This is my usual weekly roundup of what’s new and interesting on developerWorks. This week we start with something for the WebSphere Application Server developer. When abstracting configuration properties out of code they often end up in a simple properties file. This is fine if the values are static but, if they need updating, you either need to redeploy the application containing the file or else put the file somewhere separate from the application. (If taking the latter approach then the config directory is a good place for the file as then you call leave the application server to replicate it across the nodes.) Perhaps a better approach is to configure a resource environment provider as described in this article, enabling properties to be defined administratively.
Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category
developerWorks roundup
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006High availability of WebSphere MQ link
Tuesday, October 31st, 2006Today sees the release of WebSphere MQ SupportPac MR01. This provides the source for a WebSphere MQ channel exit which can be configured with a list of host names and port numbers to which the channel will attempt to connect. The intention is that this exit can be used when using a WebSphere MQ link to connect a clustered Service Integration Bus messaging engine to a queue manager. The messaging engine can now failover to another cluster member and the queue manager will still be able to connect.
Tax discs online
Friday, October 27th, 2006The DVLA have finally joined the 21st century and I’ve just purchased a new tax disc online. Shame that the big yellow box on the front of my renewal form didn’t contain the required reference number but holds an advert for buying online instead. Fortunately, with the reference number from the vehicle registration certificate and a license plate number it was able to find the necessary records. The system doesn’t quite deliver on the “quickly” part of the advert – only after you’ve paid does it tell you that it may take up to five working days for the disc to arrive. Shame the current one expires on Tuesday!
WebSphere Application Server command framework
Thursday, October 26th, 2006Admin commands and task commands have done much to reduce the complexity of scripting WebSphere Application Server in recent releases, effectively bringing the simplicity of administrative console panels and wizards to the command line. If you find yourself repeating the same administrative actions, this developerWorks article covers in depth how to go about writing your own commands.
WebSphere ESB vs SIBus
Thursday, October 26th, 2006Rachel Reinitz and Andre Tost have kicked off a new developerWorks series on WebSphere ESB with an article describing the relationship between the product and the Service Integration Bus. In my mind, it’s a shame the article doesn’t talk more about about the SIBus Web services support. The following phrase sums up the key difference: “WebSphere ESB is built with the strategic SCA/SDO programming model”.
Firefox 2.0 out
Monday, October 23rd, 2006Firefox 2.0 may not be due for official release until tomorrow but it’s on their FTP servers today. As you might expect, the main server is taking a battering so I’d suggest UK folks try a local mirror. Nice touches are the search box which dynamically suggests terms, new pages opening on tabs by default and inline spell checking. Best of all though, all of my add-ons updated successfully! One interesting point is the support for the WHATWG specification for storing and persisting state client side, something that is increasingly important for Web 2.0 applications.
Free UK calls
Monday, October 23rd, 2006Skype have an interesting offer for six months free calls to UK landlines if you buy £10 of SkypeOut credit. Presumably it’s an attempt to persuade people to use VOIP for all of their calls. Unfortunately the free calls also have to originate from within the UK otherwise I’d be tempted.
IE7 initial thoughts
Friday, October 20th, 2006I took the plunge and installed IE7 after it was released yesterday, safe in the knowledge that, with various bugs being reported already, there is always Firefox. (Check out http://www.ie7.com/!) Initial thoughts are pretty positive but I’m not ready to switch yet (at least until I see what Firefox 2.0 has to offer).
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