There are many tools available 3rd party or from Microsoft that can help a professional in building robust applications. This accounts for many technologies and server products like BizTalk Server, .NET, and SharePoint. The TechNet Wiki plays an essential role describing these tools, how to use them and where you find them.
As professionals you will be more productive when it comes to testing your solution, verifying the installation of the server product or troubleshooting an issue when using tools of the trade. Not only tools can be helpful, but also reading articles about testing or building your solution, and many other cases. The TechNet Wiki also harbors many of these kinds of articles.
In case of BizTalk Server there are tools for validating installations, performing health checks, testing artifacts, and perform troubleshooting. There are either written and made available by Microsoft, embraced by Microsoft or created by third parties or the community. Many of these tools are described in various TechNet Wiki articles thus making it a valuable asset in a BizTalk professionals toolbox. Examples of Wiki Articles that discuss tooling are:
- BizTalk Monitoring Tools
- BizTalk Server - Unit Testing
- BizTalk Health Check
- BizTalk Server: Performance Tuning & Optimization
- BizTalk Server 2010: Tools
Tools are one thing that can make professional more proficient yet knowledge and awareness of integration patterns is another thing. Architects and professionals can benefit from looking at patterns and apply them when design or implementing a solution. A good example of an TechNet Wiki article that sums all integration patterns up that can be applied using BizTalk Server is the Enterprise Integration Patterns article.
You can use the links in this article as guide when building your own solution and aid when you are doing research for creating a design. Another TechNet Wiki that can be helpful in that aspect is the The BizTalk Anti-Pattern List.
TechNet Wiki not only provides you with information about tools, it also can serve with your own toolbox as resources for different purposes. In each BizTalk Professionals Toolbox there should be references to multiple TechNet Wiki articles or at least a reference to the page that gives access to all the BizTalk Server Resources on the TechNet Wiki article.
Steef-Jan (Blog, Wiki, Twitter, Profile)