Nathan's thoughts

Added Visual Studio 2010 support to Mole Visualizer

2010-08-25T19:48:00.000-05:00

An update for the “Mole for Visual Studio – With Editing” project to support Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4.0.

Project Info

Original CodeProject article: www.codeproject.com/KB/macros/MoleForVisualStudioEdit.aspx
Update Project Home: github.com/ngbrown/Mole-For-Visual-Studio

Introduction

From the CodeProject article:

Mole was authored by Karl Shifflett, Josh Smith and Andrew Smith who make up Team Mole. The core development process took the team several weeks. Most of the additional enhancements were implemented by Andrew and Karl, with a lot of testing and feedback provided by Josh.

Updates for Visual Studio 2010

The solution files were each loaded in in Visual Studio 2010, the solutions, projects, and generated files were allowed to update. The target framework was then changed to .NET 4.0. Any references still targeting 2.0 were updated to the 4.0 version. Especially note that the path to Microsoft.VisualStudio.DebuggerVisualizers changed to C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 10.0\Common7\IDE\ReferenceAssemblies\v2.0\Microsoft.VisualStudio.DebuggerVisualizers.dll

License

The source code and associated files were licensed by the authors under The Code Project Open License.

The modified source code and compiled binaries are distributed under the rights granted by the license.

Clear QAM channels in Cedar Rapids on Mediacom, updated

2010-04-27T22:05:00.002-05:00

Channel Number	Network Name	Std/ HD	Notes	Main Lineup
11.1	KIINDT (IPTV)	HD		x
11.2	KIINDT2 (IPTV Learns)	SD		x
11.3	KIINDT3 (IPTV World)	SD		x
16.4	KFXA (Fox 28)	SD	HD Available
16.6	KCRG (ABC)	SD	HD Available
16.8	WB20 KWKB	SD	HD Available
16.9	BYU (Mormon)	SD
16.10	KGAN (CBS)	SD	HD Available
16.12	KWWL (NBC)	SD	HD Available
16.16	KFXB (CNT)	SD		x
16.18	KIINDT (IPTV)	SD	HD Available
16.20	MC22 (Mediacom Connections Channel)	SD		x
82.1	QVC	SD
82.3	CSPAN	SD		x
82.5	?	SD	?	x
82.7	WGNAMER	SD		x
82.9	SHOPNBC	SD
82.11	Church Channel	SD		x
82.13	C-SPAN 3	SD		x
82.15	Insp?	SD	?	x
82.17	EWTN (Eternal Work Television Network)	SD		x
82.19	3ABN (3 Angels Broadcasting Network)	SD		x
82.21	C-SPAN 3	SD		x
82.23	Home Shopping Network	SD
94.256	Fox College Sports - Atlantic-Sports	SD		x
96.8	CBS College Sports Network	SD		x
114.1	KWWLDT (NBC)	HD		x
114.2	KWWLDT2 (this)	SD		x
114.3	KWWLDT3 (Retro TV)	SD		x
114.6	KGANDT (CBS)	HD		x
115.2	KCRGDT (ABC)	HD		x
115.4	KFXADT (Fox 28)	HD		x
115.6	KCRGDT2	SD		x
117.1	PUAC018	SD		x
117.3	Kirkwood Channel	SD		x
117.5	Jewelry TV	SD
117.7	UiTV (University of Iowa)	SD		x
119.2	KPXRDT (Ion)	SD		x
119.4	KWKBDT (The CW)	HD		x

Windows 7 RTM LightScribe DVD Label Image

2010-03-03T20:45:00.005-06:00

Since Windows 7 RTM has been out for awhile and I notice that my beta versions of the LightScribe were getting hits, I would upload updated ones. This time I included both x86 and 64-bit versions.

Here is a preview of what it will look like:

To use this for your own LightScribe DVD, open the LightScribe Template Labeler, use the blank template, and then import the PNG below into the program as a graphic, then burn. For best results, click through on the image below for the full size image, then save to your computer.

NUnit templates for ASP.NET MVC 2 RC 2

2010-02-28T13:57:00.003-06:00

Now with ASP.Net MVC 2 RC 2 out, it's time to have a working NUnit template.

I tried to use the NUnit MVC 2 templates others have made available, however, I had trouble installing them with the batch file. Once I installed it manually, the results didn't compile. I discovered it was because these were altered from the NUnit MVC 1 templates. I decided to start over from the MSTest template, modifying it for NUnit. Starting from the supplied templates will make it easier to stay in sync with the ASP.NET MVC team.

The instructions here were a start, however, I took it a step further and synchronized most of the template code with the MVC 2 template code. This gave me a really good result and is really quite workable.

Try it for yourself. Get started with the following instructions:

Download the zip file: Mvc.NUnit.Testsv2.0.zip

Copy the included "MvcApplication.NUnit.Testsv2.0.cs.zip" to "%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Visual Studio 9.0\Common7\IDE\ProjectTemplates\CSharp\Test".
If on a x64 bit machine, then %ProgramFiles(x86)% normally equals "C:\Program Files (x86)", otherwise, it's the normal location of "C:\Program Files".

Import the correct registry file (NUnit.reg or NUnit64bit.reg) to register the new template with MVC 2.

Open the "Visual Studio 2008 Command Prompt", running as administrator. Then run "devenv /setup". Once that is done, the template should be ready to use.

These templates require NUnit 2.5 or higher. Since I don't use VB.Net, I didn't make a corresponding template, if someone would like to contribute that, please feel free.

SQL Server and a Domain Service account

2009-12-01T23:49:00.002-06:00

In my last post I described setting up a new server. Well, I also wanted to try learning ASP.Net with IIS and with SQL Server 2008 express. The SQL Server 2008 install documents recommend using a domain user, in fact they require it if installing on a Domain Controller. It took me a couple tries to get an account with the correct privileges to run the SQL Server service. I used the Group Policy Management tool to edit the Group Policy Objects (GPOs) of the domain.

The Web Install wouldn't work, so I downloaded the large file. I then failed the first install, tried to repair, then uninstalled and started over. I messed up the user account and permissions the first time and managed to get them correct the second time. The following two pages help explain what permissions the user (or group the user belongs in) needs.

Finally I had to enable TCP and open the firewall so I could access it from my other computer. As explained in Configuring the Windows Firewall to Allow SQL Server Access.

Windows Server 2008 on old hardware

2009-12-01T23:42:00.002-06:00

I thought I would use a computer from 1999 for a server at home. It was a Dell workstation designed for two CPUs. I bought it with just one and a few years later added a second CPU and more memory, later I added a second hard drive. I managed to have one of the fastest computers on my floor in college for at least two or three years.

Now with two 450 MHz Pentium III processors and only 512MB of memory, I decided that the minimums for Windows Server 2008 didn't matter and I would try it on this computer. I wanted to learn more about managing a server. I also wanted to move my other computers at home to a domain so inter-computer sharing would be better managed.

I experience using roaming profiles at work and thought it might help with using multiple computers here at home (my desktop and my laptop).

Here are some websites that I found helpful in this endeavor:

The reason for the middle one is that it seemed to a more correct listing of the security settings for the redirected folders share.

Shows series that I watch

2009-09-24T21:31:00.003-05:00

Here is a snapshot of the shows that I record on an ongoing basis.

Nova scienceNOW, HD Preferred, New & rerun, anytime, keep up to 6 recordings until I watch.
Smallville, 119.4 only, New, anytime, keep as many as possible until I delete
The New Red Green Show, 89.4, New & rerun
The Mentalist, Any, New & rerun
House, 115.4, New
Sesame Street, 89.4 only, New & rerun, anytime, keep up to 3 recordings until space needed
Aurthur, 89.4 only, New & rerun, anytime, keep up to 3 recordings until space needed
Curious George, 89.4 only, New & rerun, anytime, keep up to 3 recordings until space needed

Clear QAM channels on Mediacom

2009-09-24T21:03:00.012-05:00

I have posted an updated version of this table.

Channel Number	Network Name	Std/HD
82.1	QVC	SD
82.3	CSPAN	SD
82.7	WGNAMER	SD
82.9	SHOPNBC	SD
82.19	3ABN (3 Angels Broadcasting Network)	SD
82.23	HSN	SD
89.4	KIINDT (IPTV)	HD
89.8	KIINDT2 (IPTV Learns)
89.10	KIINDT3 (IPTV World)
99.4	KFXADT2 (Fox 28)	SD
99.6	KCRG (ABC)	SD
99.8	KWKB (The CW)	SD
99.9	BYU (Mormon)	SD
99.10	KGAN (CBS)	SD
99.12	KWWL (NBC)	SD
99.16	KFXB (CNT)	SD
99.20	MC22 (Mediacom Connections Channel)	SD
114.1	KWWLDT (NBC)	HD
114.2	KWWLDT2 (this)	SD
114.3	KWWLDT3 (Retro TV)	SD
114.6	KGANDT (CBS)	HD
115.2	KCRGDT (ABC)	HD
115.4	KFXADT (Fox 28)	HD
117.1	PUAC018	SD
119.2	KPXRDT (Ion)	SD
119.4	KWKBDT (The CW)	HD

Using NHibernate ActiveRecord and LINQ

2009-09-07T20:44:00.004-05:00

I'm trying to learn NHibernate ActiveRecord and LINQ all in the same day. I ran into the following exception:

Session is closed!
Object name: 'ISession'.

When trying to execute the following code:

      public static User FindByUserName(string username)
      {
          // Note that we use the property name, _not_ the column name
          return (from p in User.Queryable
                  where p.Username == username
                  select p).First();
      }

It took me a couple hours to get by this one, so I thought I would post it. I had to wrap it in a using (new SessionScope()) statement. Like this:

       public static User FindByUserName(string username)
       {
           using (new SessionScope())
           {
               // Note that we use the property name, _not_ the column name
               return (from p in User.Queryable
                       where p.Username == username
                       select p).First();
           }
       }

Happy Coding.

Riddle

2009-09-07T09:14:00.003-05:00

Here's a riddle that I though was pretty good:

It's present everywhere, but occupies no space.
We can measure it, but we can't see it, touch it,
get rid of it, or put it in a container.
Everyone knows what it is and uses it every day,
but no one has been able to define it.
We can spend it, save it, waste it, or kill it,
but we can't destroy it or even change it,
and there's never any more or less of it.
—Jespersen and Fitz-Randolph

Learning ADO.NET

2009-08-29T11:45:00.004-05:00

I had recently tried to write a program which accessed a database and found that I was unfamiliar with ADO.NET which C# uses. Deciding to learn, I started out with Sams Teach Yourself ADO.NET in 21 Days, but found that it was targeted to Visual Studio 2002 and .Net 1.1 and totally missed the current state of Visual Studio 2005 and 2008 and .Net 2.0 and above. Deciding to try again with another book, I'm currently working through Microsoft® ADO.NET 2.0 Step by Step. I have also liked the idea of using SQLite as the database engine since it is totally self contained, so I converted the sample database and have been working through every exercise using System.Data.SQLite instead of Microsoft's SQL Server.

Get the SQLite version of the example database included in the ADONETSBS.exe Sample Files here:
AdoStepByStep.sqlite

Have fun

Software on my computer

2009-08-03T19:02:00.017-05:00

Since I'm going to re-format my computer, I figured it would be a good time to list the software on my computers.

General

Windows 7 ($)
Adobe Acrobat Reader
Adobe Flash Player 10
Google Gears
HuluDesktop
Java 6
Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007 ($)
Microsoft Visio 2007 ($)
Microsoft Silverlight
Mozilla Firefox 3.5
(addons: Xmarks, Image Zoom, Download Statusbar, Adblock Plus, DownThemAll!, FireFTP, FoxyProxy, Tab Mix Plus)
Quicken Premier 2009 ($)

Programming

AnkhSVN
Consolas Font Family
Visual Studio 2008 Team Edition ($)
EQATEC Profiler
Expresso
Java ME SDK
Java SE Dev Kit
JetBrains ReSharper 4.5 ($)
Agent Smith for ReSharper
Microsoft StyleCop
Microsoft StyleCop for ReSharper 4.5
MSDN Library for Visual Studio 2008 SP1
NUnit
NUnit for Visual Studio
Sun Java Wireless Toolkit 2.5.2 for CLDC
TortoiseSVN (64 bit and 32 bit both installed)
UltraEdit 15 ($)
Eclipse with BlackBerry Plugin

Media

Drivers (Laptop)

Intel Graphics Media Accelerator Driver
MultiTouch Driver *
Wacom Enhanced Graphics Driver *
Pen Tablet
ThinkPad Modem
ThinkPad Power Management Driver
ThinkPad Power Manager
ThinkPad Tablet Button *
ThinkPad TrackPoint Driver
ThinkVantage Active Protection System *
ThinkVantage Fingerprint Software

Other

ArtRage 2 Starter Edition
BabySmash!
BlackBerry Desktop Software
Citrix XenApp Web Plugin
DivX Codec (free/$ for encoder)
Dr. DivX 2.0 OSS
Logitech Harmony Remote Software
Mobipocket Creator 4.2
Mobipocket Reader 6.2
MuseScore
PowerToys for Tablet PC
Paint.NET
PeaZip
PSPad editor
Skype
DirectX End-user Runtimes
Synthesia
TomTom HOME
Virtual Windows XP
VirtualCloneDrive
VSO Image Resizer
FileSync (repackaged as a zip file, since the installer doesn't work with Windows 7)

Why American beer is 'ice cold'

2009-07-25T10:38:00.005-05:00

We recently went to Britain and there they pride themselves with Ale that is served at cellar temperatures (about 55 °F). I thought it actually tasted quite good. I thought about this as I drank my milk this morning and about how cold it was. I realized that we make stuff really cold simply because we can't taste it as well when it's cold.

This is why I give by child warm formula milk but I drink cold milk. Formula milk for infants is sweeter and actually tastes good warm.

So, when you hear one of the ads that the American beer companies have about how 'ice cold' their beer is, remember that this is just a way to convince us that we really shouldn't be tasting our beer at all.

Lack of good backup programs

2009-01-11T00:01:00.004-06:00

I have been trying various backup programs to protect myself in case of a hard drive failure (and with RAID 0, it's twice as likely). I have tried the built in Windows Vista backup, Acronis True Image, and FileBack PC. None of them really seem to meet my needs. I know there is a proliferation of backup programs, but why do none of them work for me?

The requirements I have are the following:

If image based, then it can deal with files moving around from defragmentation
Makes an image of at least the system drive.
Versions the files in an appropriate manner
Tracks deletes, but doesn't remove file from backup for a specified period of time (like a month)
Can handle all the advanced things in an NTFS file system like sparse files, hard links, soft links, etc.
Compression really can slow down a backup; Uses smart compression and only compresses items that will compress. Perhaps a way to track the past compressibility of extensions and let the user select which files are not to be compressed.
Allows folders and file types to be excluded from both the image and the file base backup.
Can be scheduled through the Windows scheduler
File history can be compared using a diff tool
Images can be mounted or at least explored

I've used the backup program in Windows 7 Beta, and it's close except it takes too much time. It took 4 and a half days to backup my computer, way too long. Also, what are users of other versions of Windows to use?

Will enterprise care about Windows 7?

2009-01-07T22:15:00.002-06:00

I don't see why enterprises should move to Windows 7. Most of the features are geared for the home. Maybe the only thing for companies will be Window XP Pro not being sold anymore. Maybe companies should just start pirating it, especially if the fines for that sort of activity are lower than the rising cost of ownership for a new Windows versions.

Microsoft is loosing focus on who really buys computers, the enterprise. Home users are important as well, but not at the cost of the bread and butter for this operating system.

Windows 7 out, no different than leaked version

2009-01-07T22:10:00.002-06:00

Well, Windows 7 is out now, and it's the same version that was leaked several weeks ago.

I started writing down problems with it since I installed it. I now have 3 pages of problems written, and I haven't even gotten anything installed. I had really hoped that it would have been more fleshed out, especially with the current build out there for a few weeks for people to test and give feedback on.

Things I hope Windows 7 fixes

2009-01-02T22:49:00.008-06:00

I decided to make a list of quirks that I have experienced in Microsoft's Windows Vista (Ultimate) and will check too see if they are fixed in the next version of windows; Windows 7.

Windows Media Center (When connected through a Windows Media Extender and to my TV)

Programs that decide to show a window at startup (logon) flash a window over the media extender window.
When the computer needs to be restarted for an update, a notification keeps flashing on my TV.
There is no on screen keyboard for those forms that web pages like to have
There is no virtual mouse for the remote to navigate those web page interfaces.

Networking

When I have VMware installed with the virtual network drivers enabled, Windows Vista likes to block me from my own network. It clams that the (unconnected) virtual network cards are Public. If I change this to Private, then they are reset at least every time the computer is resumed if not more often. As long as a single network card is Public, I can't browse the computers, shares, and networked printers on my home network. At least enable this but block the public networks.
There is no option to change the name of a network. I am using Hamachi and it can't detect a name, so let me name it.

Backup

The backup files functionality only allows for some files, not .exe's and other files that I want backed up because that is how I downloaded them. Common example is installers.
It's not clear if the image based backup allows for deframmenting. I don't know of any other image based backup program that can account for files having been defragmented. Windows Vista automatically defragments files, so any image backup program should take this into account. I've usedAcronis True Image Home till now, but can't do differential backups because of the size.

If one of the goals of Windows 7 is to upgrade enterprise computers from Windows XP Pro, it seems odd that the Windows 7 beta installer does not allow for upgrading from Windows XP.

On my laptop, Windows Vista will sometimes freeze for about 50 seconds after logging in upon resuming from sleep. I log in with a finger, so even then I have to wait for it to be done freezing and the wait curser goes away before I can swipe my finger and it is recognized.

Automatic login of notebook computers based on location. Use secured WiFi that are "Home" to verify the cumputer is at home, otherwise prompt for a password upon resuming.

Windows 7 LightScribe DVD Label Image

2009-01-02T22:17:00.011-06:00

I have posted updated versions of these images.

I have a LightScribe DVD drive, I am also waiting for Stargate Atlantis to record, so I thought I would create a image to burn to the label side of my DVD for when Windows 7 comes.

What I came up with looks like this:

I used Paint.NET for the creation, but I have found definite limitations in the way it handles text. Anyways, to use this for your own LightScribe DVD, open the LightScribe Template Labeler, use the blank template, and then import the PNG below into the program as a graphic, then burn. For best results, click through on the image below for the full size image, then save to your computer.