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  • ASP .NET Added Event Handlers to buttons on Page_Load. Event handlers do not fire the first click, b

    - by John
    Background: I am customizing an existing ASP .NET / C# application. It has it's own little "framework" and conventions for developers to follow when extending/customizing its functionality. I am currently extending some of it's administrative functionality, to which the framework provides a contract to enforce implementation of the GetAdministrationInterface() method, which returns System.Web.UI.Control. This method is called during the Page_Load() method of the page hosting the GUI interface. Problem: I have three buttons in my GUI, each of which have been assigned an Event Handler. My administration GUI loads up perfectly fine, but clicking any of the buttons doesn't do what I expect them to do. However, when I click them a second time, the buttons work. I placed breakpoints at the the beginning of each event handler method and stepped through my code. On the first click, none of the event handlers are triggered. On the second click, they are triggered. Any ideas? Example of Button Definition Button btn = new Button(); btn.Text = "Click Me Locked Screen"; bth.Click += new EventHandler(Btn_Click); Example of Event Handler Method Definition void Btn_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { // Do Something }

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  • ASP .NET Button event handlers do not fire on the first click, but on the second click after a PostB

    - by John
    Background: I am customizing an existing ASP .NET / C# application. It has it's own little "framework" and conventions for developers to follow when extending/customizing its functionality. I am currently extending some of it's administrative functionality, to which the framework provides a contract to enforce implementation of the GetAdministrationInterface() method, which returns System.Web.UI.Control. This method is called during the Page_Load() method of the page hosting the GUI interface. Problem: I have three buttons in my GUI, each of which have been assigned an Event Handler. My administration GUI loads up perfectly fine, but clicking any of the buttons doesn't do what I expect them to do. However, when I click them a second time, the buttons work. I placed breakpoints at the beginning of each event handler method and stepped through my code. On the first click, none of the event handlers were triggered. On the second click, they fired. Any ideas? Example of Button Definition (within GetAdministrationInterface) public override Control GetAdministrationInterface() { // more code... Button btn = new Button(); btn.Text = "Click Me!"; btn.Click += new EventHandler(Btn_Click); // more code... } Example of Event Handler Method Definition void Btn_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { // Do Something } Page_Load Method that calls GetAdministrationInterface protected void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e) { if (!Page.IsAsync) { List<AdministrationInterface> interfaces = <DATABASE CALL>; foreach(AdministrationInteface ai in interfaces) { placeholderDiv.Controls.Add(ai.GetAdministrationInterface()); } } }

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  • I need help solving a rather weird error in a WCF service.

    - by Moulde
    Hi.. I have a solution that contains three projects. A main project with my MVC app, a silverlight application and a (silverlight enabled) WCF service project. In my silverlight project i have made a Service Reference to my WCF service. And i pretty much got that working. In my WCF service i have a method that returns an Book object, which got some random fields like title, date etc. In the book class, i have a ICollection field that contains a list of events. The book class is generated using entity framework 4.0, and Lazy Loading is enabled. If i in my getBook(int id) method return a book with the events field not initialized, it works as a charm. But if i initialize the field, i'm getting this error. The server did not provide a meaningful reply; this might be caused by a contract mismatch, a premature session shutdown or an internal server error. I have a few ideas why that is happening, and while writing this i just got another one. The wcf service somehow threw away the reference to the event class. That would be very weird since i have a reference between my main mvc app (with the models) and my WCF service. Since i have enabled lazy loading in EF 4.0, i suspect that it may be the thing generating the error. But i'm not sure why that would be, because i'm not in any way accessing that field. I could understand that i may not be able to access the events field after i recive the object in my silverlight application since the connection between the book object and the entity framework is like broken. Did i mention that Lazy Loading is enabled on my EF instance? And there is no inner exception in the thrown exception. Thanks in advance. Malte Baden Hansen

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  • Events convention - I don't get it

    - by bobjink
    My class with an event: public class WindowModel { public delegate void WindowChangedHandler(object source, WindowTypeEventArgs e); public event WindowChangedHandler WindowChanged; public void GotoWindow(WindowType windowType) { this.currentWindow = windowType; this.WindowChanged.Invoke(this, new WindowTypeEventArgs(windowType)); } } Derived event class: public class WindowTypeEventArgs : EventArgs { public readonly WindowType windowType; public WindowTypeEventArgs(WindowType windowType) { this.windowType = windowType; } } Some other class that register it to the event: private void SetupEvents() { this.WindowModel.WindowChanged += this.ChangeWindow; } private void ChangeWindow(object sender, WindowTypeEventArgs e) { //change window } What have I gained from following the .Net convention? It would make more sense to have a contract like this public delegate void WindowChangedHandler(WindowType windowType); public event WindowChangedHandler WindowChanged; Doing it this way, I don't need to create a new class and is easier to understand. I am not coding a .Net library. This code is only going to be used in this project. I like conventions but am I right when I say that in this example it does not make sense or have i missunderstood something?

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  • trying to reenter IT field after a break of over 5 years

    - by josephj1989
    Hello I have had some misfortune in life - I was unwell and had to stay out of work for an extended period of about 5 years.Before that I used to work as an Oracle/Oracle Ebusiness suite consultant (I was charging very good contract rates). But now I am fully recovered ,feeling sharper than ever. But there arent many opportunities in my areas of expertise in a small market like New Zealand and the long absence is no help either. So for the last 5 months I have been training myself in C# ,ASP .NET,WEB technologies like HTML,JQuery,CSS and also SQL Server.I had some previous experience with JAVA and VB .NET (few months). But I am fully confident of my abilities and believe I can hit the ground running given a chance.I used to be an expert with SQL and C language and these skills are portable to SQL Server and C#. Another problem I face is my age- I am over 50. What is your opinion - Am I doing the right thing. Can I get back into an IT career-I am willing to start all over again at a junior level, I am really facing a crisis in my life.

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  • How good idea is it to use code contracts in Visual Studio 2010 Professional (ie. no static checking

    - by Lasse V. Karlsen
    I create class libraries, some which are used by others around the world, and now that I'm starting to use Visual Studio 2010 I'm wondering how good idea it is for me to switch to using code contracts, instead of regular old-style if-statements. ie. instead of this: if (String.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(fileName)) throw new ArgumentNullException("fileName"); (yes, I know, if it is whitespace, it isn't strictly null) use this: Contract.Requires(!String.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(fileName)); The reason I'm asking is that I know that the static checker is not available to me, so I'm a bit nervous about some assumptions that I make, that the compiler cannot verify. This might lead to the class library not compiling for someone that downloads it, when they have the static checker. This, coupled with the fact that I cannot even reproduce the problem, would make it tiresome to fix, and I would gather that it doesn't speak volumes to the quality of my class library if it seemingly doesn't even compile out of the box. So I have a few questions: Is the static checker on by default if you have access to it? Or is there a setting I need to switch on in the class library (and since I don't have the static checker, I won't) Are my fears unwarranted? Is the above scenario a real problem? Any advice would be welcome.

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  • First-time software contractor, building a system for a multi-site client; who should own the intell

    - by matthew
    I'm very new to software contracting; this is my first project. I've just built a point-of-sale software system for a client, and neither of us put a lot of work into the contract. I wrote that the software was "jointly owned" with exclusive license for use given to the client. The client is using it at one store and is very pleased with it. The client is also planning to expand to numerous stores over time, and wants to use it in every store. The client also now wants full ownership of the software, with me as the exclusive developer. I am very hesitant to allow this, and I am seeking previous experience. Should I sell the IP but demand royalties for every site at which it's installed? Should I demand royalties for every sale made using the software? Should I really start talking to a lawyer? A couple of other details: in terms of risk, it is fair to say that the client is assuming the risk, but the client is now using the software and exclaiming how great it is (and so I assume, how it is improving business). Also, the software is tailored to the client specifically, but could, with a bit of work, be repackaged and resold to other clients. Even if the client owned the IP I would certainly want to make sure that I then did have (significant) royalties on such sales.

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  • Trouble deciding return type of a method that returns a SortedSet

    - by devoured elysium
    I am supposed to make a class that should be a container for an interval of values (like in mathematics). I have already decided that I'll use internally a SortedSet. One of the the things I'm supposed to implement is a method that "gets an ordered set with all the elements in the interval". class Interval { private SortedSet sortedSet = new something(); ... <<method that should return an ordered set of values>> } My question resides in what should be both the method's return type and name. Several hypothesis arise: SortedSet getSortedElements(); I am internally using a SortedSet, so I should return that type. I should state that intent in the method's name. SortedSet getElements(); I am internally using a SortedSet, but there's no point in stating that in the method name(I don't see a big point in this one). Set getElements(); I should try to always return the most basic type, thus I am returning a Set. By the contract and definition of the method, people already know all the elements are in order. Set getSortedElements(); For the method return type, the same as above. About the method name, you are stating clearly what this method is going to return: a set of elements that are sorted. I'm inclined to use 4. , but the others also seem alright. Is there a clear winner? Why?

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  • ASP .NET Dynamically adding EventHandlers to button on Page_Load. EventHandler's do not fire the fir

    - by John
    Background: I am customizing an existing ASP .NET / C# application. It has it's own little "framework" and conventions for developers to follow when extending/customizing its functionality. I am currently extending some of it's administrative functionality, to which the framework provides a contract to enforce implementation of the GetAdministrationInterface() method, which returns System.Web.UI.Control. This method is called during the Page_Load() method of the page hosting the GUI interface. Problem: I have three buttons in my GUI, each of which have been assigned an Event Handler. My administration GUI loads up perfectly fine, but clicking any of the buttons doesn't do what I expect them to do. However, when I click them a second time, the buttons work. I placed breakpoints at the the beginning of each event handler method and stepped through my code. On the first click, none of the event handlers are triggered. On the second click, they are triggered. Any ideas? Example of Button Definition Button btn = new Button(); btn.Text = "Click Me Locked Screen"; bth.Click += new EventHandler(Btn_Click); Example of Event Handler Method Definition void Btn_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { // Do Something }

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  • What is better for a student programming in C++ to learn for writing GUI: C# vs QT?

    - by flashnik
    I'm a teacher(instructor) of CS in the university. The course is based on Cormen and Knuth and students program algorithms in C++. But sometimes it is good to show how an algorithm works or just a result of task through GUI. Also in my opinion it's very imporant to be able to write full programs. They will have courses concerning GUI but a three years, later, in fact, before graduatuion. I think that they should be able to write simple GUI applications earlier. So I want to teach them it. How do you think, what is more useful for them to learn: programming GUI with QT or writing GUI in C# and calling unmanaged C++ library? Update. For developing C++ applications students use MS Visual studio, so C# is already installed. But QT AFAIK also can be integrated into VS. I have following pros of C# (some were suggested there in answers): The need to make an additional layer. It's more work, but it forces you explicitly specify contract between GUI and processing data. The border between GUI and algorithms becomes very clear. It's more popular among employers. At least, in Russia where we live. It's rather common to write performance-critical algorithms in C++ and PInvoke them from well-looking C# application/ASP.Net website. Maybe it is not so widespread in the rest of the world but in Russia Windows is very popular, especially in companies and corporations due to some reasons, so most of b2b applications are Windows applications. Rapid development. It's much quicker to code in .Net then in C++ due to many reasons. And the con is that it's a new language with own specific for students. And the mess with invoking calls to library.

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  • Looking for a good C++/.net book

    - by Michael Minerva
    I have recently started to feel that I need to greatly improve my C++ skills especially in the realm of .net. I graduated from a good four year university with a degree in computer science about 9 months ago and I have since been doing full time contract work for a small software company in my local area. Most of my work has been done using Java/lisp/cocoa/XML and before that most of my programming in my senior year was in java/C#. I did a decent amount of C++ in my Sophomore year and in my free time before that but I feel that my general knowledge of C++/.net is very lacking for the opportunities that are now coming my way. Can anyone recommend a good book that could help me get up too speed? I feel I do not need a very basic introduction to C++ but something that covers the fundamentals of .net would be good for me. So basically what I need is a book or books that would be good for a .net novice and a C++ developer who is just beyond novice. Also, a book that would help bein an interview by giving me a conversional understanding of C++ would be great. Thanks a lot!.

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  • why my form is doing postback when i am calling asynchronously?

    - by Abu Hamzah
    i am using simple asp.net webpage with few fields on it and when the user click on submit button i am calling asynchronously and posting the data. BUT, my whole page is posting back and i dont even see the message that i am trying to display if my data got posted succfully. here is my page. Requester Page Name: <asp:Label runat="server" ID='Label4' >Host Name:</asp:Label> <asp:TextBox ID="txtHost" runat='server'></asp:TextBox> <asp:Label runat="server" ID='Label2' >Start Date:</asp:Label> <asp:TextBox ID="txtStartDate" runat='server' ></asp:TextBox> <asp:Label runat="server" ID='Label6' >End Date:</asp:Label> <asp:TextBox ID="txtEndDate" runat='server' ></asp:TextBox> <ul> <li> <button id="btnCancel" name="btnCancel" type="button"> Cancel</button></li> <li> <button id="btnReset" name="btnReset" type="reset"> Reset</button></li> <li> <button id="btnSubmit" name="btnSubmit" type="submit"> Submit</button></li> </ul> </p> </form> </div> //Store new Contract Request Methods function processCompletedContactStore(response) { if (!response) { showErrorMsg('No Contacts Returned'); return; } else { if (response.Message == 'update') { $("#status").fadeTo(500, 1, function() { $(this).html("Updated successfully!").fadeTo(500, 150); }) } } }

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  • Soap 1.2 Endpoint Performance

    - by mflair2000
    I have a Client WCF Host Service SOAP 1.2 Service setup and i'm having performance issues on the SOAP Java proxy. I have no control over how the Java service is setup, aside from the endpoint config. I have the Client running Asynchronously, and the host WCF service running in Async pattern, but i see the SOAP 1.2 proxy bottlenecking and handling the requests in a Synchronous way. Can someone take a look at the auto-generated SOAP 1.2 configuration below, from the SOAP 1.2 Service wsdl? Is there a way to configure this for Async way and improve performance? Could be configured for SOAP 1.1? <?xml version="1.0"?> <configuration> <system.web> <compilation debug="true"/> </system.web> <system.serviceModel> <bindings> <customBinding> <binding name="WebserviceListenerSoap12Binding" closeTimeout="00:30:00" openTimeout="00:30:00" receiveTimeout="00:30:00" sendTimeout="00:30:00"> <textMessageEncoding maxReadPoolSize="64" maxWritePoolSize="16" messageVersion="Soap12" writeEncoding="utf-8"> <readerQuotas maxDepth="32" maxStringContentLength="20000000" maxArrayLength="20000000" maxBytesPerRead="4096" maxNameTableCharCount="16384" /> </textMessageEncoding> <httpTransport manualAddressing="false" maxBufferPoolSize="20000000" maxReceivedMessageSize="20000000" allowCookies="false" authenticationScheme="Anonymous" bypassProxyOnLocal="false" decompressionEnabled="true" hostNameComparisonMode="StrongWildcard" keepAliveEnabled="true" maxBufferSize="20000000" proxyAuthenticationScheme="Anonymous" realm="" transferMode="Buffered" unsafeConnectionNtlmAuthentication="false" useDefaultWebProxy="true" /> </binding> </customBinding> </bindings> <client> <endpoint address="http://10.18.2.117:8080/java/webservice/WebserviceListener.WebserviceListenerHttpSoap12Endpoint/" binding="customBinding" bindingConfiguration="WebserviceListenerSoap12Binding" contract="ResolveServiceReference.WebserviceListenerPortType" name="WebserviceListenerHttpSoap12Endpoint" /> </client> </system.serviceModel> </configuration>

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  • Troubleshooting an unstable internet connection

    - by Konrad Rudolph
    My MacBook Pro running OS X (10.9, but I had the same problem before) is connected to a Belkin router via WiFi and, using Virgin Media as the ISP, to the internet. The connection is extremely unstable – on some days, I get a ping timeout every few seconds. In addition, some domains seem to suffer general connectivity issues. For instance, I often find that while the youtube.com website loads, none of the videos (which are hosted on a separate domain) do. At other times, videos load but always fail to buffer, even though the actual connection speed is ok, even though I’ve disabled dash playback. Since I’m living in a rented room and the ISP contract isn’t actually mine I’ve got only limited possibilities of addressing the problem. In particular, I have no access to the router configuration and my non tech savvy landlady, while sympathetic, is not in a great hurry to hand the problem over to the ISP’s customer support. What’s more, I seem to be the only person in the house experiencing these problems – but I can imagine that this is simply because I’m the only one who’s using the internet continuously. I’m searching for specific tests that might be able to pinpoint – and ideally solve – the problem. So far all I’ve managed to do is establish that Virgin is routing my traffic in mysterious ways. Here’s an excerpt from traceroute google.co.uk. It’s worth mentioning that the host name doesn’t seem to matter a lot, the trace route is always the same. traceroute: Warning: google.co.uk has multiple addresses; using 62.254.36.148 traceroute to google.co.uk (62.254.36.148), 64 hops max, 52 byte packets 1 (192.168.2.1) 1.112 ms 1.300 ms 2.359 ms 2 10.100.32.1 (10.100.32.1) 11.926 ms 10.217 ms 24.987 ms 3 cmbg-core-1a-ae3-610.network.virginmedia.net (80.1.202.93) 28.809 ms * 66.653 ms 4 popl-bb-1b-ae16-0.network.virginmedia.net (212.43.163.141) 13.759 ms 126.504 ms 20.472 ms 5 nrth-bb-1b-et-010-0.network.virginmedia.net (62.253.175.57) 28.357 ms 16.398 ms 42.387 ms 6 nrth-bb-1c-ae1-0.network.virginmedia.net (62.253.174.110) 27.441 ms 15.622 ms 12.044 ms 7 lutn-icdn-1-ae0-0.network.virginmedia.net (62.253.175.82) 16.678 ms 28.463 ms 28.253 ms 8 * * * 9 * * * 10 * * * ^C If I let it, this goes on until the end of time. It never seems to reach a destination. Is this normal? A friend living in the same town who is also with Virgin Media has a more conventional traceroute output: 7 hops to google.co.uk, all of which send the ICMP TIME_EXCEEDED response. The obvious fix – rebooting the router – doesn’t seem to help. As far as I can tell, the WiFi connection is stable (I can always ping the router) so the problem is further downstream. I’ve tried using an alternative DNS before (OpenDNS) but if anything, this made things worse. In fact, it made all Google services nigh unreachable.

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  • Portable scripting language for a multi-server admin?

    - by Aaron
    Please Note: Portable as in portableapps.com, not the traditional definition. Originally posted on stackoverflow.com, asking here at another user's suggestion. I'm a DBA and sysadmin, mostly for Windows machines running SQL Server. I'm looking for a programming/scripting language for Windows that doesn't require Admin access or an installer, needing no install process other than expanding it into a folder. My intent is to have a language for automation on which I can standardize. Up to this point, I've been using a combination of batch files and Unix shell, using sh.exe from UnxUtils but it's far from a perfect solution. I've evaluated a handful of options, all of them have at least one serious shortcoming or another. I have a strong preference for something open source or dual license, but I'm more interested in finding the right tool than anything else. Not interested that anything that relies on Cygwin or Java, but at this point I'd be fine with something that needs .NET. Requirements: Manageable footprint (1-100 files, under 30 MB installed) Run on Windows XP and Server (2003+) No installer (exe, msi) Works with external pipes, processes, and files Support for MS SQL Server or ODBC connections Bonus Points: Open Source FFI for calling functions in native DLLs GUI support (native or gtk, wx, fltk, etc) Linux, AIX, and/or OS X support Dynamic, object oriented and/or functional, interpreted or bytecode compiled; interactive development Able to package or compile scripts into executables So far I've tried: Ruby: 148 MB on disk, 23000 files Portable Python: 54 MB on disk, 2800 files Strawberry Perl: 123 MB on disk, 3600 files REBOL: Great, except closed source and no MSSQL or ODBC in free version Squeak Smalltalk: Great, except poor support for scripting ---- cut: points of clarification ---- Why all the limitations? I realize some of my criteria seem arbitrarily confining. It's primarily a product my environment. I work as a SQL Server DBA and backup Unix admin at a division of a large company. In addition to near a hundred boxes running some version or another of SQL Server on Windows, I also support the SQL Server Express Edition installs on over a thousand machines in the field. Because of our security policies, I don't login rights on every machine. Often enough, an issue comes up and I'm given local Admin for some period of time. Often enough, it's some box I've never touched and don't have my own environment setup yet. I may have temporary admin rights on the box, but I'm not the admin for the machine- I'm just the DBA. I've no interest in stepping on the toes of the Windows admins, nor do I want to take over any of their duties. If I bring up "installing" something, suddenly it becomes a matter of interest for Production Control and the Windows admins; if I'm copying up a script, no one minds. The distinction may not mean much to the readers, but if someone gets the wrong idea I've suddenly got a long wait and significant overhead before I can get the tool installed and get the problem solved. That's why I want something that can be copied and run in the manner of a portable app. What about the small footprint? My company has three divisions, each in a different geographical location, and one of them is a new acquisition. We have different production control/security policies in each division. I support our MSSQL databases in all three divisions. The field machines are spread around the US, sometimes connecting to the VPN over very slow links. Installing Ruby \using psexec has taken a long time over these connections. In these instances, the bigger time waster seems to be archives with thousands and thousands of files rather than their sheer size. You could say I'm spoiled by Unix, where the admins usually have at least some modern scripting language installed; I'd use PowerShell, but I don't know it well and more importantly it isn't everywhere I need to work. It's a regular occurrence that I need to write, deploy and execute some script on short notice on some machine I've never on which logged in. Since having Ruby or something similar installed on every machine I'll ever need to touch is effectively impossible because of the approvals, time and and Windows admin labor needed I makes more sense find a solution that allows me to work on my own terms.

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  • What part of SMF is likely broken by a hard power down?

    - by David Mackintosh
    At one of my customer sites, the local guy shut down their local Solaris 10 x86 server, pulled the power inputs, moved it, and now it won’t start properly. It boots and then presents a prompt which lets you log in. This appears to be single user milestone (or equivalent). Digging into it, I think that SMF isn’t permitting the system to go multi-user. SMF was generating a ton of errors on autofs, after some fooling with it I got it to generate errors on inetd and nfs/client instead. This all tells me that the problem is in some SMF state file or database that needs to be fixed/deleted/recreated or something, but I don’t know what the actual issue is. By “generate errors”, I mean that every second I get a message on the console saying “Method or service exit timed out. Killing contract <#.” This makes interacting with the computer difficult. Running svcs –xv shows the service as “enabled”, in state “disabled”, reason “Start method is running”. Fooling with svcadm on the service does nothing, except confirm that the service is not in a Maintenance state. Logs in /lib/svc/log/$SERVICE just tell you that this loop has been happening once per second. Logs in /etc/svc/volatile/$SERVICE confirm that at boot the service is attempted to start, and immediately stopped, no further entries. Note that system-log isn’t starting because system-log depends on autofs so I have no syslog or dmesg. Googling all these terms ends up telling me how to debug/fix either autofs or nfs/client or inetd or rpc/gss (which was the dependency that SMF was using as an excuse to prevent nfs/client from “starting”, it was claiming that rpc/gss was “undefined” which is incorrect since this all used to work. I re-enabled it with inetadm, but inetd still won’t start properly). But I think that the problem is SMF in general, not the individual services. Doing a restore_repository to the “manifest_import” does nothing to improve, or even detectibly change, the situation. I didn’t use a boot backup because the last boot(s) were not useful. I have told the customer that since the valuable data directories are on a separate file system (which fsck’s as clean so it is intact) we could just re-install solaris 10 on the / partition. But that seems like an awfully windows-like solution to inflict on this problem. So. Any ideas what piece is broken and how I might fix it?

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  • SQLAuthority Book Review – DBA Survivor: Become a Rock Star DBA

    - by pinaldave
    DBA Survivor: Become a Rock Star DBA – Thomas LaRock Link to Amazon Link to Flipkart First of all, I thank all my readers when I wrote that I could not get this book in any local book stores, because they offered me to send a copy of this good book. A very special mention goes to Sripada and Jayesh for they gave so much effort in finding my home address and sending me the hard copy. Before, I did not have the copy of the book, but now I have two of it already! It surprises me how my readers were able to find my home address, which I have not publicly shared. Quick Review: This is indeed a one easy-to-read and fun book. We all work day and night with technology yet we should not forget to show our love and care for our family at home. For our souls that starve for peace and guidance, this one book is the “it” book for all the technology enthusiasts. Though this book was specifically written for DBAs, the reach is not limited to DBAs only because the lessons incorporated in it actually applies to all. This is one of the most motivating technical books I have read. Detailed Review: Let us go over a few questions first: Who wants to be as famous as rockstars in the field of Database Administration? How can one learn what it takes to become a top notch software developer? If you are a beginner in your field, how will you go to next level? Your boss may be very kind or like Dilbert’s Boss, what will you do? How do you keep growing when Eco-system around you does not support you? You are almost at top but there is someone else at the TOP, what do you do and how do you avoid office politics? As a database developer what should be your basic responsibility? and many more… I was able to completely read book in one sitting and I loved it. Before I continue with my opinion, I want to echo the opinion of Kevin Kline who has written the Forward of the book. He has truly suggested that “You hold in your hands a collection of insights and wisdom on the topic of database administration gained through many years of hard-won experience, long nights of study, and direct mentorship under some of the industry’s most talented database professionals and information technology (IT) experts.” Today, IT field is getting bigger and better, while talking about terabytes of the database becomes “more” normal every single day. The gods and demigods of database professionals are taking care of these large scale databases and are carefully maintaining them. In this world, there are only a few beginnings on the first step. There are many experts in different technology fields who are asked to address the issues with databases. There is YOU and ME, who is just new to this work. So we ask ourselves WHERE to begin and HOW to begin. We adore and follow the religion of our rockstars, but oftentimes we really have no idea about their background and their struggles. Every rockstar has his success story which needs to be digested before learning his tricks and tips. This book starts with the same note and teaches the two most important lessons for anybody who wants to be a DBA Rockstar –  to focus on their single goal of learning and to excel the technology. The story starts with three simple guidelines – Get Prepared, Get Trained, Get Certified. Once a person learns the skills, and then, it would be about time that he needs to enrich or to improve those skills you have learned. I am sure that the right opportunity will come finding themselves and they will not have to go run behind it. However, the real challenge for any person is the first day or first week. A new employee, no matter how much experienced he is, sometimes has no clue about what should one do at new job. Chapter 2 and chapter 3 precisely talk about what one should do as soon as the new job begins. It is also written with keeping the fact in focus that each job can be very much different but there are few infrastructure setups and programming concepts are the same. Learning basics of database was really interesting. I like to focus on the roots of any technology. It is important to understand the structure of the database before suggesting what indexes needs to be created, the same way this book covers the most essential knowledge one must learn by most database developers. I think the title of the fourth chapter is my favorite sentence in this book. I can see that I will be saying this again and again in the future – “A Development Server Is a Production Server to a Developer“. I have worked in the software industry for almost 8 years now and I have seen so many developers sitting on their chairs and waiting for instructions from their lead about how to improve the code or what to do the next. When I talk to them, I suggest that the experiment with their server and try various techniques. I think they all should understand that for them, a development server is their production server and needs to pay proper attention to the code from the beginning. There should be NO any inappropriate code from the beginning. One has to fully focus and give their best, if they are not sure they should ask but should do something and stay active. Chapter 5 and 6 talks about two essential skills for any developer and database administration – what are the ethics of developers when they are working with production server and how to support software which is running on the production server. I have met many people who know the theory by heart but when put in front of keyboard they do not know where to start. The first thing they do opening the browser and searching online, instead of opening SQL Server Management Studio. This can very well happen to anybody who is experienced as well. Chapter 5 and 6 addresses that situation as well includes the handy scripts which can solve almost all the basic trouble shooting issues. “Where’s the Buffet?” By far, this is the best chapter in this book. If you have ever met me, you would know that I love food. I think after reading this chapter, I felt Thomas has written this just keeping me in mind. I think there will be many other people who feel the same way, too. Even my wife who read this chapter thought this was specifically written for me. I will not talk any more about this chapter as this is one must read chapter. And of course this is about real ‘FOOD‘. I am an SQL Server Trainer and Consultant and I totally agree with the point made in the chapter 8 of this book. Yes, it says here that what is necessary to train employees and people. Millions of dollars worth the labor is continuously done in the world which has faults and incorrect. Once something goes wrong, very expensive consultant comes in and fixes the problem. This whole cycle which can be stopped and improved if proper training is done. There is plenty of free trainings available as well, if one cannot afford paid training. “Connect. Learn. Share” – I think this is a great summary and bird’s eye view of this book. Networking is the key. Everything which is discussed in this book can be taken to next level if one properly uses this tips and continuously grow with it. Connecting with others, helping learn each other and building the good knowledge sharing environment should be the goal of everyone. Before I end the review I want to share a real experience. I have personally met one DBA who has worked in a single department in a company for so long that when he was put in a different department in his company due to closing that department, he could not adjust and quit the job despite the same people and company around him. Adjusting in the new environment gets much tougher as one person gets more and more experienced. This book precisely addresses the same issue along with their solutions. I just cannot stop comparing the book with my personal journey. I found so many things which are coincidently in the book is written as how we developer and DBA think. I must express special thanks to Thomas for taking time in his personal life and write this book for us. This book is indeed a book for everybody who wants to grow healthy in the tough and competitive environment. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQLAuthority Book Review, SQLAuthority News, SQLServer, T SQL, Technology

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  • Special thanks to everyone that helped me in 2010.

    - by mbcrump
    2010 has been a very good year for me and I wanted to create a list and thank everyone for what they have done for me.  I also wanted to thank everyone for reading and subscribing to my blog. It is hard to believe that people actually want to read what I write. I feel like I owe a huge thanks to everyone listed below. Looking back upon 2010, I feel that I’ve grown as a developer and you are part of that reason. Sometimes we get caught up in day to day work and forget to give thanks to those that helped us along the way. The list below is mine, it includes people and companies. This list is obviously not going to include everyone that has helped, just those that have stood out in my mind. When I think back upon 2010, their names keep popping up in my head. So here goes, in no particular order.  People Dave Campbell – For everything he has done for the Silverlight Community with his Silverlight Cream blog. I can’t think of a better person to get recognition at the Silverlight FireStarter event. I also wanted to thank him for spending several hours of his time helping me track down a bug in my feedburner account. Victor Gaudioso – For his large collection of video tutorials on his blog and the passion and enthusiasm he has for Silverlight. We have talked on the phone and I’ve never met anyone so fired up for Silverlight. Kunal Chowdhury – Kunal has always been available for me to bounce ideas off of. Kunal has also answered a lot of questions that stumped me. His blog and CodeProject article have green a great help to me and the Silverlight Community. Glen Gordon – I was looking frantically for a Windows Phone 7 several months before release and Glen found one for me. This allowed me to start a blog series on the Windows Phone 7 hardware and developing an application from start to finish that Scott Guthrie retweeted.  Jeff Blankenburg – For listening to my complaints in the early stages of Windows Phone 7. Jeff was always very polite and gave me his cell phone number to talk it over. He also walked me through several problems that I was having early on. Pete Brown – For writing Silverlight 4 in Action. This book is definitely a labor of love. I followed Pete on Twitter as he was writing it and he spent a lot of late nights and weekends working on it. I felt a lot smarter after reading it the first time. The second time was even better. John Papa – For all of his work on the Silverlight Firestarter and the Silverlight community in general. He has also helped me on a personal level with several things. Daniel Heisler – For putting up with me the past year while we worked on many .NET projects together in 2010. Alvin Ashcraft – For publishing a daily blog post on the best of .NET links. He has linked to my site many times and I really appreciate what he does for the community. Chris Alcock – For publishing the Morning Brew every weekday. I remember when I first appeared on his site, I started getting hundreds of hits on my site and wondered if I was getting a DOS attack or something. It was great to find out that Chris had linked to one of my articles. Joel Cochran – For spending a week teaching “Blend-O-Rama”. This was my one of my favorite sessions of this year. I learned a lot about Expression Blend from it and the best part was that it was free and during lunchtime. Jeremy Likness – Jeremy is smart – very smart. I have learned a lot from Jeremy over the past year. He is also involved in the Silverlight community in every way possible, from forums to blog post to screencast to open source. It goes on and on. The people that I met at VSLive Orlando 2010. I had a great time chatting with Walt Ritscher, Wallace McClure, Tim Huckabee and David Platt. Also a special thanks to all of my friends on Twitter like @wilhil, @DBVaughan, @DataArtist, @wbm, @DirkStrauss and @rsringeri and many many more. Software Companies / Events / May of gave me FREE stuff. =) Microsoft (3) – I was sent a free coupon code by Microsoft to take the Silverlight 4 Beta Exam. I jumped on the offer and took the exam. It was great being selected to try out the exam before it goes public even though Microsoft eventually published a universal coupon code for everyone. I am still waiting to find out if I passed the exam. My fingers are crossed. Microsoft reaching out to me with some questions regarding the .NET Community. I’ve never had a company contact me with such interest in the community. Having a contest where 75 people could win a $100 gift certificate and a T-Shirt for submitting a Windows Phone 7 app. I submitted my app and won. All of the free launch events this year (Windows Phone 7, Visual Studio 2010, ASP.NET MVC). Wintellect – For providing an awesome day of free technical training called T.E.N. Where else can you get free training from some of the best programmers in the world? I also won a contest from them that included a NETAdvantage Ultimate License from Infragistics. VSLive – I attended the Orlando 2010 Conference and it was the best developer’s conference that I have ever attended. I got to know a lot of people at this conference and hang out with many wonderful speakers. I live tweeted the event and while it may have annoyed some, the organizers of VSLive loved it. I won the contest on Twitter and they invited me back to the 2011 session of my choice. This is a very nice gift and I really appreciate the generosity. BarcodeLib.com – For providing free barcode generating tools for a Non-Profit ASP.NET project that I was working on. Their third party controls really made this a breeze compared to my existing solution. NDepend – It is absolutely the best tool to improve code quality. The product is extremely large and I would recommend heading over to their site to check it out. Silverlight Spy – I was writing a blog post on Silverlight Spy and Koen Zwikstra provided a FREE license to me. If you ever wanted to peek inside of a Silverlight Application then this is the tool for you. He is also working on a version that will support OOB and Windows Phone 7. I would recommend checking out his site. Birmingham .NET Users Group / Silverlight Nights User Group – It takes a lot of time to put together a user group meeting every month yet it always seems to happen. I don’t want to name names for fear of leaving someone out but both of these User Groups are excellent if you live in the Birmingham, Alabama area. Publishing Companies Manning Publishing – For giving me early access to Silverlight 4 in Action by Pete Brown. It was really nice to be able to read this awesome book while Pete was writing it. I was also one of the first people to publish a review of the book. Sams Publishing and DZone – For providing a copy of Silverlight 4 Unleashed by Laurent Bugnion for me to review for their site. The review is coming in January 2011. Special Shoutout to the following 3rd Party Silverlight Controls It has been a great pleasure to work with the following companies on 3rd Party Control Giveaways every month. It always amazes me how every 3rd Party Control company is so eager to help out the community. I’ve never been turned down by any of these companies! These giveaways have sparked a lot of interest in Silverlight and hopefully I can continue giving away a new set every month. If you are a 3rd Party Control company and are interested in participating in these giveaways then please email me at mbcrump29[at]gmail[d0t].com. The companies below have already participated in my giveaways: Infragistics (December 2010) - Win a set of Infragistics Silverlight Controls with Data Visualization!  Mindscape (November 2010) - Mindscape Silverlight Controls + Free Mega Pack Contest Telerik (October 2010) - Win Telerik RadControls for Silverlight! ($799 Value) Again, I just wanted to say Thanks to everyone for helping me grow as a developer.  Subscribe to my feed

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  • Best Practices - updated: which domain types should be used to run applications

    - by jsavit
    This post is one of a series of "best practices" notes for Oracle VM Server for SPARC (formerly named Logical Domains). This is an updated and enlarged version of the post on this topic originally posted October 2012. One frequent question "what type of domain should I use to run applications?" There used to be a simple answer: "run applications in guest domains in almost all cases", but now there are more things to consider. Enhancements to Oracle VM Server for SPARC and introduction of systems like the current SPARC servers including the T4 and T5 systems, the Oracle SuperCluster T5-8 and Oracle SuperCluster M6-32 provide scale and performance much higher than the original servers that ran domains. Single-CPU performance, I/O capacity, memory sizes, are much larger now, and far more demanding applications are now being hosted in logical domains. The general advice continues to be "use guest domains in almost all cases", meaning, "use virtual I/O rather than physical I/O", unless there is a specific reason to use the other domain types. The sections below will discuss the criteria for choosing between domain types. Review: division of labor and types of domain Oracle VM Server for SPARC offloads management and I/O functionality from the hypervisor to domains (also called virtual machines), providing a modern alternative to older VM architectures that use a "thick", monolithic hypervisor. This permits a simpler hypervisor design, which enhances reliability, and security. It also reduces single points of failure by assigning responsibilities to multiple system components, further improving reliability and security. Oracle VM Server for SPARC defines the following types of domain, each with their own roles: Control domain - management control point for the server, runs the logical domain daemon and constraints engine, and is used to configure domains and manage resources. The control domain is the first domain to boot on a power-up, is always an I/O domain, and is usually a service domain as well. It doesn't have to be, but there's no reason to not leverage it for virtual I/O services. There is one control domain per T-series system, and one per Physical Domain (PDom) on an M5-32 or M6-32 system. M5 and M6 systems can be physically domained, with logical domains within the physical ones. I/O domain - a domain that has been assigned physical I/O devices. The devices may be one more more PCIe root complexes (in which case the domain is also called a root complex domain). The domain has native access to all the devices on the assigned PCIe buses. The devices can be any device type supported by Solaris on the hardware platform. a SR-IOV (Single-Root I/O Virtualization) function. SR-IOV lets a physical device (also called a physical function) or PF) be subdivided into multiple virtual functions (VFs) which can be individually assigned directly to domains. SR-IOV devices currently can be Ethernet or InfiniBand devices. direct I/O ownership of one or more PCI devices residing in a PCIe bus slot. The domain has direct access to the individual devices An I/O domain has native performance and functionality for the devices it owns, unmediated by any virtualization layer. It may also have virtual devices. Service domain - a domain that provides virtual network and disk devices to guest domains. The services are defined by commands that are run in the control domain. It usually is an I/O domain as well, in order for it to have devices to virtualize and serve out. Guest domain - a domain whose devices are all virtual rather than physical: virtual network and disk devices provided by one or more service domains. In common practice, this is where applications are run. Device considerations Consider the following when choosing between virtual devices and physical devices: Virtual devices provide the best flexibility - they can be dynamically added to and removed from a running domain, and you can have a large number of them up to a per-domain device limit. Virtual devices are compatible with live migration - domains that exclusively have virtual devices can be live migrated between servers supporting domains. On the other hand: Physical devices provide the best performance - in fact, native "bare metal" performance. Virtual devices approach physical device throughput and latency, especially with virtual network devices that can now saturate 10GbE links, but physical devices are still faster. Physical I/O devices do not add load to service domains - all the I/O goes directly from the I/O domain to the device, while virtual I/O goes through service domains, which must be provided sufficient CPU and memory capacity. Physical I/O devices can be other than network and disk - we virtualize network, disk, and serial console, but physical devices can be the wide range of attachable certified devices, including things like tape and CDROM/DVD devices. In some cases the lines are now blurred: virtual devices have better performance than previously: starting with Oracle VM Server for SPARC 3.1 there is near-native virtual network performance. There is more flexibility with physical devices than before: SR-IOV devices can now be dynamically reconfigured on domains. Tradeoffs one used to have to make are now relaxed: you can often have the flexibility of virtual I/O with performance that previously required physical I/O. You can have the performance and isolation of SR-IOV with the ability to dynamically reconfigure it, just like with virtual devices. Typical deployment A service domain is generally also an I/O domain: otherwise it wouldn't have access to physical device "backends" to offer to its clients. Similarly, an I/O domain is also typically a service domain in order to leverage the available PCI buses. Control domains must be I/O domains, because they boot up first on the server and require physical I/O. It's typical for the control domain to also be a service domain too so it doesn't "waste" the I/O resources it uses. A simple configuration consists of a control domain that is also the one I/O and service domain, and some number of guest domains using virtual I/O. In production, customers typically use multiple domains with I/O and service roles to eliminate single points of failure, as described in Availability Best Practices - Avoiding Single Points of Failure . Guest domains have virtual disk and virtual devices provisioned from more than one service domain, so failure of a service domain or I/O path or device does not result in an application outage. This also permits "rolling upgrades" in which service domains are upgraded one at a time while their guests continue to operate without disruption. (It should be noted that resiliency to I/O device failures can also be provided by the single control domain, using multi-path I/O) In this type of deployment, control, I/O, and service domains are used for virtualization infrastructure, while applications run in guest domains. Changing application deployment patterns The above model has been widely and successfully used, but more configuration options are available now. Servers got bigger than the original T2000 class machines with 2 I/O buses, so there is more I/O capacity that can be used for applications. Increased server capacity made it attractive to run more vertically-scaled applications, such as databases, with higher resource requirements than the "light" applications originally seen. This made it attractive to run applications in I/O domains so they could get bare-metal native I/O performance. This is leveraged by the Oracle SuperCluster engineered systems mentioned previously. In those engineered systems, I/O domains are used for high performance applications with native I/O performance for disk and network and optimized access to the Infiniband fabric. Another technical enhancement is Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV), which make it possible to give domains direct connections and native I/O performance for selected I/O devices. Not all I/O domains own PCI complexes, and there are increasingly more I/O domains that are not service domains. They use their I/O connectivity for performance for their own applications. However, there are some limitations and considerations: at this time, a domain using physical I/O cannot be live-migrated to another server. There is also a need to plan for security and introducing unneeded dependencies: if an I/O domain is also a service domain providing virtual I/O to guests, it has the ability to affect the correct operation of its client guest domains. This is even more relevant for the control domain. where the ldm command must be protected from unauthorized (or even mistaken) use that would affect other domains. As a general rule, running applications in the service domain or the control domain should be avoided. For reference, an excellent guide to secure deployment of domains by Stefan Hinker is at Secure Deployment of Oracle VM Server for SPARC. To recap: Guest domains with virtual I/O still provide the greatest operational flexibility, including features like live migration. They should be considered the default domain type to use unless there is a specific requirement that mandates an I/O domain. I/O domains can be used for applications with the highest performance requirements. Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) makes this more attractive by giving direct I/O access to more domains, and by permitting dynamic reconfiguration of SR-IOV devices. Today's larger systems provide multiple PCIe buses - for example, 16 buses on the T5-8 - making it possible to configure multiple I/O domains each owning their own bus. Service domains should in general not be used for applications, because compromised security in the domain, or an outage, can affect domains that depend on it. This concern can be mitigated by providing guests' their virtual I/O from more than one service domain, so interruption of service in one service domain does not cause an application outage. The control domain should in general not be used to run applications, for the same reason. Oracle SuperCluster uses the control domain for applications, but it is an exception. It's not a general purpose environment; it's an engineered system with specifically configured applications and optimization for optimal performance. These are recommended "best practices" based on conversations with a number of Oracle architects. Keep in mind that "one size does not fit all", so you should evaluate these practices in the context of your own requirements. Summary Higher capacity servers that run Oracle VM Server for SPARC are attractive for applications with the most demanding resource requirements. New deployment models permit native I/O performance for demanding applications by running them in I/O domains with direct access to their devices. This is leveraged in SPARC SuperCluster, and can be leveraged in T-series servers to provision high-performance applications running in domains. Carefully planned, this can be used to provide peak performance for critical applications. That said, the improved virtual device performance in Oracle VM Server means that the default choice should still be guest domains with virtual I/O.

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  • Skanska Builds Global Workforce Insight with Cloud-Based HCM System

    - by HCM-Oracle
    By David Baum - Originally posted on Profit Peter Bjork grew up building things. He started his work life learning all sorts of trades at his father’s construction company in the northern part of Sweden. So in college, it was natural for him to pursue a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering—but he broke new ground when he added a master’s degree in finance to his curriculum vitae. Written on a traditional résumé, Bjork’s current title (vice president of information systems strategies) doesn’t reveal the diversity of his experience—that he’s adept with hammer and nails as well as rows and columns. But a big part of his current job is to work with his counterparts in human resources (HR) designing, building, and deploying the systems needed to get a complete view of the skills and potential of Skanska’s 22,000-strong white-collar workforce. And Bjork believes that complete view is essential to Skanska’s success. “Our business is really all about people,” says Bjork, who has worked with Skanska for 16 years. “You can have equipment and financial resources, but to truly succeed in a business like ours you need to have the right people in the right places. That’s what this system is helping us accomplish.” In a global HR environment that suffers from a paradox of high unemployment and a scarcity of skilled labor, managers need to have a complete understanding of workforce capabilities to develop management skills, recruit for open positions, ensure that staff is getting the training they need, and reduce attrition. Skanska’s human capital management (HCM) systems, based on Oracle Talent Management Cloud, play a critical role delivering that understanding. “Skanska’s philosophy of having great people, encouraging their development, and giving them the chance to move across business units has nurtured a culture of collaboration, but managing a diverse workforce spread across the globe is a monumental challenge,” says Annika Lindholm, global human resources system owner in the HR department at Skanska’s headquarters just outside of Stockholm, Sweden. “We depend heavily on Oracle’s cloud technology to support our HCM function.” Construction, Workers For Skanska’s more than 60,000 employees and contractors, managing huge construction projects is an everyday job. Beyond erecting signature buildings, management’s goal is to build a corporate culture where valuable talent can be sought out and developed, bringing in the right mix of people to support and grow the business. “Of all the companies in our space, Skanska is probably one of the strongest ones, with a laser focus on people and people development,” notes Tom Crane, chief HR and communications officer for Skanska in the United States. “Our business looks like equipment and material, but all we really have at the end of the day are people and their intellectual capital. Without them, second only to clients, of course, you really can’t achieve great things in the high-profile environment in which we work.” During the 1990s, Skanska entered an expansive growth phase. A string of successful acquisitions paved the way for the company’s transformation into a global enterprise. “Today the company’s focus is on profitable growth,” continues Crane. “But you can’t really achieve growth unless you are doing a very good job of developing your people and having the right people in the right places and driving a culture of growth.” In the United States alone, Skanska has more than 8,000 employees in four distinct business units: Skanska USA Building, also known as the Construction Manager, builds everything at ground level and above—hospitals, educational facilities, stadiums, airport terminals, and other massive projects. Skanska USA Civil does everything at ground level and below, such as light rail, water treatment facilities, power plants or power industry facilities, highways, and bridges. Skanska Infrastructure Development develops public-private partnerships—projects in which Skanska adds equity and also arranges for outside financing. Skanska Commercial Development acts like a commercial real estate developer, acquiring land and building offices on spec or build-to-suit for its clients. Skanska's international portfolio includes construction of the new Meadowlands Stadium. Getting the various units to operate collaboratatively helps Skanska deliver high value to clients and shareholders. “When we have this collaboration among units, it allows us to enrich each of the business units and, at the same time, develop our future leaders to be more facile in operating across business units—more accepting of a ‘one Skanska’ approach,” explains Crane. Workforce Worldwide But HR needs processes and tools to support managers who face such business dynamics. Oracle Talent Management Cloud is helping Skanska implement world-class recruiting strategies and generate the insights needed to drive quality hiring practices, internal mobility, and a proactive approach to building talent pipelines. With their new cloud system in place, Skanska HR leaders can manage everything from recruiting, compensation, and goal and performance management to employee learning and talent review—all as part of a single, cohesive software-as-a-service (SaaS) environment. Skanska has successfully implemented two modules from Oracle Talent Management Cloud—the recruiting and performance management modules—and is in the process of implementing the learn module. Internally, they call the systems Skanska Recruit, Skanska Talent, and Skanska Learn. The timing is apropos. With high rates of unemployment in recent years, there have been many job candidates on the market. However, talent scarcity continues to frustrate recruiters. Oracle Taleo Recruiting Cloud Service, one of the applications in the Oracle Talent Management cloud portfolio, enables Skanska managers to create more-intelligent recruiting strategies, pulling high-performer profile statistics to create new candidate profiles and using multitiered screening and assessments to ensure that only the best-suited candidate applications make it to the recruiter’s desk. Tools such as applicant tracking, interview management, and requisition management help recruiters and hiring managers streamline the hiring process. Oracle’s cloud-based software system automates and streamlines many other HR processes for Skanska’s multinational organization and delivers insight into the success of recruiting and talent-management efforts. “The Oracle system is definitely helping us to construct global HR processes,” adds Bjork. “It is really important that we have a business model that is decentralized, so we can effectively serve our local markets, and interact with our global ERP [enterprise resource planning] systems as well. We would not be able to do this without a really good, well-integrated HCM system that could support these efforts.” A key piece of this effort is something Skanska has developed internally called the Skanska Leadership Profile. Core competencies, on which all employees are measured, are used in performance reviews to determine weak areas but also to discover talent, such as those who will be promoted or need succession plans. This global profiling system brings consistency to the way HR professionals evaluate and review talent across the company, with a consistent set of ratings and a consistent definition of competencies. All salaried employees in Skanska are tied to a talent management process that gives opportunity for midyear and year-end reviews. Using the performance management module, managers can align individual goals with corporate goals; provide clear visibility into how each employee contributes to the success of the organization; and drive a strategic, end-to-end talent management strategy with a single, integrated system for all talent-related activities. This is critical to a company that is highly focused on ensuring that every employee has a development plan linked to his or her succession potential. “Our approach all along has been to deploy software applications that are seamless to end users,” says Crane. “The beauty of a cloud-based system is that much of the functionality takes place behind the scenes so we can focus on making sure users can access the data when they need it. This model greatly improves their efficiency.” The employee profile not only sets a competency baseline for new employees but is also integrated with Skanska’s other back-office Oracle systems to ensure consistency in the way information is used to support other business functions. “Since we have about a dozen different HR systems that are providing us with information, we built a master database that collects all the information,” explains Lindholm. “That data is sent not only to Oracle Talent Management Cloud, but also to other systems that are dependent on this information.” Collaboration to Scale Skanska is poised to launch a new Oracle module to link employee learning plans to the review process and recruitment assessments. According to Crane, connecting these processes allows Skanska managers to see employees’ progress and produce an updated learning program. For example, as employees take classes, supervisors can consult the Oracle Talent Management Cloud portal to monitor progress and align it to each individual’s training and development plan. “That’s a pretty compelling solution for an organization that wants to manage its talent on a real-time basis and see how the training is working,” Crane says. Rolling out Oracle Talent Management Cloud was a joint effort among HR, IT, and a global group that oversaw the worldwide implementation. Skanska deployed the solution quickly across all markets at once. In the United States, for example, more than 35 offices quickly got up to speed on the new system via webinars for employees and face-to-face training for the HR group. “With any migration, there are moments when you hold your breath, but in this case, we had very few problems getting the system up and running,” says Crane. Lindholm adds, “There has been very little resistance to the system as users recognize its potential. Customizations are easy, and a lasting partnership has developed between Skanska and Oracle when help is needed. They listen to us.” Bjork elaborates on the implementation process from an IT perspective. “Deploying a SaaS system removes a lot of the complexity,” he says. “You can downsize the IT part and focus on the business part, which increases the probability of a successful implementation. If you want to scale the system, you make a quick phone call. That’s all it took recently when we added 4,000 users. We didn’t have to think about resizing the servers or hiring more IT people. Oracle does that for us, and they have provided very good support.” As a result, Skanska has been able to implement a single, cost-effective talent management solution across the organization to support its strategy to recruit and develop a world-class staff. Stakeholders are confident that they are providing the most efficient recruitment system possible for competent personnel at all levels within the company—from skilled workers at construction sites to top management at headquarters. And Skanska can retain skilled employees and ensure that they receive the development opportunities they need to grow and advance.

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  • How do you read from a file into an array of struct?

    - by Thomas.Winsnes
    I'm currently working on an assignment and this have had me stuck for hours. Can someone please help me point out why this isn't working for me? struct book { char title[25]; char author[50]; char subject[20]; int callNumber; char publisher[250]; char publishDate[11]; char location[20]; char status[11]; char type[12]; int circulationPeriod; int costOfBook; }; void PrintBookList(struct book **bookList) { int i; for(i = 0; i < sizeof(bookList); i++) { struct book newBook = *bookList[i]; printf("%s;%s;%s;%d;%s;%s;%s;%s;%s;%d;%d\n",newBook.title, newBook.author, newBook.subject, newBook.callNumber,newBook.publisher, newBook.publishDate, newBook.location, newBook.status, newBook.type,newBook.circulationPeriod, newBook.costOfBook); } } void GetBookList(struct book** bookList) { FILE* file = fopen("book.txt", "r"); struct book newBook[1024]; int i = 0; while(fscanf(file, "%s;%s;%s;%d;%s;%s;%s;%s;%s;%d;%d", &newBook[i].title, &newBook[i].author, &newBook[i].subject, &newBook[i].callNumber,&newBook[i].publisher, &newBook[i].publishDate, &newBook[i].location, &newBook[i].status, &newBook[i].type,&newBook[i].circulationPeriod, &newBook[i].costOfBook) != EOF) { bookList[i] = &newBook[i]; i++; } /*while(fscanf(file, "%s;%s;%s;%d;%s;%s;%s;%s;%s;%d;%d", &bookList[i].title, &bookList[i].author, &bookList[i].subject, &bookList[i].callNumber, &bookList[i].publisher, &bookList[i].publishDate, &bookList[i].location, &bookList[i].status, &bookList[i].type, &bookList[i].circulationPeriod, &bookList[i].costOfBook) != EOF) { i++; }*/ PrintBookList(bookList); fclose(file); } int main() { struct book *bookList[1024]; GetBookList(bookList); } I get no errors or warnings on compile it should print the content of the file, just like it is in the file. Like this: OperatingSystems Internals and Design principles;William.S;IT;741012759;Upper Saddle River;2009;QA7676063;Available;circulation;3;11200 Communication skills handbook;Summers.J;Accounting;771239216;Milton;2010;BF637C451;Available;circulation;3;7900 Business marketing management:B2B;Hutt.D;Management;741912319;Mason;2010;HF5415131;Available;circulation;3;1053 Patient education rehabilitation;Dreeben.O;Education;745121511;Sudbury;2010;CF5671A98;Available;reference;0;6895 Tomorrow's technology and you;Beekman.G;Science;764102174;Upper Saddle River;2009;QA76B41;Out;reserved;1;7825 Property & security: selected essay;Cathy.S;Law;750131231;Rozelle;2010;D4A3C56;Available;reference;0;20075 Introducing communication theory;Richard.W;IT;714789013;McGraw-Hill;2010;Q360W47;Available;circulation;3;12150 Maths for computing and information technology;Giannasi.F;Mathematics;729890537;Longman;Scientific;1995;QA769M35G;Available;reference;0;13500 Labor economics;George.J;Economics;715784761;McGraw-Hill;2010;HD4901B67;Available;circulation;3;7585 Human physiology:from cells to systems;Sherwood.L;Physiology;707558936;Cengage Learning;2010;QP345S32;Out;circulation;3;11135 bobs;thomas;IT;701000000;UC;1006;QA7548;Available;Circulation;7;5050 but when I run it, it outputs this: OperatingSystems;;;0;;;;;;0;0 Internals;;;0;;;;;;0;0 and;;;0;;;;;;0;0 Design;;;0;;;;;;0;0 principles;William.S;IT;741012759;Upper;41012759;Upper;;0;;;;;;0;0 Saddle;;;0;;;;;;0;0 River;2009;QA7676063;Available;circulation;3;11200;lable;circulation;3;11200;;0;;;;;;0;0 Communication;;;0;;;;;;0;0 Thanks in advance, you're a life saver

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  • Looking For iPhone 4S Alternatives? Here Are 3 Smartphones You Should Consider

    - by Gopinath
    If you going to buy iPhone 4S on a two year contract in USA, Europe or Australia you may not find it expensive. But if you are planning to buy it in any other parts of the world, you will definitely feel the heat of ridiculous iPhone 4S price. In India iPhone 4S costs approximately costs $1000 which is 30% more than the price tag of an unlocked iPhone sold in USA. Personally I love iPhones as there is no match for the user experience provided by Apple as well as the wide range of really meaning applications available for iPhone. But it breaks heart to spend $1000 for a phone and I’m forced to look at alternates available in the market. Here are the four iPhone 4S alternates available in almost all the countries where we can buy iPhone 4S Google Galaxy Nexus The Galaxy Nexus is Google’s own Android smartphone manufactured by Samsung and sold under the brand name of Google Nexus. Galaxy Nexus is the pure Android phone available in the market without any bloat software or custom user interfaces like other Androids available in the market. Galaxy Nexus is also the first Android phone to be shipped with the latest version of Android OS, Ice Cream Sandwich. This phone is the benchmark for the rest of Android phones that are going to enter the market soon. In the words of Google this smartphone is called as “Galaxy Nexus: Simple. Beautiful. Beyond Smart.”.  BGR review summarizes the phone as This is almost comical at this point, but the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is my favourite Android device in the world. Easily replacing the HTC Rezound, the Motorola DROID RAZR, and Samsung Galaxy S II, the Galaxy Nexus champions in a brand new version of Android that pushes itself further than almost any other mobile OS in the industry. Samsung Galaxy S II The one single company that is able to sell more smartphones than Apple is Samsung. Samsung recently displaced Apple from the top smartphone seller spot and occupied it with loads of pride. Samsung’s Galaxy S II fits as one the best alternatives to Apple’s iPhone 4S with it’s beautiful design and remarkable performance. Engadget summarizes Samsung Galaxy S2 review as It’s the best Android smartphone yet, but more importantly, it might well be the best smartphone, period. Of course, a 4.3-inch screen size won’t suit everyone, no matter how stupendously thin the device that carries it may be, and we also can’t say for sure that the Galaxy S II would justify a long-term iOS user foresaking his investment into one ecosystem and making the leap to another. Nonetheless, if you’re asking us what smartphone to buy today, unconstrained by such externalities, the Galaxy S II would be the clear choice. Sometimes it’s just as simple as that. Nokia Lumia 800 Here comes unexpected Windows Phone in to the boxing ring. May be they are not as great as Androids available in the market today, but they are picking up very quickly. Especially the Nokia Lumia 800 seems to be first ever Windows Phone 7 aimed at competing serious with Androids and iPhones available in the market. There are reports that Nokia Lumia 800 is outselling all Androids in UK and few high profile tech blogs are calling it as the king of Windows Phone. Considering this phone while evaluating the alternative of iPhone 4S will not disappoint you. We assure. Droid RAZR Remember the Motorola Driod that swept entire Android market share couple of years ago? The first two version of Motorola Droids were the best in the market and they out performed almost every other Android phone those days. The invasion of Samsung Androids, Motorola lost it charm. With the recent release of Droid RAZR, Motorola seems to be in the right direction to reclaiming the prestige. Droid RAZR is the thinnest smartphone available in the market and it’s beauty is not just skin deep. Here is a review of the phone from Engadget blog the RAZR’s beauty is not only skin deep. The LTE radio, 1.2GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM make sure this sleek number is ready to run with the big boys. It kept pace with, and in some cases clearly outclassed its high-end competition. Despite its deficiencies in the display department and underwhelming battery life, the RAZR looks to be a perfectly viable alternative when considering the similarly-pricey Rezound and Galaxy Nexus Further Reading So we have seen the four alternates of iPhone 4S available in the market and I personally love to buy a Samsung smartphone if I’m don’t have money to afford an iPhone 4S. If you are interested in deep diving into the alternates, here few links that help you do more research Apple iPhone 4S vs. Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs. Motorola Droid RAZR: How Their Specs Compare by Huffington Post Nokia Lumia 800 vs. iPhone 4S vs. Nexus Galaxy: Spec Smackdown by PC World Browser Speed Test: Nokia Lumia 800 vs. iPhone 4S vs. Samsung Galaxy S II – by Gizmodo iPhone 4S vs Samsung Galaxy S II by pocket lint Apple iPhone 4S vs. Samsung Galaxy S II by techie buzz This article titled,Looking For iPhone 4S Alternatives? Here Are 3 Smartphones You Should Consider, was originally published at Tech Dreams. Grab our rss feed or fan us on Facebook to get updates from us.

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  • WCF REST on .Net 4.0

    - by AngelEyes
    A simple and straight forward article taken from: http://christopherdeweese.com/blog2/post/drop-the-soap-wcf-rest-and-pretty-uris-in-net-4 Drop the Soap: WCF, REST, and Pretty URIs in .NET 4 Years ago I was working in libraries when the Web 2.0 revolution began.  One of the things that caught my attention about early start-ups using the AJAX/REST/Web 2.0 model was how nice the URIs were for their applications.  Those were my first impressions of REST; pretty URIs.  Turns out there is a little more to it than that. REST is an architectural style that focuses on resources and structured ways to access those resources via the web.  REST evolved as an “anti-SOAP” movement, driven by developers who did not want to deal with all the complexity SOAP introduces (which is al lot when you don’t have frameworks hiding it all).  One of the biggest benefits to REST is that browsers can talk to rest services directly because REST works using URIs, QueryStrings, Cookies, SSL, and all those HTTP verbs that we don’t have to think about anymore. If you are familiar with ASP.NET MVC then you have been exposed to rest at some level.  MVC is relies heavily on routing to generate consistent and clean URIs.  REST for WCF gives you the same type of feel for your services.  Let’s dive in. WCF REST in .NET 3.5 SP1 and .NET 4 This post will cover WCF REST in .NET 4 which drew heavily from the REST Starter Kit and community feedback.  There is basic REST support in .NET 3.5 SP1 and you can also grab the REST Starter Kit to enable some of the features you’ll find in .NET 4. This post will cover REST in .NET 4 and Visual Studio 2010. Getting Started To get started we’ll create a basic WCF Rest Service Application using the new on-line templates option in VS 2010: When you first install a template you are prompted with this dialog: Dude Where’s my .Svc File? The WCF REST template shows us the new way we can simply build services.  Before we talk about what’s there, let’s look at what is not there: The .Svc File An Interface Contract Dozens of lines of configuration that you have to change to make your service work REST in .NET 4 is greatly simplified and leverages the Web Routing capabilities used in ASP.NET MVC and other parts of the web frameworks.  With REST in .NET 4 you use a global.asax to set the route to your service using the new ServiceRoute class.  From there, the WCF runtime handles dispatching service calls to the methods based on the Uri Templates. global.asax using System; using System.ServiceModel.Activation; using System.Web; using System.Web.Routing; namespace Blog.WcfRest.TimeService {     public class Global : HttpApplication     {         void Application_Start(object sender, EventArgs e)         {             RegisterRoutes();         }         private static void RegisterRoutes()         {             RouteTable.Routes.Add(new ServiceRoute("TimeService",                 new WebServiceHostFactory(), typeof(TimeService)));         }     } } The web.config contains some new structures to support a configuration free deployment.  Note that this is the default config generated with the template.  I did not make any changes to web.config. web.config <?xml version="1.0"?> <configuration>   <system.web>     <compilation debug="true" targetFramework="4.0" />   </system.web>   <system.webServer>     <modules runAllManagedModulesForAllRequests="true">       <add name="UrlRoutingModule" type="System.Web.Routing.UrlRoutingModule,            System.Web, Version=4.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b03f5f7f11d50a3a" />     </modules>   </system.webServer>   <system.serviceModel>     <serviceHostingEnvironment aspNetCompatibilityEnabled="true"/>     <standardEndpoints>       <webHttpEndpoint>         <!--             Configure the WCF REST service base address via the global.asax.cs file and the default endpoint             via the attributes on the <standardEndpoint> element below         -->         <standardEndpoint name="" helpEnabled="true" automaticFormatSelectionEnabled="true"/>       </webHttpEndpoint>     </standardEndpoints>   </system.serviceModel> </configuration> Building the Time Service We’ll create a simple “TimeService” that will return the current time.  Let’s start with the following code: using System; using System.ServiceModel; using System.ServiceModel.Activation; using System.ServiceModel.Web; namespace Blog.WcfRest.TimeService {     [ServiceContract]     [AspNetCompatibilityRequirements(RequirementsMode = AspNetCompatibilityRequirementsMode.Allowed)]     [ServiceBehavior(InstanceContextMode = InstanceContextMode.PerCall)]     public class TimeService     {         [WebGet(UriTemplate = "CurrentTime")]         public string CurrentTime()         {             return DateTime.Now.ToString();         }     } } The endpoint for this service will be http://[machinename]:[port]/TimeService.  To get the current time http://[machinename]:[port]/TimeService/CurrentTime will do the trick. The Results Are In Remember That Route In global.asax? Turns out it is pretty important.  When you set the route name, that defines the resource name starting after the host portion of the Uri. Help Pages in WCF 4 Another feature that came from the starter kit are the help pages.  To access the help pages simply append Help to the end of the service’s base Uri. Dropping the Soap Having dabbled with REST in the past and after using Soap for the last few years, the WCF 4 REST support is certainly refreshing.  I’m currently working on some REST implementations in .NET 3.5 and VS 2008 and am looking forward to working on REST in .NET 4 and VS 2010.

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  • Creating Descriptive Flex Field (DFF) Bean in OAF

    - by Manoj Madhusoodanan
    In this blog I will explain how to add a custom DFF in a custom OAF page.I am using XXCUST_DFF_DEMO table to store the DFF values.Also I am using custom DFF named XXCUST_PERSON_DFF.  Following steps needs to be performed to create this solution. 1) Register the custom table in Oracle Application2) Register the DFF3) Define the segments of DFF4) Create BC4J components for OAF and OA Page which holds the DFF I will explain the steps in detail below. Register the custom table in Oracle Application I am using custom DFF here so I have to register the custom table which I am going to capture the values.Please click here to see the table script. I am using the AD_DD package to register the custom table.Please click here to see the table registration script. Please verify the table has registered successfully. Navigation: Application Developer > Application > Database > Table Table has registered successfully. Register the DFF Next step is to register the DFF. Navigate to Application Developer > Flex Field > Descriptive > Register. Give details as below. Click on Reference Fields and set the Reference Field as ATTRIBUTE_CATEGORY. Click on the Columns button to verify that the columns ATTRIBUTE_CATEGORY,ATTRIBUTE1 .... ATTRIBUTE30 are enabled. DFF has registered successfully. Define the segments of DFF Here I am going to define the segments of the DFF.Navigate to Application Developer > Flex Field > Descriptive > Segments.Query for "XXCUST - Person DFF". Uncheck "Freeze Flexfield Definition". In my DFF the reference field I want to display a value set which has values "Permanent" and "Contractor". So define a value set  XXCUST_EMPLOYMENT_TYPE. Navigation: Application Developer > Flex Field > Descriptive > Validation > Sets After that assign the values to above created value sets. Navigation: Application Developer > Flex Field > Descriptive > Validation > Values Assign XXCUST_EMPLOYMENT_TYPE to Context Field Valueset. Setup the Context Field Values based on below table. Context Code Segments Global Data Elements Phone Number Email Fax Contractor Manager Extension Number CSP Name Permanent Extension Number Access Card Number Phone Number,Email and Fax displays always.When user choose Context Value as "Contractor" Manager Extension Number and CSP Name will show.In case of "Permanent" Extension Number and Access Card Number will show.  Assign value set also as follows. For Global Data Elements following are the segments. For "Contractor" following are the segments. For "Permanent" following are the segments. Check the "Freeze Flexfield Definition" check box and save.Standard concurrent program "Flexfield View Generator" will generate XXCUST_DFF_DEMO_DFV view which we mentioned in the DFF registration step.  Now the DFF has created successfully and ready to use. Create BC4J components for OAF and OA Page which holds the DFF Create the BC4J components ( EO,VO and AM) appropriately.Create the page based on the created VO.For DFF create an item of type "flex" with following property.  Note: You cannot create a flex item directly under a messageComponentLayout region, but you can create a messageLayout region under the messageComponentLayout region and add the flex item under the messageLayout region. In the Segment List property give the segment names which you want to display.The syntax of this is Global Data Elements|SEGMENT 1|...|SEGMENT N||[Context Code1]|SEGMENT 1|...|SEGMENT N||[Context Code2]|SEGMENT 1|...|SEGMENT N||... Eg: Global Data Elements|Phone Number|Email|Fax||Contractor|Manager Extension Number|CSP Name||Permanent|Extension Number|Access Card Number When you change the Context Value corresponding segments will display automatically by PPR in the page. You can attach partial action to the DFF bean programmatically so that you can identify the action related to DFF. pageContext.getParameter(EVENT_PARAM) will return "FLEX_CONTEXT_CHANGEDPersonDFF" when you change the DFF Context. Page is ready and you can test. When you choose "Contract" following output you can see. When you choose "Permanent" following output you can see.  Give proper values and press Apply.You can see values populated in the table.

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  • Forcing an External Activation with Service Broker

    - by Davide Mauri
    In these last days I’ve been working quite a lot with Service Broker, a technology I’m really happy to work with, since it can give a lot of satisfaction. The scale-out solution one can easily build is simply astonishing. I’m helping a company to build a very scalable and – yet almost inexpensive – invoicing system that has to be able to scale out using commodity hardware. To offload the work from the main server to satellite “compute nodes” (yes, I’ve borrowed this term from PDW) we’re using Service Broker and the External Activator application available in the SQL Server Feature Pack. For those who are not used to work with SSB, the External Activation is a feature that allows you to intercept the arrival of a message in a queue right from your application code. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms171617.aspx (Look for “Event-Based Activation”) In order to make life even more easier, Microsoft released the External Activation application that saves you even from writing even this code. http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sql_service_broker/archive/tags/external+activator/ The External Activator application can be configured to execute your own application so that each time a message – an invoice in my case – arrives in the target queue, the invoking application is executed and the invoice is calculated. The very nice feature of External Activator is that it can automatically execute as many configured application in order to process as many messages as your system can handle.  This also a lot of create a scale-out solution, leaving to the developer only a fraction of the problems that usually came with asynchronous programming. Developers are also shielded from Service Broker since everything can be encapsulated in Stored Procedures, so that – for them – developing such scale-out asynchronous solution is not much more complex than just executing a bunch of Stored Procedures. Now, if everything works correctly, you don’t have to bother of anything else. You put messages in the queue and your application, invoked by the External Activator, process them. But what happen if for some reason your application fails to process the messages. For examples, it crashes? The message is safe in the queue so you just need to process it again. But your application is invoked by the External Activator application, so now the question is, how do you wake up that app? Service Broker will engage the activation process only if certain conditions are met: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms171601.aspx But how we can invoke the activation process manually, without having to wait for another message to arrive (the arrival of a new message is a condition that can fire the activation process)? The “trick” is to do manually with the activation process does: sending a system message to a queue in charge of handling External Activation messages: declare @conversationHandle uniqueidentifier; declare @n xml = N' <EVENT_INSTANCE>   <EventType>QUEUE_ACTIVATION</EventType>   <PostTime>' + CONVERT(CHAR(24),GETDATE(),126) + '</PostTime>   <SPID>' + CAST(@@SPID AS VARCHAR(9)) + '</SPID>   <ServerName>[your_server_name]</ServerName>   <LoginName>[your_login_name]</LoginName>   <UserName>[your_user_name]</UserName>   <DatabaseName>[your_database_name]</DatabaseName>   <SchemaName>[your_queue_schema_name]</SchemaName>   <ObjectName>[your_queue_name]</ObjectName>   <ObjectType>QUEUE</ObjectType> </EVENT_INSTANCE>' begin dialog conversation     @conversationHandle from service        [<your_initiator_service_name>] to service          '<your_event_notification_service>' on contract         [http://schemas.microsoft.com/SQL/Notifications/PostEventNotification] with     encryption = off,     lifetime = 6000 ; send on conversation     @conversationHandle message type     [http://schemas.microsoft.com/SQL/Notifications/EventNotification] (@n) ;     end conversation @conversationHandle; That’s it! Put the code in a Stored Procedure and you can add to your application a button that says “Force Queue Processing” (or something similar) in order to start the activation process whenever you need it (which should not occur too frequently but it may happen). PS I know that the “fire-and-forget” (ending the conversation without waiting for an answer) technique is not a best practice, but in this case I don’t see how it can hurts so I decided to stay very close to the KISS principle []

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