Ben Taylor's Blog

Tom Schultz has just announced that the Commerce Server Mojave November CTP is now available to download.  I think this is the last planned CTP before the product ships.  The download includes the following 3 files:

• Commerce Server Code Name Mojave November 2008 CTP Readme.htm
• MojaveInstall.chm - An install guide for Mojave and the Default Site
• CS2K7MOJAVE1.iso - An ISO of the Mojave setup disk.

Download Commerce Server Mojave November CTP from Microsoft Connect
File Transfer Manager (FTM) not working for me (getting error 12037) but individual file downloads are.  Requires a Live Id.

Thanks to Tom and the team for getting this up.

About Scott Cairney - Scott Cairney is a Commerce Server Veteran and key player in the creation of Commerce Server Mojave.  He has been deeply involved with Commerce Server since Commerce Server 2000.  Scott is currently a Product Manager in the Commerce Server Product Group and Vice-President Product Management at Cactus. 

Scott on Mojave at Tech-Ed - Scott recently took a European holiday ;) presented a couple of sessions at Tech-Ed Barcelona.  I have been unable to find these sessions online (unlike the Mojave PDC session).  However, Mark Dunn of .NET Rocks interviewed Scott about Mojave while at Tech-Ed and this is online.  You can Watch Scott Cairney and Mark Dunn discuss Commerce Server Mojave.  Note: The interview is available in other formats.  For the links, go to the Tech-Ed Tech-Talks page and search for "Commerce Server" (there is no direct link to the interview page!).

Scott on Commerce Server Mojave Feedback - Given the wholesale API change in Mojave, I am very interested to hear what people think about it.  Apparently Tech-Ed participants had plenty of feedback, as Scott says in the interview:

"We did get a lot of feedback... We got some terrific feedback.  We got some negative feedback.  We got feedback saying it is too generic, some people are saying it is not generic enough.  So we think it's great, the fact that there is now a discussion of Commerce Server."

I agree.  It is exciting to be getting a major new rev of Commerce Server and it will be fun to discover and talk about.  I mean, not as exciting as white water rafting, or sticking your tongue in an electric socket, but you know what I mean. 

Have you looked at Mojave yet?  What are your thoughts?

PS Tom Schultz just announced the Commerce Server Mojave November CTP drop.  Download does not seem to work for me :(

Tom Schultz and Kerry Havas presented the session Commerce Server Mojave : Overview on Monday at the Microsoft PDC in LA.  The video of this session is available now - Watch Commerce Server Mojave : Overview.  Kerry covered the new API and Tom stitched together a site in about 5 minutes with the new Mojave SharePoint web parts.  Unfortunately, the session started late (the film crew failed to show on time) so they did not get the chance to cover the new Mojave Operational Sequences architecture.

I had the opportunity to talk to Tom and Kerry after the session too.  I had some robust feedback on the new API and they were kind enough to listen to my ravings.  We had a pretty good conversation, with good points made on all sides.  One of the things I took away from this (and from the PDC in general) is the difficulty of addressing the needs and wants of all different types of development groups and individuals (see also Entity Framework!).

I will be posting more on my thoughts about the new API soon.  What do you think about it?

Kamoji has just posted that the October CTP of Commerce Server "Mojave", the next significant revision of Commerce Server is now available to download (via Microsoft Connect) by the general development public.  Previously, you could only get the Mojave bits if you were participating in the Commerce Server Mojave Technology Adoption Program (TAP).  However, at the time of writing, the October CTP download link appears to be broken (for me).  Update 23/10:  The October CTP download link is working fine.  It takes you to an EULA with a follow up download email.  The announcement was made on the public Microsoft Commerce Server Product Unit e-commerce Blog, so I am assuming it is genuine and public.

Final Mojave CTP in November so get your feedback in now!  The CTP post also outlines the remaining CTP timeline.  There will be one more CTP in the "November 2008 time frame".  Therefore, it is important to get feedback to the product team now.  The phases outlined here would suggest that after the final CTP the product will go straight to Release Candidate (i.e. missing out Beta).  Therefore, I would assume that the November CTP will be pretty baked.  Not much time.  Get on it! (and if you can be bothered feel free to post your thoughts in the comments below).

Mojave October CTP bits just-in-time for the PDC?  The MS e-commerce blog also posted (3 hours later) that the Commerce Server Product Team will be attending the Microsoft PDC in LA next week.  Not only that, but they will be doing a session on Mojave.  This session is a late edition to the PDC (and is still not in the sessions list).  The session abstract is as follows:

In this session you will get an in depth look into the new Commerce Server “Mojave” product release.  Learn how you can use Commerce Server’s next-gen e-commerce API to develop performant, multi-channel e-commerce websites.  See improvements to the programming model, improved functionality for working with the desktop and devices, and integration of Commerce Server with SharePoint for search scenarios, content management, and social networking.  We’ll also show how to use the “Mojave” e-commerce web parts to quickly build rich, custom user experiences.

Do you work with Commerce Server?  Are you going to the LA PDC next week?  Do you like to drink one or two beers and talk about software development?  If you answered yes to any of these, drop me a line and we can meet up!