CIS 700, Summer II, 2008 | Main / OldAnnouncements

These announcements have been moved from the HomePage because they are older (or possibly, less urgent):

Aug 1, WYJ: If we have the following web client: http://nikolas6.com/MetricConverter/MetricConverterClientJS.html
Does any one know why it can't work with http://www.nikolas6.com/MetricConverter/MetricConverterClientJS.html
I mean even though you can open the web page, but it can't connect to the server.
Thanks
- GC: Hmm I didn't realize this. I guess it is because www.nikolas6.com is a different domain name than nikolas6.com and the service that you are accessing in both instances, http://nikolas6.com/MetricConverter/MetricConverter.asmx, is under the nikolas66.com domain name. Many web servers don't let pages access a service from outside the same domain name. Sorry, I don't know how to change this or make a whitelist.
It seems that Helix can run perfectly on Sun xVM VirtualBox. Everyone can have a try! :)
July 29, WD: Assignment 2 grades have been posted on Blackboard. I plan to send emails with more detail later.
July 29, GC: Is it possible to make a web-based c# client do calls without reloading the page like ajax?
- PGP: You can create an .aspx page, put a button on it, and double-click the button in the designer; this will "wire up" an event handler (listener) for that button. The listener is server-side. You then just add a web reference and treat it just like you would a Windows application, just a few lines of code in C# or VB.NET, whichever you are using. Is this what you intended? The .aspx file will not be using Ajax (Javascript), at least not normally unless you use Microsoft's Ajax toolkit, which I have not shown you how to do yet.
  - GC: Yes, this is exactly what I did and everything works correctly. However, when I click the button, it reloads a new page with the result instead of just changing the textbox without reloading a new page. Is there any way to get the result without reloading the page (without using the ajax toolkit)?
  - PGP: I don't think so; that's why people like using Ajax.
July 29, PGP: Please DO NOT consider the use of a Javascript framework or toolkit as the client for Assignment 3 to be a client written in Javascript. If you use the Microsoft Ajax framework, which someone posted a tutorial for below, it may count as a C# client or a VB.NET client, but not as a Javascript client.
July 28, PGP: I found this tutorial on creating a web service for VS.NET
July 28, SP: A new search engine has launched that is supposedly better than Google. http://www.cuil.com
July 27, JBB: Javascript consumption example: here
- The above article uses Microsoft's Ajax framework or toolkit; please DO NOT use this as a "Javascript" client for Assignment 3 (though it could count as a C# or VB.NET client)! (PGP)
July 27, PGP: Assignment 3 clarification: the web service method should use SOAP (i.e., the web service method should be marked up with the [WebMethod] attribute). You are welcome to include a REST call in addition, but the "proof of concept" for cross language/platform calling is meant to be SOAP. It pretty much goes without saying that any language is capable of making an HTTP GET request to a server side program (that's all a "REST web service" actually is); making such a REST call does not test the WSDL and proxy infrastructure of the client language.
July 27, PGP: For assignment 3, a C# desktop application and a C# ASP.NET client are both C#, so they only count as one of the three clients. You could write one of them in VB.NET though, and I will accept that as being "a different language".
July 27, WD: Bill plans to be in the classroom Tuesday evening from 6:00 until 8:00.
July 26, SDB: For the Ajax challenged folks, like me :http://blogs.interfacett.com/dan-wahlins-blog/2006/12/1/video-calling-web-services-with-aspnet-ajax-and-javascript.html
July 25, GC: Guess I'm pretty dumb, but how do we delete stuff, like folders from our websites? I can't find any way using V.S. or the utilities pages.
- July 26, PGP: I know that Microsoft Expression Web can delete folders completely. In VS, I think you can delete by right-clicking over the file or folder, but I don't know if you can delete an entire application that way.
- July 26, SCS: I would use Filezilla for this. You can get it from CETS. They have instructions for connecting to your CETS share, but not for connecting to websites. To connect to your website, on the main screen put your website in the Address box, your user name and password in the appropriate boxes, and leave the port box blank. Then click the "Quickconnect" button. You should see the remote site area (right-hand side of screen) fill with your website directories. Right-click on files or directories you want to delete. For Visual Studio projects, I would only use this if you were deleting an entire project/directory from the server. You can copy files back and forth from CETS, or save a local website up to the server. You can also permanently save connections. Very handy.
  - WARNING: It is not safe to use any form of FTP to a Microsoft website that uses Frontpage Extensions; these are incompatible and FTP may interfere with the correct functioning of the FP Extensions, possibly resulting in a corrupt website. By corrupt, I mean that Microsoft Expression Web and Microsoft Visual Studio may no longer be able to manipulate files correctly in that web, rendering them useless. (PGP)
    - Of course, you can always disable Frontpage Extensions on your Microsoft website. But if you do, you sacrifice several automated capabilities you would normally have using Microsoft tools, including quick backups and file transfers. Unfortunately, this is a domain-wide decision. Using FTP is the number 1 "beginners mistake" when using a Microsoft web server.
- July 26, SCS: Equal time. Macintosh users can use FTP with Fetch.
July 24, YN : Amidst my fruitless efforts to get my web service called from JavaScript, I did manage to get the debugger working in my JS file. In case it helps anyone, here's what I found:
- discountasp doesn't allow remote debugging, I had to recreate everything as a website hosted locally on my computer (this was very easy in VS 08)
- In IE, go to Tools -> Internet Options, click on the Advanced tab, and in the Browsing section, remove the checkbox(es?) which disable script debugging. I couldn't find a way to get this to work in Firefox, so I had to make IE my default browser, close it, and then start the debugger from VS. It opened IE with my local JS file, and it hit my breakpoints.
July 24, YN : In case this saves anyone some aggravation: I just spent close to an hour trying to figure out why Ruby wouldn't get the result from my XML. It turns out it was because I had named the method in my web service with the first letter capitalized, when I switched it to lower case in the service and ruby code, it ran perfectly.
July 24, PGP : Michael emailed me the link to this classic anti-SOAP rant. Notice the hand wave avoiding giving any real details, the favorably mention of REST as an alternative, and then the clencher "I no longer work for ", you guessed it, "Google". I ran across dozens of these in my preparation for last night's lecture.
July 23, ASH : Can anyone post on a How to on copying folders from local machine to the remote site ? It will be highly appreciated. Thanks!
- I think you can use Expression Web. You can get it from here.
- Any ftp client ?
  - Oh, you can have a try of FileZilla, which you can get from here. Hope this helps!
  - Prof. Palmer warned against using FTP on our sites.
July 23, YN: nice tutorial
- Helpful indeed. Gives the VB version. Wanted to post the C# version of the HelloWorld Web Service.
July 22, PGP: CETS informs me that it should be possible to access the Moore 100B lab this weekend after 3:30 pm each day (when the contractors quit). They will also push VS.NET 2008 and other software to another Windows lab; I will let you know if that happens. Given this new information, I'm inclined to pull up the Assignment 3 due date to next Tuesday, July 29 at midnight. This will avoid you having overlapping projects at the same time (Rebecca will assign something on Wednesday).
July 22, PGP: Here's a link to the rumor generator web service. Try making a client that gets a rumor!
July 21, PGP: I just posted Assignment 3, due on U Aug 3 at midnight (10%).
July 21: Just a reminder that there are certain materials that you must have with you for Dr. Mercuri's lectures (starting next Monday, 7/28)
- 5 blank, writeable CD-ROM disks (5 for each class)
- Blank 2G (or larger) USB flash drive
- Loose-leaf notebook
July 21: How "GOOGLE" Does it?
July 20: An interesting "gotcha" was discovered during the Sunday session today (pointed out by Niko): running the hex dump program on Life.class in Windows produced very different output than running it in MacOS or Linux. Specifically, the file seemed to be only 1163 bytes in Windows, when it is really a 7351-byte file. A small (really small!) modification of HexDumpLib.rb will fix it so that Windows, too, can correctly hex dump binary files.
- Points will not be deducted if your program experiences this problem in Windows
  - It might be mildly amusing, however, to fix it.
July 20: Will people please return the VS.NET DVD's shortly? Thanks (Pat)
July 16: TA Bill Dewees plans to be available again in the Moore 100B lab this Sunday, July 20, from 11 am until 2 PM, in case anyone needs last minute project help.
July 14, PGP: An example of a technical article (file systems on Ars Technica) which Pat likes for its thoroughness and style
July 14, PGP: I added a link to the lab version 3.2.2 of Eclipse (which already has the Ruby RDT plug-in) to the top of the Software page
July 11, PGP: Click on Library in the sidebar to locate the special Penn engineering library page for this class.
July 11, PGP: Wednesday's code and other notes are here; modify them as you think best.
July 11, PGP: TA Bill Dewees plans to be available in the Moore 100B lab this Sunday July 13 from 11 am until 2 PM, in case any of you need last minute project help.
July 8, PGP: Monday's code and other class notes are here; modify them as you think best.