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As Ava are supplying an increasing number of web site to our customers, the following free links may be helpful in assessing performance or checking if a web site is functioning correctly independently of you local ISP.

This site allows you to put in your site URL and it will then check to see if it can contact the site.

http://downforeveryoneorjustme.com/

you can also add your url and store it in favourites:

http://downforeveryoneorjustme.com/www.ava.co.uk

The following site provides a similar function with more detailed information giving the return times to you site from servers around the world:

http://just-ping.com/

Similarly, you can also add your url and store it in favourites:

http://just-ping.com/index.php?vh=ava.co.uk

The site

http://www.downornot.com/

provides a similar service. It also tells  you how it checks by following a link and there is a link to a paid for monitoring server with a free 30 day trial

Similarly, you can also add your url and store it in favourites:

http://www.downornot.com/ava.co.uk

 Probably the best of all (certainly the most complex) is:

http://mon.itor.us/

In the latest update of AvaPA the TAPI (Telephone interface) has been extended. In simple terms, if you can dial out via Outlook, Sage, Windows dialer, Act or any other software:  AvaPA now supports the full range of standard telephone interfaces available in Windows 2000, XP or Vista.

The Mail on Sunday carried a report on an investigation into Locum Agencies supplying the NHS and their charges. The report focused on the possibilities of cartel existing.

To see the report click here.

There is a new report concerning unclaimed accrued paid leave. It is on the reconciliation tab and is number 99.

It differs from report 97: Report 97 gives unclaimed accrued paid leave for locked reconciliations before a given (reconciliation) date. This produces a report which gives constant amounts irrespective of later reconciliations and approved claimed leave requests. It is designed for accountancy purposes and represents a snap shot of accrued leave at a given reconcile date.

The new report gives the current status for unclaimed (or accrued) paid leave which as been accumulated up to the date selected. So claimed leave will be removed form the displayed total even when it is claimed significantly after the date selected: it has been claimed at any time and is therefore not outstanding.

The new report also gives the First and last dates for the unclaimed accrued leave, Current employee status and the date the status was activated.

The following reports:

Accrued Paid Leave for locked reconciles to date (number 97)

Accrued Paid Leave for Employee (number 98)

Unclaimed Accrued Paid Leave to date (number 99)

Are available both on the day tab and the reconcile tab

Last night in Bracknell I gave part of a presentation on Microsoft 2008 technologies: the agonies and ecstasies of Linq. This was to the increasingly misnamed VBUG. There were more C developers than VB. The food was good and we had a good audience.
 
An edited version of the text of the slides, with additional comments and Linq links follows:

AvaPA – VBUG Bracknell 2008 Launch

2005 - 2008

Keep a copy of your *.proj/*.sln – everything else is compatible
Not sure why you would want to though…
White space handling much better.
Layout seems to be maintained.

Ajax issues 1

Why my Ajax stopped working when I went from 2.0 to 3.5
How to fix it:
Download the latest version of Ajax for 3.5
Copy the old code to a safe place
Delete then reinsert the Ajax extension
Copy in the missing bits!

SQL to Linq 1

• Stored procedure comments:
  Not before
  Not after
  In the middle…
  If somone or something puts your puts your XP computer in hibernate:
  right clicking on a stored proc will not give you the open option!!!
  Close and restart the project to cure.
  
• Linq 1 How to bind a list (as opposed to a grid)
  Use Datafield properties
  No “Selected” binding for a check list??? 
  
• Linq 2
  How to run an update stored proc:
  Import it into your data model
  Declare it and just do it!
  
• Linq 3
  Pitfall of using .single()
  Solutions may vary
  
• Linq 4
  How (not) to design a sp so it works with Linq
  Declare @Tbl TABLE (x, y, z)
  Final select: SELECT x,y,z FROM @Tbl T
  Linq 4
  How (not) to design a sp so it works with Linq
  IF @Var = 1
  SELECT * FROM MyTable
  IF @Var = 2
  SELECT * FROM MyTable2
  
• Linq 5
  Declarative order not maintained.
  Dhhhoooo…
  May be news for MS on this later….
  Select z, x, y From Mytable
  From Mytable Select z, x, y !!!!

Asp net wiz v2.0

An unexpected (for me) feature of the user wizard:
If you still logged in as an existing user,the User wizard may think you are trying to change your existing password rather than create a new user!

Altering a proc 1

Updating an existing stored procedure:
Run the new script against that database
Refresh the proc list Not < F 5 > !!!
Delete the old version
Drag in the new version
Save

Useful linq Links

Web casts
http://www.asp.net/learn/webcasts/default.aspx?tabid=63
Videos
http://www.asp.net/learn/videos/default.aspx?tabid=63
http://www.windowsclient.net/learn/videos.aspx
http://www.asp.net/learn/linq-videos/
Blogs
http://blogs.msdn.com/bethmassi/
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/ 
http://blogs.msdn.com/vbteam/ 
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2007/05/19/using-linq-to-sql-part-1.aspx
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2008/05/12/visual-studio-2008-and-net-framework-3-5-service-pack-1-beta.aspx 
Thank you
If you found this useful please place a public link on any web site or Social networking site to our site or this article.
Ian

For a few days you can get a very large discount off Windows Vista Ultimate edition.

For more details click here

Just in case you had not seen it, there is an update of the HM Revenue & Customs stance on registering if you are a trust or service provider in respect of money laundering regulations.

Important news for Trust or Company Service Providers (TCSPs)

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/mlr/service-providers260308.htm

And now for something completely different:

Described in one news paper as the “moment” when Galaxies collide: which perpetuates the myth of journalist “never letting the truth get in the way of a good story”) this “moment” lasts about 100 million years…

Pictures of unbelievable violence:

http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2008/16/

A major US telecoms company has added to the concern that performance of Web based applications will be severely degraded in just over a year because the internet will reach capacity. Without major investment at a time on economic slowdown (that’s really going to happen) the limit of current capacity will be reached in two years.

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6237715.html

There is a new how-to article:

Adding a phone note for employee about requests.

The article also covers where to see the information.

The article is here

There is a new report which gives the break down of accrued leave for a selected employee upto a given reconcile date: it is on the day tab and is number 98