Welcome To A Developer's
Secret Weapon.

Are You a $200/hour Professional?

My name is Paul D. Sheriff. Since 1991 I’ve run a software development shop in Southern California called PDSA, Inc. While other shops have gone bankrupt, PDSA has thrived. Through more than 780 on-time, on-budget projects, I’ve learned a lot about being a successful software developer. What is my experience worth? To clients, it’s worth no less than $200 an hour.

I Need Excellent Developers and Coders

I've worked every project with a team of developers and coders. Either my PDSA staff or my client’s staff. And I’ve discovered something over the years: the people on my team must understand business, they must understand the process of application development, and they must understand architecture. If they don’t, the application will fail.

So I created Paul Sheriff’s Inner Circle: a community for good developers to get great, great developers to get outstanding, and all developers to become more valuable.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. First, a story…

Before you read any further, sign up to receive your Free eBook "Fundamentals of N-Tier", just as a "Thank You" for your interest.

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What Happens to Bad Developers?

Recently, my PDSA team and I were called in to rescue a project from another developer. By our second day of discovery, I was horrified. Everything that could be wrong with an application was here:

No coding standards
Duplicated code
Using ADO in a .NET application
Using the OLE DB provider to hit SQL Server

The list just went on and on ...

I've seen some real messes created by developers. Oh boy, have I seen messes. But in over 15 years of running a highly successful software development shop, and over 21 years of development experience, I have never come across such an example of deplorable software development.

Something inside me snapped.

There was no excuse for this mess. Any developer of mine who coded like this would be shown the door - and fast!

What I realized is there are a lot of good developers who don't know the right way to develop a professional software project. And a bad developer affects our entire industry.

Right then and there, I decided to do something.

I want us to be the best, most professional group in any business. And I believe that high standard of quality starts at the individual developer's level. It starts with YOU.

Frankly, after 7 books, 154 articles, 264 speaking engagements and 793 successful applications, I have gained quite a lot of knowledge and experience that can help make you be a better software developer - much better. I can help you make more money, finish projects faster, and create higher quality work.

As I sat at that client site, watching this disaster unfold, seeing so many developer errors that never should have happened, mistake after mistake after mistake, I understood what I had to do.

Who are other Inner Circle members and what do they want? (Real comments from real members):

“I am a Development Manager and we are still awaiting Team System before we make the move to C# and .Net.”

“I’m migrating from asp to asp.net”

“Learning how to be really productive in ASP.NET and migrating to VS2005.”

“To enter in IT department at a fresher level after graduating in computer science engineering”

“I’m converting existing code from another language”

“I am just a student but I take interest”

“I work in an IT department as a business systems architect and my company is having trouble effectively running internal projects. Each project manager and/or department head follows a different process for developing project and it leads to confusion and disorganization at the architect/developer/qa levels”

“Helping clients understand information flow and ramifications through industry specific software”

“Increasing productivity (and therefore revenue) and decreasing risk on my .NET development projects.”

“My challenge is getting developers to follow any kind of process.”

“Working On Asp.NET as Project Leader”

Introducing Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle.

Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle is a community with a single purpose: to make you a more valuable developer.

Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle isn't for everyone.

In our industry, your knowledge needs to change faster than in any other career. The Inner Circle is designed for developers who want to stay on the cutting edge. If you are happy doing the same thing day after day and are not willing to stretch, then the Inner Circle is probably not for you.

Not everyone gets to be the best.

But for those of you that continually strive to improve, you have found a home.

Inner Circle Success Story #1: Louis Davis

"Very Useful To Me!"

"Hi Paul, Your web presentation with tips for building N-tiered applications as well as the code snippet for parsing first and last name out of string have been very useful to me for building an integration application using an existing VB 6 application, .NET, and Wells Fargo's Global Payment Gateway."

Louis Davis - Corona, California

Inner Circle Success Story #2: Howard Jenson

"I Value My Membership In Inner Circle"

"Hi Paul Just want to say your assistance with "Downloading Text from ASP.NET Textbox using Response Object" #81 was very clear and helpful in completing a project due that day. As you indicated, it was very simple and in hindsight it was probably a rookie 101 type question. Thanks for the quick response; I value my membership in InnerCircle."

Howard Jenson- Menifee, California

Inner Circle Success Story #3: Vathana Smith

"Your Code Snippets Are Awesome!"

"Paul, your code snippets are awesome. I've used couple of them in my code already."

Vathana Smith, National Public Radio - Washington, DC

Inner Circle Success Story #4: Luciano Terra

"Samples And Ask The Circle, Very Useful!"

"I found out useful the samples i'v found in Inner Circle, but even better is ask the Circle and have answers from experienced people in a short time. Thank you Paul by this initiative!"

Luciano Terra - Porto Alegre, Brazil

Inner Circle Success Story #5: Scott Hoenshell

"I Have More Than Realized My ROI!"

Paul Thanks for the great tips and tricks section on the Inner Circle site. I am all ready using one of the code snippets. I have an app where I needed to store some of the app data in an XML file but I wanted to secure it. Your Encrypting XML Files tip came at a perfect time! Also with the other tips, tricks and articles I have more than realized my ROI. Thanks again for starting the inner circle!!

Scott Hoenshell, Mid-America Hardwoods - Sarcoxie, Missouri

The Inner Circle gets to share all the good Stuff.

Members of Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle get access to some of the exact code we use at PDSA, Inc. for our projects. Plus, I give away utilities, tools, advice, coaching and a lot more. And what I don't give away, I discount as deep as I can for members.

In Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle, you have access to:

Interviews

Ken Getz, Principal, MCW Technologies Inc.
Rocky Lhotka, Principal Technology Evangelist, Magenic Technologies
And new surprise guests periodically

“Ask the Pro” teleconferences

Application Manager Roundtable: Includes only managers who oversee application development projects over $1 million budget. Inner Circle members are invited to ask these pros what they look for in developers, project managers, etc.
$150 Developer Success Series: Street-level stories from developers who earn at least $150/hour and more. Learn their secrets to staying busy and well-fed.

Technical Webcasts

From Zero to N-Tier in 60 Minutes
CSS for the ASP.NET Developer
Security in .NET 2.0
and many, many more…per your suggestions

“Ask Paul” Open Call

I will host a teleconference or webcast to answer questions sent in by members. I will focus on specific topics and feature guests that are relevant to the topic. Inner Circle members see and receive the code, the techniques, and the strategies.

Widget Bonus

On a regular schedule, Inner Circle members receive a new developer’s tool. Many of these are tools we developed for PDSA clients; all are focused on building applications better and faster.

HUGE discounts on our PDSA Performance Tools Big savings on:

IT Manager's Toolkit
DACGen
and the big daddy, PDSA Framework

Available ONLY to Inner Circle members.

Full Access to our members-only secure site All the items above are recorded and otherwise archived for access at your leisure.

Okay, I'm ready to join. What's next?

There are 2 levels of membership in Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle: Developer and IT Professional. Each membership is a one-time fee. Here's a breakdown of what's included with each membership:

Click on Headers to Compare Features

Your Membership Options:	Developer	IT Professional (Best Value!)
Membership Fee	$499.99	$999.99

Download Code Tips and Tricks	x	x
Download Developer Special Reports	x	x
View "Ask the Circle" Forum Questions	x	x
Download Developer eBooks (over $200 value!)	x	x
Download Developer Articles	x	x
Ask Questions, Get Answers on Developers "Ask the Circle" Forum	x	x
View IT Professional "Ask the Circle" Forum Questions	x	x
Download Utilities	x	x
Can Attend Live Technical Webcasts (over $300 value!)	x	x
Special Offers from our Partners - FREE Inner Workings Learning Exam - FREE Copy of PowerGadgets Creator Product! - 10% discount on Inner Workings Drills - 15% discount on CodeSmith! - 10% discount on ComponentOne Products! - 10% discount on Advisor Events - 20% discount on Infragistics NetAdvantage - More coming...	x	x

Download IT Professional Special Reports		x
Ask Questions, Get Answers on IT Professionals "Ask the Circle" Forum		x
Download Industry Professionals Interviews		x
"Ask Paul" Live Interactive Meetings		x
NEW! FREE PDSA .NET Provider Library (a $79 value!)		x
$2,000 PDSA Framework Rebate Certificate or $1,000 off any PDSA Product		x

Paul Sheriff's Personal Guarantee

I'll give you 4 weeks to change your mind, no questions asked. If at any time during the first 4 weeks of your membership you decide Inner Circle isn't valuable, just tell me.

I will refund 100% - EVERY PENNY - back to you.

*****************************

Inner Circle Members get answers…

"Paul: I just received your latest message about how to make yourself more valuable as a developer. I agree, investing in advancing your own knowledge is the fundamental way to do achieve that goal. It was valuable to get an idea of how much time and money you regularly invest to that end, and to be reminded not to expect immediate returns.

So, my question is, what are the podcasts, videocasts, eBooks, practice tests (I'm particularly curious about those) that you subscribe to?"

-Tom

Great question, Tom. I struggled to find this kind of detail from someone, anyone, for years. In the end I created my own "Hotlist" of critical sources. At the top of the list is … Read more…

"Paul, I need advice on building a successful team and getting multiple lines of business in company to agree to a core feature set/strict requirements. I know that is akin to herding cats, but I would love to hear anything you have seen or done that helped in those areas."

- Paul Scott,
Architect, epartners

Paul, you hit the nail right on the head. Your team must 'manage the client' effectively if you want your app to work. After more than 780 application projects, I've learned a thing or two about managing clients, and I've boiled it all down to 3 things ... Read More

What developers are saying about Paul Sheriff's Inner Circle…

"The business model for a programmer today means that to build your career, you need to take your technical foundation and build upon it with standard business levels skills. At that point you have done something that traditionally programmers have not been able to do and at the same time you are more valuable than other nontechncal managers."

- H. Schuyler Collins III

"Paul, thank you again for coming up with such a great idea."

-Mark

" I just got your email with the Flash audio & I think you are very much on track that it isn't just developing good software with good tools where things end but more importantly taking things to the next level to market yourself & your skills & marketing the software end product.

I'm looking forward to your Inner Circle"

-Kiran, New Zealand

" Reading article after article is informative but doesn't really address the big picture. Thanks for the opportunity to provide input and good luck."

-Ross

"I like your energy and enthusiasm for the Inner Circle…Great idea - count me in."

- Rod, Australia

"Great idea -- great project! And thanks Paul for recognizing how the bad apples are tainting our profession."

-Don

"I love the technology and everything that I know has been self-taught with books such as yours. I feel that having a 'mentor' would truly do wonders for my growth as a developer."

-Steve

"…you mentioned making us the best developers we can be. To me, that is more closely related to strategies than it is to technologies. You have undertaken a bold project. I wish you the best of luck."

-Ken

"I am looking forward to joining this new community."

- CJ

" From a business perspective, I think you have equal amounts of knowledge that could be shared. Your ideas on how to manage customer expectations, conflict resolution, what you find to be affective for transfer of ownership; these types of business related challenges. In general, I believe you have much more to share then just technical expertise."

- Cory

" I know your example in the email targets the basics of code design but thats kinda text book stuff. I think I can differentiate myself from the average coder or the outsourcing firm by being a architecture minded coder. Concepts that are hard to learn from text books but I can get from experts like Paul Sheriff.

Thanks Paul for your years of VBPJ articles, webcasts, books and videos."

"Great idea…great pitch!"

- Alan

"What attracted me to sign up is your desire to make me a better programmer/designer."

- Mike

Not interested in the Inner Circle...But want to make some MONEY!?!
Check out our Affiliate Program!

About Paul Sheriff

Paul (shown here with his dog Rusty) is the CEO and President of PDSA, Inc., a Microsoft Partner in Southern California. PDSA, Inc. has provided customers with high quality custom software, training, and architecture services since 1991.

Paul has been using .NET since Beta 1 and has written over 30 articles and 12 days of courseware on .NET. He has created many videos on .NET programming and performed over 30 Webcasts for Microsoft on .NET technology. Paul has lectured at various conferences on .NET, including the launch of VS.NET at VSLive and Microsoft Tech Ed. Paul is the Microsoft Regional Director for Southern California and helps run the local Developer Days event for Microsoft as well as speaking at various local Microsoft events.

Paul has over twenty one years experience architecting information systems and his expertise is in much demand from companies such as Microsoft, TransAmerica, PacifiCare, Rockwell, American Express, J.D. Powers & Associates and many others. Lately Paul has been helping these companies architect .NET applications and helping them lay out application frameworks such as the one presented in the eBook Architecting ASP.NET Applications. This eBook may be purchased at www.pdsa.com/ebooks.

Over the years Paul has written over 150 articles for many different publications, and is a contributing editor to Advisor magazine. Paul is the author of the QUE book Paul Sheriff teaches Visual Basic 6.0 and has co-authored the Addison-Wesley book ASP.NET Developer's Jumpstart with Ken Getz. Paul has also authored several eBooks on various .NET, SQL Server, and SharePoint topics. Paul also speaks at the Advisor Publications Developer’s Conferences, Microsoft Tech-Ed, VSLive, MSDN Events and Microsoft Developer Days.

PDSA, Inc. is available for consulting work and on-site training in Microsoft .NET, Visual Basic, SQL Server and Internet/Intranet applications. Contact PDSA, Inc. toll-free at (888) 899-PDSA (7372), or (714) 734-9792. Fax (714) 734-9793. E-mail: Psheriff@pdsa.com. Visit the PDSA web site at: http://www.pdsa.com.

Paul is the drummer of the band Evolve. A Southern California all-original band. Click here for more details.

Welcome To A Developer's Secret Weapon.