Update Sept 2008

powercfg -h off

• Processor: E6600 / 2.4Ghz Core Duo.
• Ram: 4x512Mb Crucial Ballistix PC6500 4-4-4-12 @ 2.2v
  
• Cooling: OCZ Vindicator
• Disks: 74Gb 10k WD Raptor, 500Gb WD SATA 2, 1Tb WD MyBook eSATA.

• FSB 395 Mhz x9
• Memory Multiplier 2.0
  
• vCore 1.375
• vFSB +.05
• vMCH +.05
• vDimm +.2
• Memory timings: 5-5-5-18-auto-etc.
  

"If a driver is required, then it is required for your USB, or FireWire interface inside your PC. External harddrives didn´t require special drivers, because they are ATAPI compatible."

The solution to this annoying problem (I had it on one PC), seems to be to locate and delete the file INFCACHE.1, which may be corrupted and causing the problem. To delete this file, you will first have to modify its permissions so the users group can access it (right-click on the
file->Properties->Security). INFCACHE.1 file.  It's located at C:\Windows\inf (scroll down to the file). (Note: to see INFCACHE.1, you must set Windows Explorer to display hidden and system files)

When modify these system files, i usually find i have to take ownership first for my own user account, then add myself to the permissions with full control.  then you can delete it, or rename it to X_INFCACHE.1, etc.

I'm glad to say Vista is loading all my USB devices nicely now and the Formac drive works beautifully with USB and Firewire.

<%@ Page Language="C#" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Collections" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Collections.Generic" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data.OleDb" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data.SqlClient" %>

<%@ Import Namespace="System.Net" %>


<script RunAt="server">


/* Server Monitoring Script:

* - test SQL databases by running an sql string against an SQL connection string

* - test Access databases by running an sql string against a JET connection string

* - test web sites by Regex matching a search string against the contents of a HttpWebRequest

*/


enum TestType {Sql_Server, Ms_Access, Http_Request } // different types of supported
requests


/// <summary>

/// Container class to represent a 'test' object for a resource on the server.

/// </summary>

class TestObject

{

public TestType Type; // e.g. Sql_Server.

public string TestString; // e.g. connection string for a database. or URI for http
request.

public string TestParam; // e.g. sql string for a database. or search string for a
http request.


public TestObject(TestType type, string testString, string testParam)

{

this.Type = type; 


this.TestString = testString;

this.TestParam = testParam;

}

}


void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)

{

List<TestObject> tests = new List<TestObject>();


tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Sql_Server, @"Data Source=.\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=DB1;Integrated
Security=True", "select top 10 * from Table1"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Sql_Server, @"Data Source=.\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=DB2;Integrated
Security=True", "select top 10 * from Table1"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Sql_Server, @"Data Source=.\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=DB3;Integrated
Security=True", "select top 10 * from Table1"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Sql_Server, @"Data Source=.\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=DB4;Integrated
Security=True", "select top 10 * from Table1"));


tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Ms_Access, @"Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data
Source=c:\Inetpub\Database\DB5.mdb;Persist Security Info=True", "select top 10 * from
Table1"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Ms_Access, @"Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data
Source=c:\Inetpub\Database\DB6.mdb;Persist Security Info=True", "select top 10 * from
Table1"));


tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Http_Request, "http://mysite1.ie/", "Site 1"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Http_Request, "http://mysite2.ie/", "Site 2"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Http_Request, "https://mysite3.ie/", "Site 3"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Http_Request, "https://mysite4.ie/", "Site 4"));

tests.Add(new TestObject(TestType.Http_Request, "https://mysite5.ie/", "Site 5"));


int numCompleted = 0;

int numFailed = 0;


// write the HTML header. (a result is flushed to the client after each test finishes.)

Flush(@" 


<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC '-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN' 'http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd'>

<html>

<head>

<title>Server Test</title>

<meta name='ROBOTS' content='NOINDEX,NOFOLLOW'>

<link rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' href='ServerTestStyles.css' />

</head>

<body>");


foreach(TestObject test in tests)

{ 


try

{

switch(test.Type)

{ 


case TestType.Sql_Server:

runQuerySql(test.TestParam, test.TestString);

break;

case TestType.Ms_Access:

runQueryOleDb(test.TestParam, test.TestString);

break;

case TestType.Http_Request:

string pageContents = new WebClient().DownloadString(test.TestString);

if(!Regex.IsMatch(pageContents, test.TestParam, RegexOptions.IgnoreCase))

throw new Exception("Search string not found: " + test.TestParam);

break;

default:

throw new Exception("Test type not handled " + test.Type);

}

Flush(String.Format("<span class='pass'>Pass</span> &nbsp; <span
class='type'>{0}</span> &nbsp; {1} <hr />", test.Type, test.TestString));

numCompleted++;

}

catch(Exception ex)

{

Flush(String.Format("<span class='fail'>Fail</span> &nbsp; {1} <span
class='type'>{0}</span><BR><span class='error'>{2}</span><hr
/>", test.Type, test.TestString, ex.Message));

numFailed++;

}

}

if(numFailed > 0)

Flush(String.Format("<h1>{0} errors occured</h1>", numFailed));

else

Flush(String.Format("<h1>All Good!</h1>", numFailed)); // if you use this
page with an automated monitoring service, look for "All Good" in the page contents.
otherwise an error occured

Flush("</body></html>");

}


/// <summary>

/// Method to run an sql string against an sql database

/// </summary>

public static DataSet runQuerySql(string sql, string connString)

{

SqlConnection conn = new SqlConnection(connString);

DataSet ds = new DataSet();

SqlDataAdapter dba = new SqlDataAdapter();

SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand(sql, conn);


try

{

dba.SelectCommand = cmd;

dba.Fill(ds, "Table");

return (ds);

}

catch(Exception e)

{

throw e;

}

finally

{

cmd.Connection.Close();

conn.Close();

}

}


/// <summary>

/// Method to run an sql string against an Access database

/// </summary>

public static DataSet runQueryOleDb(string sql, string connString)

{

OleDbConnection conn = new OleDbConnection(connString);

DataSet ds = new DataSet();

OleDbDataAdapter dba = new OleDbDataAdapter();

OleDbCommand cmd = new OleDbCommand(sql, conn);


try

{

dba.SelectCommand = cmd;

dba.Fill(ds, "Table");

return (ds);

}

catch(Exception e)

{

throw e;

}

finally

{

cmd.Connection.Close();

conn.Close();

}

}


/// <summary>

/// Flush output to the browser (useful to indicate which tests are causing any delay)

/// </summary>

/// <param name="output"></param>

private void Flush(string output)

{

Response.Write(output);

Response.Flush();

}


</script>

ServerTestStyles.css:  (just to make the output more legible)

body

{

font-size: 90%;

font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif;

padding: .5em;

}


hr

{

color: #87ceeb;

background-color: #87ceeb;

margin: .3em 0 .3em 0;

padding: 0;

height: 1px;

}


.pass

{

color: Blue;

font-weight: bold;

}

.fail

{

color: Red;

font-weight: bold;

}

.type

{

color: purple;

font-weight: bold;

}

.error

{

color: Red;

font-size: small;

}

I have configured the test in InternetVista to search for "All Good" in the url for the test page.  If this isn't present, i'll get an SMS/email alert and i can go and see what exactly is wrong.  It should be fairly easy to add other test types if you have different resources you need to check on.
Enjoy.

set SSDIR=C:\Data\VSS                                        ** the folder containing of your srcsafe.ini file **

cd "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual SourceSafe\"

ss dir -R -D $/*.*

Usability quote of the day

i'm doing some contract work developing a content management system for a software/design company, and the boss doesn't think it's a good idea to involve the client at all in the process, basically they want a localizable CMS with built-in publishing / approval process, and they are going to be given something along those lines (which i'm hired to develop) and be told how to use it.  That's about as far as the communication goes with the client.  this is bad enough, but yesterday there was a certain design decision we had to make that would seriously affect the client and how they can use the system, and i suggested asking the client for their opinion...

"  oh jeez no!  "

this was the response from the boss of this un-named company, "don't talk to them until the thing is finished ".  i had to hold back the laughter at such a dim view of developing software.  i have a distinct feeling the client would like it done differently but what can you do!  i should buy this guy a ticket to a jakob nielsen conference on usability...

Ever since i went to Malaga in Southern Spain 10 years ago, i have tried and failed to reproduce the authentic taste of the amazing "Tortilla Española", the Spanish Omelette.  I remember paying about a euro for a large tortilla that would be perfectly acceptable to eat for breakfast, lunch or (and!) dinner.
fortunately, i came across a recipe online today that i am posting here for future reference.  although i am fairly handy with the old omelettes in general, this was a real find, in particular the discovery that you fry the potatoes in lots of olive oil, which makes them go soft and gives a lovely soft texture to the whole tortilla.
You can see it on it's original location here, i'm only copying it here in case that url ever disappears or goes down.

Serves four as a main course; twelve as a tapa.

• 1 and 3/4 cups vegetable oil for frying (or plain olive oil)
• about 5 medium-sized potatoes, peeled
• 2 tsp. coarse salt
• 2 or 3 medium-sized onions, diced
• 5 medium cloves garlic, very coarsely chopped
• 6 large eggs
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

In a 10 or 11 inch non-stick skillet (should be at least 2 inches deep), heat the oil on medium high. While the oil is heating, slice the potatoes thinly, about 1/8 inch. Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle on the 2 tsp. of salt, tossing to distribute it well.

When the oil is very hot (a potato slice will sizzle vigorously around the edges without browning), gently slip the potatoes into the oil with a skimmer or slotted spoon. Fry the potatoes, turning occasionally (trying not to break them) and adjusting the heat so they sizzle but don't crisp or brown. Set a sieve over a bowl or else line a plate with paper towels. When the potatoes are tender, after 10 to 12 min., transfer them with the skimmer to the sieve or lined plate.

Add the onions and garlic to the pan. Fry, stirring occasionally, until the onions are very soft and translucent but not browned (you might need to lower the heat), 7 to 9 min. Remove the pan from the heat and, using the skimmer, transfer the onions and garlic to the sieve or plate with the potatoes. Drain the oil from the skillet, reserving at least 1 Tbs. (strain the rest and reserve to use again, if you like) and wipe out the pan with a paper towel so it's clean. Scrape out any stuck-on bits, if necessary.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, 1/4 tsp. salt, and the pepper with a fork until blended. Add the drained potatoes, onions, and garlic and mix gently to combine with the egg, trying not to break the potatoes (some will anyway).

Heat the skillet on medium high. Add the 1 Tbs. reserved oil. Let the pan and oil get very hot (important so the eggs don't stick), and then pour in the potato and egg mixture, spreading it evenly. Cook for 1 min. and then lower the heat to medium low, cooking until the eggs are completely set at the edges, halfway set in the center, and the tortilla easily slips around in the pan when you give it a shake, 8 to 10 min. You may need to nudge the tortilla loose with a knife or spatula. (I found i had to turn it down very low to keep it from burning)

Set a flat, rimless plate that's at least as wide as the skillet upside down over the pan. Lift the skillet off the burner and, with one hand against the plate and the other holding the skillet's handle, invert the skillet so the tortilla lands on the plate (it should fall right out). Set the pan back on the heat and slide the tortilla into it, using the skimmer to push any stray potatoes back in under the eggs as the tortilla slides off the plate. Once the tortilla is back in the pan, tuck the edges in and under itself (to neaten the sides). Cook until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, hot, and with no uncooked egg on it, another 5 to 6 min.

Transfer the tortilla to a serving platter and let cool at least 10 min. Serve warm, at room temperature, or slightly cool. Cut into wedges or small squares, sticking a toothpick in each square if serving as an appetizer.

If the idea of cold tortilla doesn't get you going, you should try it, it might surprise you like it did me.  I didn't even like eggs when i got hooked on tortillas :)

Many thanks and all credits to Sarah Jay for sharing this great recipe.
By the way, it's incredibly filling because of all that oil, so eat about half as much as you'd think, then wait a while to see how you get on!  no wonder the spaniards have so many siestas, eating tortilla all the time would knock anyone out.

i've seen a ton of different approaches to people using the javascript string function, including some homemade versions. 

the javascript replace function uses regular expressions, so it doesn't work like the C# or VB functions.  (i hoped it would)

what is also unusual for c# programmers is that the pattern you pass into the function does not get wrapped in quotes.

example: to replace all single-quotes in a string variable (called s) with the ` character:

          s = s.replace(/'/gi, '`');
        

if that looks like gobbledegook i'll explain. the first / character starts the pattern, and the ' character is what we want to replace. the second / character ends the pattern and allows us to include options for the regex parser. g means global and i means ignore case.

i'm really only posting this so i'll remember it myself!

i am configuring my new web server, and i noticed that the event log keeps getting 5 or 6 system warning events about printers getting added or deleted. since i pay close attention to my log, and have no print requirements on the web server, those print logs are clutter. i noticed that windows kept adding in printers that are available on my network, even after i deleted them. after hunting around online, i found that microsoft humbly admit that the feature to automatically add network printers may be undesirable, which it is in my case. at least they let you turn it off.

Open windows explorer, Tools > Folder Options > View > Advanced Settings > turn off "Automatically search for network folders and printers", its the first option in the list.

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=320138

The KB article says it only applies to XP but it applies to windows server 2003 also.

Many thanks to James Crossley for his post on google which saved me a lot of bother.

"I have a wired network and an ad-hoc wireless network bridged on a Windows XP machine, which is also connected to broadband. The wired side ran fine but the wireless side ran very slowly (around 500kbps).
It ran at full speed when out of the bridge. The fix for this was:

1. Run cmd (start, run, type cmd)
2. type : "netsh bridge show adapter". Check which number is your wireless adpater.
3. type : "netsh bridge set adapter x forcecompatmode=enable", where x is the number of your wireless adapter.

After I ran this, the network ran at full speed in the bridge."

This worked for me too.  both interfaces are running at normal speeds.

someone sent me a .mdb attachment today and i couldn't open it in outlook. no amount of searching the options could change this behaviour. i searched online and found a few microsoft kb articles about it, and how to change the registry to add exemptions to the 'Level 1' list of file extensions, which outlook regards as unsafe.  i did all the steps in the article but it still didn't work.  then i found this GREAT outlook plug in which adds a tab to the outlook options and allows you to configure how outlook handles all the attachments.

http://www.slovaktech.com/attachmentoptions.htm

How on earth MS forgot about this is beyond me.  they actually suggest that you ask the person who sent it to rename the file with a bogus extension and resend the attachment.  surely it is sufficient to force users to save the file to disk and then open it themselves by choice.  sheesh!

This is my first post on my new PC, a Shuttle ST61G4.  3Ghz P4, 1Gb ddr 400 ram, 160Gb SATA hard disk.  It feels like a small miracle that it's working, that's how difficult it was for me to install Windows XP on the SATA hard disk.  

Partly it was due to me never having used SATA before, and not realising that Windows XP doesn't bundle the SATA drivers I need for the Silican SATA Controller (Si3112r) that is part of the Shuttle mainboard.  Also, the most annoying part was that Windows setup only allows you to specify additional drivers from a floppy disk.  The shuttle, being a modern compact PC, doesn't come with a floppy of course, so i was stumped.  I really didn't want to pull out the old floppy drive from my other PC, but i was forced to in the end. 

There is a way to slipstream the drivers into the Windows setup files and then burn them back to a CD, but this sounded way too complicated for me. 

The CD with the shuttle mainboard drivers had instructions for how to create the required floppy for a Windows install, and this worked OK, when i finally figured out how to get the Shuttle to recognise the floppy drive.  It took a while to find the plug in the motherboard for the floppy, at the back around the side under the power supply.  Then i had to enable Floppy Disk 1 in the bios as a 1.44mb drive.  Still didn't work, so i enabled Boot up Floppy Seek.  Still didn't work, and i finally found out that another setting 'FDC Controller' was disabled, which i needed to enable.  Then the floppy drive worked, and it went without hitch from there on in.  you also need to enable the Raid controller in the bios. 

When the computer boots, the SATA controller part still says "Drive 1542311Mb - Drive not found" or something, although this doesn't seem to matter since windows is able to recognise it. 

I found all this out the hard way, and i looked for a long time online to find an easier way of doing it, or clear instructions detailing every step necessary, and i found a FAQ page on shuttle.com (afterwards!) which details the process very well, its a shame it was so hard to find through the shuttle web site. 

But my shuttle is fast and very lovely, and it is the quietest thing i have never heard. I can't figure out why they make you press the reset button with a pen though, its so tiny.  In the end, i love it.  

You can use the HOSTS file in Windows to prevent banners from displaying in web pages.  It is usually in c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc. Note that it has no file extension. There are a few good sample files online that contain thousands of known advertisers.  I use http://everythingisnt.com/Hosts as a reference.  If that link is down, use my mirror copy (29 k).  The way it works is by redirecting the url (e.g. ad.doubleclick.net) to your own computer, instead of the proper doubleclick.net server.  Your local web server (if you have one) won't contain any of banner images or pages requested and you see a 404 page not found in the browser in place of the banner image / web page.

when i was building my computer, i got a cheap DVD drive, and i'm paying for it now with trouble installing any of the software that came on DVDs with my MSDN subscription.  I tried installing Windows Server 2003 from the DVD by booting straight from the CD but it failed at different stages, saying file not found, or corrupted files etc.  I'm convinced its because of the quality of the dvd drive.  To be safe, I now copy all the files to the hard drive and then install from there.  Even copying the files to the harddisk through Windows was not trivial as ms point out in http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q318945, they recommend using the xcopy command to verify that the files are copied correctly. The copy speed with xcopy was several times faster than using windows explorer, I have no idea why, but i always do it that way now. The syntax is:

xcopy <source> <destination> /V /H /Y /E

e.g. (from the command prompt. Start > Run > cmd.exe)
xcopy E:\VS2003\ C:\Local\VS2003 /V /H /Y /E

The switches mean:
/V = verify
/H = hidden files
/E = sub folder including empty folders
/Y = suppresses prompting to overwrite

My application to join the MS Empower Program for ISVs was accepted this week.  The first thing I did was go straight to the MSDN download section and drool over all the software now available to me to download.  (Shame I'm on 56k... oh eircom get your act together and deliver broadband soon, it's not like I live in the sticks or anything <moan moan>)

For a €375 subscription fee I get the equivalent of €30k worth of software, of which I will realisitically only use a few thousands worth, but still, how bad.  There are a few costs associated with it, like a software verification test, digital ID from Verisign etc. but it's still a great deal, and actually the cheapest way for me to start using Visual Studio 2003 architect. 

I sat today wondering why MS are acting so desperate to get ISVs like me to write software for .Net in particular.  Then it struck me... (a rare moment of mental clarity), and I remembered back to what a man was saying at a Longhorn conference I was at earlier in the year.  He said that Windows Longhorn will run with 2 kernels, one for Win32 apps and a new kernel for apps written in .Net, i.e. managed code.  This is obviously great for backwards compatibility, with the advantages being given to new applications with the new kernel.  BUT... what if .Net apps don't become mainstream for 5 or more years?!  the new kernel will be more or less unused and we might as well be running a souped up XP pro instead.  Avalon, the new user interface, will also only work with .Net apps (.Net 2.0 at that), and other apps will look the same as XP.  It is no wonder MS are not giving a solid release date for Longhorn, since I reckon it depends on the take-up of .Net software.  If it is great, they will push to release longhorn early to give users the advantages of running .Net apps on a managed operating system.  But if it is slow, they will throw more and more resources to the developers and software companies in programs like Empower for ISVs until the knock-on effect of that is to put a whole lot more .Net software in to the marketplace until .Net becomes the standard. 

Here we are 2 or 3 years into the launch of .Net and most people around here still think it's bleeding edge technology if they have heard of it all.  (Yes there is a modern side to Ireland, but a lot of it is still running Windows 95, that's the reality of the environment we are building software for).

Something about knowing that my apps will one day execute in a managed Kernel in Longhorn really gets me going :) but i think it might be longer than MS think before it becomes the norm.

This took ages to figure out, and plenty of experimenting with different settings, so hopefully this might save someone else the hastle of having to spend half a day to get their Psion 5 (not MX) connected to the net with a Nokia 6610.  I would say it would work with similar settings on other GPRS phones.

The internet settings are for the O2 network in Ireland and will need adjustments for a different network.

1. install Psion Series 5 Message Suite version 1.52.
   
2. Create a new modem called nokia 6610:
    speed 57600
    connection infrared
    fax class auto,
    init string: ATZ
    flow control: hardware (RTS/CTS)
   
3. Create new Internet Service called GPRS with the following settings.
    
    connection type: dialup
    uncheck smart dialing
    standard dial-up number: *99#
    manual login unchecked
    username gprs 
    password gprs
    addresses: get IP from server. get dns address from server unchecked.
    primary dns address: 62.40.32.33
    secondary dns address: 62.40.32.34
    login: use login script checked. default 8 bit no partity 1 stop bit,
    delete all content of login script text box, leave blank.
    advanced: enable PPP extensions checked. allow plain text authentication checked.  
   
4. On the psion, set Remote Link to Infrared 57600.
   
5. Get the GPRS settings for your phone from your network. O2 will send those details to your phone if you request it from http://www1.o2.ie/CM/getcontent/0,1177,txt_html_OTA_Home,00.html. Save these details to your phone.
   
6. Activate Infrared on the phone. Connectivity > Infrared.
   
7. Point the Infrared port of the phone thin black band on top of phone) to the Infrared port on the psion (1cm band on back of psion) a few inches away.

Hi, welcome to my blog.  This is where I will post solutions to problems I encounter while writing software for the .Net platform, in the hope that they may be of some use to people trawling google for an answer to the same problem.  I realise that I wouldn't be half the developer I am today if it weren't for the likes of Charles Carroll's aspNG community, GotDotNet, ms newsgroups, asp.net, windowsforms.com, to name but a few.  I have drawn on these resources for advice and technical assistance many times and this is my way of returning some of that generosity to the community at large, (as well as a space for me to rant about stuff and things).

a little about me
I've been developing in .Net since Beta 2 in 2001 and I write in C#.  I did my undergrad in University of Limerick in Computer Systems, and now I am self employed, doing contracts, training courses, developing software, etc. in Limerick, Ireland.

Outside work, I like surfing, table-tennis, flying big kites, cooking and other stuff, so from time to time, you may see the odd post that is nothing to do with .Net...