DLLtoDate (Quickly check your library versions)

[Mr_Gee]

Hi all,

Inspired by this topic I (tried to) think of a solution to this "problem"
and I think I came pretty close :-)

In order to get this implemented we would need a web space (with php) and someone who will put the most up to date files on there.
also this person would need to update the required XML files.

How does it work the program checks the Lib folder for all the xml files (they describe the dll + other files)
Next it goes online to get a list of the available libraries, then it checks for the ones that are installed
if the online version in newer (or not) and this is shown in the below screenshot

Please note I did post this here but it is not done yet, I would like to ask you to give it a go and see if it works for you.

Just unpack the zip to your hard drive, and it should work.
It will not update your actual library but it will be done in a folder within the AppPath.

Some questions for Erel,

- Is this something that can be used
- can the files be hosted on this server
If yes
- is the xml creation something you can do
- anything I've missed?

I know that unlicensed users shouldn't have access to the libraries, but I think that could be solved by using the New3 in the HTTP Lib.

If this is usable I'll work on another version, I also want to include
- the DB2000 Lib for the storage/retrieval of the settings
- user authentication
- small cosmetics

And maybe if you guys (and girls) have any comments/pointers I can include them

[Erel]

The idea is really nice.
However I don't want to host the libraries files on another location and maintain another authorization system.
Maybe you can somehow use the forum pages to retrieve the required information and just launch the users browser with the right page when needed.

[Mr_Gee]

Originally Posted by Erel

The idea is really nice.
However I don't want to host the libraries files on another location and maintain another authorization system.

No that was what I meant, currently i'm hosting some of the files for testing
but the initial idea was to have you host them on this server (Basic4ppc - Windows Mobile programming and Pocket PC Development)
That would give you full control over the files and no need to keep 2 locations in sync.

Maybe you can somehow use the forum pages to retrieve the required information and just launch the users browser with the right page when needed.

That would be, in my opinion the last resort, I think it is nice to have an integrated tool which checks the files, downloads them and installs them in the correct directory.

In regards to login, i could have the program look for the b4ppc.com cookie
with login information, not sure if vbulitin works with cookies though...

-=edit=-
Hmm, I just checked the setup of vBulitin and i think it might be possible to verify the users directly in the database using the new3 method and
a second php page
(the first is used to serve the filenames to the program)

[digitaldon37]

Originally Posted by Mr_Gee

No that was what I meant, currently i'm hosting some of the files for testing
but the initial idea was to have you host them on this server (Basic4ppc - Windows Mobile programming and Pocket PC Development)
That would give you full control over the files and no need to keep 2 locations in sync.


That would be, in my opinion the last resort, I think it is nice to have an integrated tool which checks the files, downloads them and installs them in the correct directory.

In regards to login, i could have the program look for the b4ppc.com cookie
with login information, not sure if vbulitin works with cookies though...

-=edit=-
Hmm, I just checked the setup of vBulitin and i think it might be possible to verify the users directly in the database using the new3 method and
a second php page
(the first is used to serve the filenames to the program)

I made a couple of small changes to get this working on my wiki site (see attached updated code) if there is any interest in getting this project restarted. I stumbled across an app called AppToDate and like the concept - then I found this thread and thought it would be a great way to keep track of DLLs.

The XML format that this program uses is as follows:

<dll>
<name>testlib</name>
<CurrentVersion>1.1</CurrentVersion>
<CurrentVersionUrl>http://campusbbs.freehostia.com/downloads/testlib.xml</CurrentVersionUrl>
</dll>

I created a testlib.xml and testlib2.xml on my wiki site if anyone is interested in testing this.

[Cableguy]

Yes, I intend to re-start this app from scratch, and try to make an easy to use tool, taking advantege of threading and asyncronous downloading and other new developments..,

I am thinking of regestering a domain, but I still lack a cool, easy and identifyable name for it,,
The list itself will be in some kind of either an XML, wich I know nothing about, or a text file with a known and strict syntax...
Of course, downloading will only be availabe to registered users... so an autentication mechanism must be implemented...
I believe this will be the hardest part..

[digitaldon37]

Originally Posted by Cableguy

Yes, I intend to re-start this app from scratch, and try to make an easy to use tool, taking advantege of threading and asyncronous downloading and other new developments..,

I am thinking of regestering a domain, but I still lack a cool, easy and identifyable name for it,,
The list itself will be in some kind of either an XML, wich I know nothing about, or a text file with a known and strict syntax...
Of course, downloading will only be availabe to registered users... so an autentication mechanism must be implemented...
I believe this will be the hardest part..

Cool! Let me know if I can help.

I tried using an absolute URL for one of the library files and it didn't let me download it (I was logged off in IE) but then when I logged into the forum the absolute URL worked.

I would think that if we can find a way to pass a username and password to the forum page that your authentication would be taken care of.

[edit] another option may be just to use agraham's webbrowser library and load the forum login page when your app starts up, maybe through a site like skweezer.com that reformats web pages to fit on a PDA

http://www.skweezer.com/s.aspx?q=htt...p%3Fdo%3Dlogin

[Cableguy]

My first intention is to create this for DESKTOP....
Then maybe an integration with rapi may be implemented to keep the PDA also updated, and this way, we only need to download the dlls 1 time..

[digitaldon37]

Originally Posted by Cableguy

My first intention is to create this for DESKTOP....
Then maybe an integration with rapi may be implemented to keep the PDA also updated, and this way, we only need to download the dlls 1 time..

Sounds great! I look forward to seeing this being developed. I have been trying to keep my pc and pda up to date with the libraries I use. I usually have the most recent on the desktop and forget to update my pda.

I started compiling a list of libraries based on your thread and have a "work in progress" xml that I use to compare what's on my PC. I put together a little program that reads the "//version:" string in the .CS files (if available) and compares it to list.

Ideally, it would be nice to be notified of any outdated libraries that I have installed every time I load up the IDE.

[Cableguy]

I was think more on a "scheduled update check service" that would. lets say, once a day at a given time..connect to the site and check for updates. then depending on user settings, wait for the user to select wich to download, or do it automatically...
At this point, I'm only gathering ideas and Howto do things...
Coding itself will only star after new year's...