So, there I am, sitting next to my boss, Andy, at work. He's just downloaded the electronic version of a BizTalk book he's bought. It's called "Pro BizTalk 2006" from Apress, and its written by George Dunphy and Ahmed Metwally. Andy draws my attention to the chapter on the Microsoft Rules Engine. I've got an interest in this piece of kit, so I start flicking through the pages to see what the chapter is like. Not too bad at all. Oh look, they've even got a section starting on page 290 that discusses how to use XPaths effectively to handle XML facts. Good stuff. I've blogged on this once or twice myself, and I've had to explain the issues so many times to others. It's a good, clear explanation. The kind of thing I might have written myself and…oh, it really is very much the kind of thing I might have written myself. I recognise the phrases, the terminology, the sentence structure. Why, goodness me. I did write it! I even remember where I wrote it. It's in a reply to a post on the MSN BizTalk group from way back. I type half a sentence straight into Google. Yes, there it is. http://www.msnusers.com/biztalkserverstuff/general.msnw?action=get_message&mview=1&ID_Message=2064. I knew I'd written it. I do a detailed comparison. Not quite the same. The content has been re-worked, tidied up, etc. But yes, its definitly a version of what I wrote.
Hey guys, I'm flattered. Glad I could help you out. Like it says on the cover, "The Expert's (sic) Voice". Incidently, I had a quick look through the book, and the other content looks almost as good as pages 290-291 [;)]
PS. I'm not offended – just amused. In any case, I had quick look at the T&Cs on MSN, and discovered that the authors are entirely in their rights to use the material in this way.
Previously posted at http://blog.solidsoft.com/blogs/charles_young_mvp_biztalk/default.aspx