I know I haven't posted any new blogs lately... As the saying goes, I have been really busy.

If your Visual Studio crashes as much as mine does, you have invariably ran into an error stating "Unable to write to output file [filepathandname]: Unspecified error". At first, this error really ticked me off, as it left me with no path to troubleshoot and correct the error.

While I was writing a class to allow me to quickly grab preformatted JavaScript functions (i.e., confirm, alert, etc.), I came across the need to ensure that a string passed into those methods would not throw a JavaScript error upon rendering. This could possibly happen if the message contained singles quotes for contractions, quotes, etc.

In DotNetNuke, you generally are always working with the tab (page) that you are currently on whether it be at the module level or not. However, on occassion, you might need to access the properties of another tab (page) that you are not currently on.

Since I was just thinking about it, here is a theory have about the latest and final release of the Jason Bourne films, The Bourne Ultimatum. (And no, I have no affiliation with any part of the film industry, I haven't read any spoilers, books, etc.)

I have a great need for a current project to optimize whereever I can.  The DotNetNuke SqlDataProvider is one of those areas where optimizations are NEEDED.

I forgot to mention yet another tid-bit about this Safari release...

I just wanted to hit on a very good point when it comes to the Safari web browser... SPEED.

A friend and colleague just sent me a link to the download page for the Safari web browser. I was instantly impressed that Apple is attempting to make their web browser a serious player in the Internet world by making it a cross-platform player, but I am equally not impressed with this release.

I have come to realize that many people have the need in their DotNetNuke (DNN) applications to create a new user "on-the-fly". Here is how to do it...

With the marketing giant, Microsoft, you cannot deny that Vista is the best operation system, ever. Right? Hmmm...

I wanted to share an experience I just had with a major car repair chain. I have only boycotted 2 companies so far... Here goes number 3!

I thought while I was jammin' out, listening to some Miles Davis that I should post an update...

If you are looking at this post, you are probably already aware of the issues that Internet Explorer (read: EXPLODER) forces developers to deal with when using the

HTML tag to do certain things. Most all of the dynamic menu systems use this tag, so Internet Explorer is placing a huge hurdle in front of us.

PermaLink Read More »

Many of you often look for a free DotNetNuke skin to download and use for a specific purpose. It may be an uninportant site, a test site, etc.

I came across a requirement where I needed to create a DataTable of times for a project. This table didn't need to take up any space on the database since it would never change. The times would need to be listed in 30 minute increments for each hour of the day. This would then get binded mostly by dropdown lists.

From time to time we need to do something that the .Net framework doesn't immediately expose to us (without some finagling). In this instance, I wanted to override the attributes that the labels generated by the CheckBoxList webcontrol. However, I only wanted to modify this one instance of it.

Here is an error that kind of irritates me only because Microsoft should have thought this one through. However, we find ourselves thinking or saying that more often then we'd like, huh?

In helping a colleague learn how to create and upload DotNetNuke skins, I ran into an error that I was not used to. It was at first a bit frustrating until I stepped back and looked at it without rushing.

I must say that I am thoroughly excited about the recent upgrades to DotNetNuke to bring us to version 4.05.00. There are a great many updates that address functionality and usability. Great job, Core Team!

I have been using DotNetNuke since I first built my own portal just prior to the release of DNN 1.0. Although I didn't really jump on board until v3.x. Since then, we have all had ideas about how to make DotNetNuke better, but this time the Core Team has struck GOLD!

Well, as you can see, the new blog is alive and well. I have just a few comments to make about it...

Now, I am sure that this post will generate some comments (sent or not) about GIMP. I have not used GIMP because at home I have a full version of Photoshop CS. However, at work right now I do not have any image editing abilities other than what the standard "Paint" application and Microsoft Office offer. Nearly everyone knows that those options are horrible. I tried installing GIMP some weeks ago, but the install conflicted with a GAIM/Jabber (now called Pidgin - that story is yet another reason to HATE AOL) installation I have and I really do not want to mess with that.

I have another one for you! This one will validate a date within the current century. This should be sufficient enough for most current applications.

I am just an amateur when it comes to regular expression, but I plan on getting a whole lot better at it. There is too much potential there to not want to use it more often. I just came up with a regular expression pattern to validate time format. It has some small checks incorporated for valid times, but it is not 100% inclusive.

I began playing with the Microsoft AJAX 1.0 features today with an actual project instead of simple test scenarios similar to the AJAX videos offered on the ASP.Net web site. I am using AJAX controls to make an asynchronous call to my server which in turns calls an external web service and repopulates a textarea control. The first click of the button that submits the call works perfectly. The call goes out, and in just 'sec my SOAP response is shown in the textarea without a hitch. However, this is where a big brick gets thrown through the window!

A couple of weeks ago, my girlfriend somehow happened upon the web site for a movie called "Peaceful Warrior". Knowing that I am a movie buff and perhaps thinking that she might like the movie too, she sent me a link to it. After watching the trailer for it, I was immediately hooked into wanting to see the movie. The trailer made me believe that this was a movie that was right down my alley.

I know this isn't new, but I just recently paid some attention to the LinkedIn social networking site. I found it to be a very interesting and creative spin on using the social networking power found on the Internet to connect co-workers and former co-workers. Not only that, it contains features to help each other advance themselves professionally. I have only been a member for about a week, but my first impression of this web site is very positive.

I found a good blog post on Net Neutrality today. However, the video it incorporates is even better. This video is a MUST SEE for anyone who likes the Internet even a little bit!

I was at the CTIA Wireless Convention this week in Orlando. There are very prominent business people who were giving keynote speeches each morning. Today, we instead had the Former President George H. W. Bush and Former President Bill Clinton.