Re: X10

[Stuart Booth <lists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Edward,

I'm just updating your X10 Connector here and wandered if you'd
previously seen these posts with a few queryettes?

1. I notice that your X10 plugin throws an exception if the .XML
file isn't in the same directory beside the .DLL. Seems like it's
probably the class CTOR that's hurling the big one as it's when I'm
attempting to instantiate an instance of your class.

2. Some incredibly minor change requests!

2.1. When it's attempting to connect to a CM1xU device, it sits for a
short while determining if it can or cannot ie is a CM1xU present on
the specified COM port. Would it be possible to bung up an hourglass
cursor whilst this operation is proceeding. I wasn't sure it was doing
anything when I first saw this.

2.2. What would you like to call it?

The DLL is named "X10-CM1xConnector.DLL" so I've named the
standalone
EXE package the same, ie "X10-CM1xConnector.EXE".

However, when it starts up the runtime shell takes its caption title
from the attributes on the plugin module and eventually names itself
"X10 Connector".

I quite like the idea of calling it "xAP X10 Connector" myself.
This
is the scheme with which I named the SlimServer Connector, which
displays "xAP SlimServer Connector" in its title bar.

I know that's incredibly minor but it's one of those detail things
that yells out at me, waving its arms in the air! :-))

3. Another suggestion ... change the version number in the
assembly.cs file. It's probably still set to the default.

VS.NET has some strange algorithm to generate the Build Number and
Revision Number. My packaging tool takes these numbers to form the
complete download filename automatically. Thus in your X10 Connector's
case:

X10-CM1xConnector_GUI-v1.0.1587.36821.zip

4.  If you've got any test samples, documentation, change history
files, things like that, send them over and I can include them in the
download packages. Sample X10 test messages implemented as .xap files
that can be used with Patrick or my Send apps would be especially
helpful. My packaging tool is set to import these if there are any.

5. >Here's a curiousity. I've just been checking that the Windows Srv
>version of your plugin works and I note that on my system (no CM12U
>plugged in) it creates an X10comlog.txt file when I run the GUI or
>console-mode versions. But nothing appears as a Windows Service
>although it takes a similar amount of time to start-up.

Oh, duh, it occured to me this morning where it would be ...

When executing as a service the current working directory ends up
being your System32 directory. Sure enough, that's where the file was
being created. It might be worth tweaking this via
Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().Location ???

:-))

S
--
Stuart Booth <stuart@xxxxxxx>
xAPFramework.NET - a xAP software development framework for .NET

http://www.xapautomation.org/ 
     http://www.xapframework.net/