h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Now don't get me wrong, I'm a bit of a fan of .Net. a true convert as it were. But I'm really starting to get narked at the complete lack of community support surrounding it.

It's easy enough to find answers to the simple questions... "My connection to my database doesn't work, what's wrong with it?", "Why can't I get my code to allow a user to edit a table?" But, try figuring out how to get asp.Net to check the windows APIs for extraneous objects running in the background, override their access privalages and shut them down.

You may not think that this sounds much like a web based thing, and shouldn't perhaps be written in asp.Net. Well, the application I'm writing is supposed to be taking information in through a web form, fiddling with a database, and then putting certain parts of the info into an excel sheet ready for the accountant. No worries, open a COM shove the info through, close the application, destroy the COM. Except that it doesn't destroy the COM. The COM stays running in the background in Task Manager. How are you supposed to get rid of it? Hmm? That's what I'd like to know.

You can search away on the 'net for answers, and you do get people with the same problem. But most of the answers are for C# or VB, not for ASP.NET. And the coding is slightly different between languages.

In a language like PHP there's a huge amount of online community support for queries like this. I'm guessing, and kinda hoping, that the absence is because the .Net coding structure is still relatively new.

Yes, and because there are relatively few people using it at the moment. It takes a while for any programming language thingy to ramp up into the general community, even a Microsoft endorsed one.

This is one reason why people who consistently know and use the latest languages tend to be paid a premium. They're tackling their problems relatively alone, and must therefore be extra clever.

On the up side, you get opportunities to establish yourself as a leader that you wouldn't otherwise. Once you've found your answer, I'd recommend posting is somewhere obvious for the next poor coder to find.

Good luck.

Well, I seem to be posting most of them here

How are you these days my lovely?

Er, odd. The boyfriend is suddenly an ex. And I am still living in his flat, as I'm flying to mother in Florida on Monday. It would be a bit impractical moving before then. Much uncomfortableness, but relief at no longer feeling like I'm in limbo with neither here nor there thingy.

I'm having much swirling discussion with two companies about having interviews, both jobs in my field that pay nicely. I expect no resolution until I return from my week's vacation.

Freelance work all day tomorrow. And much scrambling to use tiny quantity of available cash to at least get in touch with good friends for Christmas. Very tiny presents to buy. Cards to write. Busy, busy.

Anyway, a very merry Christmas to you and Anne. You are both, I'm sure, still incredibly nice people. Best of tidings and have a happy, eh?

Good luck with the work, I'm sure it'll be fine.

As for the current/ex, it'll work out, these things eventually do. I hope.

Have a good one