Greg's Cool [Insert Clever Name] of the Day: 11/28/2010

Friday, December 03, 2010

XBuilder - Free/OSS XNA 4.0 Content Viewer Visual Studio Extension (Think “The viewing XNA models/textures right in VS” extension…)

RoastedAmoeba - Announcing XBuilder, a free & open source content viewer for XNA 4.0 integrated with Visual Studio 2010

“Following two changes of name, I am now calling this project XBuilder. Why the change(s) of name? Well, I remembered the XNA Magic / Blade3D name change, and I didn’t want to get into any legal trouble, especially since this is a non-money-making piece of software.

It’s rather a grandiose name for something that boils down to a single tool window – but I have plans for a v0.2…

The TL;DR version

XBuilder is a Visual Studio 2010 extension which helps with XNA 4.0 development.

XBuilder provides a “Content Preview” window, which can render your models and textures.

In the Content Preview window, you can rotate your models, and set solid / wireframe fill mode.

XBuilder uses whatever content importers and processors you have referenced from your content project. So if it builds in your content project, it should work with XBuilder.

The source code is available on github.

I have released v0.1, which you can download here.

To install just double-click the .vsix file, and it should install into Visual Studio.

I plan to make it available online through Extension Manager, but I’d rather get some feedback first and make sure it’s stable before I do that.

…

…

…”

Been a while since I’ve blogged about XNA and since I through this looked pretty neat and that it was free and source available, I couldn’t pass it up… ;)

(via Brain Dump - Fantastic VS2010 extension for viewing XNA 4.0 content)

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

IoC? What? Man, I’m just a line of business dev trying to get through my day… What is this inversion of control/IoC, Dependency Injection thing?

Making the Complex Simple - Basic to Basics: Understanding IoC Part 2 (Creation)

“In my last back to basics post we talked about what inversion of control (IoC) is in regards to inverting control of interfaces.

We looked at how we can benefit from changing the control of the interface from the service to the client of that service.

This time we are going to tackle the more common form of IoC that is quite popular these days, and I’m going to show you why dependency injection is only one way to invert the control of the creation of objects in our code.

…

…”

I’ve really been enjoying John’s Back to Basics posts… Sometime you just need a review/brain cell refresh (or a jump start in breaking out of your day-to-day code grind and into learning something new… :)

Make sure you also catch the other posts in his series (to date);

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Adding color printing back to Visual Studio 2010 (via the new, free, Color Printing Extension)…

The Visual Studio Blog - Color Printing Extension Now Available!

“We are pleased to announce the availability of Color Printing as a free extension for Visual Studio 2010! By default, VS 2010 prints only in black and white; this extension restores support for printing code in color.

Installation and Setup

Installing Color Printing requires Visual Studio 2010 Pro, Premium, or Ultimate (the Express editions do not support extensions). You should be able to simply download and install this extension from the VS Gallery or via the Tools menu->Extension Manager.

Using the Color Printing Extension

Once you’ve installed the Color Printing extension, you should be able to print as you typically would – simply use File->Print or press Ctrl+P. No extra steps are required. You might notice that the print dialog looks slightly different, but it should be very similar to print dialogs you would see in Visual Studio or other applications:

…

Known Issues

Although we believe this extension restores most of the color printing functionality available in VS 2008 and earlier, there are a few known issues with this version:

…”

Sometimes you just need to see the code on paper and seeing it in color can make a huge difference. This extension returns color support to VS, and includes all “printing” to XPS, Send to OneNote and normal printers too.

Here’s the same code printed to XPS.

Before;

After;

Color makes a big difference in the readability, doesn’t it?

A start in understanding the MS-PST Node Database Layer, your first step toward PST binary enlightenment…

Microsoft Open Specification Support Team Blog - MS-PST - How to Navigate the Node BTree

“The current version of the MS-PST open specification document can be found here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff385210(office.12).aspx

Introduction

The PST is a structured binary file format that contains messages, folders, and attachments. The file structure can be logically separated into 3 layers: the Node Database (NBD) layer, the Lists, Tables, and Properties (LTP) layer, and the Messaging layer. Each layer builds on the one before and because of this it is necessary to completely understand the NDB layer before the LTP layer, and to understand the LTP layer before the Messaging layer. Like building a house, you cannot start framing the walls until you pour the foundation. The Node BTree, which is an important part of the NBD layer is part of that foundation. Without it, you could not hope to be able to understand how the PST file format works much less be able to find what you are looking for.

We will be focusing on the Unicode version of the PST file format that was introduced in Outlook 2003 since most of the PST files you are likely to be working with will be in this format. Information on the differences between the Unicode and ANSI version can be found in section 2.2.1.2.

…

…”

I love this kind of documentation. Understand binary formats are hard enough (I’ve been living in MS-CFB, MS-OLEPS, MS-OLSDS, MS-DOC and MS-XLS recently and let me tell you, my brain really hurts… ;) so this kind of walk through helps a great deal (Pictures = Less Greg Brain Pain ;). Sure it’s just barely scratching the surface, but sometimes all you need is a slight boost to get you going…

The Microsoft Office Visualization Tool (OffVis) – Spelunk (view, browse, peek into, etc) Microsoft Office Binary Format files
Microsoft Office (DOC, XLS, PPT) Binary File Format Specifications Released – We’re talking the full technical specification… (The [MS-DOC].pdf alone is 553 pages of very dense specification information)
DOC, XLS and PPT Binary File Format Specifications Released (plus WMF, Windows Compound File [aka OLE 2.0 Structured Storage] and Ink Serialized Format Specifications and Translator to XML news)
Microsoft Office Binary File Format Specifications Coming to a Download Near You...

Visio “Cloud” Stencil/Shapes

John Goldsmith's visLog - Cloud shapes

“I came across a set of cloud computing images the other day and thought they’d make a nice Visio stencil set. I contacted Josh Twist, the author, and you can now download the stencil from here[GD:Click through for the download link]. (If you want to download the original png’s then head over to Josh’s post titled ‘Cloud Artwork’.)

Note, all the hard work belongs to Josh – I’ve just added a few connection points and saved them as a new stencil (.vss).

…”

(via The Joy of Code (aka Josh Twist) - Cloud artwork - now as Visio Stencils)

Because sometimes you just need pretty Visio Cloud Shapes… :)

XMas gifts for your favorite presenter/speaker

Speak Schmeak - Holiday shopping list for your favorite speaker

“I've updated my annual shopping list again this year to help you find the best gifts for your favorite speaker -- who might just be you! Updates are marked with two asterisks (**) for readers who want to jump right to the new stuff.

Technology …

Visuals …

Fun and Useful Tools …

Reading Recommendations …

"

One day, when I grow up, I think I’d like to be a public speaker/presenter. I like sharing and talking about stuff I know/am interested in, so taking it to the next level one day seems like logical future step. Hence Lisa’s updated Holiday List caught my eye (that and the finger pointers… ;)

Monday, November 29, 2010

“Windows Azure SDK and Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio (November 2010)” (Think PDC 2010 version… With Azure VM[Beta], VPN, Remote Desktop and more)

Microsoft Downloads - Windows Azure SDK and Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio (November 2010)

“Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio, which includes the Windows Azure SDK, extends Visual Studio 2010 to enable the creation, configuration, building, debugging, running, packaging and deployment of scalable web applications and services on Windows Azure.

VSCloudService.exe: 18.7MB
VSCloudServiceHelp.chm: 1.2MB
WindowsAzureSDK.chm: 4.1MB
WindowsAzureSDK-x64.exe: 8.8MB
WindowsAzureSDK-x86.exe: 9.0MB

Version: 1.3.11122.0038
Date Published: 11/29/2010
Language: English

…

New for version 1.3:

Virtual Machine (VM) Role (Beta):Allows you to create a custom VHD image using Windows Server 2008 R2 and host it in the cloud.

Remote Desktop Access: Enables connecting to individual service instances using a Remote Desktop client.

Full IIS Support in a Web role: Enables hosting Windows Azure web roles in a IIS hosting environment.

Elevated Privileges: Enables performing tasks with elevated privileges within a service instance.

Virtual Network (CTP): Enables support for Windows Azure Connect, which provides IP-level connectivity between on-premises and Windows Azure resources.

Diagnostics: Enhancements to Windows Azure Diagnostics enable collection of diagnostics data in more error conditions.

Networking Enhancements: Enables roles to restrict inter-role traffic, fixed ports on InputEndpoints.

Performance Improvement: Significant performance improvement local machine deployment.

Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio also includes:

C# and VB Project creation support for creating a Windows Azure Cloud application solution with multiple roles.

…

…”

Play with all the cool new Azure stuff introduced at PDC 2010…

Make sure you read the entire download page as there’s a number of items and hotfixes you need to install to make this all work.

LAFD 'Toy Safety' Widget - Check the widget before you write the check…

LAFD Blog - LAFD 'Toy Safety' Widget Arrives For the Holidays

“To help identify toys and children's products that have been recalled, the Los Angeles Fire Department and Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) are again teaming up this holiday season to provide a 'Toy & Children's Product Recall' widget that is easy to share with friends and family.

[GD: Widget there on the left <<<]

This free 'widget' displays the most recent child product and toy recalls from CPSC - and is easily added to your personal website or blog.

Will You Help Us?

During the holiday season, we're asking webmasters and bloggers across our nation to include this widget on their sites. You can share this real-time display on Facebook, MySpace (or other on-line site) by simply clicking on the 'Get Widget' button above - or visiting:

http://bit.ly/toy-safety-widget

Go Ahead, Give It a Try!”

It’s simple and easy to add, so why not?

VB for WP7 RTW - SilverLight projects only, still no XNA, Expression support

Jason Zander's WebLog - Announcing: Visual Basic Windows Phone 7 Support RTW

“I’ve personally been enjoying using my Windows Phone 7 device, and it’s been a lot of fun seeing the phones come to market across the world. As a developer, it’s an intriguing opportunity to see so many people buying Windows Phone 7 devices and starting to purchase applications on the Marketplace. With all this excitement around Windows Phone 7, I’m often asked by Visual Basic developers when they’ll be able to submit their applications to the Marketplace. I’m excited to announce that day is here!

Today we’re releasing “Visual Basic for Windows Phone Developer Tools – RTW”. This release is available in the same five languages as the Windows Phone Developer Tools:

…

Summary

You can find the full source code for the Visual Basic Tip Calculator application here. The application uses general Silverlight and Visual Basic features, which are available in other application types, and now also apply to the phone. As a VB developer, you’re well-positioned for success creating Windows Phone 7 applications.

Enjoy!

"

(Via Scott Lovegrove)

From the ReadMe.txt (Leached in Full);

“Visual Basic for Windows Phone Developer Tools - RTW

Prerequisites:

- Windows Phone Developer Tools RTW
- Visual Studio 2010 Professional, Premium, or Ultimate

Known Issues:

1. XNA projects. XNA is not currently supported in Visual Basic. Developers using this release can create Visual Basic Silverlight applications for Windows Phone 7; however, there are no Visual Basic project templates available for XNA at this time.

2. Integration with Expression Blend for Windows Phone. Visual Basic Windows Phone applications are not currently supported in Expression Blend for Windows Phone.”

Cool that this has shipped. Nice to see a little VB love. But as much as this pains me to say, I almost wish this were not available. I think it’s about time to pick a one .Net language to rule them all and put VB to bed. Now I’ve been using VB for forever (I’ve a production app in every version of VB for Windows… yes, even VB1) but what is the “real” future for it? I mean, really? Sure Microsoft says VB is alive and well, that it stands on an equal footing with C#, that there’s a bright future for it, etc, etc. But what VB programmer isn’t either consciously or subconsciously thinking about moving to C#? Which language would you want your kid to learn? Again, I’m glad Microsoft has made this available, as I still dream in VB, but the partial support, i.e. still no XNA (we’ve only been asking for this since XNA v1) or Expression support, makes me wonder… Okay, I’ll call it as half-full and be happy… ;)

The trip down the writing of a IE managed extension path continues… Dealing with the potholes (i.e. Debugging)

vcsjones - Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension: Part 4–Debugging

“Picking up where we left of with Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension, debugging is where I wanted to go next. I promise I’ll get to more “feature” level stuff, but when stuff goes wrong, and it will, you need to know how to use your toolset. .NET Developers typically write some code and press F5 to see it work. When an exception, the debugger, already attached, steps up to the plate and tells you everything that is wrong. When you write an Internet Explorer Extension it isn’t as simple as that. You need to attach the debugger to an existing process, and even then it won’t treat you like you’re use to. Notably, breakpoints aren’t going to launch the debugger until the debugger is already attached. So we have a few options, and some tricks up our sleeves, to get the debugger to aide us.

…

…”

I keep hoping that Microsoft will rework the IE extensibility model (think how cool a more simple model like that used by Visual Studio and MEF would be in IE?) but until then, now that with .Net 4 it’s “safe” to write managed extensions for IE, this is an interesting series to follow…

Also see;

Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension: Part 3 (GD: Life as an IE BHO on Vista/Win7)
Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension: Part 2.5 (GD: More event attaching)
Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension: Part 2 (GD: Initial event attaching)
Writing a Managed Internet Explorer Extension: Part 1 (GD: Intro, simple sample)

Free eBook, “The Red Gate Guide to SQL Server Team based Development”

I want some Moore - The Red Gate Guide to SQL Server Team based Development Free e-book

“After about 6 months of work, the new book I've coauthored with Grant Fritchey (Blog|Twitter), Phil Factor (Blog|Twitter) and Alex Kuznetsov (Blog|Twitter) is out. They're all smart folks I talk to online and this book is packed with good ideas backed by years of experience.

The book contains a good deal of information about things you need to think of when doing any kind of multi person database development. Although it's meant for SQL Server, the principles can be applied to any database platform out there. In the book you will find information on: writing readable code, documenting code, source control and change management, deploying code between environments, unit testing, reusing code, searching and refactoring your code base. I've written chapter 5 about Database testing and chapter 11 about SQL Refactoring.

…”

SQL Books - The Red Gate Guide to SQL Server Team-based Development

“The Red Gate Guide to SQL Server Team-based Development
Phil Factor, Grant Fritchey, Alex Kuznetsov, and Mladen Prajdić

Download the free eBook here.

This book shows how to use a mixture of home-grown scripts, native SQL Server tools, and tools from the Red Gate SQL Toolbelt, to successfully develop database applications in a team environment, and make database development as similar as possible to "normal" development.

Why read this book?

Only small projects, relevant to very few people, are built by the sweat and toil of a lone developer. Larger projects, affecting whole organizations, will invariably require a team of people to design and develop the application and its storage layer, or database.

In some cases, this will mean some developers and one or two DBAs, but larger organizations can afford a higher degree of specialization, so there will be developers who work exclusively within the data access layer of an application, database developers who specialize in writing T-SQL, architects who design databases from scratch based on business requirements, and so on. Stepping up the scale even further, some projects require multiple development teams, each working on a different aspect of the application and database, and each team performing of a collection of these specialized tasks. All these people will have to work together, mixing and matching their bits and pieces of work, to arrive at a unified delivery: an application and its database.

…

This book shows how to use of mixture of home-grown scripts, native SQL Server tools, and tools from the Red Gate SQL Toolbelt (such as SQL Compare, SQL Source Control, SQL Prompt, and so on), to successfully develop database applications in a team environment, and make database development as similar as possible to "normal" development.

It shows how to solve many of the problems that the team will face when writing, documenting, and testing database code in a team environment, including all the areas below.

Writing readable code.

Documenting code.

Source control and change management.

Deploying code between environments.

Unit testing.

Reusing code.

Searching and refactoring your code base

…”

If you read any of the popular link bloggers you’ve probably already seen this, but just in case not…

Note that this is a special campaign and so the book might not be available for forever (so get it now).

Here’s a snap of it;

Sunday, November 28, 2010

CodePlex project owner/contributor/doc writer? Don’t like the wiki web UI/markup/etc? What if I were to tell you you can use Windows Live Writer to edit your CodePlex wiki…?

Gunnar Peipman's ASP.NET blog - CodePlex supports Windows Live Writer!

“I am documenting local community portal that is hosted in CodePlex. Wikis have always been annoying for me when it comes to creating a good content. So, I was preparing for boring evening full of wiki mark-up and messing with good format, manual image uploads etc. But CodePlex surprised me today – it’s wiki supports Windows Live Writer!

As tonight is not the last night when I am documenting my work I was specially glad I got this heavy boost to my documenting action. I will save a lot of time I think as I am pretty quick when I’m using Windows Live Writer. Take a look at the following screenshot.

…

Conclusion

After couple of documentation pages I was amazed how fast I can move on with documenting when I don’t have to use this weird wiki mark-up and manual image uploads. Windows Live Writer is my killer tool when it goes to writing something for web. Now I can do also my CodePlex writing with Windows Live Writer and I can focus more on the quality of my documents. And this IS cool!

…”

CodePlex Information and Discussion - Using Windows Live Writer

“Getting started using Windows Live Writer with your CodePlex project is fairly simple. …

…

Windows Live Writer Q&A

Q: Can I add images to my wiki pages through Windows Live Writer?
A: Yes, images will be uploaded to CodePlex and attached to the wiki page.

Q: Can I add code samples to my wiki pages through Windows Live Writer?
A: Yes, you can use one of the many plugins to insert code. We recommend using Insert Code for Windows Live Writer, Source Code Formatter, or PreCode.

Q: Do I have to use Windows Live Writer?
A: No. Since we implement the MetaWeblog API, you can use any tool that uses this same API.

Q: Can I embed videos or Silverlight applications using Windows Live Writer?
A: No. Similarly to the web based editor, we will ignore this content. We are looking into supporting this in the future, however.

…”

Editing of existing pages? Yep

Image support? Yep

Awesome? Yep!

Anyone writing CodePlex wiki pages/doc’s and also use WLW will understand just how cool this is (been there, done that, got the t-shirt… ;) And it’s been available since at least August 2010.

Note #1: The screenshots and instructions are for the previous version of Windows Live Writer, but the capability works fine in WLW 2011. Adding a CodePlex Project to WLW is just as easy and simple as adding any other “other” blog.

Note #2: Use your main project CodePlex UserID and Password and NOT your CodePlex Version Control UserID/Password (ie NOT your “SND\*_cp” UserID/Password)

Just started blogging? A seasoned pro? Just thinking about it? Here’s some lessons and tips that might help on your road to fame and fortune… (i.e. Learn from the mistakes of others…)

ProBlogger - 10 Realizations that Will Crush Your Little Heart In Your First Year of Blogging

“This post comes from someone who has made a ton of mistakes and is on her way to learn from those mistakes. You and I probably have a lot in common … after all, you’re here to learn about blogging and how to do it well and, well, I’m trying to do the same.

Being the owner and author of a blog that is in its first year of infancy, it’s been an emotional roller coaster ride—kind of like riding a car with a driver who makes you think of your impending death thanks to their inept braking skills and their random urges to switch lanes (without looking).

As a new blogger in a very crowded niche, I’ve found the year tough. It’s been tough finding my voice among so many others, producing content that is rich and teaches others a thing or two, attracting traffic that sticks (subscribers)—all while trying to establish a schedule.

Still, it helps to be prepared. Here are ten things that will crush your little heart in your first year of blogging:

…

Despite all these things that might have you sobbing under the blanket with a pint of scotch, hopefully you’ll realize that you should keep going. In fact, if you love what you’re blogging about, the pure thrill of having your content go viral or making your first few sales will probably have you giggling like a school girl and make you realize that it’s all worth it.

I’ve made all these mistakes and then some and I won’t be quitting any time soon! …

…”

#10 made me laugh out loud. Oh yeah, that is SO me and my experience.

The important point is to understand WHY you are blogging. Is it for fun, professional or business? Know in your heart of hearts why you’re blogging before you start. Make sure you know what road you are walking, for if you don’t you’ll never know what direction you are going in… It’s easy to get lost if you have no idea where you want to go…

[Pre-Book Review] Microsoft Enterprise Library 5.0

[Disclaimer: This book was provided to me for free by the publisher.]

The hungry guys at [Packt] have given me a chance to review another of their books, this time the Microsoft Enterprise Library 5.0. Given my past interest in EntLib I couldn’t pass it up…

The book just arrived and I’ll be going through it in the coming weeks. In the mean time to wet your appetite here’s a press release and a sample chapter (Chapter 1)…

“Press Release

November 2010

Develop enterprise applications using Packt's new Microsoft Enterprise Library 5.0 book

Packt is pleased to announce Microsoft Enterprise Library 5.0, a new book that helps programmers to develop enterprise applications using the enterprise library application blocks as well as set up the initial infrastructure configuration of the application blocks using the configuration editor. Written by Sachin Joshi, this book provides an in-depth knowledge about the individual functional Application Blocks as well as enabling reconfiguration of various applications in order to improve testing of the application in isolation.

Microsoft Enterprise Library is a collection of reusable application blocks designed to assist software developers with common enterprise development challenges. It provides an API to facilitate best practices in core areas of programming including data access, security, logging, exception handling and others. Enterprise Library is provided as pluggable binaries and source code, which can be freely used and customized by developers for their own purposes.

Microsoft Enterprise Library 5.0 gives programmers an overview of the different reusable software components in the Enterprise Library and their inter-dependencies which helps in increasing productivity through the satisfaction of common application concerns. It gives a thorough analysis on the implementation of custom trace listener, log formatter, and log filter as well as configuring the Exception Handling block and wrap.

This book's step-by-step tutorial provides complete guidance towards the development of small applications in order to implement the functions in each application block. Users would be able to configure the Exception Handling block, and wrap or replace exceptions using a Wrap Handler or a Replace Handler. They can also implement a custom Hash Provider and Symmetric Cryptography Provider.

Programmers, consultants or associate architects, interested in developing enterprise applications will find this book an interesting and beneficial read. This book is out now and available from Packt. For more information please visit www.packtpub.com/microsoft-enterprise-library-5-0/book”