New Stuff
Resources for Your Developer Toolbox
Theresa W. Carey
Contents
Rapidly Build Installations
Multi-platform Database Administration
.NET E-mail Component
Tune Up 32-bit Windows Executables
Transport Legacy App Data Securely
Forums for ASP.NET Sites
Whois System Interface
Track Those Problems
Remove the Trash from PEs
Set Up a Testing Environment
The Bookshelf
Rapidly Build Installations
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InstallShield Software Corporation has announced the availability of InstallShield Express 5, which allows you to rapidly build, test, and implement installations. Enhancements include the Project Assistant, which guides users through the installation-authoring process with a simplified set of views.
The upgrade also allows you to rebuild an installation without retrieving and compressing all the files again, and to see new redistributable technologies automatically with the option to download and include in your project. You can add an installation to a Microsoft® .NET Framework project by browsing to the project and running a wizard.
Migration of projects from previous versions of InstallShield Express is supported. InstallShield Express 5 can coexist with previous versions, allowing developers to work on new and previous projects at the same time. Express 5 now includes support for all 32-bit versions of Windows®, and has over 30 runtime languages so developers can broaden their deployment and tailor installations to specific regions.
Multi-platform Database Administration
AquaFold Inc. recently announced the latest version of Aqua Data Studio, a tool for building, managing, and maintaining enterprise relational databases. It includes support for all major database platforms and operating systems.
The new release introduces complete schema extraction and SQL scripting of database objects. The SQL DML for tables, views, stored procedures, and all database objects may be scripted to a query window. SQL history capabilities provide access to the history of all SQL statements and scripts executed. A new popup query window allows you to open multiple query windows side-by-side to compare scripts and query results.
Additional database support includes PostgreSQL 7.3 with new schema support and trusted connection support for SQL Server through an ODBC interface. Aqua Data Studio enables database administrators and developers to tackle multiple tasks simultaneously from one application. Its graphical browsing capabilities allow you to understand the structure and dependencies of the database schema, and to browse and select database scripts.
.NET E-mail Component
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ExclamationSoft Corporation has released Smtp.NET 3.0, which gives developers the ability to add e-mail functionality to an ASP.NET or Windows Forms application. Smtp.NET is a 100 percent managed code component that is written in C#.
Features include integration with ExclamationSoft's e-mail queuing application email Q.NET, which allows scheduled delivery of e-mail to manage server resources. It also includes built-in database features such as mail merge and personalization. Users can send a message containing both HTML and plain text, providing rich message formatting.
The component provides authentication and the ability to specify multiple mail servers for failover and redundancy. New features in Smtp.NET 3.0 include automated Zip archive compression of attachments and examples with help links that allow developers to click on keywords that lead directly to product documentation.
Smtp.NET supports Windows 98, Windows NT®, Windows 2000, Windows Me, and Windows XP with the .NET Framework installed.
https://www.exclamationsoft.com
Tune Up 32-bit Windows Executables
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Heaventools Software has released Resource Tuner 1.94, an update of its advanced visual resource editor for 32-bit Windows executable files. Resource Tuner offers a thorough look at all of the resources (bitmaps, icons, strings, and so on) in the file, and allows you to make modifications without having to recompile the source code.
It also enables you to edit the properties of any controls on Delphi forms within the PE file. Resource Tuner allows legacy applications to take advantage of the new look for common control styles on Windows XP by enabling you to inject the application manifest directly into the EXE file.
Resource Tuner ships with UPX Unpacker, a start-up processing plug-in for unpacking files compressed with UPX. You can browse, view, extract, modify, translate, edit, or replace any selected executable file resources contained within 32-bit Windows executable files. Version 1.94 now supports editing accelerators and opening files with modified MS-DOS® stubs, and saves charset settings when customizing fonts. It includes additional startup processing options and supports all versions of UPX from 0.8 up to 1.90.
Transport Legacy App Data Securely
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HiT Software has announced a new product family, SafeConduct, which brings the benefits of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) 3.0, including authentication and 128-bit data encryption, to any point-to-point application data traffic.
When applications move sensitive data across the Internet or Virtual Private Networks without authentication or data encryption, they are susceptible to unauthorized access or tampering, thereby creating information privacy and quality risks. SafeConduct can remove these risks by adding SSL security to shield sensitive data.
SafeConduct can be used with a variety of application architectures including client-server, host-slave, or multitier.
The SafeConduct product family includes the SafeConduct Windows Client, the SafeConduct Java Client, and the SafeConduct Server.
The SafeConduct Windows Client runs on Windows 98 and later client and server platforms as an application or as a service. The SafeConduct Java Client can be used on multiple client and server platforms including, but not limited to, Windows OS, OS/400, AIX, Linux, Solaris, Mac OS X, and OS/2. The SafeConduct Server similarly can be used on multiple client and server platforms.
Forums for ASP.NET Sites
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POP World Media LLC recently released CliqueSite POP Forums 7.0, forum software for ASP.NET Web sites. The latest version takes advantage of SQL Server and the ASP.NET Web application platform. Its discreet separation of logic and presentation makes the forum modifiable and helps you avoid writing database and data caching code.
The documentation and code samples show how a developer using .NET can use the included UI or build an entire site with POP Forums as the core engine for role-based member management. POP Forums ships with a UI that includes features that Web developers and their communities have come to expect, including user profiles, member photos, avatars, private messaging, and moderator functions.
https://popforums.cliquesite.com
Whois System Interface
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Hexillion Technologies has announced the release of RegistryFusion 1.0, a set of Windows-based tools that provide a programmable interface to the Whois system. The software automatically finds the correct Whois server for a query and parses the output, enabling new Whois applications such as automatic domain registration tracking, security log analysis, and fraud detection.
The Whois protocol is the de facto standard means of obtaining contact information for domain names, IP addresses, and other network resources. Software applications have trouble accessing this information, however, because there are hundreds of scattered Whois servers, each returning a different output format that was not intended for machine consumption. Hexillion's RegistryFusion tools shield the user from the complexities and inconsistencies of Whois by tracking available Whois servers and parsing their various output formats. The user can specify a domain name or IP address and get results in a machine-readable format.
The software comes in three forms: a Web service, an XML proxy server, and a .NET Framework class library. The RegistryFusion tools require the .NET Framework 1.0 or 1.1 and Windows NT 4.0 SP6a, Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Server™ 2003. The .NET Framework class library will also work on Windows 98 and Windows Me.
https://www.Hexillion.com/whois
Track Those Problems
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NetResults is shipping ProblemTracker 5.5, along with support and help desk add-on options for this issue-tracking software. ProblemTracker is a Web-based collaboration tool that helps companies keep track of issues and automatically manage them to resolution. Its applications include bug, defect, and issue tracking; workflow management; help desk; and self-service automated support.
AutoReport reports user computer configuration information when an issue is submitted to ProblemTracker 5.5. This lets you automatically collect computer system information from non-technical users. In addition, ProblemTracker 5.5 offers several new add-on options for support, help desk, and integration. The Knowledge Base feature allows you to create a searchable knowledge base. The Submit via Email feature allows users to report issues via e-mail in addition to using the Web, and OpenAPI allows you to integrate your application with ProblemTracker. OpenAPI is based on SOAP and XML technologies.
https://www.problemtracker.com
Remove the Trash from PEs
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PE Corrector, published by Gigamind Systems, corrects Windows Portable Executable (PE) files (EXE, DLL, SYS, BPL, DPL, CPL, OCX, ACM, AX, and SCR), removing extraneous information from the final file version. This information may include headers, strings with illegal characters, and export debugging functions.
Many compilers insert this binary trash into the compiled file, which significantly increases its final size. More dangerously, it gives hackers direct clues about how your program works and the easiest way to bypass its defense.
PE Corrector removes unnecessary debugging functions, clears binary trash in headers, organizes internal file structure, erases section names (.rsrc, .reloc, .pdata, and so on), and removes relocation tables.
In addition, PE Corrector allows programmers to insert their own data into the header (copyright information, for example), and examine the list of the export functions. The program can prepare Portable Executable files for EXE packers and reduce their size.
https://www.gigamindsystems.com
Set Up a Testing Environment
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Software Prototype Technologies has introduced Direct-to-Test (DTT), a software testing environment that combines test-case design and automation into an integrated process. DTT automatically designs a complete suite of functional test cases from a model of the system requirements, generates all test documentation, and creates ready-to-run automated test script files. DTT eliminates the need for ad hoc specification of test requirements, the manual construction of test specifications and, in most cases, manual execution of the tests.
Direct-to-Test integrates several tools, including the RBT test design tool from Bender RBT and the TMX scripting tool from ScriptTech, plus Software Prototype Technologies' own test modeling and specification technology. The customer sees a single integrated test workbench rather than having to assemble and learn to use a variety of tools.
Direct-to-Test supports automated scripting for most of the major automated execution tools such as Seque Silk, Mercury Interactive's WinRunner, and generic XML and Unix scripts.
The Bookshelf
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Addison-Wesley recently released ASP.NET SolutionsChar name="#151;"/>23 Case Studies: Best Practices for Developers by Rick Leinecker. This book explains how to take advantage of ASP.NET features using detailed, real-world case studies. Each case study illustrates one aspect of ASP.NET by building an application based on that technology. Extensive sample code can be used in the reader's own development projects.
Addison-Wesley has also published Practical Software Engineering: Analysis and Design for the .NET Platform by Enricos Manassis, which walks through a case study that specifies, analyzes, designs, implements, and tests a sample software system using the .NET Framework. The book presents an integrated vision of three dimensions in software development: process, techniques, and technology. Manassis provides a practical approach to software engineering, exemplified for the .NET Framework. The book covers UML, Rational XDE, Rational Unified Process, and Visual Studio .NET.
A First Look at ASP.NET v. 2.0 and A First Look at ADO.NET and System.Xml v. 2.0, by Alex Homer and Dave Sussman, are part of the Addison-Wesley Microsoft .NET Development Series. A First Look at ASP.NET v. 2.0, was written with Rob Howard, Program Manager of the Microsoft ASP.NET team. It offers readers a practical first look at changes to the new version of ASP.NET. The goal of the book is to enable programmers to develop applications now which will be ready for the next version of ASP.NET.
A First Look at ADO.NET and System.Xml v. 2.0 was written with Mark Fussell, a major contributor to the design and development of ADO.NET and System.Xml classes. It guides you through the functionality that will be available with the new generation of products, and provides a first look at changes to the new versions of ADO.NET and System.Xml.
https://www.awprofessional.com
Send your New Stuff to Theresa at newstuff@microsoft.com.
Theresa W. Carey is a freelance writer who lives in California. Her byline has appeared in Barron's and PC World.