How to customize community server 2007?

Ever think of customize community server 2007? Yes, you can. However to teach you the whole thing will be long story, therefore keep thing simple. Just follow this guideline and try it yourself. Here the steps:

1. Download the SDK cs2007.1 from communityserver.org

2. Refer to short and tested step from doc.communityserver.org/wiki/page.aspx/399/how-to-create-new-themes/ (please follow the step from 1,2 and 3 only)

3. Install your cs2007.1 database

4. Compile and Run the SDK source code from VS 2005, note you have to do some setting in the property page such as running it from dynamic port rather than localhost ISS

5 .Copy the created theme from step 2 and paste the dir into the cs theme directory.

6. refresh and include the dir. Edit the pasted dir only.

7. try to edit the master.master such as remove the logo and run it and feel the different.

Good luck, i have tested it and it works!

good design determine programmer productivity that create reliable system

An enterprise system is complex and it has to be able to handle day to day business processes and activities. The reliability of the system is so much dependent on how the system was designed and developed by the programmer. Programmer need to code well and able to create a system with the most reliable code. However, in practical to be able to achieve a highly reliable system is very costly to the organization. The reason is because a lot of testing need to be done to ensure that every source code is validated. Microsoft particuallary has been trying to improve the reliability of Windows by patches and patches after the final release. Why need to do in that way? Why not to produce a system which is 100% free of bugs? The answer of this question is too simple to say that it is very time consuming and costly to examine every possiblility of the failure in the system. We have no choice but keep complaining about the reliability of the system and luckly there are software developers who are keeps fixing it. This is how the software industry works. If some one were to change it, it is the last breakthrough of information technology.

To start to design a stable and reliable system, 3 things need to keep in mind at first. 3 rules: guidelines need to be followed, always keep things simple and last but not lease always keeps design a good database structure by having 3rd NF.

Guidelines are the findings and experinces of the system designer in which makes the best to design the system. It also covers the rules that draw the requirements. Guidelines are important because the things to be followed and the things to be avoided during the system development cycle, guideline are very depending on each organization, therefore you set your own rules.

KISS, keep it simple, the secret that always work in every situation in our life. Keep it simple does not means to ignore requirements but to avoid doing things in a hard way. We need to be smart in finding alternative which is elegant and simple enough to our self to accomplish thing. For example, i can save time by having alble to find 5Min's solution using Google. Smart isn't it?

Database design is very very important. We hardly see an enterprise system without using database. A large system particularly are very used to having a database server to serve everyday data intensive client. Moreover, an efficient and high performance database system is critical to the success of the system as a whole. Therefore database design is extremely critical to determine the reliability of the system and the productivity of the programmers. Why? The reasons are, programmer need to code less and perhaps it is easier to code if the database design is in properly designed. I once experience to do develop a system in which the database design is not in the proper way. In this case i had to write additional code which is not necessary to make it work and i had to spend much my time to check the data to ensure it was consistent across the system. Why we need to check by us since a relational database system is so good in enforcing constrain in every database manipulation that keep data integrity. Therefore a good database design must have this 3 things, 3rd NF, one primary key for each table and have relational constrain.

A lot of problem will happen during the system development if the initial system design is not good enough. The worst thing is that the database design is in bad shape, i wonder how many debugging time has been wasted during the system development.

check if url is valid and accessible .NET

This is a common problem for most of ASP.NET developer when we try to check if the url is valid or not. Here is a tip for you. :)

public static bool IsValidUrl(string url)
{
HttpWebRequest httpReq =
(HttpWebRequest)WebRequest.Create(url);
httpReq.AllowAutoRedirect =
false;
httpReq.Method = "HEAD";
httpReq.KeepAlive =
false;
httpReq.Timeout = 2000;
HttpWebResponse httpRes;
bool exists =
false;
try
{
httpRes = (HttpWebResponse)httpReq.GetResponse();
if
(httpRes.StatusCode == HttpStatusCode.OK)
{
exists =
true;
}
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
}
return exists;
}

Google map program using .net

You can create a custom google map by using Google Maps Api which example found in http://code.google.com/apis/maps/documentation/examples/


However, those example is written in java script and it is not so stright forward to be used in ASP.NET code.... Anyway, to work with java script code with ASP.NET keep these in mind


let txtLongitude is a control which can be used inside javascript, u can called the txtLongitude by
""

txtLatitude.ClientID is used because is require if you are using ASP.NET master pages.

confusing file path for web developer .net

Are you one of the developer always confuse whith this kind of path e "games/alien.jpg" or "../games/alien.jpg" or "/games/alien.jpg" ? Even if you know the meaning, i am sure you still have problem of this because the path is constructed as it depends how the caller is located. Seem to be over complicated here. :)

I am one of the developer that alwasys confuse with file path that looks like <*img src=".../love/app/basic.jpg" /*>". i really do not like because it can be problematic especially if you are ASP.NET developer that uses master pages across the pages.

if you are one of those guy that always experince broken links, I have an elegant solution to this problem.

Given a virtual directory named site, which can be accessibled as http://localhost/site and you have a file which located at http://localhost/site/games/alien.jpg

to effectively locate the alien.jpg, you got to use this

ResolveUrl("~/games/alien.jpg")

In this way, you won't be confused how the file is located. ~ represents the parent virtual path.

Ok, if you wish to upload the file to the server using the ResolveUrl don't give you the real path... in this case, replace the ResolveUrl method to MapPath method.

e.g:

MapPath("~/games/alien.jpg"). The file will be uploaded to the location of '~'.

Got it?

Different between web application and windows application

Obviously, by the name itself web application is built for web and can be viewed by internet browser. Whereas windows application is a program that runs under windows. People choose web application because web app can relatively easy to deloy and once deloy it is readily widely available to anywhere and anytime. The design itself is distrbuted and programmers do not need to worry so much about complicated deloyment consideration. Sometimes, programmers choose to write in windows application is because somethings cannot be possibly done by having web application. For example, extensive use of processing power such as graphic randering program, e.g 3D designer program. A special program that deals with hardware such as printer driver, have to be written in windows application. Usually "designer program" oftens built as windows application. Whereas business application that requires multi users such as inventory system is oftenly built as web application.

If you are unsure of which is the best choice to go with, please follow my guildline, -

first think of if the program can be easily built and deployed by having web application, if the answer meet these criteria, then go for web application.

Otherwise go for windows application. or perhaps a combination of web and windows which known as smart application which combinethe best of both.

As my own preference, i like web application because it is relatively easy to manage the communication between modules and because it support css which makes styling much easier and faster.

I had been building windows application by using the composite application block CAB... The framework is cool but deployment can be much hassle because you have to worry the security issues ( you do not want your files be hacked by the user because he got your files).

Last but not least, go for web if possible for business realated appplication.

Post me a comment if you are disaggree with me :)

Split camel casing using regex .NET

ever wonder any better apporoch to convert "BeMyLover" to "Be My Lover"? Here the function in C#.

private string SplitCamelCasing(string input)
{
string output =
"";
return output =
System.Text.RegularExpressions.Regex.Replace(
input,
"([A-Z])",
"
$1",
System.Text.RegularExpressions.RegexOptions.Compiled).Trim();
}