Internet Research

Troubleshoot: Downloading Office 2007 files using IE

2008-04-26T19:50:00.008-05:00

Scenario: Trying to download some Microsoft Office 2007 file from internet (or intranet) using IE (e.g. Word document, Powerpoint presentation, Excel workbook, etc).
Problem: The file gets saved as a ZIP file. Hence, unable to open the file properly.
Solution 1: Change the extension of the downloaded ZIP file to the correct expected extension. E.g. DOCX for Word 2007, XLSX for Excel 2007, PPTX for Powerpoint 2007, etc.
Solution 2: Use Mozilla Firefox to download the files as it saves the files with correct extension.
Related Software: Microsoft Internet Explorer 7, Microsoft Office 2007, Mozilla Firefox 2

P.S. Solution 1 works since the Office 2007 files are actually renamed ZIP files (refer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_Open_XML#File_format_and_structure for details)

P.P.S. Thanks to Nishtha Arora for bringing the problem to my notice.

Windows Live Writer

2007-08-24T23:06:00.001-05:00

It's been a time since I tried to use a new software. Today I tried Windows Live Writer Beta for the first time.

Here are my comments from the first use. After first use, this seems to be a really useful tool for regular bloggers. You are saved from the effort of going to the website and writing your blog over thee. You can simply write the blog from the ease of your desktop and you're done!

The interface is Vista style (like all new Microsoft products), which is a very soothing style. The interface is also easy to use, and it has all the usual options that are found in a normal Rich Text Editor. The best part of the tool is the support of plugins. The tool supports the addition of new plugins, which makes it really powerful and extendable in future. Plugins are available to simplify the tasks like Table creation or source code insertion using a particular color coding.

One thing that I did not find is the ability to add link for the article (you can add links in your article, however, you can not add a link for your article), that is found in blogger. Similarly there may be few more features that are available only in a few particular products.

All in all, I found this to be a nice tool. This may have a few restrictions/limitations for now. However, I guess that this won't take too much time to recover them.

Link: http://get.live.com/betas/writer_betas

Search on Jarhoo for free with javacio.us

2007-03-13T04:49:00.000-05:00

Here is the mail that I received from Jarhoo:

Dear Jarhoo searcher,

We have teamed up with Javacio.us to provide 100,000 Java developers with free access to Jarhoo via links integrated with their Google search results.

Subscription to Javacio.us is free and open to anyone with a Google account.

For more information, please visit our Jarhoo offer page at Javacio.us

Kind Regards,

Jarhoo Customer Service
http://www.jarhoo.com

For those who are not aware, Jarhoo is an online search engine providing Package and Jar File location information for Java classes. It is specially useful on following occasions (read details here):

When getting a ClassNotFoundException or NoClassDefFoundError
When writing import statements
When wanting to browse the package structure of an application
When wanting to find which applications contain a particular jar file

Jarhoo was originally introduced as a free search engine. However later it was made paid. Here is a chance for java developers to access it for free again.

String vs. StringBuffer

2006-11-28T03:21:00.002-06:00

Thesis
Out of the following two ways to create a String, usage B is better and must be preferred over usage A.
Usage A:

String string = new StringBuffer("Left ").append(" Center ").append(" Right").toString();

Usage B:

String string = "Left " + " Center " + " Right";

Background
Wherever there is a need to concatenate long strings, I have seen several people based on their previous experience (!) insist to use StringBuffer. One of my colleagues, is so convinced, that he prefers to use StringBuffer even within the log messages. Now, I have always read that StringBuffer must be used when either there is a need to update the string or the actual string creation is required to be done at the runtime (for e.g. conditional creation of strings). This is because of the fact that String in Java is immutable, hence on every update a new String object needs to be created, thereby making the operation inefficient.

Even though having this feeling for a long time, I was not able to convince much people about this until I was given this link from a friend. After reading the blog, I thought of doing an analysis myself and here is what I found out.

Analysis
I created a following sample program to find out the variation in the generated byte code:


public class StringPerformanceTest {
    public void useString() {
        String string = "Left " + " Center " + " Right";
    }

    public void useStringBuffer() {
        String string = new StringBuffer("Left ").append(" Center ").append(" Right").toString();
    }
}

Here is the complete byte code of the program (using Java version 1.5.0_06):


public class StringPerformanceTest extends java.lang.Object{
    public StringPerformanceTest();
    Code:
    0: aload_0
    1: invokespecial #1; //Method java/lang/Object."":()V
    4: return

    public void useString();
    Code:
    0: ldc #2; //String Left Center Right
    2: astore_1
    3: return

    public void useStringBuffer();
    Code:
    0: new #3; //class java/lang/StringBuffer
    3: dup
    4: ldc #4; //String Left
    6: invokespecial #5; //Method java/lang/StringBuffer."":(Ljava/lang/String;)V
    9: ldc #6; //String Center
    11: invokevirtual #7; //Method java/lang/StringBuffer.append:(Ljava/lang/String;)Ljava/lang/StringBuffer;
    14: ldc #8; //String Right
    16: invokevirtual #7; //Method java/lang/StringBuffer.append:(Ljava/lang/String;)Ljava/lang/StringBuffer;
    19: invokevirtual #9; //Method java/lang/StringBuffer.toString:()Ljava/lang/String;
    22: astore_1
    23: return

}

It is clear from the byte code that on using concatenation operator only 3 instructions will be called (useString), whereas on using StringBuffer number of instructions that shall be executed is much more (useStringBuffer). Besides, against the common thinking, only one object is created even while using concatenation operator.

Performance Concerns
When a String is created using concatenation operators, it is created at the compile time itself, whereas when the String is created using StringBuffer, the strings are created at run-time thereby hitting the performance when there is no need to create them at runtime. More the number of append() calls, more will be the performance hit.

Conclusion
It is better to create strings using concatenation rather than using StringBuffer for the same purpose.

CRT: Quality Terminal Emulation for Internet and Intranet

2006-06-04T23:55:00.000-05:00

This one is strictly for geeks. If you have never used anything like Telnet or PuTTY then please do not read further as you may get

CRT is a Windows terminal emulator from VanDyke Software. The supported protocols are Telnet, RLogin, and Serial. This is a very easy to use software and is highly customizable.

First of all it features a multi-session tabbed interface which means you can simultaneous have multiple sessions all from one window. Besides, it also lets you customize each tab separately. One great feature is that you may log all sessions (that is not availble is most software I know about). Besides you can easily clone these tabs to make new sessions. Another great feature is that it lets you save your settings and configurations.

CRT also provides a wide range of emulations including VT100, VT102, VT220, ANSI, SCO ANSI, Wyse 50/60, Xterm, and Linux console. Multibyte character sets are supported for Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. Other features include auto logon and SOCKS and generic firewalls.

Links
CRT Homepage: http://www.vandyke.com/products/crt/index.html

Chikka: TXT/SMS for FREE from a PC

2006-05-10T23:48:00.000-05:00

Ever felt like sending free TXT/SMS to your friends and relatives? Earlier also there have been lot of websites that allowed you to do so (but most of them have now gone into oblivion or are not at all updated). Presently too, there are a few websites are sms.ac that allow you to TXT/SMS for free.

But the problem with such sites are that you have to register with your mobile/cell number (which either we are afraid of doing or some of us do not have there mobiles - yes my dear, there still exists people without mobile). Hence there seems a need of something that does all this without taking your number (though there exist some notorious people who always want to take advantage of such utilities - as they do not have anything better to do - guyz please restrain from doing such things - as when you start doing misuse, things ought to be taken back from you) .

Back to the original point of discussion - here comes Chikka for rescue. You can use Chikka to:

Send text for FREE to Globe, Smart, Cingular (in the U.S.) and more.
2-way messaging to online friends and mobile phone subscribers
Mobile user? Log on to Chikka using your mobile number.
Send and receive MMS images (Comment: this is not free)
Automatic add buddy system. simply send a message to buddy up. (That's if they don't block you :)

For Indian readers, there exists a Chikka Indiatimes Messenger that connects to all major Indian mobile carriers (Airtel, IDEA, Spice, Hutch, Dolphin, RIM, Smart, CellOne -- and soon on BPL Mobile, Tata Indicom, AIRCEL) .

So just check the links below and Happy Messaging.

Related links:
Chikka: http://www.chikka.com/
Chikka Indiatimes Messenger: http://indiatimes.chikka.com/

URL Forwarders / URL Redirecting

2005-11-28T02:41:00.000-06:00

URL Redirection is a technique that enables to view a web page from more than one URL. This means a same web page is available thought a number of different URL if each URL redirects itself to some particular URL.

On the World Wide Web, there exist huge numbers of web sites that can take a long URL and give you back a shorter URL. Among these, there are many free websites too, that let you shorten your URL without any registration. Actually, these web sites create a new URL that in turn redirects itself to a long URL. Since these sites forward a click from one link to another, they are also known as URL Forwarders. Some of these websites also do sub-domain forwarding.

Following is a list of such sites in alphabetical order. Many of these are free:

BabyURL -- Check: http://www.babyurl.com/
Beam.To -- Check: http://beam.to/start.asp
dephine.org -- Check: http://dephine.org/
durl.us -- Check: http://www.durl.us/
MakeAShorterLink -- Check: http://www.makeashorterlink.com/
Metamark Shorten Service -- Check: http://metamark.net/
MY OWN Networking -- Check: http://www.my-own.net/redirection.php
notlong.com -- Check: http://notlong.com/
Orz.net -- Check: http://Orz.net/
shorl.com -- Check: http://www.shorl.com/
shrinkster.com -- Check: http://shrinkster.com/
snipURL -- Check: http://snipurl.com/index.php
TinyClick.Com -- Check: http://tinyclick.com/
Tinyer.com -- Check: http://tinyer.com/
TinyURL -- Check: http://tinyurl.com/
URL Cutter -- Check: http://urlcutter.com/
urlSNIP -- Check: http://urlsnip.com/

Besides, there are a lot more such websites available that shorten your URL.

Google Reader

2005-11-20T22:16:00.000-06:00

Today, I'll discuss about a new entrant to Google Labs -- Google Reader. Check: http://reader.google.com/.

Google Reader is one of the latest entrants to Google Labs. It makes it easier to maintain the ever-expanding reading list of content from across the web. Using Google Reader one may automatically get the latest news and updates from their favorite sites. The best thing for novice users is that their is a search bar at the top where you just need to put in the name of the website and Google itself identifies the links to the news resources available for that site. Remember you may need a Google account.

So for now, Happy Reading!!

Free Developer Tools (Sun Java Studio Enterprise & Sun Java Studio Creator)

2005-11-09T21:34:00.000-06:00

Sun is offering the award-winning Sun Java Studio Enterprise 8 and Sun Java Studio Creator 2004Q2 IDEs at no cost to all developers worldwide who join Sun Developer Network (SDN).

Java Studio Creator is an easy-to-use IDE for serious web development on the Java platform.

Java Studio Enterprise's rapid architecture and modeling capabilities enable faster development of enterprise-grade applications for the Java platform.

Check out http://developers.sun.com/prodtech/javatools/free/ for details.

Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) / Web Services

2005-10-17T07:08:00.000-05:00

Today, I am listing a few articles on Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Web Services. SOA and Web Services are two buzz words that everyone is talking about these days. October 2005 is SOA/Web Services month at java.sun.com. Check: http://java.sun.com/reference/soawebservices/.

Service-Oriented Architecture and Web Services: Concepts, Technologies, and Tools: This is an article by Ed Orl. It dates back to April 2005. It discusses about widely-adopted web services technologies that are available to implement a SOA, and more technologies, as well as tools, that are on the way. Check: http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/WebServices/soa2/.
What's New in SOA and Web Services?: This is an article by Ed Orl. It dates back to October 6, 2005. It introduces introduces the enhanced capabilities and emerging technologies, tools, and infrastructure software to simplify creating, using, and managing services in an SOA. Check: http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/WebServices/soa2/WhatsNewArticle.html.
Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Web Services: The Road to Enterprise Application Integration (EAI): This is an article by Qusay Mahmoud. It dates back to April 2005. After reading this you can find out SOA provides a cost-effective solution to evolving and enhancing legacy enterprise information systems (EIS). Check: http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/WebServices/soa/index.html.

Here are links to few more links to interviews and chat sessions with different industry gurus:

Reap What You SOA: This is an interview of John Crupi and Dan Malks. They are better known for their best seller, Core J2EE Patterns: Best Practices and Design Strategies. In this interview they talk explain how to build a SOA and why pragmatic SOA really rocks? Check: http://www.sun.com/emrkt/innercircle/newsletter/0905cto.html.
The Next Big Thing: Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) Takes a New Route: This is an article by Janice J. Heiss. It dates back to October 6, 2005, It is an interview of RouteOne's T. N. Subramaniam and Sun's Ashok Mollin. In this they discuss about RouteOne's SOA, which serves some 80% of the 22,000 auto dealerships in the United States. Check: http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/Interviews/routeone_qa.html.
Sun Java Studio Enterprise: Web Services Strategies: This is an article on Moderated Chat with Sun's Chief Web Services Strategist. The guest is Mark Hapner who is Sun Distinguished Engineer and chief web services strategist at Sun Microsystems and the moderator is Jeanne Hsu who is Enterprise Audience Manager at Sun Microsystems. It dates back to September 23, 2004. In this Mark Hapner answers a wide variety of questions about web services. Check: http://developers.sun.com/prodtech/javatools/jsenterprise/community/chats/september232004.html.

Windows Communication Foundation (Indigo)

2005-10-12T21:40:00.000-05:00

Today I am posting links to a few nice articles on Windows Communication Foundation (WCF - formerly known as Indigo). WCF is Microsoft's unified programming model for building service-oriented applications. Homepage of WCF can be accessed at http://msdn.microsoft.com/webservices/indigo/.

The first to go in the list is the article Introducing Indigo: An Early Look by David Chappell. It appeared in February 2005 and is based on a prerelease version of Indigo's first Community Technology Preview (CTP). It provides an architectural overview of Indigo covering Indigo's relationship to existing distributed application technologies in the .NET Framework, the basics of creating and consuming Indigo services, and an overview of Indigo's capabilities, including security, reliable messaging, and transaction support. Please find the complete article at http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnlong/html/introindigov1-0.asp.
Next on the list is an article titled Introduction to Building Windows Communication Foundation Services by Clemens Vasters. It appeared in September 2005 and is based on Indigo Beta1. It explains the fundamental concepts of WCF and shows how to build services and service clients using WCF's System.ServiceModel namespace. Please find the complete article at http://msdn.microsoft.com/webservices/default.aspx?pull=/library/en-us/dnlong/html/introtowcf.asp.
Next on the list is The Windows Communication Foundation: A Primer by Laurence Moroney. It appeared in first week of October 2005 and September Community Technical Preview versions of WCF. It helps in creating first Indigo application. Please find the complete article at http://www.devx.com/dotnet/Article/29414?trk=DXRSS_WEBDEV.
Last but not the least, on the list is Windows Communication Foundation (Indigo) FAQ. Here you may find answers to some of the most frequently asked questions concerning the WCF. Please find the complete faq at http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsvista/support/faq/communication/.

Software (Browster, TortoiseCVS)

2005-10-07T04:03:00.000-05:00

Today I list two freeware tools that are really nice to use and speed up the way you work. Check them!

A nice tool for people who do a lot of searching over Google, MSN, etc. Check www.browster.com.

Another tool for those using CVS. This lets you access your CVS directly from Windows Explorer. Check www.tortoisecvs.org.

Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation

2005-10-06T00:46:00.000-05:00

A nice article on Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation by David Chappell is available at http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsvista/default.aspx?pull=/library/en-us/dnlong/html/WWFIntro.asp.

It describes the functionality and benefits of Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation, soon to be a standard part of the Microsoft Windows platform. Windows Workflow Foundation provides a general framework for defining workflow, one that can be used in many different kinds of applications.