Working with double quotes (") in VB.Net

String manipulation in VB2005 is fairly simple. However, things can get a little tricky with the double quote character. How do you look for it in a string? How can you insert into a string? How do you remove it from a string? These are questions that may lead to confusion if you don't know what you're looking for.

Ironically enough, in VB the double quote can also be used as an escape character when searching for it in a string. For example:

Dim strTest As String
strTest = """123""" 'Displays "123" (double quotes appear in the final result)
strTest = """""123""" 'Displays ""123" (double quotes appear in the final result)
strTest = "test\""test" 'Displays test\"test
strTest = "test""test" 'Displays test"test


In cases where you want to insert a double quote character, simply reference it unicode character designation, chr(34). For example:

strTest = Chr(34) 'Displays "


Switching gears for a moment, ever wonder what would the result be if used nested string functions. Consider the following example:

strTest = strTest.Replace("""", "").Replace("""", "X") 'Displays testtest; executes functions from left to right

Follow-up questions

Listed below are some questions and answers from the last user group meeting.

Q: I have alot of VBA experience and would like to learn VB.Net. What resources are available that can help with this?
A: There are several sites available online to assist with this. For starters, check out the following links:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/beginner
http://safari.oreilly.com
http://www.bookpool.com
http://www.nerdbooks.com

Q: I created an application as a web site. Is there difference in deploying it between a web site application and a web
project application? Is there any way to deploy it as a web site application?
A: ASP.Net 2.0 "web sites" are different from the "web projects" you worked with in VS2003. Deploying a web site in VS2005
requires a different procedure (see http://www.odetocode.com/Articles/417.aspx for more information). If you want to build
and deploy web applications in VS2005 the same way you did in VS2003, you will need to download VS2005 SP1
(http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/thankyou.aspx?familyId=bb4a75ab-e2d4-4c96-b39d-37baf6b5b1dc&displayLang=en ). This will
allow you to create a "web project" in VS2005 and deploythe same way you did in VS2003, as opposed to the existing web site.
After you install SP1, you will be able to see the web project template in VS2005. Until then, you can only create a web
site

Q: How can I step through a stored procedure while debugging code?
A: Check out "Debugging SQL Server 2005 Stored Procedures in Visual Studio"
(http://aspnet.4guysfromrolla.com/articles/051607-1.aspx)


Q: How long will VB6 be supported?
A: Visual Basic 6.0 runtime will be supported for the full lifetime of Windows Vista, which is five years of mainstream support followed by five years of extended support”, which means it is supported until at least 2017. For more info, please visit http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbrun/ms788708.aspx

Thanks to all who contributed to the meeting and the discussion. For more information on upcoming meetings, please visit www.clevelanddotnet.info. All meetings are free an open to all developers.

DotNetNuke Follow-up Questions

Listed below are follow-up questions from our last user group meeting on DotNetNuke.

Q: What are the System Requirements for DNN?
A: Win2003 server, IIS, ASP.Net 2.0

Q: Does DNN install as a "web-site" or does it take over IIS?
A: DNN installs as a simple web site application. Installation in simple, and by Default it installs with SQL Server Express.

Q: Can DNN sites be crawled by internet search engines?
A: DNN sites can be crawled. The menu actually checks the HTTP user agent string to see if a spider is hitting the site and presents an alternative menu to make it easier for the spider to crawl the site.

Q: Is everything stored in the DB, much like SharePoint?
A: Most items are in the DB, much like SharePoint. Some organizations do DB migrations to move all content. There are some .JPG files or other resource files that are not stored in the DB directly. For the most part, everything is stored in the DB.

Q: Can SharePoint or ASP.Net 2.0 web parts be incorporated into DNN without customization? A: Web parts will not work without modification.

Q: What DBs does DNN support out of the box?
A: The databases supported are SQL Express, and SQL Standard to Enterprise. There are also third party data providers available for Oracle and MySQL.

Password Resilience

In January I blogged an entry on creating strong passwords (http://clevelanddotnet.blogspot.com/2007/01/strong-password.html). As a follow-up, I found some data to help justify the need for a strong password. Listed below is a chart (courtesy of LastBit Corp) that details how well a password can withstand a "crack attack" from a hacker.

Web Services Resources

As a follow-up to our last user group meeting, listed below are some resources that can be used for creating and debugging web services.

Fiddler
This utility allows you to inspect all HTTP Traffic, set breakpoints, and "fiddle" with incoming or outgoing data. To learn more about Fiddler or to download it, go to http://www.fiddlertool.com/fiddler/version.asp.

Internet Explorer Developer Toolbar Beta 3
The Microsoft Internet Explorer Developer Toolbar provides a variety of tools for quickly creating, understanding, and troubleshooting Web pages. This version is a preview release and behavior may change in the final release. To download the IE toolbar, go to http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=e59c3964-672d-4511-bb3e-2d5e1db91038&displaylang=en

XML Developer Center
The Microsoft XML Developer Center offers resources on editing, validating, and using XML data. This includes utilities, articles, and blogs. To visit the Developer Center, go to http://msdn.microsoft.com/xml/default.aspx.

Web Service Software Factory
This is a cohesive collection of guidance that enables architects and developers to design and build higher quality services and achieve more predictable results in less time by applying proven practices and patterns directly within Visual Studio 2005. To download the web service factory, go to http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=DB996113-6E92-4894-9B7E-0DEBB614D72F&mg_id=10110&displaylang=en

Resolvoing the error "The file could not be uploaded into the Web Forms designer."

Q: I received the following error ("The file could not be uploaded into the Web Forms designer.") when I opened a VS project, but I don't remember making any changes to the form design or the HTML?

A: Try to compile the project and see if there's an error in the code behind file (i.e. .CS or .VB file). If there are errors resolve them, and you should be able to view the file.

Zune Giveaway

During our March meeting, we will have a drawing for a Zune, courtesy of Microsoft. To enter the drawing, simply attend the C#/VB.Net user group meetings. For each meeting you attend between now and the end of March, you will be entered into the drawing. In addition, your name will be entered into the drawing an additional time for each new person you bring to the meeting. To find out more about upcoming meetings, go to www.ClevelandDotNet.info.

February .Net Events

Listed below is a summary of the .Net events scheduled for this month. Attend a few and increase your .Net knowledge!

Feb 8th: SQL User Group - "Visual Studio 2005 Team Edition for Database Professionals"
http://www.bennettadelson.com/technicalresources/sqlsig.aspx

Feb 13th: .Net User Group - "Building ASP.NET AJAX Enabled Websites"http://www.bennettadelson.com/technicalresources/sig.aspx

Feb 20th: Presentation - "Mobilize Your Business: Using Microsoft Solutions to Keep Your Business on the Move"
http://www.berbee.com/public/events/MS_MobilizeYourBusinessCleveland.aspx

Feb 27th: C#/VB.Net User Group - "XML Web Services"
http://www.clevelanddotnet.info

You’re invited to attend a Berbee and Microsoft Seminar on Mobile Solutions

Mobilize Your Business: Using Microsoft Solutions to Keep Your Business on the Move

You’re invited to attend a Berbee and Microsoft Seminar
As a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Berbee is pleased to invite you to the special event "Mobilize Your Business: Using Microsoft Mobile Solutions to Keep Your Business on the Move." Attend this two-hour session and discover how Microsoft® supported mobile solutions can make your mobile workforce more productive.Advanced Technology in Action to Solve Today’s Business ProblemsDoes your team need to stay in the know while on the go? Mobile solutions can help your people get to work without being at work. Through business scenarios, case studies, and product demos, this event will show how Microsoft technologies can help your business to:* Enable productivity away from the office* Provide on-the-go access to corporate data* Respond more quickly to customers, partners, and colleaguesAttend This Unique Event for a First-Hand View Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn how you can help boost employee efficiency away from the office. Come explore how Microsoft’s people-ready software can help your people take your business to the next level of productivity and profitability. You will also find out about complementary solutions and services available through Berbee.

Date: Tuesday, February 20th, 2007Time: 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Location: Microsoft - Cleveland Park Center III Building
6050 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 300
Independence, OH

Register Now at:
http://www.berbee.com/public/events/MS_MobilizeYourBusinessCleveland.aspx
Or call Laura Benisek at 800.279.0841, ext 7208, or laura.benisek@berbee.com

Strong Password

Listed below are the requirments for making a password strong and more difficult to comprimise.

8 characters minimum
No repeating characters
Embedded numbers and special characters
Avoid common dictionary words
Avoid using login name within the password
Force users to change passwords every 3-6 months
Old passwords should be avoided when changing a current password
Users should be repeatedly warned never to share passwords with anyone, including System Administrators.

Users can check their own password at http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/privacy/password_checker.mspx. This is a non-recording web site used to simply check the strength of a password and it’s resilience for being compromised.

For more information on strong passwords, go to http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/privacy/password.mspx

January .Net Events

Listed below is a summary of the .Net events scheduled for this month. Attend a few and increase your .Net knowledge!

Jan 9: Windows Workflow Foundation http://www.bennettadelson.com/technicalresources/sig.aspx

Jan 11: Reporting Services – Level 300 http://www.bennettadelson.com/technicalresources/sqlsig.aspx

Jan 23: Microsoft Launch Event (office 2007/Vista)
http://www.msdnevents.com

Jan 23: Multi-tier Application Development
http://www.ClevelandDotNet.info

Microsoft Exam Insurance

Microsoft is now offering Exam Insurance for certification tests. For $175, a candidate can purchase an exam with insurance. This allows for either a free re-take if the candidate fails, or 25% off the next exam if the candidate passes. In addition, when you purchase Exam Insurance and take your initial exam by January 31, 2007, you get a one-year subscription to Microsoft TechNet Plus Direct (US$349 value). Please note you must register and take your first exam by January 31.

This is considered a very reasonable deal, considering certification exams are $125 each. Exam insurance can be purchased from local Microsoft certified testing centers. To find a local center, go to http://www.exampartners.com/default.asp. To learn more about Exam Insurance, go to http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcp/offers/insurance/default.mspx

Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats

Microsoft recently released a compatability pack allowing users of Office 2000, XP, and 2003 to be able to open, edit, and save files in the new 2007 format. This applies to Word (.docx), Excel (.xlsx), and PowerPoint (.pptx) files. Before installing the compatability pack, users should be sure that all office updates are in place. To download this free utility, go to http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=941b3470-3ae9-4aee-8f43-c6bb74cd1466&DisplayLang=en