Goodies To Go! Newsletter #347

Anala-geesh!
 

We're famous for it!  Us folks in the computer world, that is. We're famous for our jargon, full as it is of acronyms, made-up words or made-up meanings for existing words, and abuse of analogies.  And I for one wouldn't have it any other way!!

 

Do we intentionally obfuscate!  You bet!  My personal belief is that the trend started in the early days of business computing.  In those days, very few people could tell you anything about the component parts of a computer system.  Only very few could differentiate between "hardware" and "software" (using the made-up meaning for "hardware", by the way, along with the made-up word "software"!) and even fewer could differentiate between programs and data.

 

In those days, those of us working with computers spoke to each other with a language of our own, and made up languages with which to speak to our computers.  Nobody outside our sphere could understand anything we did or why we did it.  They did understand the results, however.  And there's the crux of it.

 

They surely wanted us to continue to produce the results, but since they had no idea how we got there, they had to trust us that everything we said was true.  One of the things we said, of course, was that knowing what we did, we deserved to be paid more than the average employee.  They had to trust us!  Ah!  Those were the days!

 

We continue the trend today, only now we have to be even more creative.  Trouble is, people are learning our words.  The only hope for us is to invent new ones, or new meanings for old ones, at an ever increasing pace.  I think we do pretty well.

 

Consider a few things:  we have folders that don't fold;  we have directories that, unlike phone directories which are made out of trees, organize themselves into trees -- we call them trees because they start at the root and work their ways down from there;  if you need the path to something, simply start at the drive and follow your way down the tree;  we spend many, many hours creating programs that become so personal to us they are like children to us -- so we execute them every chance we get! -- in fact, the more we execute them, the more alive they seem to be!

 

We are getting so much better at this game!  My personal favorite nom du jour: "object".  This, to a layman, is about as unintelligible a creation as there can be.  Try defining it:
"So, what is an object?"
"Well, it's a thing really - or at least it's something that you could make an instance of a thing out of."
"Huh?  Is it a program?"
"Yes, but then again, no."
"Well then is it data?"
"No, but then again, yes.  Let me explain.  An object might, or might not be a program, or at least part of one, and it might, or might not be some data.  Of course, to be clear about it, you should understand that it might, or might not, actually exist at any particular point in time.  Obviously, you can see how useful objects are -- so much so, of course, that we have entire language structures oriented around them."
"Err, yes! I mean no -- I think.  How much more should I pay you, did you say?"

 

 

 

Thanks for Reading!

 

 

 

- Vince Barnes

 

 

 

 

 

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Q & A Goodies
***********************************
Questions are taken from submissions to our Community
Mentors. You can ask a Mentor a question by going to
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/

 

    
Q. When you open a new window is it possible to close the original window?  When I run this code I just get an error message after the new window opens.
window.open("page.html", "whatever", config="height=500,width=500") self.close;
I've tried replacing self.close with main.close and window.close but I always get errors.  main.close only works for closing new windows.

 

A. The reason you are getting the erros is that you have the wrong syntax for your window close.  The correct syntax should be:
self.close()
or:
window.close()
to close the original window.  The other problem that you will have is that when you use JavaScript to close the original or main window an alert will popup asking you wether you want to close it or not.  This is a security feature that keeps someone from closing the window without the viewer's permission.  JavaScript is not allowed to close the main window.

 

 

 

    
Q. I cannot figure out how to get the submit button to work.  I need the information from the order form to go to my email address.  If this is not possible, please advise me on how to retrieve information from a form that is submitted. Anyway, the form is there and each text box is coded within the form frame.  I would also like to be able to add a confirmation page when they submit the order. (Code sample supplied)

 

A. The reason your form is not working is because the SUBMIT button has no place to send it to. The line that starts the FORM needs an ACTION attribute.
This line:
<FORM name=" " enctype="text/plain">
Should read something like this:
<FORM name=" " enctype="text/plain" action="page_to_send _the_info_to.shtml">
The page that the form sends the information to should contain all of the needed coding to send the information to an email. If you are using the script to send to an email application, I would suggest you find another script as some browsers do not support that.
[See also these articles for more information:
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/articles/emailforms1.html
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/articles/emailformphp.html
 - Ed.]
 

 

 

 

 

Q. I would like if anybody of you could help me. I am very new in creating web sites. I know little about java script. What I want to do is to create pop-up window like this:
<script language="javascript">
function nesto()
{ alert ("IZABERITE NO"); return}
</script>
Ok, so I did it. But it is an alert message. Can I change it so it would be some other kind of pop-up. Like with ? or something else. Hope you understand me!

 

A. I think it would help if you first went through Joe Burns JavaScript Primers here:
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/primers/jsp/
They are very good at explaining JavaScript to the beginner.
 

 

 

 

    
Q. I am trying to have two things happen when someone clicks on a button at the bottom of my form.  The first thing I would like to happen is have a second window pop up-which I have done without difficulty. The second thing I would like to happen is have the main page go to the home page for the site.  I cannot seem to do both.  I am only able to do one or the other.  Could you please direct on how to accomplish both actions?

 

A. It might be easiest to create a function and place it in the head section of your document.  Like below:
<script type="text/javascript">
   function Doit()
    {
     NewWin=window.open('confirmation.html','confirm',config='height=300,width=300')
     parent.location='http://www.sitenamehere.com/directory/'
    }
</script>
And then call it with the onClick event in your button like so:
<INPUT TYPE="button" VALUE="I Agree/Submit" onClick="Doit()">

 

 

 

 

 

Q.  How can I make a form so that it is validated (checked that all the fields are filled) before then sending the form to the cgi -bin for processing only if the JavaScript check has found everything OK?

 

A. Here is an example of how you can check all of the text elements in a form to see if they have been filled.  If they have not then the form will not be submitted.
<html>
 <head>
 <title>Form validate</title>
 <script type="text/javascript">
  function doVal(frmobj)
    {
     flag=false
     frmlen=frmobj.length // get number of form elements
     for(i=0;i<frmlen;i++)
        {
         if(frmobj.elements[i].type=="text")
           {
            if(frmobj.elements[i].value=="")
              {flag=true}
           }
        }
     if(flag) // if flag is true
       {
        alert("One or more fields are empty")
        return false  // return false to keep form from submitting
       }              // true will be returned if all fields are filled
    }                 // and the form will be submitted
</script>
</head>
<body>
 <form name="myform" method="post" action="do.cgi" onSubmit="return doVal(this)">
   <input type="text" name="txt1" size="10">
   <input type="text" name="txt1" size="10">
   <input type="text" name="txt1" size="10">
   <br>
   <input type="checkbox" name="ck1"><br>
   <input type="submit" value="Submit"><input type="reset" value="Reset">  </form>

 

 

 

 

 

News Goodies
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Only The 'Genuine' Get Windows Support
[July 26, 2005] Microsoft moves Windows Genuine Advantage out of beta to put a global eye on software piracy.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3522976

 

IBM Debuts Mainframe to Battle Data Leaks
[July 26, 2005] The z9 scales to 54 processors as a secure box for exchanging information.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3522966

 

Vonage to Offer Home Networking Gear
[July 26, 2005] Subscribers will be able to use the device to simplify VoIP and home networking.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/infra/article.php/3522841

 

What's AP Got to Say?
[July 26, 2005] Critical Mention adds Associated Press content to its media-watch service.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3522846

 

Ameritrade Tops Online Brokers in Report
[July 26, 2005] JupiterResearch measures customer intensity and 'hyper-usage.'
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3522851

 

Cisco Fills Triple-Play Slot
[July 26, 2005] The network giant pays $97M for Sheer Networks in backyard acquisition.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/infra/article.php/3522951

 

CA Plays It Safe With Qurb Buy
[July 26, 2005] The management software company is looking to protect users from e-mail security pitfalls.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3522991

 

SANS: No Safety From Vulnerabilities
[July 25, 2005] IE vulnerabilities still abound, but Apple, Mozilla and Real Player users have little to gloat about.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3522771

 

A Widget or Two for Yahoo
[July 25, 2005] The Web portal hopes to see millions of the 'widget' mini-applications, thanks to its acquisition of Pixoria. 
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3522821

 

Microsoft Debuts Street-Level Search
[July 25, 2005] It's getting to be a small world after all as Redmond becomes the latest to uncover the nooks and crannies of your 'hood.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3522636

 

 

 

 
 
 
Feedback Goodies
***********************************

 

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If you would like to comment on the newsletter or expand/improve on something you have seen in here, you can now send your input to:

 

mailto:nlfeedback@htmlgoodies.com

 

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Thanks for all your feedback!

 

 

 

 

 

Windows Tech Goodie of the Week 
***********************************

 

Dissecting Forms Authentication

 

With this article we will not be looking at how to implement forms-based
authentication, rather, we will peel back the layers of forms-based
authentication and examine what's really happening when a user is
"authenticated."

 

http://aspnet.4guysfromrolla.com/articles/072005-1.aspx

 

*** AND ***

 

Wizard (Multi-Page Form) ASP.NET Sample Code

 

This sample is the ASP.NET version of our classic ASP wizard. In the
classic ASP version, the bulk of the script's code dealt with maintaining
the form's state from page to page. Since ASP.NET handles the viewstate for
us, we're left to focus on the display of the different pages and handling
the button click events.

 

http://www.asp101.com/samples/wizard_aspx.asp

 

*** AND ***

 

N-Tier Web Applications using ASP.NET 2.0 and SQL Server 2005 - Part 1

 

While the .NET Framework made building ASP.NET applications easier then it
had ever been in the past, .NET 2.0 builds on that foundation in order to
take things to the next level. This article shows you to how to construct
an N-Tier ASP.NET 2.0 Web application by leveraging the new features of
ASP.NET 2.0 and SQL Server 2005.

 

http://www.15seconds.com/issue/050721.htm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And Remember This ...
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On this day in...

 

1908 The Federal Bureau of Investigation Was Created

 

On this day in 1908 US Attorney General Charles Bonaparte instructed a group if federal investigators he had recently hired to report to the Chief Examiner of the Department of Justice, Stanley Finch.  Prior to that point, the Department of Justice had primarily concerned itself with examining the financial transactions of the federal courts.  The hiring of ten former Secret Service investigators marked the expansion of these duties to over the investigation of federal crimes.  By March of the following year, the Office of the Chief Examiner had grown to include 34 agents and the then Attorney General, George Wickersham, renamed it the Bureau of Investigation.  On May 10, 1924, J. Edgar Hoover was appointed acting director of the Bureau of Investigation.  With Congressional approval, he expanded and restructured the Bureau into an efficient crime fighting force, gaining wide public fame as it battled organized crime.  In 1935 Hoover and his "G-men" became known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

 

 

 

Today was also the day that in: 1775 Benjamin Franklin became the first US Postmaster General; 1790 the Assumption bill passed making the US responsible for any state debts; 1835 the first sugar cane plantation in Hawaii was started; 1848 the first Woman's Rights Convention was held in Seneca Falls, NY; 1865 Patrick Francis Healy became the first black awarded a PhD; 1887 the first Esperanto book was published; 1926 the National Bar Association (US) was incorporated; 1945 Churchill resigned as British Prime Minister; 1947 the US Department of Defense was established; 1947 with the passing of the National Security Act (US) the Central Intelligence Agency was established; 1948 Bob Howard became the first black TV network show host; 1953 the Cuban revolution began with Fidel Castro leading an attack on Moncanda Barracks; 1956 Egypt seized the Suez Canal; 1957 the USSR launched the first intercontinental ballistic missile; 1963 Syncom 2, the first geosynchronous communications satellite was launched; 1964 Teamsters Union President Jimmy Hoffa was convicted of fraud and conspiracy; 1990 US TV soap opera General Hospital taped its 7,000th episode; 1991 Paul Rubens (Pee Wee Herman) was arrested in Florida for exposing himself in a movie theater;

 

Born today were: in 1856 Irish dramatist George Bernard Shaw; 1875 father of analytic psycology Karl Gustav Yung; 1892 novelist Pearl S. Buck; 1894 English author Aldous Huxley; 1902 comedienne & Mrs. George Burns, Gracie Allen; 1922 writer / director Blake Edwards; 1922 actor Jason Robards; 1926 actor James Best; 1928 director Stanley Kubric; 1929 humorist Jean Shepherd; 1940 Mary Jo Kopechne (killed in Ted Kennedy car crash); 1941 country singer Bobby Hebb; 1941 actress Darlene Love; 1943 Rolling Stone Mick Jagger; 1945 actress Linda Harrison; 1946 English (Russian father) actress Helen Mirren (Ilynea Lydia Mironoff); 1949 musician Roger Taylor (Queen); 1950 English actress Susan George; 1956 skater Dorothy Hamill; 1965 actress Jennifer Ashe