Hello.

I just got the XNA Beta and had to tweak the template code a bit to get it running on my older machine (Athlon with a Geforce 2MX). I was getting a Device Creation Exception, and it turned out my graphics card doesn't support multisampling on the backbuffer. Adding "this.graphics.AllowMultiSampling = false;" to the InitializeComponent method fixed it. Hopefully, this helps someone else too! (P.S. Hardware donations are welcome! 😉) Read More

I finally figured out why my Windows Live Writer plugins weren't working! It turns out that new classes added via the Solution Explorer default to "internal" access. Making the class "public" fixed the issue and now the plugins work perfectly. Read More

I'm developing a Windows Live Writer plugin using the SmartContentSource class and encountering an issue retrieving the blog post's text. While I can manipulate SmartContent objects within the plugin's sidebar, neither the SmartContent object nor the ISmartContentEditorSite interface provides access to the text, hindering the potential for plugin development. I'm seeking assistance on how to access the blog post text within the plugin context. Read More

I'm struggling to create a C# plugin for Windows Live Writer. Even a simple "Hello World" plugin isn't showing up in the available plugins list, despite the documentation and example seeming straightforward. The example code compiles and works fine, but my copied version doesn't. I'm completely stumped and wondering if there are any logs I can check for Windows Live Writer. Read More

I finally got a Windows Live Writer plugin working after starting from scratch! Stay tuned as I'm planning to integrate my Ajax Tagger into the Windows Live Writer framework soon. This will be a cool experiment combining Web 2.0 APIs with Windows Live Writer. Read More

As a UK resident with a Google AdSense account, I'm holding onto my earnings until the dollar-to-pound exchange rate improves. My first payout was disappointing, especially after a year of work. I believe UK advertisers are also being shortchanged due to the exchange rate. Unless Google implements an exchange rate program that gives UK advertising better visibility, we're not getting a fair deal. For now, I've suspended my ads and will hold onto any future AdSense earnings. Read More

Strange posts like "Temporary Post Used For Style Detection" are appearing in blogs. This is due to Windows Live Writer, which uses these temporary posts to detect the blog's style for accurate "in-style" editing. These posts are quickly indexed by Google Blog Search, highlighting the search engine's speed. Read More

I'm trying out Windows Live Writer and so far, I'm impressed! It renders my blog's styling correctly while I'm writing, seems pretty fast, and has a bunch of built-in features similar to other blogging tools. Plus, it's extendable via an SDK, which I'm excited to explore. I'm also going to check out the plugins and share more thoughts soon. Read More

I previously doubted the possibility of C# on Xbox 360 and a hobbyist homebrew version. I was wrong! Microsoft announced the release of Visual Studio 2005 Express for Xbox 360 content creation on August 30, 2006. The $99/year dev kit allows non-commercial game development and sharing among hobbyists (no network support yet). I'm excited to get an Xbox 360, Xbox Live account, and the developer account! Check out these resources: XNA Team Blog, Microsoft XNA homepage, XNA FAQ, Game Studio, News Report, another Blog Post. Read More

I've taken my feed off Squeet due to repeated updates to old posts, which wasn't very useful given the low subscriber count. This change should prevent further issues. Read More

Check out my colleague Phil Calver's new site, www.whatsatthetop.com, a Top 10 Retail Mashup built with ASP.Net 2.0 and Web parts. It pulls data from sites like Amazon, CNet, and Booksense. Phil's looking for feedback, so let him know what you think! Share any suggestions or ideas for charts you'd like to see at webmaster@whatsatthetop.com. Read More

I've decided to create iforgive.eu, a C# ASP.Net 2.0 sample site, and document the entire process on my blog. This includes design, development, refactoring, and even my mistakes! I'll begin by outlining the site's purpose, planning its design, and employing a TDD approach. Follow along as I build this site from the ground up! Read More

I bought iforgive.eu and iforgiv.eu domains hoping to create something cool, but my initial ideas (a flower shop, a public forgiveness platform, and an open email apology site) were flawed due to practicality and potential abuse. Then I thought about a social charity platform ("If Or Give") or a Q&A site, but those didn't pan out either. So now, I'm thinking of just using it to host my .Net 2.0 experiments. Any suggestions? Let me know in the comments! Read More

A test post exploring comments and other features. Read More

I've decided to make the Topicala software distributable so anyone can run it. I'll release the code soon, after re-deploying it under kinaln.co.uk. It'll be maintainable and modifiable, allowing others to have a similar setup on their own sites. If you're interested, let me know! Read More

I've given my website a fresh new look with a template of my own design! I'm currently working on ensuring it's compatible with Internet Explorer. Your feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated! Read More

I'm going through a phase where I dislike my website's style and plan to redesign it when I have time. I've created a potential logo using vector graphics software and would love feedback. P.S. I'm much happier with the site's look now! Read More

My dad has started a blog about cycling and how it has helped him improve his fitness. He's lost over 4 stone (27KG) by combining cycling with the Lifestyle and Weight Management Service. Check out his blog at http://frank.kinlan.co.uk and leave him some feedback! Read More

My BBC Programme Calendar to iCal mashup, which converts BBC program data to iCal, works seamlessly with Outlook 2007. Users can easily import program schedules by navigating to their account settings, clicking the internet calendars tab, clicking "new", and entering the URL of the desired program. For example football fans can import the data for the footie http://www.kinlan.co.uk/bbc/football. Read More

Just tested the blogging feature from Microsoft Word 2007 and it's pretty cool if it works as expected. I'm loving the new interfaces for Excel, Word, and PowerPoint, especially the ribbon. Visio, however, seems a bit stale. Smart Art looks promising, like CSS taken to the next level. I might just switch to Word 2007 for good! Read More