SQuirreL Upgrade from 3.0.2 to 3.0.3

I just got notified in the GUI that this upgrade was available.  I started the upgrade process and received a list of Artifacts that will be upgraded.  I looked through the list and decided to add a few extra ones (sybase, mysql) and clicked Apply Changes. 

Once the JAR’s were downloaded, I was told that the changes would take effect once I restarted the application.  So I exited the application and then started SQuirreL back up.  Another prompt to verify that I want to upgrade, and then some backup’s occurred and we’re off and running.

 

First time I’ve done an upgrade for SQuirreL.  Smooth process for me.  And still a great tool.  Check it out. http://squirrel-sql.sourceforge.net/

Local Subversion

I installed Subversion and TortoiseSVN on my development machine a week ago today and I must say I am very pleased with the results.  Easy to do, easy to use.

I would highly suggest using Subversion locally if you are not already. The ability to change any file, then commit or revert is very nice when you want to make a bunch of changes but not sure if you will use them again. 

TortoiseSVN also comes with a diff and merge tool that is easy to use. The Diff tool can also be used with files that are not in a repository.

Serena Version Manager

Now…….the development shop I work at uses Serena Version Manager.  So did the previous company I worked at.  I’ve actually used Version Manager for a long time now (not by choice) and even though it’s undergone a lot of name changes, it has increased in performance over the past 6-8 years.  I still don’t like it.  It’s very slow and works as a tool, but it would not be my first choice.  I’ve used CVS and Subversion and like them both, both for ease of use, power, and definitely great speed.   I don’t yet have a preference over CVS vs. Subversion, but perhaps someday I will.  :)

Why do I mention this?  Well, I still have to use VM for the projects I’m on.  I sync my local environment every night (using Hudson/Ant), then I can visually tell in Windows Explorer (because of TortoiseSVN) which items have changed.  I can then revert them back or Commit the changes to Subversion.  

What if a file changes in VM and I’ve been working on it locally?  Well my VM get only updates the read-only files on my machine.  I still have to check the local error log for “Could not complete the action because the workfile already exists and cannot be overwritten.” meaning that a newer revision was found in VM and the local copy couldn’t update because it’s writeable. 

JSPWiki is a wonderful tool

For a long time I’ve wanted a tool to help with general documentation on projects, coding, ideas, “things I’ve learned”, tips and tricks, and on and on.  It’s nice to have something at work to do this with, because frankly, I learn a lot of little things to help me in my job that sometimes I just forget.  And is there a possibility that someone else has learned those same things? yep.  Maybe they want to write about or tweak the same things I’ve documented.

Try a Wiki for your development team.  Whether it’s Java, PHP, or something else. Give it a try. I work in a Java shop, so I looked a almost went with a PHP based solution (because I work in PHP as a hobby), but decided it would be best to go with a Java solution.  Side goals regarding this include perhaps someday contributing back to the project.

I found JSPWiki. What Java based Wiki’s have you found?

JSPWiki is fairly straightforward to setup.  I’m running it in Tomcat 6.0.18.  I don’t suggest auto deployment, since the configuration information is stored in WEB-INF/jspwiki.properties and could easily be lost in an upgrade.  So I unzipped to the webapps folder and versioned the files with Subversion.  Easy enough.

What I did:

1. Unzip WAR to the TOMCAT_HOME/webapps folder.
2. Open a web browser and request “http://localhost:8084/JSPWiki/Install.jsp” (verify your port; watch the case on Install.jsp)
3. Enter the config parameters making sure you enter at the very least the “Page storage” parameter.  Otherwise pages are stored in the web app folder
   
4. Enter the other parameters and press Configure! at the bottom of the page.
5. A page will be displayed to enter an ADMIN user.  After this, you will have to be logged in as the admin in order to see the Install page again.
6. UnZip “JSPWiki-corepages” for your language in the directory defined by “Page storage” above.  This is just a bunch of starter and help pages.
7. Start editing your Wiki.

There are some plugins available for it. http://www.jspwiki.org/wiki/JSPWikiPlugins

You can use the triple braces for code, or you can install the plugin Code2HTML, giving a little better visual for code;  There’s a special syntax to use, but it’s nice.

Hudson for Continuous Integration

Well I've been working with Hudson for about…a day and a half. I had it up and running in about 5 minutes or so (including my first task). I easily added a few plugins, configured the SMTP mail server to get build fail notifications, and set the HUDSON_HOME to the dir of my choice. This is where the projects are located and build information is stored.

Comparing Hudson to CruiseControl, a CI tool I've used for a long time now, is not something I'm ready for yet.

CruiseControl is very powerful and has lots of features, but with the experience I've had with it, it's all done in an XML configuration file.

After the install of Hudson, all configurations are done through the web app. I get a message (in "Manage Hudson") when there is a new version of Hudson, and then I can download the WAR, deploy it and I'm running again. No need to merge or do anything special for that (that I've noticed so far).

Looking forward to more with Hudson. Great tool.