====================================== FoxPro Developers Network of San Diego ====================================== FoxDev TipsLetter #06-01 January 15, 2006 Website: Editor: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CONTENTS: * Calendar * From the Editor I Got Mail! * Tech Tips: SP1 for VFP 9 * Other Stuff: FoxPro Not an Endangered Species GLGDW is Back What Are 'Best Practices'? Dan Covill * Links: Where Can I Find...? * Administrivia ====================================================================== CALENDAR: Jan 19 - Rick Strahl --------------------------- *** Note this meeting is one week later than ususal *** *** FREE PIZZA! *** FREE PIZZA! *** FREE PIZZA! *** Topic: Building a Web Application with Web Connection 5.0 Web Connection 5.0 introduces a new programming model that uses a control based metaphor that is closer to a desktop development model. The model is similar to and compatible with ASP.NET syntax, but uses pure FoxPro code for your user code and the framework that implements it. With the new version you can use Visual Studio .NET or the free Visual Web Developer designers to visually lay out your pages and assign properties using the VS.NET property sheets. But all logic and code hooked up use pure Visual FoxPro PRG based classes inside the Visual FoxPro IDE. In this session, Rick Strahl, author of Web Connection, will take you through creating a small application from scratch using the new Web Control Framework. We'll look at creating a new project, configuring Visual Studio, creating a few simple pages that demonstrate key usability concepts and enhancements, and then build a small data driven application that allows browsing, displaying, adding and updating of data. You'll! see key concepts like automatic state management, databinding for both lists/grids and single controls, error display management, hooking up business logic, creating resuable User Controls and more. In the process you'll learn how Web Connection 5.0 works using pure Visual FoxPro code to create sophisticated Web applications that are easier to build and maintain and are more flexible than what was possible with previous versions. Don't miss this chance to see Web Connection 5.0 for one of the first times in a public meeting. Feb 16 - Bill Fields ----------------------------- Topic: VSS/VFP IDE Integration and What's New in Visual SourceSafe 2005 for the VFP Developer Visual SourceSafe (VSS) has always been a good source code control option for VFP developers, but many have found it's IDE integration to be problematic, while others have just given up attempting to use this powerful feature. This session will show how to successfully use VSS's IDE integration in VFP as well as describe what VSS 2005 has in store for us. Bill has been using VSS for over 8 years and will be demonstrating many tips he's picked up along the way that make source code control integration with VFP a very workable prospect for small development teams. Items that will be covered: 1. Enabling VSS integration in VFP. 2. Developing a VSS/VFP source code management process. 3. Sharing common files and libraries across projects. 4. Maintaining VFP projects. 5. Source code auditing. After a few years of Unix and Netware network administration, Bill dived head-on into software development in 1991. In 1996, he started building solutions with Visual FoxPro v5.0 using an application framework from Micro Endeavors Inc. Since then, VFP has been his primary development tool and he's developed applications used in many federal bankruptcy courts around the nation. He's also used Visual Studio, Informix, and a number of other third party tools to extend the capabilities of his applications. He's also a Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer and can be contacted at: ComputerFields@cox.net March 16 - Tamar Granor ----------------------------------- Topic: TBA April 13 - Barbara Peisch ----------------------------------- Topic: Best Practices for Reporting and Output Reporting is arguably the most important aspect of most business applications. Companies tend not to put data into systems unless they want it back out. Thus, without output, most systems are worthless. Use of a class for handling reports and output is the best way to create a flexible application that's designed for long-term maintainability. This class centralizes and encapsulates output. In this session, you'll learn how to design, build and error-check such a class, while building in a variety of output mechanisms. June 15 - Toni Feltman -------------------------------- Topic: TBA ---------------------------------------------- All meetings are at Microsoft, and start at 6:30 pm. *** YOU MUST ARRIVE BY 7:00 PM OR YOU WILL BE LOCKED OUT! *** Microsoft: 9255 Towne Centre Dr. Suite 400 San Diego, CA 92121 Directions: http://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/info/usaoffices/southernca/sandiego.asp You will need to take a ticket when you enter the parking structure, but we will be leaving late enough that you won't have to pay to park. When you leave you must use the Town Centre Dr. exit. The gate at the other exit will not operate. Both lobby entrances are labeled "Equity Office". Don't worry, that's the general building lobby, not the entrance to a business office. Head up to the 4th floor. When you enter the Microsoft office, take a right turn and go all the way to the end, into the multipurpose room. ====================================================================== FROM THE EDITOR ====================================================================== I GOT MAIL! by Dan Covill Glory be! Somebody took the time to e-mail me about something in the newsletter. Paul Leason (not a member of San Diego FoxDev) had problems with a couple of our Tips. Here's (most of) what he said, with my replies: .......... "In the August 2005 Newsletter there's Menu and Toolbar classes for VFP offered by someone in Russia. Ok, I know that some vendors with large packages (Stonefield, the frameworks, Rich Strahl, etc) have real products that need to be paid for. But for the little add-on utilities it's a little much to be asked to pay for something like the Menu and Toolbar classes. IMO, these should be offered as freeware in an effort to help keep VFP alive. I'm actually thinking that somehow I want to make all the non-proprietary VFP code (my mini-framework) Open." .......... [It's nice when things are offered for free, but I find it hard to criticize those who think their work is worth money. It's an individual choice, if you don't want to pay the writer's price then feel free (pun intended) to write your own. DC] .......... "Believe it or not, my big gripe about the August 2005 newsletter is this: NEW REFERENTIAL INTEGRITY BUILDER by Andy Rice I downloaded the Hennig code (zip) and unzipped it and tried to look at it. However, it's missing a number of include files (.h) and a number of other programs are renamed. And the files in the Zip are as old as 1999. The zip is useless. And Andy Rice's tip is useless as well." .......... [Aren't you being a little hard on Doug Hennig and Andy? They did some work, got a result, and shared it with us. For free. The whole RI builder shtick is too damned complex for me (I don't use DBC's - I consider them an invention of the devil!), so I forwarded your e-mail to Andy. Maybe he'll have answers to the technical problems. ** He did, and updated the zip file. ** But free tips, like all free advice, are worth just what you pay for them. If it helps, we're all glad. But if it doesn't, do you really have anything to complain about? DC] .......... "And what is suggested to download on the FoxDevSD.org site is also suspect. After all the false starts and false leads up to now why should I risk my data?" .......... [There's all sorts of dangerous crud on that web site, even including old newsletters! Some of it's even free. We resent the inference that Hennig and Andy have somehow infected us. ] [Jeff, in spite of my rebuttals, I do thank you for taking the time to comment. Editing tech tips is a toughie. Ideally, I'd verify each one to be sure the links were correct and it worked. Sometimes I do, but when the subject is complex and esoteric (like making COM objects or managing SQL Server) I couldn't do it even if I had the time. So I'm afraid that what you see is what you get. The tip writers try to share something with us for free, like you wanted. We publish it for free, in the hopes that it will help someone. I even check it a little and try to ensure that it's at least readable. If there's a specific error, we certainly welcome a correction. But I'd guess an attempt to "hold us to a higher standard" would stand a good chance of killing the goose that lays the tin eggs. Dan Covill, Editor] And that pretty well sums up how I feel about tech tips and sample programs in general. If they help you, that's great. If they don't, so what? Free advice is worth at least what you pay for it, but often a great deal more! We have added a link for CoDe Magazine to our "Where Can I Find" section. Dan Covill dcovill@san.rr.com ====================================================================== TECH TIPS ====================================================================== SP1 FOR VFP 9 SP1 for VFP 9 was released in December. ** this link wraps! ** Per Ken Levy's January newsletter: the December SP1 download did NOT include an updated XSOURCE.zip. That is now available from the website. ====================================================================== OTHER STUFF ====================================================================== FOXPRO NOT AN ENDANGERED SPECIES We're not dead yet! Mary Jo Foley writes a column called Microsoft Watch in Redmond Magazine, an independent on-line IT journal. Her article with the above title is at As further corroboration, VFP has moved from 51st to 20th on TIOBE.com's list of the most popular programming languages worldwide. (Java is 1st.) [Thanks to Barbara Peisch for these two items.] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- GLGDW IS BACK! After a two year hiatus, Whil Hentzen is reviving the Great Lakes Great Data Workship, albeit in a scaled-down form. It will be on April 21-24, in Milwaukee, and Barbara Peisch will be one of the speakers. The theme is "Best Practices for Visual Foxpro". ---------------------------------------------------------------------- WHAT ARE 'BEST PRACTICES' by Dan Covill The theme for GLGDW (see above) jangled in my brain, combining with echoes of a (totally unrelated) magazine article I read last week on 'Best Practices for Church Administration'. We're seeing "Best Practices" articles and workshops on all sorts of topics, promising a new and better approach to whatever the subject is. As usual, I'm a skeptic. But my real problem is with that word "Best". If they said 'Good Practices', or 'Better Practices', I wouldn't complain. But "Best" is a superlative, and calling something the "best" implies that you've surveyed several alternatives and selected this "best" as a result of an evaluation process. I don't see that happening. The articles I see are simply descriptions of a process that worked for the author. Sometimes they allude to the problems solved by adopting this particular practice, but all too often I get the feeling that "This is what all right-thinking people are doing, and you'd better do it too or you won't be a real professional." Of course, the business consultants have to come up with new flavors of snake oil so the corporate executives will continue to hire them. But we don't have to follow every management fad. Besides, as computer gurus we're supposed to have a certain amount of precision in our thinking. I don't really believe that a single "best" practice can exist, given the variability of the problems. Maybe we could settle for talking about "Good Practices". Dan Covill dcovill@san.rr.com ====================================================================== LINKS ====================================================================== This is a (semi) permanent list of places to look for technical help when you get blind-sided by the latest urgent requirement. We don't give specific URLs for MSDN articles simply because there are too many of them! ------------------------------- The VFP Home Page: http://msdn.microsoft.com/vfoxpro/ The FoxPro Team's home page. Ken Levy's Newsletter: A monthly letter on VFP from Key Levy, with a link to his blog. http://msdn.microsoft.com/vfoxpro/letters/ Articles: Eric den Doop's Foxite site has lots of articles on a wide range of VFP subjects, including very good tutorials. FoxPro 2.6 procedure library: http://members.aol.com/FoxProResources/fpfp.htm MSDN ON LINE: There's a ton of stuff here, look at the MSDN Magazine. Heavy on .NET, you may have to dig to find the VFP stuff. ODBC: MSDN Library: "Using Visual FoxPro to Access Remote Data" ODBC drivers are part of MDAC - Microsoft Data Access Components - and are available for download at: "www.microsoft.com/data" VFP Publications: www.code-magazine.com. CoDe magazine www.advisor.com FoxPro Advisor www.pinpub.com FoxTalk magazine www.hentzenwerke.com Hentzen Publishing (Books, discussion, and downloads) VFP Run-Times: FTP library with complete VFP run-times from 3 thru 9. VFP General: msdn.microsoft.com/vfoxpro Microsoft's official VFP home page www.foxcentral.net Joint effort by Microsoft, West-Wind, and the Universal Thread Lots of news and development info. The History of FoxPro (submitted by Steve Settimi) www.foxprohistory.org The Universal Thread http://www.universalthread.com The "Wiki" fox.wikis.com fox.wikis.com/wc.dll?Wiki~FoxForumWiki fox.wikis.com/wc.dll?Wiki~VisualFoxProLinks Here's another extensive set of FoxPro links: http://www.cetus-links.org/oo_visual_foxpro.html Private websites with useful free info and downloads: www.prolib.de/foxlinks.afp wOOdy Wondzinski www.gatwicksoftware.com Allen Pollard www.ukfug.org.uk British user group www.lafox.org LA user group www.pinter.com/ Les Pinter www.vfug.org/ Virtual Fox User Group www.leafe.com Ed Leafe, ProFox listserve www.jamesbooth.com white papers and tutorials www.foxforum.com www.foxite.com (registration required) A group of Dutch developers - refreshingly geeky. (Don't be put off by the registration - they're not selling anything.) www.stevenblack.com INTL Toolkit and lots more www.craigberntson.com the Crystal Reports guru WEB Development: These products all work well with VFP. AFP www.afpweb.com and www.afpages.com DotFox www.elsoftware.com FoxWeb www.foxweb.com Web Connection www.west-wind.com X-WORKS www.x-works.com Windows General Win32 API (with VFP examples) [Contributions solicited. DC] --------------------------Administrivia------------------------------- This newsletter is a service to all FoxPro developers, provided without charge by the FoxPro Developers Network of San Diego (FPDN). Anyone may subscribe (or unsubscribe) at our web site . The link is on the home page. The Resources button on the website will take you to the back issues of the newsletter. The editor (Dan Covill) is solely responsible for the content. E-mail him with YOUR tips, comments, or complaints. Editor: Dan Covill 858-272-2448 dcovill@san.rr.com Board of Directors: Eric Lendvai - President 760-734-4929 eric@elsoftware.com Art Bergquist - Vice Pres 760-740-0428 abergquist@sbcglobal.net Barbara Peisch - Treasurer 760-729-9607 barbara@peisch.com Pete Rios - Secretary prios@eltoroexport.com Claude Nikula - Director 619-615-6318 crndev@verizon.net Dan Covill - Director 858-272-2448 dcovill@san.rr.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------