Razorleaf Corporation » Development & Programming Articles

Custom Context Menu Entries in Windows 7

Kevin Carpenter — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 19:00:26 +0000

As developers, we’re known to tweak things to get them just exactly like we want them. So here’s a quick tip on getting your own menu Read More...

Microsoft’s Free XML Editor

Paul Gimbel — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 19:02:46 +0000

XML is the wonder of the modern programming age. Its plain text can represent objects with properties and attributes to capture complex structures in a simple text file. And it’s even fairly easy to understand. Just look at it. It’s logical. But as logical as XML is, when you look at an XML file in production, it’s huge, convoluted, and impossible to grasp in one glimpse inside of Notepad. Lucky for us, our friends at Microsoft have come up with an answer in their free XML Notepad 2007 tool. After installing XML Notepad 2007 (you can download it from Microsoft’s site or from Codeplex), the tool is simple to launch and use. In Windows Explorer, simply right-select any XML file and choose the option Edit with XML Notepad. The interface is intuitive and an easy way to view and edit XML files. One tab provides a tree view that allows you to collapse and expand each section to drill down quickly. Another tab provides a preview of the file, once the specified XSL transform has been applied. Copy, paste, search, replace, and other standard editor functions are there along with XML-specific menus that let you insert elements, attributes and so on. An error list window at the bottom of the editor warns of any problems in real time, and a dynamic help window displays the xsd:documentation for nodes as they are selected. And perhaps best of all, elements are color-coded based on element type, making the content easy to scan visually. XML is becoming more and more important when working with software. And this free tool from Microsoft is a great way to work with XML. Download it and try it for yourself. Oh yeah, and did we mention that it is Open Source (for those of you looking for a good code base in creating your own specialized XML editing app). If you have other XML editing tools that you think are great (we like Notepad++, too), leave us a comment and let us know about them, please.

Microsoft’s Free XML Editor

Paul Gimbel — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 19:02:46 +0000

XML is the wonder of the modern programming age. Its plain text can represent objects with properties and attributes to capture complex structures in a simple Read More...

Autocomplete and IntelliSense

Jonathan Scott — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:39:45 +0000

If you’ve been developing programs for a while, you probably either love autocompletion features or you hate them. If you’re in the former camp, or you’re just getting started with programming, this tip is just for you. Autocomplete, or the Microsoft equivalent, IntelliSense, is a feature within certain software that tries to automatically complete what you’ve started typing before you finish typing all of the letters yourself. For a lot of people, this is a real time-saver and can prevent typographical mistakes. But what if you’re working on code in a text file, or in a development environment that doesn’t have autocomplete? Here are a few utilities that can help you out.

PhraseExpress

A freeware utility (with a commercial cousin), PhraseExpress offers autotext (text substitution), autocomplete (finishing what you start to type), spell checking, and a program launcher (from text shortcuts). The interface is polished, and options for the various autocompletions appear in contextual menus. The tool includes some advanced features, too, like the ability to include formatting and images in the inserted text (more useful for email signatures and the like than for coding applications).

Texter

If you haven’t browsed through the Lifehacker website, checking out the Texter tool might be your introduction to a new resource. The folks over at Lifehacker offer a number of time-saving tips, and they actually wrote Texter. This open source Windows application runs in the system tray as a universal text substitution tool, meaning it works in any Microsoft Windows application. You can start with basic things like replacing text using a hotstring. For example, when I type “newSTUtil” and then the TAB key, Texter will replace “newST” with “Set SmUtil = SmSession.GetService("SmUtil.SmSessionUtil")” You can see how this would be handy for enhancing simple coding tools like BasicScript, the development utility that is included with ENOVIA SmarTeam.

TypingAid

Another very basic tool, TypingAid requires you to setup a text substitution list (wordlist.txt) to use as its “guide”. Based on the content of this file, the executable watches what you type and suggests possible matches from your wordlist.txt file. You simply choose the number of the entry that you want to use, and your text is automatically completed. It’s very simple, but very effective. TypingAid is also available as open source software.

AutoHotKey

AutoHotKey (AHK) is the granddaddy of all Microsoft Windows-based autocomplete utilities. In fact, Texter and TypingAid (mentioned above) are both written in AutoHotKey’s scripting language. AHK is useful for a lot more than text substitution and autocompletion, though – you can automate any series of keystrokes or mouse clicks by hand or through the use of AHK’s macro recorder. What’s more, you can compile your AutoHotKey macros into their own executables that can be run on other computers that don’t have AutoHotKey installed. So there you have it, IntelliSense everywhere (in Microsoft Windows at least), and for free too. What are your favorite productivity enhancing tools for programming? Leave us a comment below and share your tips and tricks.

32-bit and 64-bit ASP.NET

Paul Luc — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 02:54:14 +0000

Many developers struggle with the use of 32-bit and 64-bit address spaces. In a nutshell, 32-bit assemblies cannot be loaded within 64-bit address spaces and 64-bit Read More...

Aras Innovator CMII Affected Items Wizard with Bulk Change

Dennis Lindinger — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 16:39:03 +0000

As you may know, Aras offers standard Project Management, Quality Planning, and Configuration Management solutions for their Innovator product. What you might not know is that Read More...

SmarTeam Scripting Character Limit

Jonathan Scott — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 21:16:39 +0000

For those ENOVIA SmarTeam customers with scripts in their environment (just about everyone out there), there is a limitation on naming scripts that is worth noting. Read More...

Visual Studio Item Templates

Paul Luc — Fri, 28 May 2010 21:00:12 +0000

The Visual Studio Integrated Design Environment (IDE) is highly customizable and can be extended. In fact, it’s possible to automate repetitive and tedious item creation tasks Read More...

Dealing with Timezones in a Global Environment

Steve Dunn — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 03:58:14 +0000

Global collaboration can be tricky for a number of reasons. For instance, when developing an application that is shared between users in two or more time Read More...

SolidWorks Event Wrappers

Paul Luc — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 11:00:44 +0000

The SolidWorks API (Application Programming Interface) is immensely powerful. In fact, if something is doable within SolidWorks, the chances are good that there is a corresponding Read More...