

January

• Insufficient Submissions

February

• Best Use of Editor - Jochen Baier
  Forward/Backward Code Navigation with the Mouse Thumb Buttons Inside Visual Studio 2010 (C++, Visual Basic, F#)
• Most useful extension - Abhijit Jana
  ZoomSliderVSX

March

• Best Use of Editor - Manoj Kumar
  Numbered Bookmarks - Visual Studio Extension VSX 2010
• Most useful extension – Tiep Le Khac
  GBackupSolution - Visual Studio Extension VSX 2008/2010

Grand Prize Winner

• Abhijit Jana
  ZoomSliderVSX

Conditions of Entry | Current winners list

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