var somethings=from something in db.Somethings....;
var data = somethings.OrderBy(Sort + " asc");
gv.DataSource=data;
gv.DataBind();

// Get the text/value for the item
try {
var pair = Sys.Serialization.JavaScriptSerializer.deserialize('(' + completionItems[i] + ')');
if (pair && pair.First) {
// Use the text and value pair returned from the web service
text = pair.First;
value = pair.Second;
} else {
// If the web service only returned a regular string, use it for
// both the text and the value
text = pair;
value = pair; 
} 
} catch (ex) {
text = completionItems[i];
value = completionItems[i];
}

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Web.UI;
using System.Web.UI.WebControls;
using AjaxControlToolkit;

namespace Siderite.Web.WebControls
{
    /// <summary>
    /// AutoCompleteExtender with templating
    /// </summary>
    public class AdvancedAutoComplete : AutoCompleteExtender, INamingContainer
    {
        private ITemplate _template;

        [TemplateContainer(typeof(Content))]
        [PersistenceMode(PersistenceMode.InnerProperty)]
        public ITemplate ItemTemplate
        {
            get { return _template; }
            set { _template = value; }
        }

        protected override void OnInit(EventArgs e)
        {
            base.OnInit(e);
            const string script = @"
function AdvancedItemDisplay(behaviour,args) {
    var template=behaviour.get_element().getAttribute('_template');
    //if (!template==null) template='${0}';
    for (var i=0; i<behaviour._completionListElement.childNodes.length; i++) {
        var item=behaviour._completionListElement.childNodes[i];
        var vals = item._value;
        var html=template;
        for (var c=0; c<vals.length; c++)
            html=html.replace(new RegExp('\\$\\{'+c+'\\}','g'),vals[c]);
        item.innerHTML=html;
    }
}

function AdvancedSetText(behaviour,args) {
        var vals=args._value;
        var element=behaviour.get_element();
        var control = element.control;
        if (control && control.set_text)
            control.set_text(vals[0]);
        else
            element.value = vals[0];
    }
";
            ScriptManager.RegisterClientScriptBlock(this, GetType(), "AdvancedAutoComplete", script, true);

            OnClientShowing = "AdvancedItemDisplay";
            OnClientItemSelected = "AdvancedSetText";
        }

        protected override void OnPreRender(EventArgs e)
        {
            base.OnPreRender(e);
            string template = GetTemplate();
            ((TextBox)TargetControl).Attributes["_template"] = template;
        }

        private string GetTemplate()
        {
            Content ph=new Content();
            ph.Page = Page;
            _template.InstantiateIn(ph);
            HtmlTextWriter htw = new HtmlTextWriter(new StringWriter());
            ph.RenderControl(htw);
            return htw.InnerWriter.ToString();
        }
    }
}

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Web.Script.Serialization;
using System.Web.Script.Services;
using System.Web.Services;

/// <summary>
/// Web service to send auto complete items to the AdvancedAutoComplete extender
/// </summary>
[WebService(Namespace = "http://tempuri.org/")]
[WebServiceBinding(ConformsTo = WsiProfiles.BasicProfile1_1)]
[ScriptService]
public class MainService : WebService
{
    [WebMethod]
    [ScriptMethod]
    public string[] GetCompletionList(string prefixText, int count)
    {
        JavaScriptSerializer jss=new JavaScriptSerializer();
        List<string> list=new List<string>();
        for (int c = 0; (list.Count< count) && (c < 100000); c++)
        {
            string s = (c*c).ToString();
            if (s.StartsWith(prefixText))
            {
                object[] item = new object[] {s, "images/demo.gif"};
                list.Add(jss.Serialize(item));
            }
        }
        return list.ToArray();
    }
}

<asp:TextBox runat="server" ID="tbMain"></asp:TextBox>
<cc1:AdvancedAutoComplete ID="aceMain" runat="server" BehaviorID="mhMain" TargetControlID="tbMain"
    ServiceMethod="GetCompletionList" ServicePath="~/MainService.asmx" MinimumPrefixLength="0"
    CompletionInterval="0">
    <ItemTemplate>
        <asp:Image runat="server" ID="imgTest" ImageUrl="${1}" /><asp:Label runat="server"
        ID="lbTest" Text="${0}"></asp:Label>
    </ItemTemplate>
</cc1:AdvancedAutoComplete>

var fu = ie.FileUpload(Find.ByName("ctl00$ContentPlaceHolder1$tcContent$tpAddItem$uplGalleryItem$fuGalleryItem"));
fu.Set(UploadImageFile);

function getPos(n) {
 var t = this, x = 0, y = 0, e, d = t.doc, r;

 n = t.get(n);

 // Use getBoundingClientRect on IE, Opera has it but it's not perfect
 if (n && isIE) {
  n = n.getBoundingClientRect();
  e = t.boxModel ? d.documentElement : d.body;
  x = t.getStyle(t.select('html')[0], 'borderWidth'); // Remove border
  x = (x == 'medium' || t.boxModel && !t.isIE6) && 2 || x;
  n.top += t.win.self != t.win.top ? 2 : 0; // IE adds some strange extra cord if used in a frameset

  return {x : n.left + e.scrollLeft - x, y : n.top + e.scrollTop - x};
 }

 r = n;
 while (r) {
  x += r.offsetLeft || 0;
  y += r.offsetTop || 0;
  r = r.offsetParent;
 }

 r = n;
 while (r) {
  // Opera 9.25 bug fix, fixed in 9.50
  if (!/^table-row|inline.*/i.test(t.getStyle(r, "display", 1))) {
   x -= r.scrollLeft || 0;
   y -= r.scrollTop || 0;
  }

  r = r.parentNode;

  if (r == d.body)
   break;
 }

 return {x : x, y : y};
}

while (r&&!r.offsetParent) {
    x+=r.offsetLeft||0;
    y+=r.offsetTop||0;
    r=r.parentNode;
};

• Make sure VS2008 is closed
• Download and install the setup file
• Additionally the source is freely available!
• Open VS2008 and load a solution up
• Go to View -> Other Windows -> Clone Explorer
• Click the Run Clone Detective button

We started our first ASP.Net 3.5 project and today I had to work with the Linq database access. Heralded by many as a complete revolution in the way of doing ORM, LInQ is not that simple to move to. A lot of stuff that has become second nature for me as a programmer now must be thrown in the garbage bin.

I'll skip the "how to do LInQ" (there are far too many tutorials on the net already) and get down to the problem. Let me give you a simple example. You want to select a User from the Users table. Let's see how I would have done it until now:

User u=User.SelectById(idUser);

or maybe

User u=new User(); u.IdUser=idUser;
u.SelectOne();

In LInQ you do it like this:

var c=new MyDataContext();
User user=(from u in users where u.idUser=idUser select u).FirstOrDefault();

or maybe

var c=new MyDataContext();
User user=c.Users.Select(u=>u.IdUser=idUser).FirstOrDefault();

I am typing this by hand, forgive me the occasional typos or syntax errors.

Well, my eyes scream for an encapsulation of this into the User class. We'll do that by creating a new User.cs file that contains a User partial class that will just mold on the LInQ generated one, then adding methods like SelectById.

Ok, I have the bloody user. I want to change something, let's say rename him or changing the password, then save the changes to the database. Here it gets tricky.

User u=User.SelectById(idUser);
u.Password="New Password";
....?!

In LInQ you need to do a DataContext.SubmitChanges(); but since I encapsulated the select functionality in the User class, I have no reference to the DataContext. Now here are a few solutions for doing this without saving the linq queries in the interface:

1. Add the methods to the context class itself, stuff like SelectUserById();. You would still need to instantiate the DataContext though, in every query
2. Add a second out or ref parameter to the methods so that you can get a reference to the DataContext used.
3. Make a method for each operation, like User.SetPasswordById();, that would become quickly quite cumbersome.
4. Add a reference to the DataContext in the User object, but that would become troublesome for operations like SelectAll

.

I am still not satisfied with any of these solutions. I am open to suggestions. I will link to this little article I found that suggests encapsulating the LInQ queries in separate extensions methods: Implementing ORM-independent Linq queries

1. the path is relative to the web application ClientBin directory
2. the path cannot contain .. or other directory/URI navigation markers like ~
3. the SilverLight control does not have access to a Request object like a web page does

• Provide an absolute Uri either statically or by generating it with this piece of code:

  New Uri(Application.Current.Host.Source.AbsolutePath + "../../../video.wmv", UriKind.Absolute)

• Copy the images, videos, files into the ClientBin directory then only provide their name
• Create virtual directories inside ClientBin that point to your resource directories. For example create a virtual directory Videos that points to the ~/Resources/Videos folder in the site, then simply use Videos/video.wmv as the URI

<script language="Javascript" type="text/javascript" 
   src='<% =ResolveUrl("~/scripts/myScript.js")%>'></script>

function addLink(sender,args) {
    var div=sender.get_completionList();
    if (div) {
        var newDiv=document.createElement('div');
        newDiv.appendChild(getLink());
        div.appendChild(newDiv);
    }
}

function getLink() {
    var link=document.createElement('a');
    link.href='#';
    link.innerHTML='Click me for popup!'
    link.commandName='AutoCompleteLinkClick';
    return link;
}

function linkClicked() {
    alert('Popsicle!');
}

function ACitemSelected(sender,args) {
    var commandName=args.get_item().commandName;
    if (commandName=='AutoCompleteLinkClick') linkClicked();
}

<ajaxControlToolkit:AutoCompleteExtender OnClientItemSelected="ACitemSelected" OnClientShown="addLink" ...>

 public static Uri GetRealRequestUri()
 {
     if ((HttpContext.Current == null) || 
         (HttpContext.Current.Request == null))
         throw new ApplicationException("Cannot get current request.");
     return GetRealRequestUri(HttpContext.Current.Request);
 }

 public static Uri GetRealRequestUri(HttpRequest request)
 {
     if (String.IsNullOrEmpty(request.Headers["Host"]))
       return request.Url;
     UriBuilder ub = new UriBuilder(request.Url);
     string[] realHost = request.Headers["Host"].Split(':');
     string host = realHost[0];
     ub.Host = host;
     string portString = realHost.Length > 1 ? realHost[1] : "";
     int port;
     if (int.TryParse(portString, out port))
         ub.Port = port;
     return ub.Uri;
 }