C# Programming Tip - ViewState

A C# page's ViewState is a real cool place to put state information and variables you want to stick around for the lifetime of a web page.  Actually, most ASP page components save their state information in the ViewState.

Saving stuff in the ViewState is easy.  Here is an example:

ViewState["mode"] = "A"

Accessing it is easy as well:

if (ViewState["mode"].ToString() == "A") {...}

You can also do cool things like put more complex items in the ViewState like:

SomeComplexClass ComplexObject = new SomeComplexClass();
...
ViewState["ComplexObjectVS"] = ComplexObject;
...
SomeComplexClass ComplexObjectCopy = (SomeComplexClass)ViewState["ComplexObjectVS"];

So long as the object is seralizable (more on that later), you can save it in the ViewState.  There is a big drawback... space and bandwidth.  A page's ViewState is stored in the page!  So, each time the page loads, is posted or there is a postback, the entire ViewState is sent over the network.  If you want to maximize the efficiency of your page, minimize your ViewState usage.  The size of a ViewState can grow quickly if you have a large and/or complex page.

Also...  ViewStates are NOT secure.  With enough smarts a person can decode them, so don't put anything in the ViewState that you want to keep secure.

For those curious, here is what a simple ViewState looks like in a simple page:
<input id="__VIEWSTATE" name="__VIEWSTATE" type="hidden" value="/wEPDwUJNzkzMjk1ODg4D2QWAmYPZBYCAgEPZBYCAgsPDxYCHgRUZXh0BQgxLjAoZGV2KWRkGAEFHl9fQ29udHJvbHNSZXF1aXJlUG9zdEJhY2tLZXlfXxYBBSZjdGwwMCRNYWluQ29udGVudCRMb2dpblVzZXIkUmVtZW1iZXJNZbVBilGyAMpTuiSmFozdPPwfgNyhxhHXWwhU4O2NRdBd" />

Thirsty Thursday - A Little Gorillaz

I may be a little older but...  well... I am a little Crazy...

Argument for High-Tech Sabbaticals

This high-tech professional life is damned dynamic.  Stand in the same place too long and before you know it, high school graduates are able to out-geek you in nearly every aspect.  Staying current with technology is difficult at best.  The high-tech professional must balance life, work and education...  forever!  Yes, for those wanting to get into a high-tech career, take a little note from the CrazyOldProgrammer...  continual education is key to maintain relevancy in this insane world that melds hard technology, creativity and art.

Doctors, lawyers, scientists and college professors all have sabbaticals.  Why not high-tech professionals?  Seriously.  the world of medical science, law, sciences and education is quite dynamic.  So is the world of the high-tech professional.

So why shouldn't we have sabbaticals?  Seriously?  I spent nearly a year developing an internal data management package.  About 25% of that time was spent maintaining existing production code, about 15% was spent performing standard maintenance and performing administrative tasks.  60% was spent in heads-down development, testing and development.  No training, no mucking around with my own extracurricular code, very little surfing software development and data management forums I typically frequent.

Sure, vacations help us chill out and unwind.  But a sabbatical for a year...  six months...  3 months...  hell, a two week sabbatical where I could go nuts.  Mess around with any language or OS or platform.  Maybe take a formal & directed mini-class.  Something that I want to explore within my professional field, not something I must explore in the course of my employment.  Something to help keep that spark alive, at least until retirement.

Sabbaticals for high-tech professionals.  The time has come, oh yes it has.

Curious Crazy Question

Years and years ago there was a pre-employment exam that I took for some company, somewhere.  It has been a while and honestly don't remember the name of the company.  I do, however, remember the spirit of the question...  Here goes...

You run the following SQL on a MySQL server and what is the result?

create table HAHA
(Joke varchar(256) null,
JokePunchLine varchar(256) null);

insert into HAHA values('Why did the chicken cross the road?','The question is, Why did YOU let my checken cross the road!'),
('Why did the geometry professor always eat dessert first for every meal?','He really loved PI!'),
('Why I am Majoring in Physics:','https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo73UjyvPBVIAJOyGuyTfkuDwkZX7NIBVDr9wDMvkuklhWlD5uyMZWLoay0IT2uFRlIUbFHccNbm6nQb8fZCjJ6_BWQaWAwWWewwpoKqBeTDU5No0aLOGjEnTATeBNnzBwe9Qfu39j8e3I/s1600/physics23.png');

 select '*' from HAHA;

----------------------------------------

And, just for fun, here is a question on a pre-employment test I would give before inviting a candidate to an interview.  You would be surprised how many people got this one wrong...

On a modern computer, from a DOS command prompt, what command do you use to see a directory of files?
A) LIST FILES
B) DIR
C) SEE DIRECTORY
D) Modern operating systems no longer use DOS.

Crazy's Complexity Corollary

The complexity of a system is directly proportional to just how screwed up it is.

No NULL exception? What the Hell???

Just a little end of the day rant about one of my least favorite software packages, Salesforce.

If I do something like this, shouldn't there be a NULL exception?

integer bar = null;
integer foo = 1;
foo = bar + foo;


Absolutely.  And Salesforce's APEX language does indeed raise a NULL Exception.  However, a little different flavor of that will not raise an exception.

Say for example you have an integer field called bar__c in the standard Salesforce object Lead.  You have a piece of code that pulls that object's record into memory; like...

Lead wrkLead = [select ID, bar__c from lead where status='Lock' limit 1];


So, shouldn't there be a NULL exception here?

integer foo = 1;
foo = wrkLead.bar__c + foo;


Well, I would think so, but nope.  APEX just keeps on chugging.  Watch out for this one.  If your data field could ever be NULL, code for it!

Programming Blast from the Past

So there we were, just two consenting adults lying in bed on a Saturday night, drinking a little wine and watching television.

A topic arose; one personal to my very being.  A topic with a history originating in 1982.  One that is personal and unique to everyone with a similar background.  That topic is...  Now, please don't judge...  Is this...

"How many programming languages do you know?"

Damn.  I poured another glass of wine and thought...  'How many computer languages DO I know?'  The incomplete list, of course starts with ones that I know very well and trails off from there.

• C#
• SQL (Including MSSQL and MySQL)
• HTML
• Foxpro (Visual and DOS)
• CA Clipper (Yes, I am old enough to remember CA Clipper.)
• Java & Javascript 
• VB (Although, if asked, I will deny knowing this sorry excuse for a language.)
• Pascal (Includes Turbo Pascal, Delphi GNU Pascal and Fast Pascal.)
• COBOL (includes mainframe COBOL and Microfocus COBOL)
• C & C++ (Just enough to be able to navigate a program.)
• APEX (Salesforces' version of a programming language.)
• SOQL (Salesforces' version of a data query language.)
• IBM 370 Mainframe Assembler
• JCL
• JES2 (Really more of a command interface than a language.)
• Visual Objects

That last one surprised me.  I remember that cold winter afternoon in 1994.  We were told to leave the office before the heavy snow hit.  Not being one to ignore my boss, I hopped in my car, lit a smoke and headed home.