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Blogs ยป Archive for June, 2004
SQL Server 2000 Reporting Services SR-1 Out!
SQL Server 2000 Reporting Service Pack 1 is out today.
Biggest improvements have made to the report rendering engines, but, here’s an overview of the big changes in this release:
# Excel rendering extension has been improved and now supports viewing in Excel 97 and 2000.
# PDF rendering extension is more robust and has better performance.
# Chart control provides more control over display styles.
# References to external URLs (images and resources) from within a report are now supported.
# Data caching behavior for report preview is now supported.
# Newline in expressions is now supported.
# The style of the HTML Viewer toolbar can now be modified through a style sheet.
# New URL parameters offer more options for customizing report presentation at run time
# Report Manager proxy persists authentication cookies so that they can be used by custom security extensions.
# Hidden parameters are now supported.
# Temporary snapshots can be compressed as well as stored on the file system.
# Integrated security support for accessing report data sources can be disabled.
Nice to meet you!
I am excited to be part of the SitePoint community and to have this chance to blog regularly about things that I enjoy doing! I have a feeling that while I’m sharing what I know about design theory and practice, I’ll be learning even more as I research and address questions that you bring up… so I look forward to all of your comments and questions!
Since I’m just starting off, here’s a little bit about me:
- I like bullet lists.
- Non-computer interests include reading, cooking, eating, playing music, and training for my first triathlon.
- My graphic design career started off when my older sister “hired” me one summer to help her design technical manuals. I got to align vector points in Illustrator. Woo-hoo. (This was back in the day when PageMaker was still under Aldus.)
- Since then, I’ve learned a lot more about Illustrator, Photoshop, and the like, in the practical arena of web development and design. Look for more specific how-to tutorials in the coming months. (I started off with a basic-to-intermediate tutorial on using layer masks in Photoshop.)
- Having learned HTML before I encountered ImageReady’s slice-and-serve HTML generator, I fall on the “follow the specs and do things right” end of …
[ Article ] Migrate ActionScript 1.0 to ActionScript 2.0 , Part 1: The Basics
Another day, another article; this time I’m concentrating on shifting simple functions from an AS1.0 based environment to an AS2.0 environment. The concepts are easy enough to pick up so that anyone with a moderate smattering of knowledge of AS1.0 (i.e. the ability to create and call functions and relevant syntax) should be able to take the plunge into AS2.0 development.
The article sets the groundwork for a more in depth look at AS2.0 in a later article, its benefits, pitfalls and common techniques that should have you developing in the new environment in no time at all.
I was also curious over the past few days in the Flash Blog to see how many people have migrated to the new environment, what hurdles there have been, and the flavor of designer / developer that embraces AS 2.0 rather than those that prefer to stay with AS1.0
The article can be located here…
Welcome to Pixel Perfect!
Welcome to Pixel Perfect, SitePoint’s Web design blog.
We’re pleased to introduce Corrie Haffly, who’ll regularly bring you tips, techniques and news on the theory and practice of graphic design for the Web.
Check back to stay informed, and learn to make your designs pixel perfect!
Securing Apache 2 Step by Step
Security Focus has published a fantastic, in-depth piece by Artur Maj, a principal software engineer with Oracle, on locking down Apache 2.
The article starts with the assumption that initially Apache will serve only static HTML pages, and walks through several steps to establishing a chroot environment in which Apache will run. Steps include tuning the operating system, choosing Apache modules, building and configuring Apache and finally the chroot process.
For those running dynamic sites, fear not, links to securing PHP and MySQL, also written by Maj, are included at the end of the exercise. Sample httpd.conf and Apache startup scripts are available as well.
While running Apache in a chroot jail is not a simple task, it is one of the most secure ways to operate a web server as the true root of the server, or all directories below / are almost completely inaccessible even if the server’s security is successfully breached by an intruder.
Interview with MySQL on OSNews
There is a brief q & a with MySQL’s Senior Product Manager, Alex Roedling, on OSNews.com. The interview answers some questions on MySQL’s dual licensing and how they address non-GPL’d software, sets some release dates for version 5 and also sheds some light what MySQL’s engineers may tackle next.
PHP Gotchas: Part 1
PHP is a remarkably easy language to get started with but from there, if my own experience is anything to go by, developers seem to experience a “rollercoaster ride” in terms of productivity. Some people refer to PHP as the “Visual Basic of Open Source”, which is both a complaint and a complement. A quote attributed to Bjarne Stroustrup (designer of C++); “There are only two kinds of programming languages: those people always ***** about and those nobody uses.”…
Over the next few weeks (perhaps months) will be attempting to highlight PHP “gotchas”; things that lead to developer slow-down and *****ing, when working with PHP. In other words the types of problem which aren’t obvious up front and only become clear once you’ve “been there”. Some will be purely technical issues (PHP configuration, legacy headaches etc.) while others will be more theoretical (what “works” and what doesn’t in terms of code design).
The purpose is signpost “gotchas” to developers getting started with PHP and, hopefully, prevent frustration before it happens. Will be based primarily on my own experiences, after almost five years of PHP, as well as things I’ve seen on Sitepoint’s PHP forums. Further input / insight much appreciated, …
You Are Always Selling the Engagement — Even After You Have Sold It
Has anyone ever lost an engagement after they thought they “closed the deal?”
It just happened to me. I was slow getting started with the client, and some of the internal people were resistant (afraid of losing their jobs or exposing their own lack of knowledge), and they won the political battle.
I forgot my own advice: You are always selling an engagement, even after you have sold it.
In consulting-style professions (including Web design and development), clients constantly get cold feet and wonder if they are getting their money’s worth. Some sales courses call it buyer’s remorse, and I’ve seen it happen to professionals at the start, middle and even end of a project.
Sometimes it is due to unscrupulous (or savvy) clients who pull the plug when they get enough info and can save money by doing the rest of the project themselves.
But most of the time it is because we fail to continue to show value in every communication and action step, especially during the ramp up process. That’s when clients are watching most carefully, and when it is hardest to show immediate momentum and value for the money.
I should have done a better job communicating every day (or whatever …
C# to VB Online
Whilst .NET provides language interoperability, allowing coders to use the language they’re comfortable with, there are still times, especially when collaborating in groups and teams, that having source code available in different languages can help discussion.
ConvertCSharp2VB is a free web-based tool that converts C# code to VB.NET code in a flash. Simply feed in your C# and receive the VB.NET in return.
Excellent.
More on WHAT
Support for the work of the WHAT WG is gathering speed, with the most recent high profile interest coming from Joel Spolsky. Joel’s recent essay How Microsoft Lost the API War made a convincing case for the huge importance of web applications moving forward, with the notable conclusion that:
The new API is HTML, and the new winners in the application development marketplace will be the people who can make HTML sing.
Responses to Joel’s suggestions are already flooding in, with some of the most interesting coming from Dean Jackson of the W3C.
If you have an opinion on the future of web application development, now is a great time to air it.
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