Quotes Application

I like quotations a lot. I frequently change desktop backgrounds in order to have new quotations. Then I got an idea of quotations rolling on the desktop...Now I implemented it.

The attractive part of this application is the control behind the text is transparent. It appears like text rolling on desktop.

This application reads the content from a textfile line wise and show it on the form.

We can put anything in that textfile. If we put english words and their meanings, this can be used as a dictionary.

To make a control transparent on a window:

Set the bachground color of the control to the color set for "transparancykey" property of the form.

background color of control="transparencykey" color of the form

What is a Desktop Search?

Desktop Search is an application and as the name says, it helps you find the files on hard disk and emails in more easier and faster way. "Desktop search" programs have two goals: to find the desired information, and to find it quickly.

These search programs accomplish their speed by indexing the data they search through. Instead of poring through every file as if it was being searched for the first time, these programs prepare an index of the essential information about each file. If you have 100GB of videos sitting around, a desktop search program will ignore the data, culling out titles, authors, and other metadata.

Desktop Searches give the ease by providing:

1) Easily accessible interfaces which sit on taskbar or desktop to make user easily access it for finding a file/email. It just looks like a bar with an input box.
2) Many data and type filters are provided with in the interface to restrict the search.
3) Advanced query syntax which enables you to restrict your query to specific locations, specific file types or properties within those types, or specific "file kinds".
4) Apart from making your search easier and fast, these applications make you act on the item you are searching for in the interface itself. They provide preview for the results with in which you can get the data of the item without actually opening it.

I have been using Windows Desktop Search and I have used Google's also

...Just a note from my observations on WDS and GDS:

-> If you want an application very much dedicated to surf your hard disk/emails easily and access it fast, better option I think is WDS. The windows-like interface, preview pane and context menus with most relevant and useful options add points to WDS in this sense.

-> If you want your desktop to be fancier along with easier ways of searching desktop as well as web, you can go for GDS. The interface being exactly the same as that of google.com with various web search filters justifies it. Sidebar of Google with Gadgets gives you more personalized desktop.

Email Transportion

I learnt about a process which seems to be very complex but very simple in reality. It is a very popular communication tool - EMail.

I will start from email-client side:

When you send an email from your email client say outlook, the whole mail will be converted into text form identifying the domain name of reciept from the email id put in TO address. For example, if swapna@yahoo.com is the recipient email id, domain 'yahoo' is identified and the mail (text form) will be sent to the yahoo domain server.

Now what happens on Server side:

In each server, a text file is maintained for every account i.e. there would be a text file called 'swapna' on yahoo server for swapna@yahoo.com account. When the text form of email is sent to the server from client, it identifies the account name to which it is sent and appends the corresponding text file of the account with the text content recieved. When user opens his account on client, his account's text file will be copied on to client machine and the content of text will be parsed to show list of emails recieved. And the text file on server will be reset.

Let us take a Technical dip:

The real email system consists of two servers running on server machine.
1) One is SMTP - Simple mail transfer protocol which handles outgoing messages.
2) Other is either POP3- Postoffice protocol or IMAP- Internet Mail Access protocol which handles incoming messages.

SMTP:
When you click on send button of email, client connects to SMTP server using port25. It will tell the server sender address, recipient address and body of an email.
Using 'To' address, the SMTP server identifies the domain name. Using DNS, it identifies the IP address of the server and handles the text content to the server.
If the domain of sender's and reciever's is same, then the text content will be dirctly sent to POP3 server of that domain.

POP3:
When you open client to check your emails, client will connect to POP3 server using port 110 of its domain. You need to login credentials to connect to POP3 and once you are connected, client will send series of commands to get email messages to local machine.

IMAP:
IMAP's functionality is similar to POP3. The difference is that it has some advanced benifits than POP3.
When connected to POP3, it copies the text file of the account ot local machine and clears the file on server. Because of that, user cannot check his email messages on different machines. IMAP is a solution for this. It maintains emails on server. So, users can connect on any number of machines.
One more extension in IMAP is that user can organize his emails into folders and maintain all those on server.
What happens when you are not connected to internet? Client maintains a local copy of the emails on local machine. So you are able to view them. When the connection is established, new mails will be shown.

Attachments:
Attachments are also converted to encoded text using a program called uuencode while sending and decoded when it is recieved. This will be done automatically without our intervention.

Thats it...thats enough...

Testing terms

What is Testing?
Testing is a process of idetifying defects in a software application.

Why Testing?
Inorder to ensure that product is according to requirements of customer and works fine without any defects.

WhiteBoxTesting:
It is a kind of testing where testers have access to implementation part of the application and examines it for defects. Also called glass/clear box testing or structural testing.

BlackBox testing:
It is a kind of testing where tester knows only the functionality of the system and doesnt know how it works internally.

Static testing:
Code is examined without being executed.
Eg:Code inspections, Reviews and walkthrough

Reviews:
A group of persons look for errors, mistaken assumptions, lack of clarity and deviation from standard practice.
Eg:Review of specifications and project plans.

Walk-through:
Walk-through is similar to review but informal, generally conducted by team members.
Eg:Improving program logic and design approach etc.

Regression Testing:
It is a selective retesting done to detect faults faults during the modification of system.
To verify modifications havenot caused unintended adverse effects.
To ensure that even after modification, system meets the requirements.

Performance Testing:
Performance testing is aimed at verifying if system meets the system's performance requirements like 'response time' and 'transactional throughput'.
Response time: Time taken to deliver expected output.
Throughput: Quantity of output per given time.

Security Testing:
Verifying how easily a system is subjected to security violations under different environments and conditions.


Defect Density:
Defect density is the ratio of no.of. defects detected to the size of software.

Defect density= No.of.defects/size

Here size can be LOC or Function points.

Defect density is uesful to compare quality/no.of.defects of relevant components.
Another use of Defect density is to compare subsequent releases of a product to track defect reduction and quality improvement.

IE 7 opening to Run Once page with error on it.

Facing problem with IE7? Customize your Settings page is poping up every time you open IE7? Here is a solution:
1. Open registry: start-->run. Type Regedit and press enter.
2. Move to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main.
In rightpane, rightclick, select new-DWORD. Name DWORD as "DisableFirstRunCustomize" (without doublequotes).Double click on it to modify its data. Enter 1 and click OK.
3. Now open IE(7). You will be happy as your home page opens.
This problem with IE7 was very annoying. Thanks for the person who gave this solution.