EnGraph Software

Code coverage, unit tests and why you should care

tim — Tue, 29 May 2007 16:28:00 GMT

As we have been developing GoldStar, we have used a Test Driven Development (TDD) approach. In a nutshell, this means that we write code that tests our code. In the golden olden days of software development, testing was a painful process that unfortunately was largely beared by the end user. The development team would use the program and make sure that it worked as expected, but identifying every single use path and every single computer configuration was impossible. Even if a team spent 10,000 hours testing their product, they would still have to manually record what they tested and remember to repeat these tests as they made changes to the program.

Using the Microsoft .NET framework and TDD has eliminated these problems. In our development process, we write unit tests. Very simply, a unit test runs a specific piece of code and makes sure the expected result is obtained. Here is an example:

myTestClient = new Client();
//give the client a name
myTestClient.Name.FirstName = "tim";
//make sure the client's name is correct
Assert.AreEqual("tim", myTestClient.Name.FirstName);

Obviously, a typical test is much more complicated and much more comprehensive, but you get the point.

So now we can save this test into a special code file and tell our testing framework (we use NUnit) to run the code. NUnit will run the code and tell us if our test passed. So if we make a change to our code for a Client, we can run this test and make sure we didn't break existing functionality.

Currently, we have 416 unit tests that verify everything from adding a new Vehicle to making sure correct data was saved to the database to writing and reading to disk. Every time we write new code, or modify existing code, we run these unit tests to make sure that everything is still working.

Code coverage tells us what percentage of our code has a unit test written for it. For example, our above unit test would be less than 1% code coverage of the client code. Ideally, we want to be above 85% code coverage. So we write tests that "touch" all the different functions of the code until we get to a desired number of coverage.

Currently, we are above 90% code coverage and strive to maintain that level of coverage. This means that as you begin to use this software, you can feel secure that the quality of the code will remain intact. As we introduce new features or client-specific customizations, we will not break existing code, because our unit tests will tell us that something is wrong before we every ship the update. And as developers, we can spend a lot less time testing, because we don't have to manually test each feature.

We have also solved the multiple configuration problem. I will discuss this in a later post when we talk about how ClickOnce removes the pain of installing software.

Technorati tags: TDD, GoldStar, EnGraph, NUnit, NCover, Code Coverage

ParaPlan 4.0 Release Plan

tim — Thu, 03 May 2007 18:51:00 GMT

As some of you know, we have been working hard on ParaPlan version 4.0 (code name GoldStar). We are getting close to the point where we are able to set target dates for releasing specific functionality of the product. Starting July 1, 2007, we plan to release an alpha iteration every month until we reach beta status. An alpha release means that specific functionality has been programmed and is ready for testing. A beta release means that all the major functions that are intended for ParaPlan are developed and the product as a whole is ready to be tested. A release candidate (RC) means that we are very satisfied with the quality of the software and are considering this version as a candidate to be released.

We will have six or seven alpha releases, two or three beta releases and one or two RC releases.

We have tentative planned the functionality that will be released in each alpha iteration. Please comment if there is functionality that you would like to see in an earlier release.

Alpha 1 - July 1, 2007

Login to ParaPlan
Add/Edit Clients
Add/Edit Vehicles
Add/Edit Appointments
Add/Edit Users
Switchboard's replacement, Dashboard

Alpha 2 - August 1, 2007

Add/Edit Routes
Add/Edit Subscriptions
Ability to build dates
Ability to save dates to history
Ability to view locations on a map
Add/Edit Doctors
Add/Edit Places

Alpha 3 - September 1, 2007

Live Dispatch form
Client History

Alpha 4 - October 1, 2007

Reporting
Manifests
Query Builder

We are very interested in your feedback about this release plan. We will be talking in the future about how you will be able to test our releases.

I also updated this post to reflect some changes in our phone numbers.

New EnGraph contact information

tim — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:06:00 GMT

We have moved to a new office in Lenexa, KS! Tim has posted pictures from the move on his development blog. With this change, we also have a new phone number. The main office number is 913-491-3343. Kyle's extension is 120 and Tim's extension is 121. You can dial our extensions at any time during the greeting message to reach our desk. As always, you can reach us via email. Kyle is karcher@engraph.com and Tim is thibbard@engraph.com.

Technorati tags: EnGraph, Lenexa, New Office

Changing the IP of a VPN

tim — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 17:08:00 GMT

Some of our software uses a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Sometimes you need to change how this VPN connects to your base network. To change the IP, follow these steps:

On your keyboard, press and hold the Start button then press R
On the screen that opens up, type (without quotes) "control.exe"
If you are running XP or 2000, double click "Network Connections"
If you are running Vista, click "Network and Internet", then click "Connect to a Network"
Find the VPN connection in the list. The name will be provided to you by Tim or Kyle
Right click the VPN connection and select "Properties"
On the "General" tab, replace the text in "Host name or IP address..." with your new IP information.
Click "OK"
You might get a message that says "Since this connection is currently active...". Follow the next step of instructions to ensure you are connecting correctly. Otherwise you are finished with this activity.
1. Press "OK" on the warning message
2. Right click the VPN connection and select "Disconnect" (If available, otherwise just skip to the next step)
3. Right click the VPN connection and select "Connect"

Technorati tags: EnGraph, VPN

How to uninstall EnGraph Updater

tim — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:27:00 GMT

As we talked about in our last blog post, we have completed a major upgrade to our software applications. Part of this upgrade means discontinuing the use of everybody's favorite start up program, EnGraph Updater. To uninstall EnGraph Updater, we will first remove the application from your computer and then remove it's entry in the startup folders. Please call Tim (785-550-1483) at any time during this process if you run into problems.

Uninstalling EnGraph Updater

Click the start button and press "Run" (or Win + R on your keyboard).
In the screen that opened up, type (without quotes) "appwiz.cpl"
The Add / Remove Programs screen will open up
Find EnGraph Updater in the list (it might also be listed as EnGraph Updater - 1)
Press the "Change/Remove" button
On the screen that opens up, select "Remove this application from my computer" and press "Ok"
The uninstaller might take a minute or two. Once it has finished, you can close any confirmation screens and close Add / Remove Programs

Removing EnGraph Updater from running at startup

Right click on the start button and select "Explore All Users"
In the right pane, double click "Programs"
In the right pane, double click "Startup"
In the right pane, delete any reference to EnGraph Updater. Please call Tim if you want verification that you are deleting the correct item.

That is all. All of EnGraph's applications will update themselves from this point forward.

.NET 2.0 and ClickOnce

tim — Sat, 10 Feb 2007 22:12:49 GMT

Kyle and I have been busy, busy programmers the last couple of months. Not only have we been working on a Medicaid export program, we have also been migrating all of our helper applications in the latest Microsoft .NET framework. I talk about all the geeky details on my blog, so I'll only talk here about how this impacts your computer.

Automatic updates! True, we already do automatic updates with EnGraph Updater, but we have decided to deploy our applications in a way where each application is responsible for updating itself. Not only does this make it easier for us to get you changes quickly, but you can be ensure that you are running the latest version of our software. You are also in control of the updates, and if you want to skip an update for some reason, feel free, and we will ask you next time if you want to update. This technology is called ClickOnce.
No more EnGraph Updater. EU has been great for making sure that you always have our current software, but new technology has enabled us to put EU to rest. We will let it go gracefully to software heaven.

Expect to see this changes on your computer in the next couple of weeks.

How to enable security settings for ParaPlan

tim — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 16:31:51 GMT

With newer version of Access, Microsoft has modified how the security system works. To make sure that PlanPlan works properly with your version of Access, follow these steps.

Click here if your computer runs Access 2003.

Click here if your computer runs Access 2007.

How to enable Remote Desktop

tim — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 16:02:07 GMT

Sometimes to help with support, we need to access your computer. When this happens, we will ask for your IP and ask you to make sure Remote Desktop is turned on. Here is a guide to help with this.

To get your IP:

1) Click the Start button and select "Run" (or type Win Key + R on your keyboard)
2) In the box that opens up, type "cmd /k ipconfig" (without the quotes) and push enter
3) A black box will open up. We need the value after "IP Address..."

To enable Remote Desktop:

1) Click the Start button and right click on "My Computer"
2) On the menu that opens up, click "Properties"
3) On the dialog box that opens up, select the "Remote" tab
4) Check "Allow users to connect remotely to this computer"

When we connect to your computer, it will lock your computer. Please do not log on to Windows until we are finished with your computer.

What is that window with the blue dots?

tim — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 21:01:06 GMT

EnGraph works closely with your IT staff to make sure that you are always running the most current version of ParaPlan. All of our clients have given us VPN access to your network. That means that we can "trick" our computers to think they are on the same network as your workstations. Since we have VPN access, we can easily access the computers that hold your ParaPlan data. This helps us troubleshoot problems that are specific to your agency.

This also means that we can easily update your computers. When Kyle adds a new feature to ParaPlan, he will VPN into your network, connect ParaPlan to your data, and move the updated version to a server on your network. When you start ParaPlan, it automatically launches a program called PPUpdater. This program looks on your server for an updated version of ParaPlan. If PPUpdater sees that you have the latest version of ParaPlan, it will exit quietly and let you continue your work on ParaPlan. However, if a newer version exist on the server, PPUpdater will light up with blue dots.

Of course, it is doing more that just looking pretty :) First, it will close ParaPlan. Then it downloads the newer version of ParaPlan to your computer. As soon as the download is complete, it will start the new version of ParaPlan with all the new features that Kyle has so nicely built!

PPUpdater is not to be confused with EnGraph Updater. We will talk more later about all the goodness that is EnGraph Updater.

Technorati tags: EnGraph, VPN, ParaPlan, Kyle Archer

My computer is running sloooowly

tim — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 03:33:31 GMT

GPS Manager Client is designed to run behind the scenes. It's not supposed to need any user interaction or use that much of your computer's resources. However, sometimes the bits and bytes just don't match up and it runs into a problem that it can't solve. If you think that GPS Manager Client has ran into a problem, give me a call, send me an email, or tell us more about your problem on the GPS Manager forum.

Here's a little more information about how Manager Client works. Your vehicles have a GPS unit that collects data as it travels during the day. Once your vehicle gets close enough to the office, the unit sends its data wirelessly to the base station connected to your computer. Every two hours, the base station processes the data and converts it to a .GPS file. From there, Manager Client picks up the data and converts it to a standard XML format that all of our GPS applications understand. It will connect to the VPN at the main office, make sure that it can actually see the remote network, and then send the XML file to the server. Behind the scenes, a lot more than that is actually going on, but conceptually, it's really pretty simple. During these data transmissions and conversions, sometimes bad things happen. When these bad things happen, Manager Client will try to "fix" itself. Sometimes it will start the whole process over, sometimes it will see that there is just too much bad data, and give up on the file. Either way, we report these problems back to our computers. We have an application called PPExceptionHandler that will collect detailed information about any errors that are encountered and report that information back to us. We can then see what happened and make the application better.

Ideally, Manager Client will run so smoothly that you won't even know it is there :) If not, now you know a little bit more about how it works. Feel free to share your thoughts here on this blog, or on the GPS Manager forum.

Technorati tags: EnGraph, GPS Manager Client, VPN, PPExceptionHandler

HUGE performance upgrade

tim — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 00:25:03 GMT

We found that we were making database calls that weren't necessary when viewing GPS history data by Route in GPS Control Room. After removing the call, we found it loading over 15 times faster! 65 seconds of load time before the change, and just over 4 seconds after the change. Note this was over a VPN connection, my initial load time would have been closer to 15 seconds had I been in the same network as the SQL database server.

We want to do some more testing before releasing this version. Not all the information in the route entity information panel is showing up like it should.

Technorati tags: EnGraph, GPS Control Room

My Options fix

tim — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 22:27:51 GMT

We released an update to PPOptions.exe.

This is the screen that opens up when you push "My Options" on the ParaPlan switchboard or LiveDispatch.

We had some references that got confused and when you launched the window, it couldn't resolve the issues and exited. We fixed that issue and pushed the new version out. You will get this update the next time you restart your computer. If you need this update before than, run EnGraph Updater like this:

Start -> All Programs -> EnGraph -> EnGraph Updater

Thanks to Don Scharmen from BATA for pointing this out!

Technorati tags: EnGraph, PPOptions, ParaPlan