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Our purpose in Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 is to point out both the new and the improved in the latest version of SQL Server. Because this version is Release 2 (R2) of SQL Server 2008, you might think the changes are relatively minor—more than a service pack, but not enough to justify an entirely new version. However, as you read this book, we think you will find that there are a lot of exciting enhancements and new capabilities engineered into SQL Server 2008 R2 that will have a positive impact on your applications, ranging from improvements in operation to those in management. It is definitely not a minor release! This book is for anyone who has an interest in SQL Server 2008 R2 and wants to understand its capabilities. In a book of this size, we cannot cover every feature that distinguishes SQL Server from other databases, and consequently we assume that you have some familiarity with SQL Server already. You might be a database administrator (DBA), an application developer, a power user, or a technical decision maker. Regardless of your role, we hope that you can use this book to discover the features in SQL Server 2008 R2 that are most beneficial to you.
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TaGs: Game Development, Introducing, Microsoft, Server, Software Development, SQL, Web Development
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This chapter is a gentle introduction to the practice of programming in Python. Python is a very rich language with many features, so it is important to learn to walk before you learn to run. Chapters 1 through 3 provide a basic introduction to common programming ideas, explained in easily digestible paragraphs with simple examples. If you are already an experienced programmer interested in Python, you may want to read this chapter quickly and take note of the examples, but until Chapter 3 you will be reading material with which you’ve probably already gained some familiarity in another language. If you are a novice programmer, by the end of this chapter you will have learned some guiding principles for programming, as well as directions for your first interactions with a programming language—Python. The exercises at the end of the chapter provide hands-on experience with the basic information that you’ll have learned.
Get up to speed in Visual C++ in a flash with these instant answers to your programming questions. Visual C++ 6 For Dummies Quick Reference is the fast and friendly way to get the most from your C++ programming for the Windows 95 and Windows 98 environments without having to spend hours on end poring through dense reference books. Besides, you’ve got better things to do, like creating cool Windows applications! Visual C++ 6 For Dummies Quick Reference is divided by sections into subject areas and then alphabetized for easy reference. The book’s lay-flat design keeps the book open to the page you’re reading. From a quick review of C++ basics to creating new applications, building and debugging projects, implementing user controls, and performing error handling to scripting help files, you’ll find everything you absolutely need to know at a glance. Confused by syntax issues on constants, arrays, or variables? Looking for fast solutions to writing reusable object-oriented code? Need a quick refresher on C++ operators and the Microsoft Foundation Class that comes with C++? With this book, the information you need is all right at your fingertips!
No matter who you are or what your background is, you are not a dummy if you’re reading this book. You might, however, be a dummy about what Visual Basic is, how to use it, or why it can help you do your job better. This book is expressly designed to make you a good Visual Basic programmer. As such, I don’t spend every page talking about the features of the language, or how to use Visual Studio, or how to connect to a database. I spend a fair amount of time talking about how to make good decisions, build the right software for the problem you need to solve, and not make common mistakes. Visual Basic — despite all appearances — is really very easy to use. Much of the complexity of the language is hidden in tools provided to you by Microsoft. Many of these tools are not expressly for Visual Basic, but they will become very important to your success as a programmer. This book is also about those tools, because they make writing good, working programs faster and easier. This book is also about you, the programmer. I’m a programmer like you. I have been writing in BASIC since 1981, and I’ve lived through all the ups and downs. For about 15 years, Visual Basic was a program, not a language, and I lived through that. Now the tables have turned — Visual Basic is again a language (Visual Studio is the program). In this book, I help you become a good Visual Basic programmer.
My main job in this book is to show you the best way to master the various techniques that, collectively, put you on the path to VB Express programming expertise. If a task requires hands-on programming, I show you, step-by-step, how to write that programming. In other cases, I tell you about a simpler, better way to accomplish a job. Otherwise, you could spend days handprogramming something that’s already been built — something you can create by clicking a simple menu option, adding a prebuilt component, firing up a wizard, or using a template. Because VB Express is so huge, you can easily overlook the many shortcuts it contains. I’ve been on the betas for VB for about 14 years now, and I was on the VB Express technical beta from its start. I’ve also written many books on Visual Basic. All modesty aside, I do know Visual Basic well. I’ve been exploring VB .NET several hours a day for five years — since its debut in July 2000. I’ve written five books on the topic. You’d think I would have pretty much mapped out the .NET world by now, but no. As you will discover yourself, .NET is a gigantic collection of interrelated technologies, and even at this late date you can find yourself boldly going where no one has gone before. I hope that all my work these past years will benefit you — showing you the many useful shortcuts and guiding you over the rough spots. I won’t pull any punches: I confess it took me several hours of wrestling with VB Express to figure out how to get data successfully displayed in a grid. Now I can show you how to do it in just a few minutes. Also, unlike some other books about Visual Basic programming (which must remain nameless) as well as the VB Express Help system, this book is written in plain, clear English. You will find sophisticated tasks made easy: The book is filled with step-by-step examples that you can follow, even if you’ve never written a line of programming or designed a single computer application before. Visual Basic Express does require some brains and practice to master, but you can handle it. To make this book as valuable for you as possible without writing a six-volume life’s work on all of Visual Basic’s features and functions, I geared this book toward familiarizing you with the most useful tools. You can use most of them to create both Windows and Web applications. (The approach to both platforms is quite wonderfully similar, thanks to the WebForms and “code-behind” features you explore in Part IV.) VB Express gives you dozens of ways to get a job done, but one way nearly always proves to be the best, most sturdy, most effective, and, often, most efficiently programmed. I show you those best ways throughout the book.
That’s what New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia said back in 1934. Not many people understood the meaning or the impact of Mayor LaGuardia’s statement, because he said it in Latin. (“E finita la cuccagna,” said the mayor.) But today, most people agree with the spirit of LaGuardia’s proclamation. Well, they’re all wrong. I have two stunning examples to prove that there is such a thing as a free lunch.
We wrote this book to make our favorite hobby game more accessible to every fantasy and gaming fan, from the novice who enjoys fantasy novels such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy and has a passing curiosity about DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, to the seasoned D&D player who goes to every convention and has been playing since Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson published the original White Box version of the game. Whether you have yet to play your first game or have been in a regular gaming group for years, our mission is to measurably increase the fun you have playing D&D and your proficiency with the game. As a new player, this book shows you the basics of the game. You end up with a character to play and enough understanding to confidently take your place at any gaming table. Read this book today, grab a copy of the D&D PlayerÕs Handbook, and you can play tomorrow without worry or confusion. D&D is a game. Games are fun. We hope to make learning to play fun, too. For experienced players, we provide hints and tips to elevate your level of play. Character creation, character advancement, combat and encounter strategies, gamemastering Ñ we cover it all. It doesnÕt matter if youÕve played once or a hundred times; you can find something in this book to make you a better D&D player or gamemaster (known as a Dungeon Master in D&D lingo).
I’ve been writing about Macromedia Dreamweaver since the first version came out in the mid 1990s, and I’m pleased to say that this latest (and long-awaited) version 8 makes this program better than ever. If you’ve never used Dreamweaver before, don’t worry; this book shows you everything you need to know about the old features, as well as the new ones. If you have used earlier versions of Dreamweaver, it’s definitely time to upgrade and make sure you have all the tools available to create a fabulous Web site. If you’re like most of the Web designers I know, you don’t have time to wade through a thick book before you start working on your Web site. That’s why I wrote Dreamweaver 8 For Dummies in a way that makes it easy for you to find the answers you need quickly. You don’t have to read this book cover to cover. If you’re in a hurry, just go right to the information you need most and get back to work. If you’re new to Web design, or you want to really get to know the intricacies of Dreamweaver, skim through the chapters to get an overview and then go back and read what’s most relevant to your project in greater detail. Whether you are building a simple site for the first time or working to redesign a complex site for the umpteenth time, you find everything you need in these pages.
First of all, anyone can learn to program a computer. Computer programming doesn’t require a high IQ and an innate proficiency in advanced mathematics. Computer programming just requires a desire to learn and the patience never to give up. Programming is a skill like swimming, dancing, and juggling. Some people are naturally better than others, but anyone can get better with constant practice. That’s why so many kids become programming wizards at such an early age. The kids aren’t necessarily brilliant; they’re just willing to put in the time to learn a new skill, and they’re not afraid of failing. If you ever dreamed about writing your own programs, rest assured that you can. Programming can be lots of fun, but it can also be frustrating, annoying, and time-consuming. That’s why Wiley publishes this particular book — to help you discover how to program a computer with the minimum amount of inconvenience and the maximum amount of enjoyment. Whether you want to pick up computer programming for fun, to start a new career, or to help make your current job easier, consider this book your personal guide through the sometimes scary — and initially intimidating — world of computer programming. After you finish this book, you can choose the best programming language to accomplish a particular task, understand the tools that programmers use, and even write your own programs for personal use or for sale to others. And after you read Beginning Programming For Dummies, 3rd Edition, you can find more detailed information about specific languages by reading Visual BASIC.NET For Windows For Dummies, by Wallace Wang; C For Dummies, by Dan Gookin; Visual C++ .NET For Dummies, by Michael Hyman and Bob Arnson; C++ For Dummies and C# For Dummies, by Stephen R. Davis; Beginning Programming with Java For Dummies, by Barry Burd; Windows Game Programming For Dummies, by Andre LaMothe; or Perl For Dummies, by Paul Hoffman (all published by Wiley Publishing).
Chapter 1: Getting Started with Java.
