Scott Schecter

Coding For Levity And Mischief

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:48:00 -1300

So one day when strolling through the Sun Trust Plaza and Marquis Towers here in Atlanta, GA (where the AppTheory offices are located) I noticed all their informational screens were pc based. I also happen to notice a couple of exposed USB ports on these signs presumably for service access, etc. So being the geek I am that got me thinking of some amusing scenarios that could be facilitated with minimal coding. So I went home that evening and created a little Winform application I called ‘AutoRunUsb’. As you might guess this whole gag relies on the fact that some unfortunate sole has left AutoRun enabled on their Microsoft Windows installation. Given that to be true you can create an autorun.inf file that looks like this to launch any arbitrary executable

[autorun]
open=AutoRunUsb.exe

You then point this autorun.inf file’s open parameter to the Winform app. You can now load whatever you want full screen with no apparent way to close it on your unsuspecting targets pc. I chose to rock out with the Wyld Stallyns logo, but you can always adjust to your taste. I have attached the Visual Studio source for this application for your amusement. Please note this is for personal levity only, and if you use it to load NSFW stuff on your bosses pc, etc and you get fired/arrested I’m only going to laugh at you, so please exercise some judgment before using this app. I plead the fif…..

AutoRunUsb.zip (178.40 kb)

EntitySpaces Users In Or Around Atlanta

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 01:33:41 -1300

I was just curios how many EntitySpaces users there were in or around the Atlanta area. I thought if there were enough we might have a geek dinner or something along those lines. Anywhoo, if you are an EntitySpaces user in or around Atlanta drop me a line either in the comments of this post or via the contact link at the top of this page.

EntitySpaces 2009 RTM Oh, Yeaahh!

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 02:12:00 -1300

Well folks the Kool-Aid is chilled and ready for serving, hope you are thirsty. EntitySpaces 2009 has been officially released and is now available for your mass consumption! I would like to send out a special thanks to our wonderful community for giving us such great feedback and helping us test the beta releases. This really helps us deliver the rock solid product that everyone knows and expects from the EntitySpaces Team. Below is an overview of the goodness included in the final release.

Features of EntitySpaces 2009:

Complete Visual Studio integration.
Stand alone executable for those not using Visual Studio.
No third party code generation tools required (No need for MyGeneration or CodeSmith).
Project files to record and play back your code generation process with a single click.
Command line tool that can execute your EntitySpaces projects in continuous integration builds.
Debugger Visualizer and other debugging enhancements.
Totally updated Web Admin Templates.
Lots of samples available on the EntitySpaces 2009 menu after installation including:

1. EntitySpacesDemo (C#) - Windows Forms
2. EntitySpacesDemo (VB) - Windows Forms
3. SqlCeDemo (Mobile Application) - SQL CE Mobile Application
4. esDataSource (C#) - ASP.NET Web App, uses the esDataSource DataSourceControl
5. esDataSource (VB) - ASP.NET Web App, uses the esDataSource DataSourceControl
6. WCF Demo (C#) - Very extensive WCF Demo using our Full and Lightweight Proxies
7. Template User Interface (C#) - Demonstrates how to extend our templates without actually modifying our UI

Fixes since the Release Candidate:

Below are the fixes and enhancements that have been made since the release candidate.

The SQL CE connection problem has been fixed.
The VistaDB connection hang on a bad connection string has been fixed.
DebuggerVisualizer capability is now included.
DebuggerDisplay attributes is now supported.
The Smiley Face icon is no longer our icon in Visual Studio.
There is a new sample demonstrating how to expand our template user interfaces.

Installation Instructions For those who have it already installed

Close Visual Studio
Uninstall your current version of ES2009 (you will not lose your connection settings)
Open Visual Studio - Answer yes to disable our Plug-in
Close Visual Studio
Install the official ES2009 Release

The Zen Of The ClickOnce Deployed Application Desktop Shortcut

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:16:12 -1300

I had created this some time ago on my old blog and I have received a few requests to republish it, so here you are.

Now we all know about the whole lack of ability to create a desktop shortcut using a ClickOnce deployment. In case you have been in some sort of bunker, swamp, or frozen in carbonite catch up here. Although it seems trivial, its kind of a pain in the ass that its not there. Yes I know usability experts are now suggesting that you don't create an icon without asking, but this is for an application required for a county employees job so its not really optional. This extra step irritated management to no end, and brought upon this endless ClickOnce vs. MSI\SMS Push debate that still rages on like the fires of Hell to this very day(if you believe in that sorta thing). So I found this article that had a nice workaround. When you application loads you basically check the users desktop for the presence of a Application Reference(.appref-ms) file that corresponds to the ClickOnce deployed app in question. If not found you can then simply copy the original Application Reference from the programs menu, and all is right with the world for at least 7 seconds. The article I mentioned above has the VB version, but its using some stuff in the VisualBasic namespace that I have no desire to import into my C# projects, so I made a few adjustments.

Assumptions

You have filled in both the Publisher & Product Name fields found by right clicking on your project -> Properties -> Publish -> Options. This is then saved in your AssemblyInfo.cs, and will be needed for this work around to function properly.

     /// <summary>

    /// This will create a Application Reference file on the users desktop

    /// if they do not already have one when the program is loaded. Place this in the applicatoin 

    /// main or any other section of code that is run when the application opens.

    //    If not debugging in visual studio check for Application Reference

    //    #if (!debug)

    //        CreateShortcut();

    //    #endif

    /// </summary

    void CreateShortcut()

    {

        ApplicationDeployment application = ApplicationDeployment.CurrentDeployment;

        if (ApplicationDeployment.IsNetworkDeployed && application.IsFirstRun)

        {

            Assembly code = Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly();

            string company = string.Empty;

            string description = string.Empty;

            if (Attribute.IsDefined(code, typeof(AssemblyCompanyAttribute)))

            {

                AssemblyCompanyAttribute asssemblyCompany = 

                    (AssemblyCompanyAttribute)Attribute.GetCustomAttribute(code, 

                    typeof(AssemblyCompanyAttribute));

                company = asssemblyCompany.Company;

            }

            if (Attribute.IsDefined(code, typeof(AssemblyDescriptionAttribute)))

            {

                AssemblyDescriptionAttribute assemblyDescription = 

                    (AssemblyDescriptionAttribute)Attribute.GetCustomAttribute(code, 

                    typeof(AssemblyDescriptionAttribute));

                description = assemblyDescription.Description;

            }

            if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(company) && !string.IsNullOrEmpty(description))

            {

                string desktopPath = string.Concat(

                    Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.Desktop), 

                    "\\", description, ".appref-ms");

                string shortcutName = string.Concat(

                    Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.Programs), 

                    "\\", company, "\\", description, ".appref-ms");

                File.Copy(shortcutName, desktopPath, true);

            }

        }

    }

EntitySpaces 2009 Public Beta

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 12:39:00 -1300

We just posted the first public beta of EntitySpaces 2009. You can find the official announcement here. Existing customers had the opportunity to demo our alpha and we now feel we've reached a stage where the new code generation application is ready for mass consumption. The beta includes both the Visual Studio AddIn and the stand alone code generation application. We really feel moving our code generation in house for EntitySpaces 2009 is going to be a huge benefit. With EntitySpaces 2009 code generation is extremely simple and intuitive. We have also made creating projects of recorded template instances much easier than they were previously. This means that you can create an EntitySpaces project file for your application. You can then record/add all the templates you need executed and add them to the EntitySpaces project. All of your setting for each template are saved and used when the project is executed. This means you can totally regenerate your application in one click! Go grab it now.

DirecTV Movie Channels VS Streaming Netflix To The Xbox 360

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 11:10:00 -1300

When I moved to Atlanta I upgraded my DirecTV service to high definition. I had gotten a new high definition set a few months prior to moving when my set at the time died. I was waiting to ensure that my apartment had line of site to the southernly sky before upgrading my service to high definition and reupping my contract. When I did I got all the movie channels free for three months as well. The free period recently expired so I had a choice to make. As I saw it I had basically two options. I could keep the movie channels and pay the additional cost they add currently to my DirecTV package or I could sign up for a gold Xbox Live membership and one of the Netflix unlimited packages. As you may have guessed from the title of this post I chose to go with the latter. Let's start by taking a look at how the cost compares for the two options.

DirecTV

HBO: $14 per month
Starz: $12 per month
Showtime: $12 per month
Cinemax: $12 per month
Total: $50 per month
Annual Total: $600

Netflix/Xbox Live

Netflix: 1 at-a-time (Unlimited) for $8.99 per month
Xbox Live: gold membership $59.99 per year || $5 per month
Total: $13.99 per month
Annual Total: $167.88

Wow so that comes out to $600 for all the DirecTV high definition movie packages for a year on top of whatever package you get versus $167.88 for the Netflix/Xbox Live option. I of course already had a high speed internet connection so that was a sunk cost for me. If you did not already have this then probably the two are more comparable in total cost. By making this switch in my entertainment stack I saved $36.01 per month or $432.12 annually.

Now let's go over the content each options provides. My DirecTV receiver has on demand functionality for premium channels so we will consider that equivalent to the Netflix/Xbox Live on demand functionality. With the Netflix/Xbox Live option you can stream unlimited any title Netflix offers for instant viewing and you may have one physical DVD/Blue Ray disc out at a time.

DirecTV

Resolution: Mixed - While most new stuff is in high definition there is still quite a bit of content delivered in standard definition
Content: Limited - This was my primary disappointment with the movie channels. Most of their content is very mainstream. The big movie channels also offer Very little in the way of anime & independent cinema. I find it very strange that Starz owns quite a few anime franchises and yet they never play them on their channel? It appears most Starz channels are available on Netflix. This includes their anime offerings.

Netflix/Xbox Live

Resolution: Mixed - So Blue Ray has you covered for high definition movies by mail. Netflix does already stream some movies in high definition. However, most of the movies I have watched via streaming to the Xbox 360 were in non high definition format.
Content: Unlimited: This really where the Netflix/Xbox Live option really excelled. When you combine the discs by mail and streaming content Netflix really has an amazing amount of titles. While the amount of titles available to watch instantly from Netflix is far less than their overall title count. I have been pleasantly surprised with the amount of titles I can watch instantly.

There you have it folks. For me this was a no brainer and something I'm really enjoying.

Now Running BlogEngine.NET

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 11:52:00 -1300

You may have noticed a few changes around here. I have transitioned this site to the BlogEngine.NET platform and all appears to be running smoothly. If you subscribed previously the same FeedBurner url will work with the new site with no action required from you. Here is some basic info on the platform

BlogEngine.NET is an open source .NET blogging project that was born out of desire for a better blog platform. A blog platform with less complexity, easy customization, and one that takes advantage of the latest .NET features. BlogEngine.NET was designed using the current .NET framework and focused on simplicity, ease of extendibility, and innovative features. With BlogEngine.NET, we hope to create the natural blog of choice for all .NET developers world wide.

It was extremely easy to setup, and thus far I am loving it.

FLAC Tester Reports FLAC__STREAM_DECODER_UNPARSEABLE_STREAM On 24 Bit Audio Files

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 05:46:00 -1300

I ran into this annoyance while doing some 24bit/192khz laserdrops from my super audio cd player (SACD). I would encode the wav files to flac using dBpoweramp. dBpoweramp reported no errors encoding and I even had the 'After Encoding Verify Written Audio' option enabled. The encoded files verified in dBpoweramp but would fail in the Official Flac Tester Client that gets installed with the installer. Well as it turns out the tester is built against a dated version of flac. From the Hydrogenaudio Forums:

I have to say that the sample is not corrupted, it is a valid 1.2.x flac file (at least, the latest reference flac tools say the file is OK). I guess flac-tester had a problem with that 24-bit file because it is not 1.2.x-compatible. The new compression method was accidentally added in the 1.2.1 flac encoder for 24-bit audio, so pre-1.2.0 decoders cannot decode such 24b samples (no backwards compatibility, unfortunately).

This is absolutely correct. I checked with flac files of different versions. So apart from the time spent researching the cause of the false alarms I made out pretty well. There is nothing wrong with the dBpoweramp encoded files and I actually found an audio testing tool I like better than either the official flac tester or dBpoweramp. AudioTester can test for errors in MP3, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, WavPack & Monkey's Audio files. It has a very simple UI and provides me with an independent party to test my lossless audio files.

EntitySpaces 2009 Alpha Now Available To Customers

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 05:45:00 -1300

We just put up the EntitySpaces 2009 alpha. This alpha is using our new code generation engine and integrates with Visual Studio and also comes as a stand alone application. Go read the official blog post for all the info. So go download it and check it out. Then cruise on over to the EntitySpaces 2009 feedback forums and let us know what you think. We always love to hear customer feedback.

See You At DevConnections 08'

service.nospam@nospam.scottschecter.com (Scott) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:44:00 -1300

I will be in Las Vegas, NV for DevConnections 08' again this year. I will be manning booth #608 with some of my co-workers from AppTheory and giving away a some free licenses of EntitySpaces in their drawing. If your going to be in Vegas for DevConnections stop by and say hi. Tell me what you love about EntitySpaces or what you would like to see added in the future. Find out more about the EntitySpaces 2009 visual studio add in or just shoot the breeze. I always love to hear from our customers, and it is exceedingly nice to get to meet them in person and shake their hand (and maybe have a scotch or two;). So if you are going to DevConnections stop in and say howdy I would love to hear from you.