TIOBE Programming Community Index

I looked at this several years ago. It is interesting to see the long term trends of programming languages.

The TIOBE Programming Community index gives an indication of the popularity of programming languages. The index is updated once a month. The ratings are based on the world-wide availability of skilled engineers, courses and third party vendors. The popular search engines Google, MSN, Yahoo!, and YouTube are used to calculate the ratings. Observe that the TIOBE index is not about the best programming language or the language in which most lines of code have been written.

It has a nice graph displaying the trends.

Could not load type error in VS 2005 Web Application

Occurring in an existing project

Occasionally I get an error like

Could not load type 'MOS5.MOSLinks'

when editing a web page. I have seen a lot of posts that address this error. For MOS5 it has always come down to case sensitivity.

I end up comparing the existing version to a previous one. Today I noticed that the MOSLinks.aspx.vb had this at the top of the file.

Imports MOS5.mosLinks

I edited this line in MOSLinks.aspx

Inherits="MOS5.MOSLinks" 

to this

Inherits="MOS5.mosLinks" 

After compiling, the error went away.

Occurring in a newly published project

Make sure the folder you are publishing to is a virtual directory.

Repeat a String n Times

I was looking to repeat a string n times using only T-SQL. My friend found it in this article. This reference may prove useful later.

From SQL BOL 2000:
Replicate - Repeats a character expression for a specified number of times.

Keyboard Shortcuts in Gmail

http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=6594

c = Compose
/ = put cursor in Search box

Maybe these will save me time

Beyond Compare File Comparison Rules

I was comparing two versions of my code. The right side of my comparison had tabs the left had spaces. Visual Studio 2005 must have put them in there. Beyond Compare (BC), highlighted the differences.

I made BC ignore leading whitespace in the "Everything Else" rule set by going to the Tools/Edit Current Rules/ menu. In the importance tab check "Leading whitespace". The right side was much more indented than the left. I fixed this my going to the General tab and choosing 4 characters = tab stops.

Now BC shows me only the important differences in my code versions.

You can pick rules by using the Tools/Pick Rules menu. I don't know why it did not pick VB when I was comparing two *.vb files.

I am using Beyond Compare version 2.4.3 (build 243).

Minimum Online Configuration

I recently looked at my sister in law's computer. They said it was running slow. My brother had a similar problem several months ago. Following is my minimum configuration for a windows computer connected to the Internet.

Automatic updates - Windows 10 does this for you

Anti virus - Windows Defender default for Windows 10. "How to schedule a Windows Defender Antivirus scan using Task Scheduler"
Task Scheduler > Task Scheduler Library > Microsoft > Windows > Windows Defender

Ad-Blocking - Use some simple ad-blocking extensions for your favorite browser.  Your sanity and your computer's health will thank you. (Added Jan 2013)
Chrome - Adblock Plus, Ghostery (I use it to block taboola)
FireFox - Adblock Plus, Ghostery
IE - Simple Adblock
Install Brave Browser

Firewall - I don't use a firewall.  I have a router between my cable modem and my network.  It blocks much of the bad people trying to access your network.  You may want to install one if you have people that aren't careful on your network.  It will stop malware that you have mistakenly installed to try and phone home.

Internet filter - (Updated Jun 2015)
OpenDNS Family Shield is a free option and it will protect your whole network, if you set it up on your router.  It pays for itself with ads.  Whenever you hit a site that is blocked a OpenDNS page is shown with ads.  You can choose a paid for option and eliminate the ads and increase your log retention to I think 2 years.  Here is how you set it up.

In addition to filtering on your router, I use parental controls for mobile devices. iPod Touch has pretty good built in controls. We remove Safari, YouTube, Installing Apps and set the allowed content. For android devices, we use AppLock and Qustodio.

Also, we use practices like putting the family desktop in an open area and rules for laptops to be used in an open area. We put passwords on all desktop and laptop computers that only mom and dad know. If they want to use one, we log it on for them for a specific purpose and then they are off. And we use the buddy system for additional precaution.

The technology we use is mainly to prevent someone accidentally coming across unsavory content. Much more powerful is open and often dialog with your children. Talk to them about everything. Listen to what they say. They will come to trust you when something disturbs them. Teach them to stop, crash and tell. If something disturbs them on the Internet, stop. Crash the device or computer. And tell their mom or dad.

As a parent, it is our job to help our children navigate the dangers of the Internet. Gain their trust by being compassionate and empathetic. Teach them the dangers of porn. Teach them to not ask Google about sexual things but rather their parents. Teach them that sexual intimacy is sacred and beautiful and only one aspect of the wonder of marriage. Express love in ways they feel it.

Defragment - Windows 7 and newer automatically defragments automatically.

Reduce start up apps - Programs sometimes are intrusive. They want you to use them. They get themselves to start up when you start your computer. They can slow your system down. Here I detail how you can tell your computer what is important to you.

The Five Browser Shortcuts Everyone Should Know

The Five Browser Shortcuts Everyone Should Know tells of often used keyboard shortcuts in IE7.

1. Set up a keyboard shortcut to launch your browser
2. Alt+D to navigate to the browser address bar
3. Ctrl+E to navigate to the browser search box
4. Alt+Enter to open searches or websites in a new tab
5. The middle mouse button opens links in a new tab, and also closes tabs