Development

MSBuild and Web.config Transforms

Sep 1st

Posted by ben in TFS

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So here is the backstory: we have traditionally developed in Visual Studio 2008 using Visual SourceSafe 2005 (I know, right!) and Web Deployment Projects 2008. We always had configuration section replacements done on our web projects. So we upgraded to TFS 2010 and VS 2010. But after reading all about Web.config transformations here at MSDN, I could not get it to work on a team build. So after a lot of digging and experimentation, I discovered the following settings need added to your Team Build Definition and viola, it will build it as a deployment project with the web.config transformed!

So basically just add “/p:CreatePackageOnPublish=true /p:DeployOnBuild=true” and you’re set!

ASP.NET MVC 1 FormCollection & Checkboxes

Aug 19th

Posted by ben in .NET

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While working on a project in C# 3.5 using ASP.NET MVC, I have a challenge where I cannot use a strongly-typed view. I noticed the checkbox is coded as

1

<%= Html.CheckBox("HoldFlag", Model.HoldFlag) %>

However, calling form["HoldFlag"] was behaving oddly. When the box was checked, it was returned as “true, false” but when unchecked it was “false”. So I guess for now I’m going to handle it as follows:

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var hold = form["HoldFlag"].Contains("true");

SDLC 2010 – I Call It Recursive Idiocy

Jul 30th

Posted by ben in Development

1 comment

Funny and True Software Development Life Cycle

Here’s a software development life-cycle template that I offer you, my colleagues, free of charge.

  • Gather requirements
  • Gather more requirements
  • Assign Project
  • Begin coding
  • Change requirements before any useful code has been written and do not tell the developer
  • Keep coding with a confused but happy look on your face
  • Change requirements again, this time eliminating an entire requirement that has already been coded
  • Keep coding with a straight face
  • Change requirements and also add some new requirements
  • Keep coding still with nobody having seen the code
  • Create a new task with other additions to the same code that has not yet been seen or approved.
  • Keep coding, but much slower and in disbelief that a place functions like this
  • Add more items to a task and say it’s the final list of items to work on.
  • Keep coding but do a lot more internet surfing since you realize this crap isn’t going to end well
  • Add more items to the list which you just said was final for the second time but mark it as TBD
  • Stop coding because you’re just pissed off
  • Business Analyst asks Developer how progress is coming on the task where half of the original items are crossed out and some items still are marked TBD
  • Testers ask the Developer how testing is going.
  • Developer is so confused he looks for a new job and give up working on the project.
  • BA thinks project is still coming along nicely even though no coding has been done for the task as it is listed now.
  • Developer’s supervisor quits in disgust  nobody cares but his team
  • Developers leave one by one
  • Company keeps running with idiots at the wheel
  • Life goes on