EnGraph Help!

Simple class to parse Twitter with LINQ

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:53:35 GMT

In ParaPlan 4.0, we use twitter to maintain a change log.� I wanted to display this information to our users, so I wrote a little class that calls the RSS feed and uses LINQ to parse the data.� All I need is the message and the date, so that is all it pulls out.

Here is the class:

public class Twitter

    public string Message { get; set; }

    public DateTime PubDate { get; set; }

�

    public static List<Twitter> Parse(string User)

        var rv = new List<Twitter>();

        var url = "http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/" + User + ".rss";

�

        var element = XElement.Load(url);

        foreach (var node in element.Element("channel").Elements("item"))

            var twit = new Twitter();

            var message = node.Element("description").Value;

            //remove username information

            twit.Message = message.Replace(User + ": ", string.Empty);

            twit.PubDate = DateTime.Parse(node.Element("pubDate").Value);

            rv.Add(twit);

�

        return rv;

�

Our calling code looks like this:

var changes = new List<string>();

�

var fromTwitter = Twitter.Parse("ParaPlan");

fromTwitter.ForEach(t =>

    changes.Add(t.PubDate.ToString("MM/dd/yy") + " - " + t.Message));

�

var list = new ListBox();

�

list.ItemsSource = changes;

�

Technorati Tags: Twitter,LINQ,WPF,ParaPlan,EnGraph

Benjamin Allan Hibbard

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 08:26:35 GMT

On 12-20-2008, my wife Chelsea, gave birth to our beautiful baby boy Benjamin.� It's been a crazy exciting and busy couple of weeks so far.� I've tried to respond to all the many people that have congratulated us on twitter and facebook, but if I forgot, thank you so much.� All of your kind words and well wishes have been very appreciated!!

Many more pictures here.

Technorati Tags: Benjamin

ParaPlan 4.0 Beta Unleashed!

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 02:53:05 GMT

I will soon be installing our newest version of ParaPlan at Kendal-Crosslands today (www.kcc.kendal.org). Steve Cooper is the transportation director at KCC and will be our first beta tester of ParaPlan 4.0. Steve provided numerous requests and comments during the development of ParaPlan 2/3 and he will be a great resource for us as we roll out the new version. Steve will be testing it on a copy of his ParaPlan 3.8x data.

PP 4.0 is in written in C# .NET 3.5...Tim has been working on it for quite some time and we are excited about beginning its release cycle!

This new version is no longer dependent on Microsoft Access which has always caused us various issues.

Stay tuned!

WPF – Hide a listbox when it doesn’t have any items

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:48:53 GMT

This code example will show how to hide a listbox from the user when it doesn't have any items.�

It involves binding the Visibility of the listbox to the Items.Count of the listbox.� We run the Items.Count through a converter that will return a Visibility.Visible object if the Item.Count is not zero.

Here is the converter class:

using System;

using System.Collections.Generic;

using System.Linq;

using System.Text;

using System.Windows.Data;

using System.Windows;

�

namespace HideAListBox

    public class ZeroCollapsedNonZeroVisible : IValueConverter

�

        public object Convert(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)

            var rv = Visibility.Visible;

            var val = 0;

            int.TryParse(value.ToString(), out val);

            if (val == 0)

                rv = Visibility.Collapsed;

            return rv;

�

        public object ConvertBack(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)

            throw new NotImplementedException();

�

Here is the window code:

<Window x:Class="HideAListBox.Window1"

        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"

        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"

        xmlns:converter="clr-namespace:HideAListBox"

        Title="Window1" Height="300" Width="300">

    <Window.Resources>

        <converter:ZeroCollapsedNonZeroVisible x:Key="hideListBox"/>

    </Window.Resources>

    <DockPanel LastChildFill="True">

        <Button Content="Add Item" Click="addItemClick" DockPanel.Dock="Top"/>

        <Button Content="Clear Items" Click="clearItemsClick" DockPanel.Dock="Top"/>

        <ListBox Margin="3" BorderBrush="Blue" Name="myListBox"

                 Visibility="{Binding ElementName=myListBox,

                              Path=Items.Count,

                              Converter={StaticResource hideListBox}}"/>

    </DockPanel>

</Window>

The entire project can be downloaded here.

Technorati Tags: WPF,IValueConverter,Visibility

KU vs Kent State

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:24:05 GMT

Allie and I decided late to go to the game in Lawrence and a couple cool things happened at the game last Monday.

#1 With just 0.2 seconds left in the 1st half, KU had an inboud alley-oop to Cole to end the half and we all went nutz of course. Then as the teams left the court for halftime, they put the following clip on the jumbotron...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4STTYu-wkU

Then right after Farley says, "That was awesome!", they replayed Cole's dunk several times. Kinda sweet.

#2 During a 2nd half timeout... they played the now infamous 4th&7 play by KU vs Mizzou at the 08 Arrowhead game. After the crowd went crazy, they zoomed the jumbotron to Todd Reesing who was in attendance and we all gave him a standing O for a couple minutes. Kinda sweeter.

Visual Studio Team System Unit Testing Keyboard Shortcuts

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 09:24:40 GMT

I try to use keyboard shortcuts as much as possible.� Here are some that are handy when unit testing with Visual Studio:

Ctrl + R, A - Run all tests
Ctrl + R, T - Run tests in context (based on if cursor is in function, class, or namespace)
Ctrl + R, F - Runs all tests that are checked in Test Results - very handy because that window is impossible to navigate without a mouse

Ctrl + R, Ctrl + A - Run all tests in debug mode
Ctrl + R, Ctrl + T - Run all tests in context in debug mode
Ctrl + R, Ctrl + F - Run all checked tests in debug mode

�

Technorati Tags: VSTS,Unit Testing,Keyboard Shortcuts

Google Sync for Blackberry now syncs contacts

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 07:52:43 GMT

The newest version of Google Sync adds a great new feature of syncing contacts.� Now your Gmail contacts will stay up to date with your Blackberry contacts and vice versa.

Very nice!

Download page here.

Technorati Tags: Google Sync,Blackberry

TFS - Publish Web Service with TeamBuild

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:39:00 GMT

TeamBuild is such a powerful tool.� We use it to run our unit tests and publish our apps using ClickOnce.� Recently we started using it to publish a web service.� This code depends on MSBuildTasks from Tigris.

<PropertyGroup>

  <DeploymentFolder>**SHARED FOLDER ON WEB SERVER**</DeploymentFolder>

  <DeployServerName>**WEB SERVER NAME**</DeployServerName>

  <ApplicationPoolName>ReportingWS</ApplicationPoolName>

  <VirtualDirectory>ReportingWS</VirtualDirectory>

  <WebBinariesLocation>$(BuildDirectoryPath)\Binaries\Release\_PublishedWebSites\ReportingWS</WebBinariesLocation>

</PropertyGroup>

�

<Target Name="AfterCompile">

  <RemoveDir Directories="$(DeploymentFolder)" ContinueOnError="true" />

�

  <Exec Command="xcopy /y /e /i $(WebBinariesLocation) $(DeploymentFolder)"/>

�

  <WebDirectoryDelete VirtualDirectoryName="$(VirtualDirectory)"

                      ContinueOnError="true"

                      ServerName="$(DeployServerName)"/>

  <WebDirectoryCreate VirtualDirectoryName="$(VirtualDirectory)"

                      VirtualDirectoryPhysicalPath="$(DeploymentFolder)"

                      ServerName="$(DeployServerName)"/>

</Target>

Essentially, we just copy the executable files from the Web Service to a shared folder on our web server and map a virtual directory to that shared folder.

Technorati Tags: TFS,Team Foundation Server,TeamBuild,Publish,MSBuildTasks,Tigris

VS2008 code snippet for Properties that support INotifyPropertyChanged

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 12:19:00 GMT

This code snippet extends the functionality found in prop code snippet.� It will populate the backing field in the property, check for equality in the setter and call PropertyChanged.� It assumes you have a base class that handles the implementation of INotifyPropertyChanged.

When the snippet is called, it will generate code that looks like this:

private int myVar;

�

public int MyProperty

    get { return myVar; }

�

set

        if (!myVar.Equals(value))

            myVar = value;

            base.OnPropertyChanged("MyProperty");

To use this snippet, create a new text file at:
C:\users\<your user name>\Documents\Visual Studio 2008\Code Snippets\Visual C#\My Code Snippets

Call it "propINP.snippet"

Populate the contents of the file with this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<CodeSnippets xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2005/CodeSnippet">

  <CodeSnippet Format="1.0.0">

    <Header>

      <SnippetTypes>

        <SnippetType>Expansion</SnippetType>

      </SnippetTypes>

      <Title>propINP</Title>

      <Author>Microsoft Corporation</Author>

      <Description>Code snippet for property and backing field and INotifyPropertyChanged</Description>

      <HelpUrl>

      </HelpUrl>

      <Shortcut>propINP</Shortcut>

    </Header>

    <Snippet>

      <Declarations>

        <Literal Editable="true">

          <ID>type</ID>

          <ToolTip>Property type</ToolTip>

          <Default>int</Default>

          <Function>

          </Function>

        </Literal>

        <Literal Editable="true">

          <ID>property</ID>

          <ToolTip>Property name</ToolTip>

          <Default>MyProperty</Default>

          <Function>

          </Function>

        </Literal>

        <Literal Editable="true">

          <ID>field</ID>

          <ToolTip>The variable backing this property</ToolTip>

          <Default>myVar</Default>

          <Function>

          </Function>

        </Literal>

      </Declarations>

      <Code Language="csharp"><![CDATA[private $type$ $field$;

�

public $type$ $property$

get { return $field$;}

�

set

if(!$field$.Equals(value))

$field$ = value;

base.OnPropertyChanged("$property$");

$end$]]></Code>

    </Snippet>

  </CodeSnippet>

</CodeSnippets>

Technorati Tags: prop,Snippet,INotifyPropertyChanged

19:29

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:54:44 GMT

For a while now, one of my goals has been to run a 5K (3.1 miles) in under 20 minutes.� This morning I finally broke that number.�

Technorati Tags: Running,Nike+,5K

Something in the water

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:13:53 GMT

On another personal note, Chels and I are expecting our first child (a strapping young man) on 12-26.� My good buddy Matt, who stood at our wedding, and his wife are also expecting a few days before us.� I wonder if our kids will ever figure out they were championship babies.

Coldplay in KC 08

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:55:04 GMT

The show was truly amazing for me and Allie.

Me, Allie, Crash and BC hit the Sprint Center for Coldplay 08! They put on a great show across the board, but a sweet moment occurred when they ran up into the croud just 6 rows from me and Allie.... they played 'The Scientist'...which was our first dance at our wedding. It was so so cool...

Sorry about the pic quality...but whatever.

What web search market?

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 06:48:34 GMT

According to my Blogflux search engine results for the last month, Google has not just cornered the market, they have virtually snuffed out the competition.

Engine	Hits	Percentage
Google	17596	98
Yahoo	202	1
Ask Jeeves	36	0
AOL	35	0
MSN	18	0
Search.com	6	0

�

Technorati Tags: SEO,Search Engine,Blogflux

Installing Windows Live Writer on Server 2008

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:09:00 GMT

I prefer to use web-based solutions when possible, but the other day the publish feature of google docs wasn't working right, so I needed to install Windows Live Writer.� I quickly found out that WLW doesn't play nicely with Windows Server 2008.

Since WLW is written in .NET, I just installed it on an XP virtual machine and copied the Program Files folder over to my Server 2008 machine.� Simple.

Technorati Tags: Windows Live Writer,Server 2008

Kansas vs Emporia State

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 12:59:00 GMT

I went to the KU game last night with Kyle.� We won very easily.� On an odd note, the singer of the National Anthem was the daughter of the Emporia State coach, and was wearing a KU shirt.

Technorati Tags: Kansas University,KU,Basketball,Emporia State

WPF - Using SystemColors to add color to ListBox

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:41:00 GMT

Using colors is a simple way make your application less boring. You can change the color of the selected and unselected item in a ListBox by using code like this:

<Style TargetType="ListBoxItem">

    <Style.Resources>

        <SolidColorBrush x:Key="{x:Static SystemColors.HighlightBrushKey}" Color="LightGreen"/>

        <SolidColorBrush x:Key="{x:Static SystemColors.ControlBrushKey}" Color="LightBlue"/>

    </Style.Resources>

</Style>

This style can be put in the resources of the ListBox to just affect that ListBox, or it can be put in resources of the Window and it will apply these styles to all ListBoxes in the window. You can also use the Application.Resources of App.xaml and all ListBoxes in your application will have the same look and feel.

Technorati Tags: WPF,ListBox,SystemColors

Getting BrightKite friends using C# and LINQ

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:19:47 GMT

BrightKite�is a location aware social network. �It allows you to post notes and pictures at a specific place. �It also will write to your�Twitter�stream so your friends can keep up with your latest activity.

They also have an�API, which I had the chance to play with the other night. �Here is some very simple code that will write out a list of all your friends:

        public static void ListFriends(string username, string password)

            string url = "http://brightkite.com/me/friends.xml";

            WebRequest WRequest = WebRequest.Create(url) as HttpWebRequest;

            WRequest.Timeout = 10000;

            WRequest.Headers.Add("Authorization",

                "Basic " + Convert.ToBase64String(

                Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(username + ":" + password)));

�

            using (HttpWebResponse response = WRequest.GetResponse() as HttpWebResponse)

                StreamReader reader = new StreamReader(response.GetResponseStream());

                XElement element = XElement.Load(reader);

                foreach (XElement node in element.Elements("person"))

                    string place = node.Element("place").Element("name").Value;

                    string person = node.Element("fullname").Value;

                    Console.WriteLine("{0} checked in at {1}",person,place);

My BrightKite =�timhibbard

My Twitter =�timhibbard

RAM usage when running SQL on development machine

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 16:52:46 GMT

Like most developers, I run SQL on my main work computer. �I find that the RAM usage gets quite bloated at times, so I have a handy bat file that I run to restart the SQL service, giving me my RAM back. �Here are the simple steps to achieving this:

1) Right click on your desktop and create a new text document.

2) Rename file to restartSQL.bat

3) Click yes on confirmation to change a file name extension. �If you did not get this error, you will need uncheck "Hide extensions for known file types" on the View tab of Folder Options.

4) Right click restartSQL.bat and select "Edit"

5) In the document that opens up, type

net stop mssqlserver
net start mssqlserver

*note if you have a named instance of SQL, change "mssqlserver" to what your instance is named

6) Close document and save changes when prompted

Now when your RAM is getting a bit high, just double click the file and it will give you your RAM back from SQL (for a little bit anyways).

P.S. �I know I've been a really bad blogger and�Jeff yelled at me the other day about it. �It's annoying when people give a million excuses for not blogging for the last couple of months, so I won't do that :)

Obama Wins!

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 00:31:02 GMT

Here is a cool Google Map mashup of Barack's life:

http://www.mibazaar.com/obama_igoogle.html

A Moment To Post...

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:36:01 GMT

I missed October somehow, but a lot has been going on. Allie is pregnant!... and I will have some sweet ultrasound pics in 3 weeks. We are due on April 16 09.

I also went to the Arkansas Transit trade show by myself for the first time in Little Rock, AR. It was an awesome experience for me because I was the only software vendor at the show and I am also good friends with the regulars. Here is a pic of me and Russ Parish of the ATA....

Russ and I became friends back in 2001, when Carl and I first attended the Arkansas Transit Show. Russ is a trainer for the ATA and drives his state daily to visit transit sites and train their clients on everything from drug and alcohol testing to wheelchair tie-down instruction. He received a national award from the FTA for his service this year too! very cool

We also had a ParaPlan Pro install at Sheridan MiniBus in Sheridan, WY!

Election 2008...Obama v. McCain

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:34:02 GMT

I generally agree with every Republican philosophy, but I no longer have faith that they can properly deliver it to us. That is pretty much all I need to say on that. This election is historic and exciting...I voted early and here is a pic of the voter line in Johnson County, KS one day before the election...

UCATS ParaPlan Install

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 02:27:00 GMT

On September 8-10, I visited UCATS in Marysville, OH to install ParaPlan Lite. The install and training went very well thanks to Mike Baird. UCATS was the first sale for Anne Richards, our fantastic new Sales & Marketing Director...

Latest ParaPlan Install

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 00:49:04 GMT

We just got back from a week long install of ParaPlan Pro at KART (Kingman Area Regional Transit). They operate 6 fixed routes and deviate from those routes for paratransit service. I added a new layer to ParaPlan to support this requirement. This process did of course grant me 4 hrs of sleep per night, but it was well worth it and they are happy with the results. They will be going live with the system this week.

To get to Kingman, we fly into Vegas and drive down over the Hoover Dam on Hwy93. They are building this awesome new arch bridge over the whole thing to improve traffice flow and for national security concerns...

AutoNumber Reset in SQL 2005

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 01:54:04 GMT

This post is pretty much just a note for myself, but it might help someone too. When appending rows from an Access Database table to a SQL Server table of the same structure, sometimes SQL will not retain the ID's for AutoNumber fields. This can be a big problem for our ParaPlan application. In Access you can compact and repair to reset your autonumber fields back to 0 or 1 obviously. However, I never really figured out how to do that in SQL 05 until now.

To clear a table's records and reset the autonumber in SQL 05, just use the following syntax in a query on SQL db:

"truncate table dbo.drivers"

Pandora Sidebar Gadget for Vista

kylejarcher@gmail.com (Kyle J. Archer) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:56:02 GMT

I just love it...

click here to download