Diary of a Grunt (Jason Holden's Blog)

HOW-TO: Generate Large Files

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 13:04:00 -0500

Simple Windows command-line to generate files for testing:fsutil file createnew

Transfer Contacts from LG VX9200M to iPhone 4

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 18:12:00 -0500

Accidently wiped contacts on wife's new iPhone 4 (previous phone was an LG V9200M) NOTE: Using the same steps below should work on any phone that is supported by BitPim

Download / Install BitPim (http://www.bitpim.org/)
Plugin LG phone via USB cable
Choose "Data" on USB device settings (shows on phone screen)
Open BitPim
Select Find Phone (phone with magnifying glass in main BitPim toolbar)
Enter a title for the phone profile when prompted
Select Get Phone Data from main toolbar
Check PhoneBook (Wallpaper selection also retrieves images stored internally and any SD cards)
After Get Phone Data complete, you can verify the phone book entries by selecting the PhoneBook node
Click File > Export > vCards (vCard v2.1 is ok)
After exporting the contacts to VCF you may close BitPim
Open Windows Contacts (Windows 7) (%USERPROFILE%\Contacts)
Select Import > vCard > vCard (VCF file)
Select the BitPim exported VCF file created earlier
Windows Contacts will require you to OK each entry
Plugin the iPhone, should automatically start iTunes
Goto the Info tab from the device info screen
Check Sync Contacts with:
In the selection box select Windows Conctacts
Sync the iPhone

Javascript SCORM API

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 16:57:00 -0500

For anyone that's tried to wade through the mountains of SCORM documentation it can be a little frusrating trying to put all the pieces together. This is useful if you want to get interaction data out of products like Adobe Captivate, Adobe Presenter, or Articulate. So I'm providing a very simple SCORM 2004 javascript API that will hopefully be a useful starting point for anyone trying to implement an LMS or SCORM data collector.

This script needs to be on the page that launches the SCORM compliant presentation. Click here to download a demo presentation (MUST BE LAUNCHED FROM A WEBSERVER / WILL NOT WORK IF LAUNCHED DIRECTLY)

Combine/Merge Tables in Access 2010

Sat, 05 Mar 2011 10:51:00 -0500

The following is a very basic merge, it assumes the data structure is the same for all combined tables.

Select the first table within Tables Pane
Copy the selected table (CTRL+C)
Paste the copied table into the Tables Pane (CTRL+V)
The Paste Table As dialog will appears
Ensure the Structure and Data option is selected, select OK
Open the newly copied table in Design View (Right-click > Design View)
Drop all AutoNumber fields, Primary Keys, and Foreign Keys
Save the changes to the copied table
Copy the new table (CTRL+C)
Paste the new table into the Tables Pane (CTRL+V)
The Paste Table As dialog will appear again
Type the name of the table that will recieve the copied data
Ensure the Append Data to Existing Table option is selected, select OK

Using this method Access provids no feedback on the results of the merge.

Quick and dirty!

Change Coldfusion Temporary Files Location Used by GetTempDirectory()

Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:20:00 -0500

I wanted to change the default location Coldfusion uses for temporary storage when using: This meant changing the default location returned by GetTempDirectory() EDIT %CFusion%\runtime\servers\coldfusion\SERVER-INF\jrun.xml Comment this line: {jrun.server.rootdir}/SERVER-INF/temp Add this key: {YourFullTempFolderPath} So that you have this:


   C:\ExampleCustomTempPath

RESTART the Coldfusion Application service NOTE: Coldfusion will create a subfolder in the temporary directory named wwwroot-tmp

Android Emulator Virtual Hosts with IIS

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 10:22:00 -0500

I do most of my development locally (using my local IIS webserver). My local webserver makes use of host headers to host multiple development sites on a single IP. After reading several articles and blog entries I was unable to find a good solution to allow using host headers with Android. The emulator can access the host machine out of the box on 10.0.2.2, but that will only show you the default IIS site. Tom Deryckere's article (http://www.mobiledrupal.com/content/using-virtual-hosts-android-emulator) explains how to get host headers working on the emulator, but I didn't want to run terminal commands every time I launched the emulator or keep updating my host file across mulitple emulator images (I'm really lazy.) The solution was pretty simple and I'm embarrassed that I didn't think of it before. I simply added another binding entry to a new port: In IIS Manager:

Select the site you want to access
Click 'Bindings' in the right side Actions pane
Click 'Add...' on the Site Binding dialog that is displayed
Give the site a any valid port number that is not currently in use (example 9191)

Now in the Android emulator you can access your site using http://10.0.2.2:9191

Copy Table Schema with SQL Server Management Studio

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:05:00 -0500

Quick way to copy the table schema using SQL Server Management Studio:

Right-Click table to copy
Script table as
CREATE To
New Query Editor Window
Find & Replace all instances of the table you are copying with the table you wish to create

NOTE: Pay attention to any Primary Key and Foreign Key indexes listed in the SQL script. They may require updating as well.

Leadership Tulsa

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:29:00 -0500

I was accepted to Leadership Tulsa Class 42 in June. It's a great program designed to develop community leaders. They are attempting to groom/prepare people for volunteering and operating programs that help or enrich the Tulsa community. Last month was "Government Day" where we heard from Tulsa's (then) mayoral candidates and learned the role local, state, and federal goverment plays in community development. This month was "Education Day" we toured several community schools in the Tulsa area and learned about the challenges facing the Tulsa area education system. Tulsa has some really great educational institutions. I always assumed that the Oklahoma public education system was broken. These schools are really taking steps to ensure that kids actually learn. The state of education is leaps and bounds above what it was five years ago. There are so many inovative programs that I wish had been available to me when I was in grade school. [More]

Stopped Again.

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:10:00 -0500

This is starting to become more and more frequent: I'm coding along, making excellent progress on a project only to be stopped dead in my tracks by yet another Coldfusion limitation. I love Coldfusion, but all the stripped down and half-assed features are starting to get in my way. [More]

Quick CF Builder Beta 2 Note.

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 19:24:00 -0500

I installed the standalone Beta 1, downloaded Beta 2 today and it noticed the standalone install was disabled. I uninstalled the previous version and the reinstall picked up my workspace. My guess is because it was in the default location (Vista x64 Ultimate): C:\Users\%USER%\Adobe ColdFusion Builder workspace

FCKEditor in Coldfusion

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:27:00 -0500

I began using FCKEditor long before it was included with Coldfusion. I've continued to use my own implemenation even after the release of Coldfusion 8. There was a vulnerability found in the included FCKEditor: http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb09-09.html I applied the patch to my server and it also broke my own FCKEditor instance. I received "403 Access Denied" errors when using the FCKEditor file browser. After much time and effort the solution is pretty simple: Add this to your JVM args in jvm.config: -Dcoldfusion.fckupload=true ***CAREFUL about copying and pasting the text above. Hidden carriage returns will cause CF to fail on startup.*** Even if you are not using the Coldfusion FCKEditor you still need to enable FCKEditor uploads. The updated JAR must have a built-in request filter for "filemanager".

Digsby

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 14:23:00 -0500

I'm officially a Digsby fan: http://www.digsby.com This little piece of FREE software is exactly what I was looking for. I wanted a single piece of software that I could use to manage all my social networking, IMs, etc. Digsby fills that role and more. Chatting with your Facebook friend is as easy as chatting with a GMail contact. All in one interface. Additionally, Digsby provides a chat widget (right side of this website) that allows visitors to chat with you in real-time right from your own website! I've been wanting this for a long time and was contemplating writing something myself. Now I can have my cake and eat it too!

Coldfusion 8 and 9 on Windows Server 2003, Server 2008, Vista, and Windows 7 (x86 and x64)

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:37:00 -0500

I wrote index.cfm/2008/5/6/Coldfusion-8-on-Windows-server-2008?force=true">a blog entry over a year ago discussing how to install Coldfusion on Windows 2008. With the imminent release of Windows 7 and several user comments I decided to update the instructions for myself and anyone else who finds it useful. I've installed Coldfusion 8 and 9 on most versions of Windows. I used the default setup options. To make the Coldfusion install as painless as possible you need to take a few pre-installation steps. [More]

Eclipse 3.5 (Galileo) Won't Start / Splash Screen Crashes

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 23:39:00 -0500

I ran across an interesting problem using Eclipse 3.5 (Galileo). After an unexpected crash caused by an unrelated program, I was forced to reboot my computer. After the reboot I could not get Eclipse to start. The splash screen was visible and then it would disappear. Eclipse was not in the Task Manager. It simply didn't start. [More]

Loading/Waiting images.

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 14:28:00 -0500

Since I've been creating Web 2.0 interfaces I always need some kind of graphic to indicate that I'm waiting on a response. Usually I just use Google Image search, but today I found this cool site: http://ajaxload.info Will make customizable graphics for your Web 2.0 applications.