Month: April 2006

Pittsburgh MSDN Event: Boost your Productivity with Visual Studio® 2005 and the .NET Framework 2.0

Pittsburgh MSDN Event, May 25 1pm-5pm at Carmike 10 Theater on Fort Couch Rd.



With the productivity enhancements in Visual Studio 2005 and the .NET Framework 2.0, you’ll spend less time coding and more time focusing on actually getting the job done. First, learn how to build customizable web user interfaces in no time flat with the ASP.NET 2.0 Web Parts framework. Next, see how the many new language features of Visual Basic® 2005 and C# 2005 can simplify your coding. Finally, stand on the shoulders of giants by incorporating Application Blocks from the Enterprise Library for .NET Framework 2.0 into your application. Your project will be finished and you’ll be on to your Xbox 360â„¢ before you know it! These don’t-miss events are always free, local and live.



  • Creating Customizable User Interfaces with Web Parts and ASP.NET 2.0
    Learn how you can easily add a dynamic, modular, customizable portal interface to your own ASP.NET 2.0 Web site using the new Web Parts framework.

  • Language Enhancements in the .NET Framework 2.0
    This session highlights key language enhancements for both C# and Visual Basic, explores the usage of partial classes to manage source code, and looks at the new My namespace in Visual Basic.

  • Exploring the Enterprise Library for the .NET Framework 2.0
    In this session, we’ll examine the design and usage of several application blocks that will streamline and simplify your coding, and how their architecture embodies Microsoft’s best practices and recommendations for .NET-based applications.

Full info and registration at http://www.msdnevents.com/?dist=MAtGP.

Windows Live for Mobile Beta Test

via Betanews:




Microsoft is preparing to beta test a new software client for Windows Mobile 5.0, which will replace the Pocket MSN application with Windows Live based services formatted for smartphones. Pocket MSN features currently include one-click access to Hotmail and Messenger, along with viewing alerts.


With Windows Live services set to succeed their MSN counterparts throughout the year, Microsoft will update the mobile client as well. The company is seeking beta testers to trial the new software, which requires a Windows Mobile 5.0 device such as a Treo 700w. The test, only available in the United States, is open to join through Microsoft’s Connect beta site — users can find an application survey under the “Available Programs” link.


Part of the program requirement is a compatible cell phone (such as a Treo 700w) and a good data plan.  Click through to the connect site, sign in with your Passport, and fill out the survey.  The program is near the bottom of the list.

Column Settings Not Working When Exporting From Crystal Reports To Excel

I received an e-mail in regards to my article Exporting to Excel in Crystal Reports .NET – Perfect Excel Exports:



I have crystal reports that are displayed in PDF or Excel format from an ASP.NET application. The reports are displaying, my only problem is in Excel, I keep getting fixed width columns when exporting the report. On my localhost it works (variable width columns, very esy to use), I move my product to the Windows 2003 server, and the export becomes fixed width (same size columns, very difficult to modify).


We are using Crystal Reports 9, VS.NET 2003, Windows 2003 Server, Windows XP (local box for developemnt).


My first thought was that this was a DLL problem, perhaps an outdated or incorrect one on the server.  As it turned out, the problem was with some registry entries not being created when the Crystal Reports was installed:



What happened is in the server, the registry entries for export from crystal reports did not exist. I copied the register entries for Crystal Reports – Export from my machine into the server registry and it fixed my problem (I don’t know if I would recommend that for novices, due to the problems that can occur from changing the registry). In short the server didn’t know what to do with the constant width column statement until I gave it a reference.


I don’t advocate poking around in the registry of a production server, especially if you’re not an experienced regsitry person.  Instead, I think an administrator uninstalling and reinstalling the Crystal Reports might have solved the problem.  Try that first, before poking around in the registry.