Angela's Blog

Look at his first name

2005-10-11T18:42:00Z

http://dotnet.org.za/angela/gallery/image/2317.aspx

Screen print picture

2005-09-30T13:34:00Z

To all you experienced dotnet.org.za bloggers.

I want to put a screen print within a post. what is the best way to do that?

PRIDE AND PROCESS

2005-04-20T06:48:00Z

PRIDE AND PROCESS

How do you highlight a fault in the software process without people taking it personally?

If you happen to discover a Process fault and mention it, then why do people, immediately rise to the defense and think that you are attacking what they have done?. Why make it personal when it is in fact, the process that just needs to be adjusted? Why? Because someone has created the process, and pride is at stake...

Maybe they realise that you have raised a valid point, and they feel like total ass-holes?

If it happens to be at the step they are working on, and someone happens to mention it, then why do they take it personally? Maybe there is a “right” way of addressing the process, without “offending” the people involved.

It’s not your fault. The process is at fault, and if someone happens to highlight the fault, why do you take it personally? Just because, it happens to be where you are at!!. It is a fault in the flow of the process, and needs to be corrected.

Fluffing your tail feathers and strutting your stuff causing a huge stir, Causing a commotion in the office because your pride(ego) is hurt. Why? Why do colleagues have to turn on each other and become “bitchy”?

Bottom line is this... Your company wants flawless processes, and it is your job to ensure that. Don’t take it personally, if someone stumbles across one and highlights it.

Fix the process, subdue the knock to your pride, and move on.

IT People have Personalities!!!

2005-04-14T13:22:00Z

IT People have Personalities!!!

It has been proven without a doubt, that IT people have personalities!! (And very differing personalities at that.)

In a recent revealing study on the //dotnet.org.za Blogging website,

The true characteristics of certain IT Developers came out, in quite an unusual contrast.

The controversies were quite apparent to all (by viewing the contents of their blogging pages)

I had always thought that IT people were similar (maybe even on the Nerdish side of life, with no personalities), but this study proves otherwise.

The fallacy of IT People being extreme nerds has been blasted into the Galaxy

with Oompie and his Ruimpte skippie using Dr Eve’s new gorgeous, Glamorous and pink sex toy!!

Through this study, I found that while some were criticizing others for their “personal “ taste,

Others were disgusted at the suppressed anger expressed in blogs.

Not for Human consumption? It’s not without warning….You be the judge of that.

Conformed Nerds? I don’t know.

Differing personalities.. Yes.

Sex or Sci-fi?

What makes your CPU tick?

The days of IT People being classified as NERDS is over.

Extreme Nerd to ultimate non-nerd are the vast range of personalities to be discovered in this “small world”,

and sometimes, yes, their tastes actually clash.

What makes one a Nerd?

Is it wearing a pair of specs perched on your nose?

Is it attending a Nerd Dinner?

Is it being obsessed with the Sci-FI Channel?

Is it limiting ones social life to one’s computer?

If you have a passion for IT knowledge? No way!!

Am I saying that no-one is a nerd? To the contrary. There is the range and spectrum of personalities (and Tastes) within the scope of the IT World.

IT People differ in personalities, but share the same passion.

And dotnet.org.za is for sharing this passion.

http://dotnet.org.za/angela/articles/17357.aspx

New Buzz words I have heard in February at MSDN Essentials - 1 - please correct or add to where I am wrong

2005-03-04T11:49:00Z

1 – February 2005

MSDN Virtual Labs – a series of guided, hands-on labs which can be completed in under an hour.

//msdn.demoservers.com/login.aspx

WSE – Web Services Enhancements

Web Services Enhancements for Microsoft .NET (WSE) is a supported add-on to Microsoft Visual Studio .NET and the Microsoft .NET Framework providing developers the latest advanced Web services capabilities to keep pace with the evolving Web services protocol specifications.

The Web Services Enhancements 2.0 for Microsoft .NET (WSE) helps developers create interoperable Web services with advanced Web services features. With WSE, you can secure your messages using digital signatures and encryption, send attachments, route messages through intermediaries, and more. WSE comes complete with samples and product documentation.

More information can be found here:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/webservices/building/wse/default.aspx

MSDN Magazine was mentioned as the Microsoft Journal for developers – The February issue is now available for download at http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/05/02/

Additionally, the patterns & practices Digest for February is available for download as a PDF here.

Windows Server 2003:

Information can be found here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/default.mspx

Authorization Manager(Azman for short):

Implementing middle-tier authorization using Azman. -

Reference was made to the following article: http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/03/11/AuthorizationManager/

What is managed code?

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/directx9_m/directx/whatismanagedcode.asp

What is Interoperability?

Interoperability is all about different software products working together. Microsoft embraces interoperability—through our products today, with the new generation of XML-enabled software, through technology and IP licensing, and in our partnerships with companies that are dedicated to helping software products work together. Read more here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/interop/default.mspx

What is EIF?

Enterprise Instrumentation Framework

It enables enterprise applications built on the .NET Framework to be instrumented for manageability in a production environment.

See more here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=80DF04BC-267D-4919-8BB4-1F84B7EB1368&displaylang=en

Coming Events for March:

MSDN Essentials - March 2005:

Microsoft and the Developer and Platforms Group are pleased to invite you to MSDN Essentials.

Building Mobile Smart Client Applications using the .NET Compact Framework (Level 300)

This session will start off with a short discussion on building mobile smart client applications with the .NET Compact Framework. The remainder of the session will focus on two areas. The first will focus on tips and tricks when building .NET Compact Framework applications. In this session you will learn the techniques that can be used to increase the responsiveness of user interface and network operations for users of applications built on the .NET Compact Framework. We will cover general UI, data access, deployment, interop and performance tips as well as architectural guidelines for creating applications that perform well under frequently changing network conditions. The second focus of this session will be on leveraging the telephony and messaging API’s as well as SmartPhone development. This presentation will cover the following topics: Features of the Microsoft SmartPhone; Developing for the SmartPhone; NET Compact Framework Overview; Phone Specifics and PInvoke; Using the Telephony API; Network Programming; Accessing SIM Data and Using the Pocket Outlook.

Leveraging Office as a Smart Client – featuring IBF and InfoPath (Level 300)

Smart clients are applications that take full advantage of information exposed by web services are easily deployed and managed client applications that provide a smart and rich interactive experience by leveraging local resources and intelligently connecting to distributed data sources. Because the Microsoft Office System offers native support for XML, application data can be described by the same customer-defined XML schemas across multiple applications. The session starts off by describing the technologies available to developers to leverage Office as Smart Client. The session is then broken down into 2 main areas. The first is focused on building an Office Solution Using the Information Bridge Framework. The Microsoft Office Information Bridge Framework (IBF) is a brand new technology that builds on the vision of connecting Office users to line-of-business data. A metadata-driven development platform, IBF enables solution developers to target the Office task pane or IBF floating pane with contextual data offered up in .NET User Controls or Html, leveraging smart tag and smart document technologies in Office 2003. This overview session introducing IBF will explain the architecture, developer, and user experience. The second portion of the session will focus on Building Solutions with InfoPath. Microsoft Office InfoPath 2003 is a hybrid tool that combines the best of a traditional document editing experience, such as a word processor or e-mail application, with the rigorous data-capture capabilities of a forms package. This session will show the value of InfoPath, how to build solutions and review many of the new features and managed code support.

Competency levels
	Some events, particularly for IT Pros and developers, require a competency level. http://www.microsoft.com/southafrica/events/levels.mspx For your information, I have put them below

Definitions of competency levels

	The following definitions give you an idea of what you can expect in each session at a particular level and are designed to help you attend sessions which are suitable for your level of competency.

	Level 100 (introductory):

	· Overviews of product and technology features, functions and benefits
	· Details of new product features, how will they benefit customers and convince them that they need to buy this product
	· The functions of the product and an example of how they are used in a real world environment
	· The benefits of the product and any case studies that show how they assisted a customer
	· Product requirements and other integration information.

	Level 200 (intermediate):

	· Specific product and technology technical information
	· Drilling into architecture, integration and configuration (what makes the feature tick)
	· Supportability reviews
	· Code samples
	· Best practices
	· High-level troubleshooting techniques
	· Known limitations and issues.

	Level 300 (experienced):

	· Product migration, deployment, architecture, development
	· Drilling into how a product and its technology is designed to be deployed, migration, etc and focusing on how it is actually deployed
	· Real world examples as appropriate
	· Complex coding, known issues and work-arounds (sample code/examples)
	· Lessons learned, both positive and negative
	· Sample migration plans including sample project plans
	· Deployment case studies
	· Architecture design best practices and case studies.

	Level 400 (advanced expert):

	· Custom code, scripts, application solution development, architect infrastructure designs and solutions
	· Advanced coding considerations and challenges
	· Design considerations and challenges
	· Architecture considerations and challenges
	· Troubleshooting techniques at the debugging level.

STOP STREETS!!

2005-03-04T06:32:00Z

Today I experienced an “Incident” at a STOP Street.

What do you think? - If there is a backlog of traffic at a four way stop, Who should go first? Should it be one, for one from each side? or, Should the person who stops at the actual STOP line first, goes first?

Then we get the other side of the coin, where people who have stopped first, let other cars go first(just to be nice) - this completely throws the Stop First and Go First rule.

Internet Dangers for the beginner(Repost of an original article by Ian Fraser)

2005-03-02T20:08:00Z

Believe it or not I have some family and friends who are new to surfing on the internet, and the dangers lurking there are totally new to them. That is why, when I found this article written by Ian Fraser from the Mail and Guardian, I thought that I would like to keep a copy on my Blog, especially for these friends of mine. I couldn't have said it better than Ian does. Here is his article below copied and pasted from the site:

You've no doubt heard of the Absa accounts that were breached by hackers. The media have made much of internet banking being compromised and the term ‘spyware’ is being used a lot.

This morning I listened to an Absa spokesperson talking on radio, referring in a jumbled way to “spyware, keyloggers, trojans and viruses” and then quickly following up with damage control, saying fuzzy warm things like “providing customers have up-to-date anti-virus software, they should be safe”.

Unfortunately though, the Absa spokesperson doesn’t know what he's talking about as most anti-virus software won’t find half of the programs that constitute spyware. So if you're a PC user, and/or use the net for internet banking, read on and I'll give you some conceptual info, background and point you towards some downloadable programs to sniff over your PC.

So-called spyware gets into your PC usually by one of the following routes: Bundled and installed along with another program you've downloaded, installed via a webpage that you've visited, or installed via a program sent to you through e-mail.

By now, most spyware is fairly standard and technically legal. What happens as you browse online, is that various webpages and companies create an automatic download for a small file (and sometimes folders) to be made to your pc without you knowing, and every time you're online, these files send info about where you're going online, back to the manufacturers website. They call this data mining, but the users who clean out the files themselves tend to call these unwanted things scumware.

There's a debate over what actually constitutes spyware. Cookies for instance, are tiny text files that sites put onto your computer when you move from page to page online, and some of them tend to be tracking where you came from prior to getting to that page -- or where you're going to next. (This information is sent back to the company controlling the website you visited.) Look in your c:/windows/cookies folder to see up to hundreds of these seemingly innocent text files, each marked from a website you visited, and each containing a piece of information about you.

To purists, these text files are spyware -- yet they're covertly part of basic internet operation. But the only time you actually need them is when you're logging into a site that needs to know who you are for real -- like banking sites, or the Amazon-type online retailer commercial sites. Everywhere else, it’s just plain snooping on the part of the webpage owners.

There are a number of tools to block these cookies from getting anywhere near your PC -- do a search on www.tucows.com for cookies -- to find a range of cookie killing applications. Remember though, you need these 'cookies' in order to log in to secure sites -- anywhere else -- its snooping by webpage owners, regardless of what they say. If they're gathering statistical information for their own usage (data mining) let them rather employ a secretary to phone me, so I can hang up on them.

Now the problem with this back and forth activity occurring without you knowing, is that, firstly, it’s an invasion of your privacy -- and second, given that most of us are using modems, and compared to the US -- we struggle along with very little bandwidth. So the idea of hundreds of files using up that precious bandwidth in order to tell Company X just where we came from is not acceptable.

The next form of spyware, comes hidden within other programs. For example -- one of the most well known and notorious spyware/Trojan files is contained inside a popular file-sharing program called Kazaa. The trojan is called BDE -- and the file (when it senses you're online) tells its manufacturer that you're online, and then offers up a portion of your PC's processor power to be used for whatever the company needs. And this is legal. (This can be bypassed however, by using a hacked version of Kazaa, called Kazaa-Lite.)

But this is a radical example of spyware or legal Trojan activity. Usually things are a lot more subtle. (After an average session online, I tend to have to clean out anything up to 200-300 cookies, and three or four spyware files. If you've never downloaded an application to specifically target spyware, the odds are good that your PC is filled with different kinds of programs which antivirus software won't find because spyware, supposedly, aren’t viruses).

Another problem with certain webpages themselves, is that Java script is being run. This is delivering programming code into your PC, and your PC then quietly accepts the new information or instructions. So you want to keep a casual eye on making sure that, even though you may turn down the pop-up window offering you the chance to DOWNLOAD FREE GIRLS PIX NOW!, there's still activity going on below the surface, and potentially dangerous code is coming into your PC, depending on what the webpage maker planned.

An overt example of this in action is the popping up of new pages, which open without you asking. The spyware that's installed can range from standard 'send info back to HQ' through to loading a new Internet Explorer page and to quietly changing your default homepage. This last one you'll only notice when you hit Home on your browser, and instead of, for instance, www.yahoo.com emerging, you suddenly seem to be going to some other page.

This last 'exploit' is called a browser hijacker and is fairly standard as a simple example of control being taken from you online. Once you've landed at the new page, depending on further Java scripts and confirmation dialogue boxes, you can end up having sent even more information about yourself to the owner of that page, before you've managed to close it.

I use a tool called Zero Popup, to eliminate the extra pages which spring up when cruising the wilder areas of the net. There are a number of programs to block the running of unwanted Java code on your PC: Do a search on popup at www.tucows.com as a starting point. You can turn Java off in your browser, but then this may prevent you from accessing a number of regular sites online, including the supposedly secure sites. It’s a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Again, this last spyware approach may have installed software and folders on your PC, and most antivirus software won’t see it.

Often the half-trojan-half-spyware files will create folders in your PC from which to operate. These files sit and wait until you're online before beginning to chatter back and forth with their HQ, and then auto-downloading adverts or pictures to display at you, seemingly from nowhere. That's if they're legal. If they're not, they will do other, far nastier things.

Another form of spyware is a dialer, which comes in a few flavours. Most notably, they disconnect you from your ISP and reconnect you to a long distance number. Usually this is too obvious; it's rather hard not to notice that you've disconnected and reconnected. Generally though, what were diallers in the past have now become the browser hijacker-type of program. Sometimes with code designed to grab info from pre-selected areas of your PC and deliver it to a Dr Evil somewhere on the Net.

The old days of viruses being simply programs that changed a few system files and/or delivered a silly message have progressed into something a lot more complex. Especially seeing as there's a blurring between the concepts of legal spyware and illegal trojan viruses. Advertisers online are pouring files into your PC all the time, usually without you noticing.

This is one of the problems with mass conformity of PC's and PC users. It becomes very easy to create a program and tell it that when someone clicks on it to 'Go to HERE on the user’s computer and copy these files and send them to badboy@hotmail.com'

There are standard places where Windows puts your passwords, and where you store your documents and pictures by default. So without much effort, I could gather most of the passwords you use online, browse through all the documents you were recently reading and look at all the pictures you've looked at. The hackers have to disguise the program somehow, to make you run it. Or else use stupid mistakes in Windows itself, so that the program runs itself. Enter the trojan.

A Trojan, by broad definition, is a program that pretends to be something it isn’t, and while you click away on it, it installs other programs onto your PC. These programs can range from the minor irritating exploit of changing your homepage to xxxanimals.com through to actual viruses which begin deleting or corrupting your windows files. These viruses or other attacks can either be set to happen immediately, or at some point in the future, when you think everything's fine. But some of these trojans are legal -- and they come from advertisers. And here's where the problem starts. If you make all trojan-like programs illegal, then advertisers will start whining. And so the many Dr Evil clones online quietly continue, enjoying the chaos and the ignorance of net users who's PC's are being invaded on all fronts.

Now these spywares and trojans are separate from keyloggers which are a genre on their own. Keyloggers are simple programs which record the strokes on the keyboard done by the victim. The usual use of these is in network situations, where computers are being used by groups, such as in an office, in order to grab a co-workers password. The program stores the words and letters in a text file, and then sends them off to a predefined e-mail address.

It's interesting that Absa say they're “following leads in the case”, and at the same time mentioning keyloggers because all they have to do, if it was simply a keylogger, is to use a program to dissemble the keylogger (a hex editor, for instance) and then look for the bit in the raw programming code that says 'send this victims info to badboy@hacker.co.za' and they've got their criminal.

But they're not appearing to do this.

So either Absa's forensic people aren't very good (which I doubt is the case) or Absa itself is trying to do damage control and use the ignorance of the public to gloss over a problem they've chosen not to tell the truth about.

In order for a keylogger to be run on a PC, it needs to get there first. Duh. So if a number of people are affected in one geographic area according to news reports, in the Belville area in the Cape, then it’s fairly simple to solve. There's no way that different people in the same area all happened to go to the same hackers webpage and get infected. So it came in the mail. It shouldn’t take more than an hour to work out where from, or how someone knew all the e-mail addresses of these people from the same area.

And Absa have by turns been using the phrase spyware, viruses and keyloggers as if they are all the same thing. But they're not.

Furthermore, most ISPs run antivirus software to screen e-mail before it's passed onto users. If users were sent files which 'recorded their info and sent it back to the hacker' according to Absa, then it’s bizarre for them to be recommend running antivirus software.

Just on the off-chance that you don’t know about the simplest way for someone to send you a trojan in the mail, let me explain that there's an incredibly simple flaw in Windows which allows for the auto-running of any program which arrives in your e-mail inbox. Let's assume you're running Outlook Express for your e-mail, as many of you do. If you've never bothered going to the toolbar at the top of the page, choosing VIEW, then LAYOUT and then turning OFF the preview pane feature, I can send you programs that will begin running as you open the mail. You probably won’t even notice that I'm doing it.

With the 'preview pane' feature turned off, you can see (because of that paperclip icon) that I'm sending an attachment of some kind along with my friendly e-mail.

Furthermore, thanks to Microsoft's ‘all eggs in one basket approach’, if you're able to receive e-mail showing html pages -- webpages, in other words -- I can quietly slide in various Java programs (scripts) into your PC, as well as (if you're online) providing a hacker a nice big doorway straight into your computer.

A useful tip is to try to avoid ever just clicking on what appears to be simply an html 'link' in an e-mail -- rather cut and paste it into a browser and observe what happens, otherwise you could be auto-installing something without knowing it.

You need to get away from the idea that everything on your PC should be in one nice bundle. So having any personal details in your browser, like your e-mail address for instance, means that whenever a webpage hijacks your browser, it can scrape out all the data you have stored there and send it off.

If you're doing anything with your computer that someone else might be interested in, then you're probably already being observed without you being aware of it. I've browsed through many local companies' office computers in the past, just to see if I could. And although the security levels have increased over the last year or two, the average home user is still effectively unprotected as far as any form of security goes.

Now Microsoft likes the idea of users using their browser as Everything. From media player to a mail program and a Usenet reader. However, it’s just too much information stored in one place. It’s much safer to have separate applications for each aspect of the net -- like Free Agent for Usenet (newsgroups), Outlook Express or Eudora (e-mail) and Internet Explorer, Netscape or Opera (for webpages).

Another layer of security which costs nothing, but will let you know every time someone on the internet is looking at your PC, is a firewall. It sounds complicated but it’s just a little program that fits between your PC and the internet, and which checks that everything going in and out of your PC is what you want.

So while browsing, if you happen to see that some file called 'naked.exe' seems to be sending something from your PC to somewhere else, you can close it down. Without a firewall program, alerting you to the information going out of your PC, you won't even know that anything's going on. Again, browse Tucows for firewall -- or try a simple and reputable firewall program like Zone Alarm.

One of the biggest misconceptions that Absa and the media seem to be spreading is that antivirus software will remove trojans and spyware. They won't. The last time I checked using Symantec's Norton AV, it failed to detect a number of spyware files, which other spyware-removers found.

Now I know you're lazy -- I am too -- but you're simply not going to get one product that'll fix ALL your problems with one push of a button. You need a range of products, and you also need to get into the routine of running one after the another until your PC is clean - after every session online.

If you want to see what your PC is hiding - download the working demo versions of the following four must-have applications from the net, and run them:

First up is a product called BPS Spyware Remover They're up to version 7 now. And although it considers cookies as spyware (and thus infected files), don’t let this scare you. You can set it to ignore cookies. BPS is one of the best spyware removers available. Run it and see what it finds on your PC.

Next in line is Ad Aware which also hunts for spyware, data-mining files, scumware and anything else that might be compromising your PC's security -- this will find things which slip through BPS's net.

After that is Pest Patrol . This find even more files -- including, if you're an occasionally naughty PC user, nagging you if it finds any cracks on your HD. ‘Cracks’ are programs to generate fake serial numbers for software. Trojans and viruses sometimes get onto PC's via this method.

And finally, last but by no means least, there’s the fourth product that again catches whatever the previous three haven’t. It's called The Cleaner.

It's not sufficient to get merely one of these programs, as none of them seem to catch all of the different genres of files. So downloading them all and getting into the habit of running them one after the other, at odd times, can provide you with a lot of fun, as you discover just how much spying is being done on you as you browse online.

If you don’t have these programs, then you're relatively unprotected from a range of evil files which aren’t 'viruses' in the strictest sense, but which technically can do just as much damage. These four applications above, in conjunction with a decent firewall program, as well as whatever antivirus software takes your fancy, ought to provide you (as a home/casual user) with a lot more security than what you had before. Which, to be honest, isn't much security at all.

It's odd how no one is mentioning any provisions of the Electronics Bill which brought into service a wide range of undemocratic laws, under the guise of protecting consumers online. Where's that protection now?

As for security, I didn’t mention the many forensic tools available to sift through users’ data-packets, or Tempest technology (which decodes the electromagnetic radiation off users PC's and captures info), and now more than ever, it might be interesting to read the online collection of e-mails by South African National Intelligence Agents looking for trojan viruses to put on local users computers. Go read as real local spies go looking for spyware to use.

I should point out though, that Absa referring to and blaming, in alarmingly general terms, viruses spyware and keyloggers, and by way of vague reassurance, suggesting that the public upgrade their antivirus software to protect themselves, is bizarre and strangely simplistic. Like trying to close a certain barnyard door after the horse has gone, perhaps?

Ian Fraser is a playwright, author, comedian, conspiracy nut, old-time radio collector and self-confessed data-junkie. Winner of numerous Vita and Amstel Awards, he's been an Internet addict and games-fanatic since around 1995, when the Internet began to make much more sense than theatre.

The site where this article was originally posted : http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/insight/insight__comment_and_analysis&articleid=25326

List of Character Entities for HTML

2005-02-14T08:56:00Z

Want to know how to put a copyright sign on your web page?

Here's a list of some of the more useful but lesser known HTML character entities.

Character	HTML Entity	Description
¢	`¢`	Cent sign
£	`£`	Pound sterling sign
€	`€`	Euro sign
©	`©`	Copyright sign
‘	`‘`	Left single quote
’	`’`	Right single quote
“	`“`	Left double quote
”	`”`	Right double quote
«	`«`	Left angle quote
»	`»`	Right angle quote
—	`—`	Em dash
–	`–`	En dash
®	`®`	Registered trademark
™	`™`	Trademark sign
°	`°`	Degree sign
±	`±`	Plus or minus
¼	`¼`	One quarter
½	`½`	One half
¾	`¾`	Three quarters
×	`×`	Multiplication sign
÷	`÷`	Division sign
a	`α`	Greek letter alpha
ß	`β`	Greek letter beta
8	`∞`	Infinity symbol

A complete list of character entities is provided in the HTML 4.01 recommendation.

Chapter 1: Lesson 4 Using Methods

2005-02-08T14:40:00Z

Chapter 1: Lesson 4: Using Methods

Methods do the work of classes and structures.

Methods represent actions your class can take.

There are generally 2 varieties of Methods (in VB)

those that return a value (functions)
those that do not return a value (subs)

C# makes no distinction between the two.

A method is executed when it is called.

The Main method is a special case. It is called upon initiation of program execution. Destructors, another special case, are called by the runtime just prior to destruction of an object. Constructors, a third special case, are executed by an object during its initialization.

Method Variables are destroyed as soon as the Method has finished executing. (They have Method Scope)

Variables within smaller divisions of methods have even more limited scope. E.g.) a Loop within a method

Visual Basic allows you to create method variables that are not destroyed after a method finishes execution. - Static method variables

They persist in memory and retain their values through multiple executions of a method.

These are declared using the static keyword.

Methods can have Parameters.

Parameters are values required by the method.

Parameters of a method can be passed in 2 ways: By Value or By Reference.

In .NET By Value is the default.

By value means that whenever a parameter is supplied, a copy of the data contained in the variable is made and passed to the method. Any changes made in the value passed to the method are not reflected in the original variable.

When parameters are passed by reference,

A reference to the memory location where the variable resides is supplied instead of an actual value. Thus, every time the method performs a manipulation on that variable, the changes are reflected in the actual object.

In Visual Basic .NET, you are able to specify optional parameters for your methods.

Optional parameters must be last in a method declaration and you must supply default values for them.

A constructor is the first method that is run when an instance of a type is created.

In VB it is always Sub New. You use a constructor to initialize class and structure data before use.

Constructors can never return a value and can be overridden to provide custom initialization functionality. Eg) Visual Basic .NET

Public Class aClass

   Public Sub New()

      ' Class initialization code goes here

   End Sub

End Class

A destructor is the last method run by a class. A destructor (known as a Finalizer in Visual Basic) contains code to “clean up” when a class is destroyed.

Public Class aClass

   Protected Overrides Sub Finalize()

      ' Clean up code goes here

   End Sub

End Class

NOTE
In Visual Basic, the Finalizer is always Sub Finalize ()

must use the Overrides keyword. (see example above)

Because garbage collection does not occur in any specific order, it is impossible to determine when a class’s destructor will be called.

Chapter 1 : Lesson 3 Using Classes and Structures

2005-02-07T13:20:00Z

Chapter 1: Lesson 3:

Classes and structures represent the two principal user-defined types. Both can have members.

Classes are templates for objects. A class is a general (abstract) template for an object, and an object is an instance of a class, but more specified.

Classes describe the properties and behaviors of the objects they represent through members. Members are methods, fields, properties, and events that belong to a particular class.

- Fields and properties represent the data about an object

- A method represents something the object can do

- An event represents something interesting that happens to the object

Nested Types are Types within types.

You declare and instantiate a user-defined type the same way that you declare and instantiate a .NET Framework type.

For both value types (structures) and reference types (classes), you need to declare the variable as a variable of that type and then create an instance of it with the New (new) keyword.

The Main difference between Class and Structure is that the instance data for classes is allocated on the heap, and the instance data for structures is allocated on the stack

Access to the stack is designed to be light and fast, but storage of large amounts of data on the stack can impede overall application performance.

So, structures are best used for smaller, lightweight objects that contain relatively little instance data or for objects that do not persist for long and Classes are best used for larger objects that contain more instance data and are expected to exist in memory for extended periods.

My First Nerd Dinner

2005-02-03T21:59:00Z

Wow, tonight was fun. Thanks to Hilton //dotnet.org.za/Hiltong for organising it. It was really nice to see some new and “unknown” faces. Hilton's Flatmate “Eng”, and Jonno it was nice to meet you .http://dotnet.org.za/jonno .

Hilton Congratulatioins on being made lead for www.saarchitect.net alonside with Roaan Vos.!!!

www.sadeveloper.net

Sa Dev Rocks!!!

There were 8 of us in the starlight diner tonight.

And it was Alright!!.

The Eight of us we dined on chips,

With Geek ~ dom on our lips,

Laptops on the table, cell phones taking pics

It was full of avi's and kicks.

On another note, Ruari, I am sad that this is most probably your last Nerd Dinner with us!!. But good luck with your trip to Prague and your new job opportunity at Microsoft in Johannesburg.

Chapter 1 Lesson 2 : The .NET Base Class Library

2005-01-27T20:48:00Z

The .NET Framework base class library contains the base classes that provide many of the services and objects you need when writing your applications.

The .NET Framework base class library is a library of code that exposes functionality useful for application building. The base class library is organized into namespaces, which contain types and additional namespaces related to common functionality.

A namespace is a logical grouping of types that perform related functions.

Namespaces are logical groupings of related classes.

Types in the .NET Framework come in two varieties: value types and reference types.

Application data memory is divided into two primary components, the stack and the heap.

The stack is an area of memory reserved by the application to run the program.
The heap, on the other hand, is a separate area of memory reserved for the creation of reusable objects.

All the data associated with a value type is allocated on the stack.
A variable of a reference type, on the other hand, exists in two memory locations. - The actual object data is allocated on the heap. A variable containing a pointer to that object is allocated on the stack.

A variable that represents a value type contains all the data represented by that type. A variable that represents a reference type contains a reference to a particular object.

30th November 2004

MCSD.Net User Training Group - Chapter 1: Lesson 1

2005-01-27T20:43:00Z

Hi All,

Wow, last night was fun. It was great to see everyone could make it for - Lesson 1: The .NET Framework and the Common Language Runtime.
It is also great for me to listen to the "fundis" giving their input on the subject . It is definitely a great way to learn.

Let's touch on what we learnt last night:

-The .NET Framework manages all aspects of your program’s execution.

- The .NET Framework consists of two main components: the common language runtime(CLR) and the .NET Framework class library.

- What does the CLR do? - It manages Code execution by providing core services, such as code compilation, memory allocation, thread management, and garbage collection.

- The .NET Framework class library provides a collection of useful and reusable object-oriented types that are designed to integrate with the common language runtime.

- The CLR makes cross-language compatibility possible, because the .NET compiler takes your coding language (Visual Basic .NET, C#, or any other .NET-compliant language) at compilation time and converts it into Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL or IL). MSIL is a low-level language that the common language runtime can read and understand.

- The primary unit of a .NET application is the assembly.
An assembly is a self-describing collection of code, resources, and metadata. The assembly manifest contains internal information about the assembly:

Identity information, such as the assembly’s name and version number
A list of all types exposed by the assembly
A list of other assemblies required by the assembly (dependancies)
A list of code access security instructions, including permissions required by the assembly and permissions to be denied the assembly

- An assembly contains one or more modules.

-A module contains the code that makes up your application or library and metadata that describes that code.

- Each module also contains a number of types.
There are two kinds of types: reference types (classes) and value types (structures). (to be discussed further in Lesson 2)

-A type can contain fields, properties, and methods, each of which should be related to a common functionality.

- A field represents storage of a particular type of data.
- Properties are similar to fields, but properties usually provide some kind of validation when data is set or retrieved.
- Methods represent behavior, such as actions taken on data stored within the class or changes to the user interface.

Execution of a .NET Application

-When execution of your program begins, the first assembly is loaded into memory. At this point, the common language runtime examines the assembly manifest and determines the requirements to run the program. It examines security permissions. If the system’s security policy does not allow the requested permissions, the application will not run. If the application passes the system’s security policy, the common language runtime executes the code. It creates a process for the application to run in and begins application execution. When execution starts, the first bit of code that needs to be executed is loaded into memory and compiled into native binary code from IL by the common language runtime’s Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler. Once compiled, the code is executed and stored in memory as native code. Thus, each portion of code is compiled only once when an application executes. Whenever program execution branches to code that has not yet run, the JIT compiler compiles it ahead of execution and stores it in memory as binary code. This way, application performance is maximized because only the parts of a program that are executed are compiled.

written on 16th November

Software Architecture and the viewpoints of Design

2005-01-27T20:39:00Z

Commodity – The program must be well fit for its purpose.

Firmness – It must be well built, fast, efficient and flexible.

Delight – Your software must be attractive and pleasant to use. (i.e. – User Friendly). The interface must be functional and aesthetic.

There are many viewpoints of design. Some are mentioned below.

Design as a Scientist by Science

Science is the study and discovery of general principals (theories), and the artificial sciences apply those theories to man-made artifacts, including the design of software.

Software design from a scientific point of view, includes

Theories that deal with structure and representation
Rigorous and formal techniques for evaluating properties of designs
Formal methods for choosing the best/optimal design from a set of possible designs

The computer scientist provides the foundation for constructing firm software. E.g.) it is Compact, Secure, Trustworthy, and Steady – no fluctuations

Design as an Engineer by Engineering

“The scientist builds in order to study; the engineer studies in order to build”.

These are the words of the universally acknowledged father of software engineering, Fred Brooks, who was the founder of Computer Science Department (University of North Carolina)

The difference between Scientists and Engineers is the purpose behind their work.

The software engineer designs tools. Engineers are concerned with the quality of firmness.

Building on the foundation of computer science, the software engineer builds “things that work”.

Design as an Artist by Art

Being a good designer, is an art. Isn’t it?

Is Software development an art?

Most of you will write, software for other people to use, and then, you will take on the role of Artist/Designer. To present something to the user that is Aesthetic. Not only that, you want to involve its user in an interactive experience. So, it doesn’t just look cool, but that it acts cool as well.

Design as an Architect by Architecture

The architect designs neither for beauty or durability, but for the client. The architect’s goal is to build a structure that meets the client’s needs. It must also be visually pleasing, and stand the test of time.

Reference: -

Mitchell Waite Signature Series: Object Orientated design in Java – Stephen Gilbert and Bill McCarty

Virus News Alert

2005-01-27T10:35:00Z

Two you should be aware of are the VBSun-A worm, which masks itself as a plea for help for tsunami victims, and the W32/Baba-C worm, which tells users that adult content has been found on their computers. And then there's the Crowt.A virus that disguises itself as a headline from CNN.