I love this cartoon from xkcd, it really emphasizes why you need to screen your data inputs to protect against SQL Injection Attacks.
By the way, there’s a WebLog Awards going on right now, if you also enjoy xkcd give them a vote. http://2007.weblogawards.org/polls/best-comic-strip-1.php Hurry though, voting ends November 8th.
I was on the road last week, traveling to various places in the SouthEast. Sure is good to be back home again! Speaking of back home, there are some events coming up in the Birmingham AL area you should know about.
First up is on Tuesday evening, November 6th, TechMixer Unplugged. If you’ve been to previous TechMixer events you’ll find this a bit different. Previous events have had more of an “expo” feel, with vendor booths and presentations. This event, dubbed “Unplugged” is more of a social mixer. A chance for everyone to get together, relax, enjoy some food and have a good time. For more info go to http://www.techbirmingham.com/default.aspx?id=171 . I’ll be there, hope to see you there.
On Thursday night, November 8th I’ll be speaking at the Birmingham Software Developer’s Association. (http://www.bsda.info/) My subject will be SQL Server 2005 Full Text Searching for Developers.
My coworker and new MVP Jeff W. Barnes will be speaking at the Birmingham Dot Net User Group meeting on Tuesday, November 13th. His subject sounds very interesting, WCF and the Programmable Web. See his blog for more info: http://jeffbarnes.net/portal/blogs/jeff_barnes/archive/2007/10/31/bug-net-meeting-on-nov-13th.aspx
Hope to see you at all these great events!
There’s a special variation of the Table-valued UDF called the multi-statement table-value. As with the regular Table-Value, it can only return a single table. However, you can create a table on the fly, populate it, then return the results. Lets take a look at an example, based on our sample from yesterday.
create function dbo.f_LotsOfPeople(@lastNameA as nvarchar(50), @lastNameB as nvarchar(50))
returns @ManyPeople table
(PersonID int, FullName nvarchar(101), PhoneNumber nvarchar(25))
as
begin
insert @ManyPeople (PersonID, FullName, PhoneNumber)
select ContactID
, FirstName + ‘ ‘ + LastName
, Phone
from Person.Contact
where LastName like (@lastNameA + ‘%’);
insert @ManyPeople (PersonID, FullName, PhoneNumber)
select ContactID
, FirstName + ‘ ‘ + LastName
, Phone
from Person.Contact
where LastName like (@lastNameB + ‘%’);
return
end
The first line declares the function and passes in two parameters. The next line declares the return type will be a table, named @ManyPeople. We need to give our table a name, as we’ll be using it inside the function.
The third line defines the layout of our in memory table, @ManyPeople. I’ve declared three columns, and given their names and data type. Next comes the as, followed by a begin/end construct to house our code.
Inside the code I add data to the @ManyPeople table by using traditional Insert syntax. Please note this isn’t quite like a scalar function, I’m restricted to statements that insert or update records in the @ManyPeople table. Complex calculations, etc are restricted unless they take the form of inserting / updating into our table.
To end the function I have to have a Return statement that will end the function and return the @ManyPeople table to the calling routine. And how do we call it? Pretty simple, just like we did yesterday.
select * from dbo.f_LotsOfPeople(‘Abe’, ‘Zie’)
| PersonID | FullName | PhoneNumber |
| ———– | —————- | ————- |
| 2 | Catherine Abel | 747-555-0171 |
| 3 | Kim Abercrombie | 334-555-0137 |
| 1212 | Kim Abercrombie | 208-555-0114 |
| 1370 | Kim Abercrombie | 919-555-0100 |
| 988 | Arvid Ziegler | 398-555-0100 |
(5 row(s) affected)
Multi-Statement Table-valued UDFs can be handy when you need to assemble data from multiple places and return a single table.
Yesterday we talked about one type of UDF, the scalar. There is also a great comment that emphasizes a point I made, namely you need to be careful to test your UDFs for performance (take time to read it, it’s worth your time). Often a UDF will give you can get a nice performance boost, but sometimes they can negatively affect your queries. TEST!
Today we’ll cover the Table value type of UDF. Unlike the scalar type, which returns only one value, the table type can return multiple rows. They are similar to views, only they perform slightly better. Let’s look at an example.
create function dbo.f_People(@lastName as nvarchar(50))
returns table
as
return
(
select ContactID
, FirstName + ‘ ‘ + LastName as FullName
, Phone
from Person.Contact
where LastName like (@lastName + ‘%’)
)
As you can see, you are only allowed one statement inside the function, and it must be a select statement. It can be a complex one, or a simple one as I’ve done above. The return type of the function is declared as table, which flags this as a table valued UDF.
To use it, treat the UDF as if it were a table and place it in the from clause. You’ll notice that unlike a table though, you can pass in a parameter. Here I pass in a varchar string, and use it as part of the where clause inside the UDF. Here’s an example of using our UDF as part of a SQL statement.
select * from dbo.f_People(‘Ab’)
| ContactID | FullName | Phone |
| ———– | —————- | ————- |
| 2 | Catherine Abel | 747-555-0171 |
| 3 | Kim Abercrombie | 334-555-0137 |
| 1012 | Syed Abbas | 926-555-0182 |
| 1212 | Kim Abercrombie | 208-555-0114 |
| 1268 | Hazem Abolrous | 869-555-0125 |
| 1370 | Kim Abercrombie | 919-555-0100 |
| 1557 | Sam Abolrous | 567-555-0100 |
So why would you want to use this instead of a view? Well as you can see from my example, you have the ability to pass a parameter to the function. With a view, SQL Server precompiles the SQL, then you have to limit the results with a where clause. With the function, SQL also precompiles the statement but this time we can use a parameter, which is precompiled into the select statement, to limit the results. That means you’ll get slightly better performance out of the UDF versus the view.
OK, I admit it sometimes I’m a little late to the party. Even though they’ve been around since SQL Server 2000, I haven’t had the pleasure of getting acquainted with User Defined Functions (UDFs) inside SQL Server. But now that I know about them, I can see how useful they can be. There are several kinds of UDFs, today let’s chat about the scalar types.
A scalar UDF returns one, and only one value from the function. You can pass in parameters, have it do everything from simple to complex calculations, then return a result. Let’s take a look at how one is coded, using the AdventureWorks database.
create function dbo.f_ContactFullName(@id as int)
returns varchar(101)
as
begin
declare @FullName varchar(101);
select @FullName = FirstName + ‘ ‘ + LastName
from Person.Contact
where ContactID = @id;
return @FullName;
end;
Running the above code will create your UDF. To confirm it worked, in SQL Server Management Studios Object Explorer open the tree under AdentureWorks. Go down to Progammability, Functions, Scalar-valued Functions and you should see the new function.
The purpose of this function is to take the contact ID (the Primary Key) and look up the name in the Person.Contact table. It then concatenates the first and last names for us and returns the full name.
We begin with a create function command, followed by the name of the function. I would suggest you adopt some naming scheme to identify your functions, to separate them from stored procedures or other built in functions. Some folks use ufn, some fn, I chose f_ for my prefix. At the end of the function is the parameter list, enclosed in parenthesis. If there had been more than one parameter, I would have used commas to separate them.
Next comes the return type, in this case I’m returning a varchar. Your function will then be enclosed in a begin…end construct. I’ve declared a variable to hold the return value (@FullName), and then run a simple select statement to get the name, concatenate it, and store it in our variable. Finally I use the return command to return the value back to the caller. And how do we call it?
Well, one simple way is to simply say “select functionname()” as in
select dbo.f_ContactFullName(1);
————————-
Gustavo Achong
(1 row(s) affected)
I passed in a contact id from the table (1) and it returned the full name of that person. What might be more useful though is to include the UDF as part of a select statement.
select Person.Contact.ContactID
, dbo.f_ContactFullName(Person.Contact.ContactID)
, EmailAddress
from Person.Contact
order by Person.Contact.ContactID
| ContactID | EmailAddress | |
| ——— | —————– | ——————————- |
| 1 | Gustavo Achong | gustavo0@adventure-works.com |
| 2 | Catherine Abel | catherine0@adventure-works.com |
| 3 | Kim Abercrombie | kim2@adventure-works.com |
| 4 | Humberto Acevedo | humberto0@adventure-works.com |
| 5 | Pilar Ackerman | pilar1@adventure-works.com |
| 6 | Frances Adams | frances0@adventure-works.com |
| 7 | Margaret Smith | margaret0@adventure-works.com |
| 8 | Carla Adams | carla0@adventure-works.com |
| 9 | Jay Adams | jay1@adventure-works.com |
On the second line of the select statement I call my small function, to comprise the full name. And under it you can see the results.
I should mention there are a few tradeoffs to using user defined functions. First, they are not portable to other databases. That means if you ever moved your data to another database type they would not transfer, and would have to be written as something else. But I mean, really now. How many times have you ever moved your data to another database. It happens so seldom that I would not worry about it.
What you should be concerned over though is the performance trade offs. For example, looking at my example above each row winds up making two calls to the same table, one to fetch the record and a second to fetch it again inside the function to get the name. Not very efficient. On the other hand, if I was reading another table, this might be just as efficient as joining the tables, and easier to use.
select SalesOrderID
, dbo.f_ContactFullName(ContactID) as OurCustomer
, OrderDate
, PurchaseOrderNumber
from Sales.SalesOrderHeader
order by SalesOrderID
| SalesOrderID | OurCustomer | OrderDate | PurchaseOrderNumber |
| ———— | ——————– | ———– | ——————– |
| 43659 | James Hendergart | 2001-07-01 | PO522145787 |
| 43660 | Takiko Collins | 2001-07-01 | PO18850127500 |
| 43661 | Jauna Elson | 2001-07-01 | PO18473189620 |
| 43662 | Robin McGuigan | 2001-07-01 | PO18444174044 |
| 43663 | Jimmy Bischoff | 2001-07-01 | PO18009186470 |
| 43664 | Sandeep Katyal | 2001-07-01 | PO16617121983 |
| 43665 | Richard Bready | 2001-07-01 | PO16588191572 |
| 43666 | Abraham Swearengin | 2001-07-01 | PO16008173883 |
In this example I’ve created a very simple User Defined Function. However, you can get as complex as you need and create long, intricate functions. Given the right circumstances UDFs can add a new dimension to your code reuse libraries.
I think I may have just discovered the most useful blog on the internet for Visual Studio developers. Sara Ford, who just took over as Program Manager for Code Plex (http://www.codeplex.com) posts a “Visual Studio Tip of the Day”. They are short but wow are they useful. I can’t believe I haven’t discovered this gem before today, but hey better late than never.
Go read her blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/saraford/default.aspx and tell her “Go Sara Go!”
Today I’ve posted the Javascript for my DNR game (see posts from last two days). As you can see, it’s very straight forward and doesn’t require much explanation.
When the app loads, it calls a routine that uses a random number generator to randomly select a layout for the photos.
The other large routine handles mouse clicks. The really tricky part was determining which images were displayed and which were not. I finally resorted to using the Tag property of each Canvas control. In the Tag I put two numbers, each being a 0 or a 1. The first number represents a Boolean that flags whether the images is visible or not. The second position notes whether the image has already been matched. There are a number of SetCanvas… helper routines to make the setting of these flags a bit easier.
I make a lot of use of Math.Random to generate random numbers. I then use these to determine various messages that get displayed across the middle of the screen, tha way the user won’t get bored.
OK, enough talk, here’s the code. I’ve documented it pretty well, but if you have questions send me an e-mail or post a comment.
if (!window.DNRMatch)
window.DNRMatch = {};
DNRMatch.Scene = function()
{
}
// ****************************************************************************
// * Author: Robert C. Cain, Arcane Code, http://arcanecode.com
// *
// * Notes
// *
// * The heart of the system relies on the tag property of the Canvas controls
// * used to display the pictures. It was the only mechanism I could find to
// * easily provide persistance between calls.
// *
// * The tag currently is a two character string. The first character is 0
// * or 1 and indicates if the ? is showing (a 0) or the Answer image is
// * being displayed (value is 1).
// *
// * The second position is also a 0 or 1, and indicates if the image has been
// * matched yet by the user or not. (0=no, 1=yes)
// *
// ****************************************************************************
// I store this here as it gets loaded and used in several places
var imgList = new Array(10);
DNRMatch.Scene.prototype =
{
// Runs when app is first loaded
handleLoad: function(plugIn, userContext, rootElement)
{
// Get the inital list of images into imgList array
RandomizeImages();
this.plugIn = plugIn;
// Can’t use SetImages function since we don’t have a sender
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
plugIn.content.findName(“imgAnswer0” + i.toString()).Source=imgList[i];
}
}
}
//=============================================================================
// Main routine, activated when a user clicks on any image
//=============================================================================
function imgMouseLeftButtonDown(sender, mouseEventArgs)
{
var imgNumber = sender.Name.substr(3,2);
var imgIndex = imgNumber.valueOf();
var msg = sender.findName(“StatusArea”);
var imgCurrentImage = sender.findName(“imgAnswer” + imgNumber);
// Show the hidden image
if(CanvasVisible(sender, imgIndex)==“0”)
{
sender.findName(“img” + imgNumber + “RevealAnimation”).begin();
sender.tag = “1” + sender.tag.substr(1,1);
}
var msgText=“”;
var foundMatch=false;
// Now check to see if another image is also visible.
// If so, we’ll want to check for a match.
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
// If we’re not dealing with the same image
if(i != imgIndex)
{
var imgLoopAnswer = sender.findName(“imgAnswer” + imgNumber);
// If the image is visible
if(CanvasVisible(sender, i.toString()) == “1”)
{
// See if it’s same image
if( GetSource(sender, i)==GetSource(sender, imgIndex) )
{
// Congratulate user, then set the matched tags
msg.text=GoodJobMessage(sender, i);
SetCanvasMatchedTag(sender, i);
SetCanvasMatchedTag(sender, imgIndex);
foundMatch=true;
}
}
}
}
// See if we need to show a “no match” message
if(foundMatch==false) // If we didn’t find a match…
{
// If there are two items visible
if (VisibleButUnmatchedCount(sender)==2)
{
// Show the bad job message
msg.text=BadJobMessage();
}
else
{
// Only one image visible, set message to empty
msg.text=“”;
}
}
// Reset non-matches
if (VisibleButUnmatchedCount(sender)==2)
{
for(i=0; i<10; i++) // for each canvas
{
if(CanvasMatched(sender, i) == “0”) // if it hasn’t been matched
{
if(CanvasVisible(sender, i) == “1”) // but it’s visible
{
sender.findName(“img0” + i.toString() + “HideAnimation”).begin(); // hide it
SetCanvasInVisibleTag(sender, i);
SetCanvasUnMatchedTag(sender, i);
}
}
}
}
// Check For Victory
if(MatchCount(sender)==10)
{
msg.text=“You Won!!! Press Reset Game to play again.”;
}
// Just some debugging code, will leave it as it makes for good demo
// msg.text=ShowTags(sender);
// msg.text=ShowSources(sender);
}
//=============================================================================
// Check the Tag property of the canvas to see if the image is visible
//=============================================================================
function CanvasVisible(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
var isCanvasVisible = currentCanvas.tag.substr(0,1);
return isCanvasVisible;
}
//=============================================================================
// Check the Tag property of the canvas to see if the image has been matched
//=============================================================================
function CanvasMatched(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
var isCanvasMatched = currentCanvas.tag.substr(1,1);
return isCanvasMatched;
}
//=============================================================================
// Set the Tag property of the canvas to indicate
// this canvas’s image is visible
//=============================================================================
function SetCanvasVisibleTag(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
currentCanvas.tag = “1” + currentCanvas.tag.substr(1,1);
}
//=============================================================================
// Set the Tag property of the canvas to indicate
// this canvas’s image is not visible
//=============================================================================
function SetCanvasInVisibleTag(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
currentCanvas.tag = “0” + currentCanvas.tag.substr(1,1);
}
//=============================================================================
// Set the Tag property of the canvas to indicate
// this canvas’s image has been matched
//=============================================================================
function SetCanvasMatchedTag(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
currentCanvas.tag = currentCanvas.tag.substr(0,1) + “1” ;
}
//=============================================================================
// Set the Tag property of the canvas to indicate
// this canvas’s image is not matched
//=============================================================================
function SetCanvasUnMatchedTag(sender, canvasNumber)
{
var canvasNum = canvasNumber.toString();
if(canvasNum.length > 1)
{
canvasNum = canvasNum.substr(canvasNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + canvasNum);
currentCanvas.tag = currentCanvas.tag.substr(0,1) + “0” ;
}
//=============================================================================
// Count the number of items left that are visible, but not
// matched. In theory this should either be 0, 1 or 2.
//=============================================================================
function VisibleButUnmatchedCount(sender)
{
var retVal=0;
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
if(CanvasVisible(sender, i)==“1”)
{
if(CanvasMatched(sender, i)==“0”)
{
retVal++;
}
}
}
return retVal;
}
//=============================================================================
// Count the number of items that are matched.
// When it reached 10 we’ll know they won
//=============================================================================
function MatchCount(sender)
{
var retVal=0;
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
if(CanvasMatched(sender, i)==“1”)
{
retVal++;
}
}
return retVal;
}
//=============================================================================
// Get the file name of the image used in the sender control
//=============================================================================
function GetSource(sender, imageNumber)
{
var imgNum = imageNumber.toString();
if(imgNum.length > 1)
{
imgNum = imgNum.substr(imgNum.length – 1, 1);
}
var img = sender.findName(“imgAnswer0” + imgNum );
return img.Source;
}
//=============================================================================
// Create a “Bad Guess” message
//=============================================================================
function BadJobMessage()
{
// Randomly select from the list of “Try again” messages
var possibleMsgs = new Array(5);
possibleMsgs[0] = “Nope, try again.”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “I don’t think so!”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “Dude, not even close!”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “Don’t give up yet, keep trying!”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “Ha! Don’t make me laugh.”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “I’ve heard of wild guesses, but gee whiz. Try again.”;
var randomNum = Math.floor(Math.random()*6);
return possibleMsgs[randomNum];
}
//=============================================================================
// Create a Good Job message based on the image the user
// just matched.
//=============================================================================
function GoodJobMessage(sender, imageNumber)
{
var retMsg = “Good Job.”;
var possibleMsgs = new Array(9);
if(GetSource(sender, imageNumber)==“Carl02.png”)
{
possibleMsgs[0] = “Carl says you da man!”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “You must be that squirt king of C#. We will make a T-shirt for you.”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “A catheter and somebody to bring you a sandwich once in a while. That’s living man.”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “While you shampoo your hair… Wait I guess that rules out C++ programmers.”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “Some people go to sleep listening to DNR.”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “”;
possibleMsgs[6] = “”;
possibleMsgs[7] = “”;
possibleMsgs[8] = “”;
retMsg = possibleMsgs[Math.floor(Math.random()*5)];
}
if(GetSource(sender, imageNumber)==“Richard01.png”)
{
possibleMsgs[0] = “It’s Richard, the Toy Boy!”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “Now we got emotional baggage.”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “Ballmer is always great. He seems a lot less angry these days, I think they switched him to decaf.”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “Everytime you say Web 2.0, a startup dies.”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “My favorite Martian is Mark Miller!”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “Don’t play with it, just look at it!”;
possibleMsgs[6] = “You [Mark Miller] are the Jim Carey of the podcasting world.”;
possibleMsgs[7] = “Welcome to the dark side baby!”;
possibleMsgs[8] = “”;
retMsg = possibleMsgs[Math.floor(Math.random()*8)];
}
if(GetSource(sender, imageNumber)==“Rory.png”)
{
possibleMsgs[0] = “Rory rewards you by allowing you to gaze upon his magnificence.”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “You are testing my patience Franklin!”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “You’re like some kid from a third world country…”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “It’s a place where you can talk about anal leakage.”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “I was pretending to tweak Mark Dunn’s nipples like they were radio knobs.”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “I was talking about how weird it was to see Mark Dunn in the flesh.”;
possibleMsgs[6] = “”;
possibleMsgs[7] = “”;
possibleMsgs[8] = “”;
retMsg = possibleMsgs[Math.floor(Math.random()*5)];
}
if(GetSource(sender, imageNumber)==“Mark.png”)
{
possibleMsgs[0] = “Mark Dunn says it’s always sunny in the south!”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “I gotta clean my underwear now Carl.”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “I am higher than a California Condor on Ecstasy, that’s how excited I am to be here.”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “”;
possibleMsgs[6] = “”;
possibleMsgs[7] = “”;
possibleMsgs[8] = “”;
retMsg = possibleMsgs[Math.floor(Math.random()*3)];
}
if(GetSource(sender, imageNumber)==“Miller.png”)
{
possibleMsgs[0] = “I got nuthin’ man.”;
possibleMsgs[1] = “You guys are messing with me again!”;
possibleMsgs[2] = “My golden ticket on the candy bar said it was about a new co-host!”;
possibleMsgs[3] = “I want one of these!”;
possibleMsgs[4] = “What about me Carl?”;
possibleMsgs[5] = “I’m good lookin too!”;
possibleMsgs[6] = “”;
possibleMsgs[7] = “”;
possibleMsgs[8] = “”;
retMsg = possibleMsgs[Math.floor(Math.random()*6)];
}
return retMsg;
}
//=============================================================================
// Reset the game for another play
//=============================================================================
function ResetGame(sender, mouseEventArgs)
{
sender.findName(“mainHideAnimation”).begin(); // hide it
for(i=0; i<10; i++) // for each canvas
{
SetCanvasUnMatchedTag(sender, i);
if(CanvasVisible(sender, i) == “1”) // but it’s visible
{
sender.findName(“img0” + i.toString() + “HideAnimation”).begin(); // hide it
SetCanvasInVisibleTag(sender, i);
}
}
RandomizeImages();
SetImages(sender);
var msg = sender.findName(“StatusArea”);
msg.text = “Play the game!”;
sender.findName(“mainRevealAnimation”).begin(); // hide it
}
//=============================================================================
// Create a random number, then use it to pick and load the
// imgList array. Used to mix up the images.
//=============================================================================
function RandomizeImages()
{
// Default set
imgList[0] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[1] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[2] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[3] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[4] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[5] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[6] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[7] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Carl02.png”;
var randomNum = Math.floor(Math.random()*9);
if(randomNum==0)
{
imgList[0] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[1] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[2] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[3] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[4] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[5] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[6] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[7] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Carl02.png”;
}
if(randomNum==1)
{
imgList[0] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[1] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[2] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[3] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[4] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[5] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[6] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[7] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Mark.png”;
}
if(randomNum==2)
{
imgList[0] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[1] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[2] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[3] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[4] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[5] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[6] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[7] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Miller.png”;
}
if(randomNum==3)
{
imgList[0] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[1] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[2] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[3] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[4] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[5] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[6] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[7] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Mark.png”;
}
if(randomNum==4)
{
imgList[0] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[1] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[2] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[3] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[4] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[5] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[6] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[7] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Miller.png”;
}
if(randomNum==5)
{
imgList[0] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[1] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[2] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[3] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[4] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[5] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[6] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[7] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[8] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[9] = “Miller.png”;
}
if(randomNum==6)
{
imgList[0] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[1] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[2] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[3] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[4] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[5] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[6] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[7] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[8] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[9] = “Carl02.png”;
}
if(randomNum==7)
{
imgList[0] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[1] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[2] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[3] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[4] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[5] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[6] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[7] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[8] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[9] = “Rory.png”;
}
if(randomNum==8)
{
imgList[0] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[1] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[2] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[3] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[4] = “Miller.png”;
imgList[5] = “Mark.png”;
imgList[6] = “Carl02.png”;
imgList[7] = “Richard01.png”;
imgList[8] = “Rory.png”;
imgList[9] = “Miller.png”;
}
}
//=============================================================================
// Sets the image source property for all the images
// to the image name loaded in the imgList array
//=============================================================================
function SetImages(sender)
{
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
sender.findName(“imgAnswer0” + i.toString()).Source=imgList[i];
}
}
//=============================================================================
// Causes the job to wait a certain number of milliseconds.
// Has a drawback in that it does not pause animations,
// so if you use it while an animation is happening you won’t
// see the animation effect but it will ‘jerk’ to the final result.
//=============================================================================
function wait(msecs)
{
var start = new Date().getTime();
var cur = start
while(cur – start < msecs)
{
cur = new Date().getTime();
}
}
//=============================================================================
// For debugging only – Shows all the images.
//=============================================================================
function ShowSources(sender)
{
var retVal=“”;
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
retVal += i.toString() + “: “ + GetSource(sender, i);
}
return retVal;
}
//=============================================================================
// For debugging only – Shows the tags
//=============================================================================
function ShowTags(sender)
{
retVal = “”;
for(i=0; i<10; i++)
{
var currentCanvas = sender.findName(“img0” + i.toString());
retVal += currentCanvas.tag + ” “;
}
return retVal;
}
I don’t normally do thinks like this, especially when I’m not making any money off of it, but I have to pass along a “hot deal” tip. As we all know, developers computers crave lots of memory, especially running Vista. Staples has memory on sale, including one specific type of PNY notebook memory. A 1 Gig PC2700 DDR333 is going for the out the door cost of 59.99 (US Dollars). That is a savings of well over one hundred (of those same US) dollars. I took advantage to upgrade my HP 8195 Laptop to 2 full Gig, maxing it out. They also have several types of desktop ram on sale, check your paper. These are on sale until close of business Saturday 10/13.
Let me be clear, I am not making any money, kickbacks, or am in any way affiliated with Staples (other than shelling out my sixty bucks to them). I just wanted to pass along a good deal to my readers who may not have picked up the sale papers.
Because it’s quite long I’ve posted the XAML at the foot of this post. It’s pretty straight forward though. In Silverlight 1.0 XAML, you’re restricted to using a Canvas for your containers.
In this case I use 10 child canvases, one for each of the photos. At the start of the XAML for each image canvas I have two Storyboards in the Canvas.Resources section. One storyboard fades the question mark out then the photo in. The other reverses it, fading out the photo and in the question mark.
Next I put a rectangle around the entire game, then display the title bar. After that I display the instructions at the bottom using colors similar to the title bar.
A series of 10 canvases come next, each one holds two image controls, one for the question mark and one for the picture of the host. When the app starts, the Javascript replaces the Source property for each of the Answer images with a photo of the host, but you’ll see that tomorrow.
The only other thing to note is how mouse clicks are captured. There is no Click even as you might be used to with WPF, instead you have to capture the MouseLeftButtonDown. I route all 10 images’ MouseLeftButtonDown events to the same Javascript method, and use the Sender parameter to differentiate which of the 10 Canvases were clicked.
The final thing to note is the Reset Game button, which really isn’t a button but a canvas, which holds a rectangle with some cool gradients and a text block. Just like with the images, the canvas’ MouseLeftButtonDown is captured and the corresponding Javascript routine is called.
OK, enough explanation for today, here’s the code:
<Canvas xmlns=“http://schemas.microsoft.com/client/2007“
xmlns:x=“http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml“
x:Name=“mainCanvas“
Width=“800“ Height=“500“ Background=“Black“>
<Canvas.Resources>
<Storyboard x:Name=“mainRevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:01.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“mainCanvas“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“mainHideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:01.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“mainCanvas“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img00RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion00“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer00“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img00HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer00“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion00“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img01RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion01“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer01“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img01HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer01“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion01“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img02RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion02“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer02“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img02HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer02“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion02“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img03RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion03“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer03“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img03HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer03“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion03“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img04RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion04“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer04“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img04HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer04“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion04“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img05RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion05“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer05“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img05HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer05“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion05“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img06RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion06“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer06“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img06HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer06“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion06“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img07RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion07“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer07“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img07HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer07“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion07“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img08RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion08“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer08“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img08HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer08“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion08“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img09RevealAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion09“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer09“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
<Storyboard x:Name=“img09HideAnimation“ >
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“1“ To=“0“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgAnswer09“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
<DoubleAnimation Duration=“00:00:00.5“ From=“0“ To=“1“
Storyboard.TargetName=“imgQuestion09“
Storyboard.TargetProperty=“Opacity“ />
</Storyboard>
</Canvas.Resources>
<Rectangle Width=“800“ Height=“500“ Canvas.Left=“0“ Canvas.Top=“0“>
<Rectangle.Fill>
<LinearGradientBrush>
<GradientStop Color=“#00000000“ Offset=“0.0“ />
<GradientStop Color=“#55555555“ Offset=“0.25“ />
<GradientStop Color=“#00000000“ Offset=“0.75“ />
<GradientStop Color=“#88888888“ Offset=“1.0“ />
</LinearGradientBrush>
</Rectangle.Fill>
</Rectangle>
<!– Title bar –>
<Rectangle x:Name=“TitleBar“ Canvas.Left=“25“ Canvas.Top=“10“
Width=“750“ Height=“75“ RadiusX=“16“ RadiusY=“16“
Stroke=“#E0F0F0“ StrokeThickness=“8“>
<Rectangle.Fill>
<LinearGradientBrush StartPoint=“0.5,0“ EndPoint=“0.5,1“ >
<GradientStop Color=“#FFC4E1F0“ Offset=“0“/>
<GradientStop Color=“#FF64E1F0“ Offset=“1“/>
</LinearGradientBrush>
</Rectangle.Fill>
</Rectangle>
<TextBlock Canvas.Left=“50“ Canvas.Top=“33“
FontFamily=“Arial“ FontSize=“28“ FontWeight=“Bold“>
Arcane Code’s Match the Dot Net Rocks Hosts Game
</TextBlock>
<!– Instructions –>
<Canvas Canvas.Left=“50“ Canvas.Top=“390“>
<Rectangle x:Name=“Instructions“ Canvas.Top=“0“ Canvas.Left=“0“
Width=“625“ Height=“105“ RadiusX=“16“ RadiusY=“16“
Stroke=“#E0F0F0“ StrokeThickness=“4“>
<Rectangle.Fill>
<LinearGradientBrush StartPoint=“0.5,0“ EndPoint=“0.5,1“ >
<GradientStop Color=“#FFC4E1F0“ Offset=“0“/>
<GradientStop Color=“#FF64E1F0“ Offset=“1“/>
</LinearGradientBrush>
</Rectangle.Fill>
</Rectangle>
<TextBlock Canvas.Left=“10“ Canvas.Top=“15“
FontFamily=“Arial“ FontSize=“16“ FontWeight=“Bold“>
Instructions
</TextBlock>
<TextBlock Canvas.Left=“15“ Canvas.Top=“38“ Width=“550“
FontFamily=“Arial“ FontSize=“12“ TextWrapping=“Wrap“ >
Click on the question marks to reveal the hosts of Dot Net Rocks. Carl Franklin,
Richard Campbell, Rory Blyth, Mark Dunn and Mark Miller challenge you to find them.
Watch the message bar in the middle for quotes from the DNR hosts.
(Yes, I know, technically Mark Miller isn’t a host, but every time he’s on he thinks he
is, so I decided to let him live out his fantasies in this game.)
</TextBlock>
</Canvas>
<!– The images –>
<Canvas x:Name=“img00“ Canvas.Left=“050“ Canvas.Top=“100“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion00“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer00“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img01“ Canvas.Left=“200“ Canvas.Top=“100“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion01“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer01“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img02“ Canvas.Left=“350“ Canvas.Top=“100“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion02“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer02“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img03“ Canvas.Left=“500“ Canvas.Top=“100“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion03“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer03“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img04“ Canvas.Left=“650“ Canvas.Top=“100“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion04“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer04“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img05“ Canvas.Left=“050“ Canvas.Top=“250“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion05“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer05“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img06“ Canvas.Left=“200“ Canvas.Top=“250“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion06“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer06“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img07“ Canvas.Left=“350“ Canvas.Top=“250“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion07“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer07“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img08“ Canvas.Left=“500“ Canvas.Top=“250“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion08“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer08“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<Canvas x:Name=“img09“ Canvas.Left=“650“ Canvas.Top=“250“ Height=“100“
MouseLeftButtonDown=“imgMouseLeftButtonDown“ Tag=“00“ >
<Image x:Name=“imgQuestion09“ Height=“100“ Width=“100“ Source=“Dunno.png“ />
<Image x:Name=“imgAnswer09“ Height=“100“ Source=“Carl01.png“ Opacity=“0“ />
</Canvas>
<!– Message Bar across Middle of Screen –>
<Rectangle Width=“700“ Height=“26“ Stroke=“#FF000000“ Canvas.Left=“50“ Canvas.Top=“212“>
<Rectangle.Fill>
<LinearGradientBrush EndPoint=“1,0.5“ StartPoint=“0,0.5“>
<GradientStop Color=“#FFDDDDDD“ Offset=“1“/>
<GradientStop Color=“#FF464646“ Offset=“0.393“/>
<GradientStop Color=“#FE8B8B8B“ Offset=“0.723“/>
</LinearGradientBrush>
</Rectangle.Fill>
</Rectangle>
<TextBlock x:Name=“StatusArea“ Canvas.Left=“55“ Canvas.Top=“215“
FontSize=“14“ FontWeight=“Medium“ Foreground=“White“ >
Match the Hosts!
</TextBlock>
<!– Reset Game Button–>
<Canvas Canvas.Top=“455“ Canvas.Left=“690“ MouseLeftButtonDown=“ResetGame“>
<Rectangle Stroke=“Black“ StrokeThickness=“2“
Width=“100“ Height=“40“
RadiusX=“10“ RadiusY=“10“>
<Rectangle.Fill>
<LinearGradientBrush>
<GradientStop Color=“Gray“ Offset=“0“/>
<GradientStop Color=“Snow“ Offset=“0.6“/>
<GradientStop Color=“Gray“ Offset=“1“/>
</LinearGradientBrush>
</Rectangle.Fill>
</Rectangle>
<TextBlock Canvas.Top=“10“ Canvas.Left=“10“
FontSize=“14“ FontWeight=“Bold“
Text=“Reset Game“ />
</Canvas>
</Canvas>
Alabama Code Camp 5 did something interesting, they sponsored a programming contest. The rules were pretty simple, you had to code a game using Silverlight 1.0. First prize would be awarded a Zune.
If I tell you I still want a Zune, you’ll be able to figure out how I did. Actually, I did come in second place, but that’s OK. I had a fun time coding the game, and it was neat to get in there roll up my sleeves and learn a new technology. Not to mention listening to all those old DNR episodes to get the quotes. (I still want a Zune though. 😉
Here’s what I came up with, the Arcane Code Match the Dot Net Rocks Hosts Game. Play is quite simple, you click on the question marks. The first click reveals a DNR host, if you match with the second click the hosts photo stays up, and you are rewarded with a witty quote across the middle of the screen. If you fail to match, you are cruelly taunted then the pictures fade back to question marks. Match all the hosts to win. Below is an example before play begins. (Click for a bigger image).
And here is a game with all the hosts revealed. Carl Franklin, Mark Dunn, Rory Blyth, Richard Campbell and Mark Miller revealed in all their glory.
Now, before I get a zillion comments and e-mails, yes I am perfectly aware that Mark Miller is not a DNR Host. However, every time he gets on Mark Miller thinks he’s a host! And frankly, if it will help him to achieve his goal of 125 refactorings inside RefactorPro, then hey I’m certainly willing to help him live out his delusions inside the game.
Each time you play, by the way, the pictures get scrambled in a different order. In a few weeks I hope to figure out a place to host the game so you can actually play for yourself and not just have to look at static screen shots. Right now though I use WordPress for my blog and it (unfortunately) doesn’t do Silverlight.
Over the next two days I’ll show you the code behind, tomorrow I’ll post the XAML and Friday the Javascript. On both days I’ll talk a little bit about the code and what I did. If anyone would like a copy of the entire project, just shoot me an e-mail: arcanecode at gmail.com and I will send you a zip file with the whole project.
Tomorrow, Saturday October 6th I will be presenting “Getting Started with Full Text Searching”. Here are the materials I’ll be using during the demo.
First, here is a PDF of the PowerPoint slides:
Next, most of the demos used SQL statements. This PDF file has all of the SQL plus some associated notes.
Finally, I did a WPF project that demonstrated how to call a full text search query from a WPF Windows application. Annoyingly enough WordPress (who hosts my blog) won’t let me upload ZIP files, so I renamed the extension to pdf. After you download the file to your drive, remove the .pdf and put the zip extension back on, then it should expand all the source for you correctly. (Yes, I know, I really need to get a host server for binaries, one of these days I’ll get around to it, but for tonight…)
Holy Frameworks Batman! The news is spreading quick, Microsoft has announced that they will be releasing the source code, complete with comments and debugger support. Now you and I will be able to step into those framework classes in an effort to debug our apps and maybe even learn something. This will be part of the VS2008 Orcas release.
Check out the announcement on the ScottGu blog at
Shawn Burke has details on his blog:
Channel 9 video at:
Scott Hanselman also has the scoop on his podcast:
This ranks in the uber-cool category.
In reviewing my previously published notes on SQL Server Full Text Searching, I realized I omitted an important fact: which versions support it. If you wish to explore Full Text Searching under SQL Server 2005, you cannot use the standard SQL Server Express Edition.
The standard version of Express Edition lacks support for Full Text Searching, along with Reporting Services. Instead you will need to download and install the SQL Server 2005 Express Edition with Advances Services. This version includes everything you’ll need to experiment and implement Full Text Searching with SQL Server 2005.
You can download this version from Microsoft’s website:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/express/bb410792.aspx
Just look for the area named SQL Server 2005 Express Edition with Advanced Services SP2.
You need to be aware that even with the Advanced Services SP2 version, Full Text Searching is not automatically installed. During the install uncheck the box that talks about hiding advanced configuration features. Then on the appropriate screen change the installer to add FTS to your installed components.
For my previous posts on Full Text Searching, please check out the Arcane Lessons link at the top of this page. Scroll down to the Full Text Search area for links to all FTS related posts.
I just got done updating the Arcane Lessons page. I added the last couple of weeks of WPF lessons to the WPF area, added one new item to the SQL Server Full Text Search area, and created a new category: Arcane’s Toolbox. This first list is all of the Visual Studio add-ins I’ve blogged about. Later I plan to add some of my favorite Windows add-ins, but if you don’t want to wait you can click on the Windows Add-ins tag to see the posts.
I spent my weekend learning Silverlight, writing a game in Silverlight 1.0. I did all of my project in Visual Studio 2005 and using Silverlight 1.0 runtime. It’s a pretty simple game, I’ll reveal more later in the week and eventually post all the code and blog about the development experience.
The biggest pain was not in the XAML, that was pretty straight forward, it was all the [explicative deleted] Javascript. It’s been a few years since I did any Javascript so I had a lot of relearning to do.
If you are want to look into Silverlight coding, I highly recommend you go to the Getting Started site on Silverlight’s website. http://silverlight.net/getstarted/Default.aspx
After you download all the bits, go to the very bottom of the page under “3. Learn from Samples and Documentation”. Go read all the QuickStarts!!! Very good code samples here to get you started.
After you go through the code samples, there are some really good focus videos at http://silverlight.net/Learn/learnvideos.aspx . These helped me over quite a few hurdles.
The documentation was also very helpful in looking up how some properties worked, going back and forth between Java and Xaml. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb188743.aspx
There will be more to come on this subject to be sure, but over the next few days I’ll be preparing my presentaion for Alabama Code Camp 5 on SQL Server 2005 Full Text Searching,
Arcane Code 