• Author: Pål Andreassen
• License: free
• Platform: Windows Vista / Windows 7
• Version 1.0.0
• Download SABnzb+  sidebar gadget

Anyways I noticed they had Widgets/Gadgets for the Yahoo widget system and the Mac OS X, but they had nothing for Windows Sidebar (Vista / Windows 7). So I made a quick port of the Yahoo one for Windows Sidebar.

The Montastic sidebar gadget allows you to keep an eye on your servers from your desktop.

• Author: Pål Andreassen
• License: free
• Platform: Windows Vista / Windows 7
• Version 1.0.0
• Download Montastic sidebar gadget

Main screen

v1.1.0.0
- Fixed shortcut keys (F5, F6, F8 etc)
- Pattern matching for select and deselect of files
- New dialog for storage information and server uptime
- Revamped user interface to match the Home Server Console style

I’ve implemented the two top features you the users had voted for. Click to read more and download.

public enum SortDirection
{
   Ascending, Descending
}

public class ListSorter where T : class
{
  public static List Sort
(
              List listToSort,
              string propertyName,
              SortDirection direction) where P : IComparable
  {
    Type propertyType = typeof (P);
    Type comparableInterface = propertyType.GetInterface("IComparable");

    if (comparableInterface == null)
        throw new Exception("Properties to sort by must be IComparable");

    listToSort.Sort(
        delegate(T x, T y)
            {
              PropertyInfo p1 = x.GetType().GetProperty(propertyName, propertyType);
              PropertyInfo p2 = y.GetType().GetProperty(propertyName, propertyType);

              object p1objvalue = p1.GetValue(x, null);
              object p2objvalue = p2.GetValue(y, null);

              P p1value = (P)p1objvalue;
              P p2value = (P)p2objvalue;

              if (direction == SortDirection.Ascending)
                  return p1value.CompareTo(p2value);
              else
                  return p2value.CompareTo(p1value);
          });

    return listToSort;
  }
}

To sort a list of Person objects by the string property FirstName do the following:

List myUnsortedList = GetPersonsInRandomOrder();
List sortedList =  ListSorter
                                     .Sort(
                                     myUnsortedList,
                                     "FirstName",
                                     SortDirection.Ascending);

To sort a list of Person objects by the int property Age do the following:

List myUnsortedList = GetPersonsInRandomOrder();
List sortedList =  ListSorter
                                     .Sort(
                                     myUnsortedList,
                                     "Age",
                                     SortDirection.Ascending);

If you have the luxury of using .NET Framework 3.0 or 3.5 you can use Linq to solve the problem really quick:

var sortedPersonList = from p in unsortedPersonList
                               orderby p.FirstName
                               select p;

foreach (var person in sortedPersonList)
{
    Console.WriteLine(person.FirstName + " " + person.LastName);
}

Leave a comment to this post if you have any thoughts.

New features:
- Support for removable storage (CD, DVD or USB disks that are not part of the storage pool)
- Support for opening files directly via the Home Server Console (files are opened on your local computer and not the server)
- Lots of bug fixes

I am now asking for feedback from the users about what further functions you would like to see in future versions.

Grab it from http://blog.paks.no/2009/03/29/whs-file-manager-add-in/

Changes in this version

1.0.0.5
- Does no longer show printers as shares
- Made current location of each pane to stand out more (easier to see)
- Made each folder in pane path (above panes) clickable for easy access to
any parent folder
- Fixed problem with caching of exe file icons (all exe files got same icon)
- Added support for sorting by clicking list headers
- Canceling a rename operation (clicking escape) does no longer give an error
- Changed default drag operation from move in 1.0.0.3 to copy.
- Removed a lot of the error messages and instead disable the command buttons when you have not selected and files.

Link to add-in
http://blog.paks.no/2009/03/29/whs-file-manager-add-in/

Surely Blend would have an import from PNG option? Or convert PNG to XAML? Nope! Ok, Google is my friend. Must be a whole lot of free software that does the trick. Well, either there aren’t or I’ve become really lousy at using Google.

What I did find however was a lot of people asking the same question on different forums and sites. The best solution I found was a two step method. First convert the PNG into SVG, and then convert the SVG into XAML.

For converting an image into SVG I came over a site called Vector Magic, they have a really good online flash based service with lots of options and preview capabilities. The downside is that they actualy cost money, but if you register you’ll get a couple of conversions for free.

So after a couple of minutes of tinkering with different options I ended up with a nice vector version of my PNG image in SVG format.

Back to Google to search for SVG to XAML. Again a nice online service, this time actually free and as a bonus written in Silverlight. XamlTune lets you paste in the SVG code and will convert and preview the resulting XAML.

So now I had a XAML version of my original image. The downside was that it was just a couple of endless PATH’s with x,y coordinates. I used a small eternity to find out where to cut the PATH’s into the figure’s various parts so that I could animate the right part or it.

Silverlight, XAML and Blend are all nice and fun, but if your design is all about photoshop and PNG then prepare for a lot of extra work

And what was this image all about? I can not tell you, if I did I’d have to kill you. Sorry.

The configuration software is available in-box on HP’s MediaSmart Server or it can be downloaded from here if you have other brands of Home Server.

This add-in simply starts that configurator from within a Windows Home Server Console Tab and allows you to allow and block access from your home server to various media devices in the home – an Xbox 360 for example.

Released: 2009-04-28
Version: 1.0.0.2

From the main screen you can see which media devices that have tried to connect to your sever. Here you can choose to allow or disallow access from those devices. From the shares screen you can add, edit and remove the folder you want to share. And from the settings screen you can decide if Media Connect is to start up automatically, and if new devices will get approved for access by default or not. Click images to see full size.

Sometimes you need to click the “Media Connect” toolbar multiple times in order to get the application to dock in the WHS console.

License

This Add-In is available free of charge, for all users (private, organizations and companies). You can copy and share the Add-In (in MSI form) for free. The only restriction is that you cannot sell or otherwise charge for the product.

Disclaimer

Any use of this software is on your own risk. We take no responsibility for any problems, data loss, hair loss or otherwise that you might experience.

Prerequisite

Media Connect 2.0 (You probably have this already).

Download

Media Connect Configuration Add-In v1.0.0.2 (24 kB) 1810 downloads

Read post for more information.