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What’s new in MS Project 2007?

Sat, 22 Nov 2008 04:15:00 GMT

The Microsoft Office Project 2007 family of products provides a range of tools to support variety of approaches to work management and business goals. Office Project 2007 addresses the needs of sophisticated project management organizations that require centralized and strategic financial control in addition to support for rigorous project management methodologies.

The Office Project 2007 family includes the Project client applications, Project Server, the client and server APIs, and the necessary infrastructure such as Microsoft SQL Server and Windows SharePoint Services.

Here are several new features in the tool from its predecessor

Multilevel Undo

Unlimited levels of the Undo command with Easy-to-use drop-down list of Undo actions, to allow what-if experimentation with scheduling changes
Programmable model to allow undo use by add-ins

Visual Reports

Easily export Project data to Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Office Visio 2007 to produce charts, graphs, and diagrams of things such as resource allocation or project status against plan
Define custom report templates to share with other Project users
These templates and reports can be previewed from a dialog box in Project
Publish report templates to shared folders and Windows SharePoint Services 3.0

Change Highlighting

Highlights changes to a schedule that have been caused by Project calculations
Visible indicators provided for all tasks affected by calculations

Task Drivers

Provides quick access to factors that affect task dates
Enables easy browsing of the critical path in a project plan

Cost resources

New resource type
Enables multiple planned and actual costs to be defined by task across time
Supports integration with accounting systems
Custom fields can be rolled down to the assignment level to allow better task reports of costs in a given cost center, type, or category

Budgeting

Defines a budget at a high level (program or project) so that the project manager can allocate funds and track costs against the budget
Supports budget variance reporting

Calendars

Named calendar exceptions
Definition of recurring exceptions and different work weeks
Arabic calendar support

Calendar View enhancements

Updated look and feel familiar for Office users
Supports daily, weekly, and monthly views
Monthly preview pane puts schedule in context

Gantt chart view enhancements

3-D texturing of Gantt bars supported
Enables you to call out important dates, costs or tasks by changing the background color of cells in the table portion of the view
Enables you to highlight categories of cells, such as critical tasks, external tasks, highlighted tasks, marked tasks, noncritical tasks, milestone tasks, summary tasks, and changed cells

Desktop OLAP cube

• Create customer reports or archive Project values with data exported from Project into an Access database and OLAP cubes

• Five cubes are generated:

task timephased
task non–timephased
resource timephased
resource non–timephased
assignment timephased

Multi-Value custom fields

Custom fields support multiple value selections

New templates

Over 25 new templates, including:

Annual report
Hiring forecast
HRIS implementation
Marketing event planning and execution
Performance reviews
Strategic merger or acquisition evaluation
Vendor evaluation and consolidation
Insurance claim processing
Internal readiness training
ISO 9001 management review

All in all, a feature rich release of project which, if mastered, could help project managers breeze through scheduling challenges if used to its full potential.

Managing an Agile Project Portfolio

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:30:00 GMT

Numerous articles and books have been written about proper project management techniques and how to steer a project from start to finish. Many of them offer help in maneuvering a floundering project back on track. What is mind-boggling, however, is that despite receiving so much help and advice, so many IT projects are considered failures, even those that were delivered on time and on budget. Furthermore, if you add the project evaluation criteria to measure the success of IT projects, it’s likely that the list of success stories would shrink even further.

One reason for all this dissatisfaction is that many customers initially don’t even know what they want, or more importantly, they don’t know what they could get for their money. Once a project starts, however, customer expectations often rise while scope creep and churn take the energy out of the project team. On an individual project level, agile software engineering addresses these concerns and seeks to develop project iteratively as a way to better serve the customer’s true needs. But what about the projects themselves? Could applying agile concepts to how we balance the mix of a company's IT projects ensure that we choose to work on the projects that will be successful and meet customer needs?

Find full article by Jochen Krebs

DNN Upgrade to 4.5.3 and dasblog (virtual directory) crashing...

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 15:30:00 GMT

Recently I upgraded my DotNetNuke installation from 3.x to 4.5.3. Upgrade went smooth but I had tough time making dasblog work under DNN (running on virtual directory under DNN).

I googled for solution nearly full day but didn't get the exact solution. All the solutions were for dnn 3.x though which I was using for around an year (on .Net 1.1). <Clear/> tag does not work to clear root HTTP modules and handlers settings which gets inherited to any .net applications under root. Hope this solution helps guys in similar trouble. This can be applied for any DNN 4.5.3 installation to have any virtual directory within the same...
<br>
1) add following entries in the beginning of <httpHandlers> section of web config file in dasblog.

<remove verb="*" path="*.captcha.aspx"/>
<remove verb="*" path="LinkClick.aspx"/>
<remove verb="*" path="RSS.aspx"/>
<remove verb="*" path="*.asmx"/>
<remove verb="*" path="*_AppService.axd" />
<remove verb="GET,HEAD" path="ScriptResource.axd"/>
<br>
2) Add entries in <httpModules> section.
<remove name="Compression" />
<remove name="RequestFilter" />
<remove name="UrlRewrite" />
<remove name="Exception" />
<remove name="UsersOnline" />
<remove name="DNNMembership" />
<remove name="Personalization" />
<remove name="ScriptModule" />

3) add following entries in <pages> tag.. (make sure, all attributes of <pages> tag (if exists) are same as before. Idea here is to clear the namespaces).

<pages validateRequest="true">
<namespaces>
<clear/>
</namespaces>
</pages>

All this and you'd have your web application working under DNN!!!

Cheers!!!

C# Design Patterns

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:15:00 GMT

In software development, a design Pattern describes a general solution to a design problem that recurs repeatedly in many projects. Software designers adapt the Pattern solution to their specific project. Patterns use a formal approach to describing a design problem, its proposed solution, and any other factors that might affect the problem or the solution. A successful Pattern should have established itself as leading to a good solution in three previous projects or situations.

Here are 3 categories of the Patterns involved in software designing...
1) Creational Patterns

Abstract factory pattern: centralize decision of what factory to instantiate
Factory method pattern: centralize creation of an object of a specific type choosing one of several implementations
Anonymous subroutine objects pattern
Builder pattern: separate the construction of a complex object from its representation
Lazy initialization pattern: tactic of delaying the creation of an object, the calculation of a value, or some other expensive process until the needed first time
Prototype pattern: used when the inherent cost of creating a new object in the standard way (e.g., using the 'new' keyword) is prohibitively expensive
Singleton pattern: restrict instantiation of a class to one object
2) Structural Patterns
Adapter pattern: 'adapts' one interface for a class into one that a client expects
Composite pattern: a tree structure of objects where every object has the same interface
Aggregate pattern: a version of the Composite pattern with methods for aggregation of children
Bridge pattern: decouple an abstraction from its implementation so that the two can vary independently
Container pattern: create objects for the sole purpose of holding other objects and managing them
Decorator pattern: add additional functionality to a class at run time where subclassing would result in an exponential rise of new classes
Extensibility pattern: aka. Framework - hide complex code behind a simple interface
Facade pattern: create a simplified interface of an existing interface to ease usage for common tasks
Flyweight pattern: a high quantity of objects share a common properties object to save space
Proxy pattern: a class functioning as an interface to another thing
Pipes and filters: a chain of processes where the output of each process is the input of the next
Private class data pattern: restrict accessor/mutator access
3) Behavioral Patterns
Chain of responsibility pattern: Command objects are handled or passed on to other objects by logic-containing processing objects
Command pattern: Command objects encapsulate an action and its parameters
Interpreter pattern: Implement a specialized computer language to rapidly solve a specific set of problems
Iterator pattern: Iterators are used to access the elements of an aggregate object sequentially without exposing its underlying representation
Mediator pattern: Provides a unified interface to a set of interfaces in a subsystem
Memento pattern: Provides the ability to restore an object to its previous state (rollback)
Observer pattern: aka Publish/Subscribe or Event Listener. Objects register to observe an event which may be raised by another object
State pattern: A clean way for an object to partially change its type at run time
Strategy pattern: Algorithms can be selected on the fly
Template method pattern: Describes the program skeleton of a program
Visitor pattern: A way to separate an algorithm from an object
Single-serving visitor pattern: Optimise the implementation of a visitor that is allocated, used only once, and then deleted
Hierarchical visitor pattern: Provide a way to visit every node in a hierarchical data structure such as a tree
Look for subsequent posts for clarification of each one from C# point of view...

Cheers!!!

About .Net Framework 3.0

Tue, 29 May 2007 13:45:00 GMT

via netfxguide

The Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 (NetFX3 or WinFX), is the new managed code programming model for Windows. NetFXGuide presents the best resources about the .NET Framework 3.0 including videos, tutorials, articles, source code and much more.

Surprising Pitfalls of Teamwork Training...

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 19:15:00 GMT

via www.businessweek.com

With a background in the Indian army, this Babson MBA student thought working in teams would be a breeze. He was in for a shock ...

Web 2.0 Color palettes and design

Sun, 01 Oct 2006 04:30:00 GMT

via newsmotto

Stuart Brown has grouped colors into three color sets -neutrals, muted tones and bold colours and called this Web 2.0 Colour Palette:

Joseph followed the tip and made his wordpress blog theme web 2.0 like DC Media points to some more web 2.0 colors - Mile Burke?s The Web 2.0 Secret Weapon and a little more comprehensive web 2.0 Color palette. There is even a web 2.0 logo creator [Via Sticki Widgets ]

And if you want to learn from the start - Web 2.0 Design From Start to Finish and Designing in Web 2.0

Other Web 2.0 Links:
Design, fonts, logos, blogs, etc.

Web 2.0 Zen
Jim Hobart on web 2.0 design and usability
DIV & Pure CSS for web 2.0 design
Web 2.0 Design Tutorials
Web 2.0 Design Kit
Top 10 Web 2.0 design
Tag, You?re It
Design, Font, Color, and Logo 2.0 from jeremiah
Web 2.0 design for sale on Ebay!
Corporate Web 2.0
The Logos of Web 2.0
Dion Hinchcliffe?s Web 2.0 Blog

..........

Cheers!!

Nice article on Asp.Net optimization

Fri, 28 Apr 2006 02:15:00 GMT

Presented here is a nice article on Asp.Net optimization.. Via John Belthoff

************

If you read all of the websites dedicated to Asp.Net you will inevitably read about the wonders of the DataGrid, DataList, and Repeater controls. While each of these has its place, if you are only displaying data there is a much faster and more efficient means to do so.

Harvard Business School Case Study on Wipro's Factory Model

Wed, 22 Mar 2006 05:30:00 GMT

To examine the advantages and disadvantages of software outsourcing, as well as the application of lean principles to software development, Harvard Business School has done a case study on Wipro's innovative Factory Model approach. It specifically explores Wipro's experimental use of lean principles as a source of new competitive advantage in software services.

The case study addresses the advantages and disadvantages of software outsourcing and how to mitigate the effects of, for example, lock-in and hijacking. Explores how Wipro has helped its customers deal with these issues and looks at the changing competitive role of Indian outsourcers (from low-cost, to high-quality/rapid turnaround). Specifically explores Wipro's experimental use of lean principles as a source of new competitive advantage in software services. Also addresses the issue of standardization in information technology, examining why companies progressively develop so many standards and how companies like Wipro can help them standardize, thus limiting one of the primary drivers of companies' IT costs.

A copy of the case study can be retained from either Wipro

Integrated ERP software uses Microsoft.NET

Wed, 15 Mar 2006 17:30:00 GMT

VISIBILITY.net is one of the first Enterprise business applications to be written from the outset entirely using Microsoft.NET framework and Web services architecture. This methodology provides engineer-to-order (ETO) manufacturers with a distinct set of advantages when deploying the enterprise resource planning (ERP) application. VISIBILITY.net has a highly functional user interface, providing the user with a multi-document interface (multiple windows) in a single browser session.

Visibility extended the standard Microsoft ASP.NET development environment by providing a highly intuitive, interactive user experience that would not usually be possible within an Internet application. This accomplishment is achieved with a zero client interface. VISIBILITY.net does not download any software onto client PCs to operate. Any client PC with Internet Explorer 5.5 or later is capable of operating with VISIBILITY.net.

VISIBILITY.net is deployed as a true internet application - the system administrator need not know anything about the client hardware because no installation is necessary. In doing so it provides ubiquitous access for users inside the four walls of your organisation, for users at remote plants and sales offices, and for users 'on the road'.

* Internet Standards based - some ERP vendors have put a 'tick in the box' against industry standards such as HTTP, XML, .NET and Web services through the use of 'bolt-on' technology modules.

The very core of the VISIBILITY.NET application makes use of this technology today, without the need for additional middleware or integration applications. Read Full article here...

Embedded database supports C#, .NET Compact Framework

Thu, 16 Feb 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Via windowsfordevices.com

McObject has released a C# implementation of a dual-licensed object-oriented embedded database that can be used to develop Window CE and Pocket PC applications. Originally written in Java, Perst boasts "tight integration" with C# and support for the .NET Compact Framework (CF), along with high performance and a modest footprint, the company says.

According to McObject, Perst's tight integration with C# results in "exceptional transparent persistence and ease in working with objects." The company adds that the database's typical 30 to 300 KB run-time code footprint enables it to satisfy the resource constraints of many embedded applications, and also makes it suitable for C# applications requiring high-speed data management.

Typical applications include mobile and embedded devices, industrial systems, Web services, and packaged software, according to the company.

In contrast to object/relational databases, or tools that provide object/relational mapping, Perst stores data directly in C# objects, McObject explains. This eliminates the need for expensive (in performance terms) run-time conversions between the database representation of the data and the C# representation, the company adds.

Additionally, "Perst ensures integrity via transactions that adhere to the ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation and Durability) with very fast recovery," McObject said.

Other Perst features include garbage collection, detection of hanging references, automatic schema evolution, XML import/export utilities, and master-slave replication support with the option to run read-only queries on slave nodes, according to McObject.

The company is offering Perst under a dual-license model. Users can download and modify the database source code and use it freely in non-commercial applications that are neither sold nor used internally by a business, and for which source code is made available. A commercial license is required when Perst-based software is sold or used for business, or if source code will be withheld, according to McObject.

Stop Hijacking my Browser!

Thu, 16 Feb 2006 03:00:00 GMT

I'm working on a

Catching "Enter Press" for Winform Combo box...

Wed, 01 Feb 2006 02:45:00 GMT

Today, I was trapped in an interesting issue while

Content specific Adsense in First Post - DASBlog!!!

Mon, 16 Jan 2006 19:45:00 GMT

I have recently moved my blog from community server to dasBlog. While setting up google Adsense ads on the site, I was caught up in a specific requirement as in where to put the ads. Google suggests that for high CTR ratio, ads should be placed just above the content and this left me searching for ways to put adsense in start of First Post's body content.

A simple way to implement this was modify your latest post every time you write a post ... cumbersome huh?? Not only cumbersome, this also invalidates your RSS as the feeds doesn't allow <_script_> tag in the XML. Looked around little more thinking that I might not be the first one having this kinda requirement ...but to my disappointment, I couldn't find any such generic way to achieve this...

finally this is what I used as a workaround...I don't claim that this is the best possible way to do it but given my

Target Corporation selects Microsoft .Net Technologies for Its 1,400 Retail Stores Throughout the U.S.

Wed, 11 Jan 2006 21:30:00 GMT

Microsoft announced a major win today in retails sector. Target Corporation, the national's second-largest discount general merchandise retailer, is headed to adopt Microsoft? .NET Framework based technologies within its 1,400 stores in 47 U.S. states. Target will migrate its systems within each store to the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0, Windows Serveral 2003 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005, core technologies that deliver on the Microsoft Smarter Retailing strategy for connecting people, information, systems and devices.

According to Janet Schalk, chief information officer at Target Corporation, Microsoft technologies can help us drive down costs through a simplified architecture and easier-to-use development tools, These cost savings will enable us to invest in additional innovations that will enhance the store experience for our guests.

Microsoft provides technologies to Target in other key operational and customer-facing areas as well. This comes as a great example of Microsoft Smarter Retailing (http://www.microsoft.com/smartretail), an initiative designed to help retailers improve how they sell and operate. Read the full story here

SQLDMO has not been registered!!!

Tue, 10 Jan 2006 19:15:00 GMT

After un-installing SQL Server 2005 Beta version, I started facing issues with my SQL 2000 installation and it was shooting an strange error...

SQLDMO has not been registered, please re-run SQL Server setup and contact your system administrator?.

DotNetNuke Login page lock-out after changing site setting for default login page.

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 23:45:00 GMT

Today I ran into an issue with one of my DNN sites... I changed site settings and set the login page to one of the tabs which resulted in no access to login page for me and my users...I tried some of the solutions on the web but none of the earlier worked because I had removed friendly URLs host setting.

To get the access back try adding ctl=login to the end of a query string it forces a load of the login dialog eg http://www. mysite.com/default.aspx?ctl=login . If this doesn't work, try this to get around the problem http://www.mysite.com/Home/ tabid/<36>/ctl/Login/Default.aspx (change <36> with home tab id)

If this also doesn't work, John Mitchell has also posted a solution in his blog, where he has created an alternate login page that you can upload, you can view the details here:

http://blogs.snapsis.com/PermaLink,guid,05e0a045-4944-4f85-aa12-ac9cb774e2fb.aspx

Finally last one worked for me...Thanks John

Cheers

Nice GMAT practice software from Road2MBA

Fri, 26 Aug 2005 05:30:00 GMT

Road2mba has written a nice and innovative XML based GMAT exam practice software ( GMATTER ) .

Gmatter is a software program to simulate real like test environment for GMAT Test while practicing. It uses easily created XMLs from text based materials which are utilized as inputs to the program. Gmatter has lots of good reporting features also, which enable you to analyze your strength and weakness areas in an efficient manner.

Try it here

Cheers!!

Difference between string and System.String

Wed, 06 Jul 2005 08:45:00 GMT

The string type represents a string of Unicode characters. string is an alias for System.String in the .NET Framework. C# defines a number of aliases for CLR types which can be used interchangably or even mixed together.

eg. string x = new System.String(' ', 5);

Although string is a reference type, the equality operators (== and !=) are defined to compare the values of string objects, not references. This makes testing for string equality more intuitive.

Some more defined C# aliases are:

string	System.String
sbyte	System.SByte
byte	System.Byte
short	System.Int16
ushort	System.UInt16
int	System.Int32
uint	System.UInt32
long	System.Int64
ulong	System.UInt64
char	System.Char
float	System.Single
double	System.Double
bool	System.Boolean
decimal	System.Decimal

Visual Studio .NET 2003 Posters

Wed, 29 Jun 2005 11:30:00 GMT

Found an interesting MSDN link having posters for high-level class diagrams of .NET framework library...

Check it out here...

Cheers!!