Discount training for SIG Members

Solutient is offering a wide variety of .Net classes at a discounted rate exclusively for SIG members. The complete list is posted on the SIG web site at http://www.clevelanddotnet.info/ under the "Links" section. To receive the C#/VB.Net special interest group membership preferred pricing, you must mention promotion code A16. If you have any questions, please contact Steve Luc at SLuc@solutient.com.

Setting the Default Button in ASP.Net 1.1

Q: I have an ASP.Net 1.1 search form with several buttons on it (Search, Clear, Logoff) and a search word field. Currently, if the user enters text in the "Search Word” fields, and presses ENTER, the logoff button (located on the banner at the top of the form) is activated and the user is prompted if he wants to logoff. How can I change it so the ENTER key will activate the “Search” button instead? In other words, how can I make the “Search” button, the default button?

A: In ASP.Net the enter button executes the first button on the page. So create a button that is not visible (width is set to 1 px) and placed it at the top of the page before the logoff button. Change the background color if needed and make sure it cannot be seen. Then set the click event in .aspx page to execute the search button click event. When the user presses enter, the first button is executed and it will call the search method.

An invite to all SIG members

BRING YOUR "A" GAME. BRULANT GAME NIGHT!

You're invited to test your gaming skills against your fellow technology gurus. Join us for networking, food, drinks, and the chance to win bragging rights as the master of:
* Texas Hold 'Em
* Halo 2
* Chess
* Foozball
* Human Tic-Tac-Toe
* Madden
* CounterStrike
* and more!
Throughout the night, we'll be giving away great prizes. Feel free to suggest any other games we might consider, and bring a friend, the more the merrier!
When? Thursday, February 2nd, 5:30 p.m.-?Where? Brulant's NEW Headquarters3700 Park East Drive, Suite 300Beachwood, OH 44122To Register: Visit http://www.brulant.com/events/event.asp?id=508, and click on the "register" button for each person that plans on attending!


BRENDA M. PATTERSON
Marketing Communications Manager
216 896 8938 / direct
brenda.patterson@brulant.com

BRULANT, Inc.
3700 park east drive, suite 300
beachwood, ohio 44122
216 896 8900 / phone
216 896 8991 / fax
brulant.com

Accessing Version Number in .Net

Q: How do I programatically access the version number of an ASP.Net application?

A: The version number, and other general information, is kept in the AssemblyInfo.vb (for VB.Net projects). All information is housed in attributes in the file, as listed below:

Assembly: AssemblyTitle("MyApp")
Assembly: AssemblyDescription("A Sample Program")
Assembly: AssemblyCompany("ABC Software Corp.")
Assembly: AssemblyProduct("")
Assembly: AssemblyCopyright("2006")
Assembly: AssemblyTrademark("")
Assembly: CLSCompliant(True)
Assembly: AssemblyVersion("2.0.*")

To access the application version through .Net code, use
System.Reflection.Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().GetName().Version.ToString(). The value displayed will be 4 sets of numbers, separated by '.' (similar to TCP/IP address). The version information for an assembly consists of the following four values:
Major Version
Minor Version
Build Number
Revision

MSDN Beta Home Page

One of the tips I give to developers who want to stay up to date on the latest .Net information is to view MSDN web site (http://msdn.microsoft.com) regularly. It's a good idea to set it as your default home page so you can glance the headlines everytime you open a browser.

Expanding on that idea, Microsoft is now working on a Beta MSDN site (http://msdn.microsoft.com/aboutmsdn/betahomepage/default.htm) . The 2 big features of the new site are Country specific content and "My MSDN" for personalized content management.

IT Jobs with FBI

For those in the IT job market and want something a little different and a little challenging, the FBI maybe the place for you! Beginning next month, the FBI will begin interviewing for a variety of positions. To apply, go to www.fbijobs.gov. Although many of these jobs have salaries well into the 6-figure range, they do involve relocating to the DC area. With the change in the cost of living, the 6 figure salary may not be that much. For a city-city comparison of cost-of-living, vist www.homefair.com. For those interested in IT jobs in NE Ohio, please visit http://www.clevelanddotnet.info/careers/.

Visual Studio 2005 Questions

Q: Does VS2005 support source code control and editing of both .NET and Java code?
A: Yes, VS2005 does support Javascript code within web pages, with some intellisense.

Q: Does source code control come with VS2005 or is it part of “Team Suite”?
A: VS doesn’t handle source code control directly. Instead, it integrates with Visual Source Safe (VSS) for source code control. VSS could store any file type, so Javascript code should not be a problem. VS Team Suites come with Visual Source Safe 2005. VS standard and Pro don’t come with it but can integrate with it, if purchased separately. For more information, please go to http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/products/compare/default.aspx.

Microsoft Events (more of...)

Per my previous blog entry, the 2 major Microsoft events for developers that come to town are TechNet and MSDN. However, Microsoft also has additional seminars that cater more towards product sales and technology providers. These additional seminars are Microsoft Connections, Microsoft Business Solutions Seminar, and TS2. Although these are less technical than TechNet and MSDN, some of the presentations are still informative to developers, demonstrating new products, capabilities, and possible integration with other products and SDKs. For a complete description of all events, go to http://www.connect-ms.com/default.html.

Local Microsoft Events

Microsoft will be sponsoring 2 events tomorrow in the Cleveland area. TechNet will take place in the moring, 8:00 AM - Noon, and will cover SQL Server 2005. The MSDN event will take place 1:00 PM- 5:00 PM, and will cover Visual Studio 205. The demonstrations are very informative and the DVDs distributed contain manyweb casts, tutorials and trial software. All this, free of charge.

To register for these events, visit the following links:
http://www.technetevents.com and http://www.msdnevents.com.

Worm Attack Set for 1/5/2006

A new variant of the Sober worm has been detected recently by Verisign's cyber intelligence center. The worm is expected to launch an email attack on January 5th, 2006 (the 87th anniversary of the Nazi party). Emails launched during the attack are expected to have subject lines that relate to FBI or CIA.

The obvious remedy to this worm, as well as others, is to make sure the Antivirus programs and security patches are updated on all systems. In addition, creating a contact in each address book with "!!!!!!!!!!!" as the email address might prevent the worm from spreading. Some worms/viruses don't have the proper error handling when an invalid email address is encountered. By having the first email address in an address book be invalid, it may generate an error and prevent the worm from spreading. Although this is not a guarantee, it's definitely cheap insurance.

For more info on the worm, visit http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,106848,00.html?source=NLT_AM&nid=106848

ASP.Net Providers

Q: Are there any ASP.Net providers that you recommend?

A: I had good experiences with GoDaddy.com for web hosting and their plans are very reasonable (https://www.godaddy.com/gdshop/hosting/shared.asp?se=%2B&ci=260). Also, DiscountASP.net (http://www.discountasp.net/kbalertz.aspx) offers 6 mos free service when you sign up before 12/31/2005.

By using an ASP.Net provider, you can create an ASP.Net site and let the provider worry about server maintainence. This is also a great way for a new .Net programmer to gain some experience in .Net development. By paying a small fee for web hosting, you can create your own public web site. This will allow you to showcase and demonstrate your skill set to potential employers before you walk into an interview.

Microsoft IE Bug resurfaces

This has been a tough week for the Microsoft security team. Four security related bugs were announced earlier this week, one of which was originally announced in May of this year. This causes alot of fingerpointing between cyber security experts and the software giant. Analysts claim the bug should've been fixed but was ignored by Microsoft. However, Microsoft claims the bug was not reported to them appropriately in the correct fashion and therefore did not gain the adequate attention it required.

The bug is exposed when a call to the Windows() function occurs from within the Javascript of a web page. Hackers would trick users into clicking a link that would launch a web page containing the malicous code and eventually give the hacker access to the system. Win2003 machines with SP1, having the default Enhanced Security Configuration activated are exempt from this vulnerability.

For more information, please go to http://www.computerworld.com/printthis/2005/0,4814,106638,00.html

Bug Tracking Software

Q: What bug-tracking system would you recommend?

A: Visual Studio Team Systems offers it’s own bug tracking software. Supposedly, this is the same software used internally at Microsoft. For more information see http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/products/newfeatures/38/default.aspx