With the new release of Firefox 3 this week I thought I’d take the opportunity to remind everyone of our supported platforms per our client contracts. FF3 does not fall in this range. Neither does WIN Vista or MAC 10.5. Not yet. Please make sure you test all work per the guidelines below. Thanks.

Stratum supported Operating Systems & Web Browser combinations:

· MS WIN XP Professional, SP2 & MS Internet Explorer 7.x.

· MS WIN XP Professional, SP2 & MS Internet Explorer 6.x.

· MS WIN XP Professional, SP2 & Mozilla Firefox 2.x.

· MS WIN XP Professional, SP2 & Mozilla Firefox 1.x.

· MS WIN XP Professional, SP2 & AOL 9.x.

· MS WIN 2000 & MS Internet Explorer 6.x.

· MS WIN 2000 & Mozilla Firefox 1.x.

· Macintosh OS X 10.4 & Mozilla Firefox 2.x.

· Macintosh OS X 10.4 & Mozilla Firefox 1.x.

Users don’t care about the difference between rich Internet apps and desktop apps. They just want software that is simple to use no matter where you lead them.

IBM and Linden Labs are working on a enterprise version of Second Life, where employees can cross between a private virtual world inside a firewall and outside on the Second Life Web site. The tools under development are based on Second Life Grid. IBM’s task is to ensure security for custom-built virtual worlds inside enterprises.

IBM and Linden Labs, creator of the Second Life virtual world, announced Thursday that they are developing tools for enterprise-quality virtual worlds. The goal is to solve a key problem for enterprises that want to use the avatar-based environment: the need to cross back and forth across a corporate firewall.

Get the full story from CIO Today here.

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has approved Microsoft’s Office Open XML (OOXML) file format as an international standard. OOXML was originally rejected, and won’t be finally adopted if ISO or International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) members file a formal appeal over the next two months.

Get the full story from Top Tech News here.

Get connected on April 20-23, 2008 at the DevConnections Conferences and Expos in Orlando, FL. Register at www.devconnections.com. Every attendee receives a free copy of MS Visual Studio 2008.

Microsoft ASP.NET Connections
Visual Studio & Architect Connections
SQL Server Magazine Connections
SharePoint Connections

Keynotes:
Norman Guadagno, Director of Product Marketing for VS Team System
Microsoft

Scott Guthrie, General Manager, .NET Developer Platform
Microsoft

Tom Rizzon, Director of Sharepoint and Office Server
Microsoft

Quentin Clark, General Manager of the Database Engine Group
Microsoft

Michael Coles wrote a nice little tips article for SQLServerCentral.com on doing your best to fight SQL Injection.

As a developer you probably already have many little tricks in your toolbag to fight these pesking predators. It certainly doesn’t hurt to see another coder’s ideas.

Here’s a quick exerpt -

For many years now, SQL Injection attacks on large corporate websites have been highly publicized. Several articles around the Web have described what an injection attack is, how it works, and the basics of how to defend against it. A couple of very good articles here at SQL Server Central also delve into this topic (SQL Injection by Christoffer Hedgate and SQL Injection - Part 1 by Randy Dyess).So why did I feel the need to write another article on SQL Injection? For three reasons:
1. The good work by Mr. Dyess and Mr. Hedgate offer code samples and examples for ASP. I felt that a sample pertaining to ASP.NET, for those without the ASP background, was in order.
2. These two authors focus on using parameterized queries; and in the case of Mr. Hedgate, validating user input. Excellent advice all around, but I feel there are other lines of defense which should be addressed as well.
3. Finally, no matter how many SQL Injection articles are posted around the Web, DBA’s and developers continue to post highly exploitable code samples to newsgroups and discussion boards.
In this article, I hope to build upon the good work of Mr. Hedgate and Mr. Dyess, and provide updated samples as well as a more complete defensive strategy for dealing with SQL Injection.

Get Michael’s full Update SQL Injection article here.

Dejan Cancarevic posted his most used CSS tricks on his blog, StylizedWeb.com. You might want to shoot over there and check them out.
1. Rounded corners without images.
2. Style your order list.
3. Tableless forms.
4. Double blockquote.
5. Gradient text effect.
6. Vertical centering with line height.
7. Rounded corners with images.
8. Multiple class name.
9. Center horizontally.
10. CSS drop caps.
11. Prevent line breaks in links, oversized content to brake.
12. Show Firefox scrollbar, remove textarea scrollbar in IE.

The official Ubuntu website is conducting a brainstorming session in which anybody can participate. Ever wish there were a particular feature or wish one functioned more efficiently?

Suggest a new (or upgrade to a) feature by creating an account at the Ubuntu Brainstorm website and then submitting your wish. Other visitors to the site can then vote on your wishes.

Ubuntu is saying if your wish receives a number of votes to deem it top popular, then it will have a very good chance of getting integrated in the next release.

Current most popular ideas that were submitted -

• Play button should change to pause button on Rhythmbox.
• OpenOffice Documents Thumbnails in Nautilus.
• Improve speed of the thumbnail feature in Nautilus.
• Compiz Effect Preview.
• Window previews for closed windows (compiz fusion).

Here’s a nice little tutorial written by Vinayak Kumar Shrestha on uploading files within .NET apps masked by a little AJAX.
http://vinayakshrestha.wordpress.com/2007/03/13/uploading-files-using-aspnet-ajax-extensions/