Category Archives: Libraries

Anything related to .NET libraries–whether Microsoft or third-party.

Deserializing to Dynamic with RestSharp

You can use JSON.NET to convert any RestSharp service response to a list of dynamic instances; you just need a bit of plumbing code to do it. Continue reading

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Drawing vs. Updating and IsFixedTimeStamp (XNA)

XNA.Game.IsFixedTimeStep allows you to run Draw calls after every update, or to limit them to a certain FPS (and also provide fixed-time updates instead of variable ones). Continue reading

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Updated Version of Random Number Generators

After several months, I’ve finally updated the normally-distributed random number generator to tolerate negative numbers in its range. Thanks to everybody who complained to get this feature done! Continue reading

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Configuring NLog for WCF Services

NLog didn’t cooperate for my WCF services (server side). I finally did manage to get it working, with a few extra steps; this post outlines how to configure NLog to work with WCF services. Continue reading

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Finding Circular Dependencies in SQL Server

SQL Server doesn’t allow a cycle of foreign keys, nor two or more paths to cascadingly delete rows from a table. Thankfully, there’s a script you can use to detect at least table reference cycles. Continue reading

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Testing Rendered HTML in ASP.NET MVC3

HtmlUnit and IKVM together give you the power to test your ASP.NET MVC3 application. Submit forms, and even verify the resulting HTML! All with a little help from Java, and Steve Anderson. Continue reading

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Sending Multiple Updates Through the Updater Block

Adding multiple updates to an updater block manifest is actually quite easy. Simply package every update into its own manifest XML file, reference the manifests from the main/index manifest, and update the ID of the main/index manifest so that clients can tell that changes occurred. That’s it! Continue reading

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An Overview of the Updater Application Block

The Updater Application Block from Microsoft’s Enterprise Library is not immediately obvious in design. How does it work? We go through the basics. It’s a client-server architecture, which exposes an XML file containing a list of updates — what to download, and what to execute when that’s done. It uses BITS for passive transferring. Continue reading

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Fixing ApplicationBlocks.Updater Exception in x64

Microsoft Enterprise Library’s Update block throws an exception in 64-bit machines; this is because of the BG_BASIC_CREDENTIALS struct that uses a field offset of 4 instead of 8. Change it to eight, and your exception will vanish. Continue reading

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Aggregate Objects in DevExpress

DevExpress has an amazing feature called “aggregation,” which is not explained terribly well in their documentation. What is aggregation, and how does it work? Simply, aggregation is two things: Cascading Delete: Aggregated objects can’t live without their parents; deleting the … Continue reading

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