Codeguru Update eNewsletter – November 21st, 2006

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CodeGuru Newsletter
November 21, 2006

http://www.CodeGuru.com


This newsletter is part of the Developer.com, EarthWeb, and
internet.com networks.
Jupitermedia Corporation


___________________________ Sponsors
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Enteo
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TOPICS:



–> Editorial –
–>
Recently Published Books


–> New on CodeGuru:
 
– Articles
        ==>
ASP.NET
Tip 
               
– Testing Web Sites with
HttpWebRequest
        ==> Data
Controls
               
– Controls that Are Datasource
Bound
        ==> Installation and
Setup
               
– [Updated] Deploy Your Applications and Components Using the Windows
Installer
        ==>
Multmedia.
               
– Multimedia Audio SDK
        ==>
Office
Automation
               
– Automating Excel by Using Windows INI
Files
        ==>
Postbacks
               
– Maintain ASP.NET Tree Position on Postbacks


–> Discussion Groups — HOT
Threads 
        – Config
File? (C#)
        – Tokenizing text file
(Java)
        – Template design question (C++)


–> Highlighted new articles on
Developer.com 
        1.
Software Quality Metrics
        2. Taking
on Custom Ant Logging
        3. Eclipse
Tip: Create Rich User Interfaces with the HTML Browser Widget


/——————————————————————-
C++
gurus wanted! Does your job bore you? Are you looking for a real
challenge?
Do you have fun solving seemingly unsolvable problems? Are
you interested in
the latest trends in software development? Do you
like sharing your ideas
with other gurus? Have you been on first name
terms with the Windows OS for
several years? Are you an expert when
it comes to handling design patterns?
Do you know the difference
between OOA and OOD? And are you game for unit
testing too? If
you’ve answered “yes” to all of the above, then we’ve got
the
right job for you!
http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,fkfr,lbym,jorm,i5r0
————————————————————–adv.-/


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Comments
from the
Editor
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…The console War is On.


In the United States, the second half of this week will
include the Thanksgiving holiday. More importantly, this Friday is the biggest
shopping day of the year. Of course, for many geeks, the biggest shopping days are already over this year.


And speaking of shopping days, the console war is now fully on. The lines had
been drawn in the sand a year ago with the launch of the Xbox 360; however, the
battle just heated up with the release of the Sony Playstation 3 and the Wii
from Nintendo.


Don’t bother going to your local tech store for the new PS3, chances are you
won’t find them. With the PS3, it was stated by Sony that there would only be
400,000. Speculation is that the number was more like 200,000. At $500 to $600
the PS3 is now the cheapest Blu-Ray DVD player on the market and is the newest
high-end game console available. It is also one of the hottest items on eBay
selling for over twice its original price.


Ironically, speculation is that Sony is losing as much
money on each PS3 as it would cost to buy Nintendo’s new unit – the Wii. The Wii
is priced closer to $250 and is speculated to actually be profitable. I’ve not
played a Wii; however, reports on it indicate that it might actually be the most
fun of the consoles to play. With its innovative, new controllers, it will be interesting to see its impact.


If you stood in line for a console this past week or have heard some great
stories, stop by the chit chat forum and share with the rest of us.


… Borland, err CodeGear…


If someone were to ask for a list of the companies that have  developed
some of the greatest tools of their time, I’d include companies like Aston-Tate
and Borland. Borland was the leader in the C++ developer tool market in the
1980s and early 90s.  Last year, Borland decided to divest itself of its
developer tools. More recently, instead of selling the division,
the developer tools were spun off. They are now within the company
CodeGear. This past week, CodeGear has shown that it is continuing to move
forward by releasing JBuilder 2007.


While Aston-Tate and DBase are only memories to many of us, Borland’s tools
continue to move along. We’ll see if CodeGear gives them new life or if it is
just another step along the path to becoming a memory like Aston-Tate and DBase.
The release of JBuilder 2007 seems to be a step  in the right direction to
keep the legacy going.


Until next week…


Brad!
—————————
Bradley L.
Jones
www.CodeGuru.com
—————————


=========================================================
Recently
Published Books
=========================================================


For those of you keeping up by reading books. The following are just a few of
the new books that have been recently released. If you’ve read any of these,
feel free to write a review to be posted on CodeGuru. See the submission
guidelines at:


http://www.codeguru.com/review-guidelines.php


A bit out side the Developer focus, but technology books none-the-less:


–> Foundations of
WF
      An Introduction to WIndows
Workflow Foundation
      By Brian R. Myers for
Apress
      250 pages for
$34.99 
      http://books.internet.com/books/0590597814


=========================================================
New
& Updated Articles on
CodeGuru
==========================================================



Following are short descriptions of new articles on CodeGuru. If you are
interested in submitting your own article for inclusion on the site, then you
will find guidelines located at


http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,fka1,909i,jorm,i5r0


This week’s CodeGuru posts:


================
==== Articles ====
================


==> ASP.NET Tip


– Testing Web Sites with
HttpWebRequest
    By Eric Smith
Web servers
sometimes produce a Web page even if it has an error. To verify whether the
server is actually running and not generating any Web errors, use the
HttpWebRequest class to check the content of any ASP.NET page.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,fuwu,4hop,jorm,i5r0


==> Data Controls


– Controls that Are Datasource Bound
   
By Xun Ding
Take a close look at the new features available in ASP .NET
databound controls, such as BulletedList and GridView. Also, learn the simple
steps to perform common database operations such as paging, sorting, and
editing, as well as how to create master/detail page using the Gridview
control.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,a9l0,4vb3,jorm,i5r0


==> Installation and Setup


– [Updated] Deploy Your Applications and Components Using the Windows
Installer


    By Prabhakar Manikonda
Learn how to create setup
programs without having the knowledge of setup scripts.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,dtjp,757f,jorm,i5r0


==> Multmedia.


– Multimedia Audio SDK
    By arnav
No
amount of description of a tune can ever replace the experience of hearing it.
But, playing a sound file synchronously or asynchronously, mixing sound, or
excercising still finer control over it has been a pain in the neck. Audio API
makes playing sound a very comfortable and enjoyable experience.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,jhq1,1mkw,jorm,i5r0


==> Office Automation


– Automating Excel by Using Windows INI
Files

    By John Macomber
Save your Excel
spreadsheet data and formatting information in Windows Initialization files.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,6h5y,4ihr,jorm,i5r0


==> Postbacks


– Maintain ASP.NET Tree Position on
Postbacks
    By Paul Kimmel
Have you found
ASP.NET lacking when it comes to keeping track of the last selected position
between postbacks? You’re not alone. Learn a JavaScript solution that does the
trick.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,felp,lms2,jorm,i5r0


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Discussion
Groups
==========================================================


Check out the CodeGuru discussion forums at:

http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,bcr8,cx5j,jorm,i5r0


Forums include Visual C++, General C++, Visual Basic, Java, General
Technology, C#, ASP.NET, XML, Help Wanted, and much, much, more!


… HOT THREADS …


Some of the current threads with the most activity are:


==> Config File?
(C#)
        http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,4kp7,d7zi,jorm,i5r0


==> Tokenizing text file
(Java)
        http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,a28i,8yfn,jorm,i5r0


==> Template design question
(C++)
        http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,452,c018,jorm,i5r0


==========================================================
New
Articles on
Developer.com
==========================================================


Below are some of the new articles that have been posted to Developer.com (http://www.developer.com).


1. Software Quality Metrics
    By Bijay
Jayaswal & Peter Patton –
Managing complexity and finding significant
surrogate indicators of program complexity must go beyond merely estimating the
number of lines of code the program is expected to require.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,eam4,l2e7,jorm,i5r0


2. Taking on Custom Ant Logging
    By Rob
Lybarger –
When all else fails, read the logs! See how to take complete
control over Ant’s logging system by creating some custom Ant logger classes
that put the log messages you want into the format you need.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,kxya,9rs5,jorm,i5r0


3. Eclipse Tip: Create Rich User Interfaces with the HTML Browser
Widget
    By Peter Nehrer –
Discover how the SWT
Browser widget allows you to embed HTML pages directly into your Eclipse
application. Learn how to use it to create visually appealing user interfaces in
Eclipse.



http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,2unt,1,hemh,lowj,jorm,i5r0


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