.NET Programming: 10-Minute Solutions

Introduction xi

Windows Forms Solutions 1

Solution 1 ListBox ItemData Is Gone! 2

Solution 2 Create Owner-Drawn ListBoxes and ComboBoxes 16

Solution 3 Upgrade Your INI Files to XML 28

Solution 4 Build Your Own XML-Enabled Windows Forms TreeView Control 48

General .NET Topics 65

Solution 5 Take Advantage of Streams and Formatters in VB.NET 66

Solution 6 File I/O in VB.NET: Avoid the Compatibility Syntax 80

Solution 7 Gain Control of Regular Expressions 86

Solution 8 Add Sort Capabilities to Your .NET Classes 100

Solution 9 A Plethora of XML Choices 109

Solution 10 Where Should I Store That Data? 135

Solution 11 Performing the Most-Requested Conversions in .NET 154

Solution 12 Building Custom Collections in .NET 170

Solution 13 Launching and Monitoring External Programs from

VB.NET Applications 186

Solution 14 Build a Touch Utility with .NET 200

Solution 15 Parse and Validate Command-Line Parameters with VB.NET 212

Solution 16 Monitor Data and Files with a Windows Service 234

ASP.NET Solutions 253

Solution 17 Creating Custom Configuration Settings in ASP.NET 254

Solution 18 Internationalize Your ASP.NET Applications (Part 1 of 2) 265

Solution 19 Internationalize Your ASP.NET Applications (Part 2 of 2) 281

Solution 20 Managing Focus in Web Forms 294

Solution 21 The Missing Message Boxes in ASP.NET 306

ADO.NET Solutions 325

Solution 22 Optimizing and Troubleshooting Database Connections 326

Solution 23 Replacing Recordsets with DataSets 336

Solution 24 Working with Typed DataSets 347

Solution 25 Saving Time with Calculated DataColumns 353

Solution 26 Combining Tables in a DataSet 360

Solution 27 Getting Customized XML from SQL Server 369

Solution 28 XML and the DataSet 380

Solution 29 DataBinding ListBoxes and ComboBoxes 388

Solution 30 Advanced DataBinding 396

Solution 31 Synchronizing DataSets with DiffGrams 403

Solution 32 The 10-Minute Guide to Paging Data 412

Index 423