Archives
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Release: Excentrics World Custom Controls 1.9
The long awaited 1.9 release of my Custom Controls has finally came, and gone. Today I released this version that contains huge improvments over version 1.8.2, as well as 2 new controls, Accordion Panel and Empty DataGrid. To download these controls, please visit Excentrics World!
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Plugin Release: NewsGator NNTP Plugin v0.4
Version 0.4 of the NewsGator NNTP Plugin to allow posting to newsgroups has been released. This version includes even more tight integration with NewsGator, eliminating the need of ever configuring your authentication credentials in multiple places. An option has also been added to the configuration section, that will allow you to be prompted each time you post to a newsgroup, even if you're responding to a post. I have also added the ability to post to multiple newsgroups, and increased the error handling to be more descriptive and useful. Lastly, I've fixed a bug that displayed the headers as part of the body when viewed in Outlook Express.
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Step 1 - Place foot in mouth
Well, after my rant on how OE doesn't support the full RFC850 spec, I did some more testing, debugging, whatever you want to call it, and determined that there was a hidden new line character appended to the end of the Message-ID which was causing the headaches. So, I guess OE was doing things right, it was just that darn extra character throwing things off. So, now would be the time to grab my foot and stick it firmly within my mouth!
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Outlook Express Not following RFC Spec
During my development of the NNTP plugin for NewsGator, I've come across a problem when viewing replied messages in Outlook Express. Per the RFC850 spec., if replying to a message in a newsgroup, you should add a new header named "References" that points to the Message-ID of the message being replied to. This header is then used to group messages within groups so its easier to keep track of threads.
This is all fine and dandy, except for the fact that Outlook Express doesn't recognize the References header, or even want to use it. I realize that this header is optional, but for OE to ignore it completely and chunk the rest of the headers into the body of the message when displaying, is just crazy. Due to my assumptions that OE wasn't implementing the spec entirely, I decided to play around with it some more....and it turns out that when OE replies to messages, it never appends the "References" header. Furthermore, it seems that OE groups messages based on subject only. I've found this to be the case, as I've posted several new messages with the same header, and whatta ya know, they get grouped together.
So, just to make sure that I wasn't crazy, I set out to find a few USENET readers. Well, all that I tested implemented the sepc properly, and grouped them based on the "References" header, and not on the subject. To me, this is a bug or an oversight by the team building Outlook Express...and I wouldn't mind if it got fixed (as well as many other people out there). -
Plugin Release: NewsGator NNTP Plugin v0.3
Version 0.3 of the NewsGator NNTP Plugin to allow posting to newsgroups has been released. This version includes a tight integration with NewsGator subscriptions, however password prompting is still necessary for server authentication (if required). Due to the integration, the configuration screens for servers and their newsgroups have been removed. This version also tweaked the HTML cleanup to represent messages more accurately.
This version also includes an extension to NewsGator, that appends required information to the post when processing feeds from newsgroups. This allows for a no prompt reply (unless needing to authenticate) to the newsgroup. A big thanks goes out to Greg for his help on the extension, as I'm not an avid Outlook programmer.
Plans for the next version include no prompting for passwords to authenticated newsgroups and a 1.0 branding of the plugin.
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Its a Scary Day.
Why is it a scary day? Well, I just got an email with an attachment. So? Whats your point...well a few things:
1. The email was from someone I didn't know, no biggie I get these all the time for support.
2. No subject. Well, this isn't always a problem, since I know some users just don't know that the cursor starts at the subject line 99% of the time.
3. The email said "test". Huh, now thats a bugger, I guess it worked?
4. There was an attached file, a zipped one - wow someone sent me pictures?
Well, if you haven't figured it out yet, I've finally seen something I've been dreading for the longest time, a zipped-up virus attached to an email. Why is this so important, though...it can pass through almost all server based virus scanners scanning emails as they come across. So, as I quickly alerted my employer (which then sent out a company wide email stating roughly the same thing), I wanted to alert the community as well. Be alarmed if you receive an email from someone you don't know that has a zipped attachment...especially if the attachment contains a .pif file.
UPDATE: CNet is reporting this virus now, be warned! (story) -
MikeRoweSoft Settled
Yup, thats right...its finally over. As the story describes, Mike Rowe settled for a certification course, subscription to MSDN, free trip to Developer Network Research Tech Fest, and an Xbox all for the domain name transfer to MS. MS was also kind enough to pay any expesnes incurred during this ordeal as well as helping him setup his new website - http://www.MikeRoweForums.com. Good to see that Mke won this battle, Rock on!
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NNTP Plugin Close to New Release
I've been working very closely with Greg at NewsGator to integrate the NNTP Plugin more closely with NewsGator over the last few days. This morning I was able to put the integration with NewsGator subscriptions and posting, eliminating the need to setup your servers manually. Although this is close to release, I'm waiting on some more help from Greg to help when needing to authenticate to the news server. My gut feeling is that once that code is in place, I will be releasing this as v1.0. So, stay tuned for more updates.
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SNL Skit - Funniest thing EVER
This is by far the funniest SNL skit I've seen. Turn your sound up and get read to laugh!
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.Text Request
Something has been bugging me about .Text the last few months. I finally felt it was time to express my thoughts, or rather a request for v.96. What if we were able to track which blogs we made a comment on, or enable the same comment notification that a blog owner receives? I don't know how many countless times I've had to actually try and remember whose blog I posted the comment to, and then, which entry. It could be easily done (now when I say easy, I mean from an end users viewpoint) to have this, maybe an extra checkbox on the comments to say "Notify me when someone posts a comment". It would work the same way as the ASP.NET forums. How 'bout it?
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Plugin Release: NewsGator NNTP Plugin v0.2
Version 0.2 of the NewsGator NNTP Plugin to allow posting to newsgroups has been released. This version includes major UI enhancements and allows for more flexibility. This version also includes Authentication with your NNTP server, or basic Anonymous access. New support for setting up multiple news servers and newsgroups included, with the ability to choose your server and newsgroup upon each post. I also tweaked the HTML cleanup so it doesn't remove any line breaks when posting. Download and update your version now!
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Plugin Release: NNTP Posting from NewsGator v0.1
Version 0.1 of the NNTP Posting Plugin for NewsGator has been released. This version includes basic support for replying to newsgroup posts as well as new posts to newsgroups. Download and try this plugin out if you're looking for NNTP Posting support within NewsGator. Post improvments or bugs on this blog.
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NNTP Posting
I've been looking the last few days on how to use .NET to post messages to NNTP. My intentions are to create a NNTP posting plugin for NewsGator. My research today left me with a good tutorial and code (in C#) on how to communicate with a NNTP server...however, whenever I attempt to post to my NNTP server it errors with a "503 - Command Not Recognized" message. I'm just wondering if anyone has successfully been able to post items to a NNTP server with .NET, as well as, does anyone have any other good resources? I realize they're are a few 3rd party NNTP components out there (IP* Works and Active Up) but since this would be a plugin for NewsGator, I couldn't be able to utilize those. Any help would be appreciated.
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Update: MikeRoweSoft.com
It seems that Microsoft has decided the whole "MikeRoweSoft.com" incident that was publicised yesterday was bad publicity for them. (story) It sounds like Microsoft will be settling the dispute so it will be fair to both parties.
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First Impressions: NewsGator Online Services
After my post yesterday, I decided I should give NewsGator Online Services a try. When I checked out the online demo, I was thuroughly impressed with the different services they offer. I figured that it wasn't going to cost a thing since they had a 14-day free trial, so I signed up right away. Once in, I noticed some sluggish performance, but I wrote that off as "first day jitters" and the popularity & use.
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MS Sueing for MikeRoweSoft.com
Microsoft has decided to sue a 17 year old Canadian boy over the domain name MikeRoweSoft.com (story). The boy's name is actually Mike Rowe, and he registered the domain name to host is personal website. Back in Nov., he received an email from MS telling him to hand over the domain. He later received another email stating they'd pay him $10 for it. He was appalled by this and responded back that he'd sell it for $10,000. Well, that didn't settle well, and just recently he received a nice large book on why he'd be handing over the domain name or be sued.
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v1.9 Beta 1 Released
I finally got around to finishing up bugs & enhancements to my custom controls and released version 1.9 Beta to all of my Beta Testers. I give a big THANK YOU to all of you who test my controls prior to a full release. If you're interested in becoming a beta tester, just drop me a line.
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NewsGator 2.0 Is Out
The day has come where I've been waiting for about a month...the release of NewsGator 2.0. As most of you know, this is a MS Outlook plugin that integrates seamlessly with Outlook...and I can say that v2.0 is even better than 1.3. The new "NewsPage" is a lot better and more streamlined...makes reading my feeds a ton easier.
I haven't checked out a new feature, Online Services, but they've got a 14 day trial, so I make take the plunge and see if its worth the $5 or $6 a month. Here is the changelog from 1.3 and screenshots from 2.0. -
NSIS is Cool!
I've successfully built my 2 installers (one for 1.0 and 1.1 frameworks), and let me tell ya, NSIS is a pretty good install script creator. With NSIS, I was finally able to do what I wanted to do:
1. Give the user the option to not install to the GAC
2. Give the user the ability to choose what optional components they want installed.
All of this done without the headache of creating custom actions & trying to figure out how things work in the limited MSI Setup Packager within VS.NET. I definately suggest this free script creator as it is very, very nice, to all developers out there struggling with VS.NET's MSI Setup Installer.
The only problem I came across, was how to install stuff to the GAC, but Martin Webrant gave me a good pointer. I also built in support for detecting the .NET framework & its versions. If you're using NSIS, or want to get started and need some pointers for installing .NET assemblies, I'd love to give ya some help and give you some of my functions. -
New Install Package
I've decided to abandon VS.NET's MSI package and venture out and try to use NSIS. After a bit of researching, trying different things, and searching the archives for examples, I've finally got my first install script for my custom controls. I'm starting to like NSIS, and the executable it builds for installation runs, installs, and uninstalls so much faster than the MSI that is produced from the Setup Projects. I'm still learning how to do some stuff, but if you've had some experience with installing .NET assemblies & using NSIS, drop me a line, I should would appreciate some help.
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Lego NOT dropping MINDSTORMS
LEGO has released a press release stating that they will not be dropping the MINDSTORMS product line and that it was a misunderstanding about future product policies. Good, would have hated to see this product go away!
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Received APC UPS Today
I decided to spend a little money to ensure that my controls source code is thuroughly safe on my home server. The other week I purchased a APC BR800 and it came in today. I tell ya what, this isn't a huge monster, but it does weigh a substantial amount. I hooked it up at work just to try it out, and with no problems at all, well except for getting the battery back in after you connect it, I had it up and running and connected to my laptop & monitor.
Without a monitor, it could support my laptop for about 80-90 minutes, but as soon as you hook that monitor up, it drops big time...down to 39 minutes...I never knew a monitor could draw so much energy. Good thing I let my monitors go to sleep after 10-20 min...saving a ton on electricity.
Anyways, I decided to give it a power outage to see what happens. Well, it started beeping and whala!, it kicked in and supplied power...nice. Now, I just hope things go just as smoothly when I hook it up to my server tonight. So, if you're looking for a good, semi inexpensive UPS system for you home, check out UniStorage as I got this one for $140 shipped, cheapest on the internet. -
New CodeLib Released
I did my monthly check on CodeLib to find out that my version (5.7) was highly outdated and 6.2 was just released on 1/12. Its a good thing too, because I went from 5.6 to 5.7 and there were a TON of bugs, so I'm happy to see that they were all fixed. Ohh, and user administration is now fully functional.
What I would like to see for this product, and it may be too much work, would be a Server/Client just like Vault, so I could install a database on my remote server and have web service access without opening up SQL Server across my router. How about it? -
New Control: EmptyDataGrid
With all the talk yesterday about what to do when a DataGrid receives no data, and how v2.0 of ASP.NET should handle this, I decided to sit down and see if I could implement this as a custom server control.
Well after a few short hours, I've got a working EmptyDataGrid that inherits and extends the current DataGrid. It adds 2 new properties, EmptyDataTemplate and EmptyDataStyle. The behavior for displaying the datagrid is different depending on your data source, however. For example, if you use a DataSet/DataTable, you will see the columns at the top, and the EmptyDataTemplate as a row beneath that. However, if you use a DataReader as the data source, then you will only see the EmptyDataTemplate displayed.
If you're extremely excited to see this in action, let me know and I can post a sample. However, this control will not be released until I release v1.9 of my control set.Though, if you're in dire need, I can create a custom assembly with only this control, just let me know.A custom assembly has been put together, however you need to contact me to receive it. Note that this is not an official release of the control. -
POP3 to Exchange Possible?
I've been given a task of researching if I can retrieve POP3 email and store it to Exchange. Now, before you go giving me a ton of links to POP3 to Exchange products, read further. I've already found a ton of these products, and the way we need this process to work, those products will not work. I have, however, found a .NET component from DevMail .NET that will allow me to contact a POP3 server, download email, and save the emails as *.eml.
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<uber:ASP.net>
Just came across this new site named <uber:ASP.NET>. It looks promising, so lets see where it goes.
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Empty Datagrid Support
Paschal points out a good problem when using the Datagrid. I personally would like to see a new Template where the developer could decide if nothing is displayed or a message is displayed. As I stated in my comments, I don't know how many times we've had to create 2 panels, 1 for showing the data, and 1 for displaying a message saying they'res no data. How about it Microsoft? Can this be done?
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Decent Task List Program
Over the past few weeks, I found it very difficult for me to keep track of all the bugs or enhancements that I wish to put in place for my next release. So, I set out to find a (free) task list program that would suit my needs. Well after a small Google search, I came across a Microsoft side project named TaskVision. This server/client based program was fairly simple to setup and start using. There are some weird quirks that I don't like, like not being able to remove projects or users as well as not having separate categories within projects. Another thing that bugged me, was that after the installation of the client, you had to manually modify the App.config file to point to your personal server. To me, this is a pain, and should have a configuration within the application to allow this.
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Left Lane Law Crazy?
For those of you who do not live in Illinois, this may be of no concern to you, but I do have a crazy assumption of why our Gov. pushed the “Left Lane Law” through, so please read on. Those who don't know the law that was put into effect on January 1, 2004, it states that for any four or more lane highway, motor vehicles cannot drive in the left lane unless overtaking another vehicle.
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Wanna Sneak Peak?
So if you're reading this, you're obviously wanting a sneak peak... well its more of a press release (even though I'm not press) in a way. Right... the sneak peek...so you're wondering, what does Matt have in store? Well, how about a new control added to the eWorld.UI Control Set! WHOA! Another one? Yes, another one...its called the AccordionPanel, which is a subclass of my popular CollapsablePanel control.
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Thanks & Hello!
Hello to everyone! My name is Matt Hawley and I'm the sole developer at Excentrics World producing those wonderful controls we all love. I wanted to take a second and thank Scott for giving me some blogspace over here and give you a brief history of me.