A place for Sharepoint and rantings
Archive for January, 2009
Custom Forms in WSS
Jan 30th
This isn’t going to be an essay or guide on how to do this, it’s just I’ve been doing this and had the following problem.
I have custom forms as the default ones don’t cut it, they don’t cut it cos of hierarchical dependencies in dropdown lists. Now I don’t have the time to do lots of ajax or try to fight to get some ajax framework approved by, whoever, to use in my product. So I’m using good old fashioned postbacks.
But postbacks on large forms are annoying and you need to return to the same scroll position.
Since .Net 2.0 there has been built in the MaintainScrollPositionOnPostBack directive for the @Page, something that’s as new to me as .net 2.0 (I was doing SAP for a bit for fun and a break remember ?) .
You can use this in your custom forms to.
Now I don’t know how much custom forms stuff you may have done, but I want CodeBehind in mine and struggled to get any code-behind, so I have custom forms that host another user control that I do have code-behind in.
In that Code I use the following
this.Page.Master.Page.MaintainScrollPositionOnPostBack = true;
Now if you have a custom master page then you can More >
Songsmith
Jan 29th
In case you have not heard, Microsoft Research have come up with some song writing software. It’s called Songsmith.
The idea behind it is that you make up a tune in your head then sing it into songsmith. First you pick a music style and then a tempo and then sing away. Once recorded the software will analyse your song and the notes you sang,( hopefully you sang them in tune I don’t think it cleverly pitch shifts your voice, but I may be wrong ) and then it will create a musical accompaniment in the style you selected.
Now I know what your thinking but the MS web site states
"The samples you hear in Songsmith aren’t toy sounds… they’re a high-powered general MIDI set from Garritan, one of the biggest names in the industry"
With resources like this how can it fail ?
Now it’s not aimed at pros but to give anyone a chance to write a song, well my son is seven and is not a musician, yet, he hasn’t displayed any interest in that area, until recently, but even he hears that the stuff this thing produces is absolute pap. It can’t even compose a good jingle, take a listen More >
Being Human
Jan 27th
Last night with tons of advertising and announcements (I don’t think), the first series of Being Human snuck its way onto the schedules.
Well done BBC for finally getting there with this series.
I’d love to tell you how good or bad it was but due to the marvelous media campaign I missed it, I stumbled across it half way through the episode where I managed to see all the characters and the new actors playing two of them.
Like I say I missed it so I wonder how the new actors will fit, if at all, the characters we were introduced to. I do have doubts about the ghost, far to attractive and very removed from the pilot character, who I absolutely loved. Is this a real improvement to help the story or just eye candy to keep part of the male audience who struggle with plots engaged. I don’t doubt the young ladies ability she seemed very good but its not the funny, kooky plain northern lass obsessed with making tea entrenched in routine to cope with her death and being tied to the house.
Anyone who did watch, what do you think ? Does it measure up to the pilot ?
Anyway, More >
Blue Monday
Jan 20th
Other than a chest infection, which was quite bad and making me very sick monday morning, enough to take a day sick and the last resort book a doctors appointment, I thought it’s not that bad, after all I have a job at the moment, I don’t spend what I don’t have (usually) so I’m not in huge credit card debt, I get paid early in the month too. So not much to worry about at all.
Till I got out of bed. I phoned work to let them know I was sick and also off to the quacks. I booked the appointment at the doctors, and got a good slot 9.50am unheard of. Apart from the retching cough things were looking up the prospect of being cured and getting back to normal.
Then the phone rings. Childminder, can’t have little’un today our ceiling is leaking. So that messes up the wife’s morning. Still I can watch him while off sick, all I have to do is lie on the floor to be at his level and play with his toys with him shouldn’t be too taxing, at least I’m in the warm and getting better.
Get in car to go to doctors, More >