HP Launches New MPS Program

The company has rolled out the program in Delhi and Mumbai, and will extend it to other metros by 2013-end and other top 10 cities in 2014

HP is pushing its managed print services (MPS) through partners to target SMB and enterprise customers. The company has launched the HP Bundled Page program which offers an all-inclusive bundle of supplies, maintenance and services.

Partners can offer enterprise-grade MPS to their customers in two models.

Explained Nitin Hiranandani, Director, Printing, HP, PPS India, “Partners can provide supplies, consumables and software-based services while the customer owns the hardware. Or partners can buy hardware through HP Financial Services and offer it to customers on base charges per month on hardware and click charges on actuals.”

The program enables partners to access the HP ExpressDecision Portal which provides them with proposal and quotes for cost-per-page pricing, client invoicing and reporting, device monitoring, and account and contract management. “We will provide presales and implementation support. Moreover, the HP Services team will support partners in areas where they don’t have a presence,” Hiranandani added.

HP has rolled out the program in Delhi and Mumbai, and will extend it to other metros by 2013-end and other top 10 cities in 2014. Said Hiranandani, “SMBs are now demanding MPS because it allows them to move from a capex to an opex model and provides savings of up to 20 percent.”

The company has enrolled about 15 partners so far and is looking for more with a services mindset.

IDC says the APEJ MPS market was worth $530 million in 2010 and is expected to reach $990 million by 2014, while, according to the Photizo Group, India is the fastest-growing market for MPS in APAC.

Meanwhile, AMI Partners believes that about 18 percent of the total printing business from SMBs in India comes from MPS, and that by 2015 almost 60 percent of the printing business will transform into MPS.

---By Amit Singh, CRN, Aug 13, 2013

ASP.NET - Working with Themes

ASP.NET themes are a collection of properties that enables to define the appearance of Web pages and controls on the website.

A theme can include skin files, cascading style sheet files (.css files), and graphics. By applying a theme, one can give Web pages a consistent appearance across the website.

Creating a Theme

A theme is used in Web applications by creating a skin file and attaching it to the Web pages on which the theme has to be applied. Skin files are used to define the property settings for ASP.NET Web server controls. Skin files are created and stored in a theme folder. This theme folder is placed inside the folder named App_Themes. All the themes in a Web application are placed inside the App_Themes folder. This folder is placed inside the top-level directory of the Web application.

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ASP.NET - Working with Styles

Styles are used to define a set of formatting options, which can be reused to format different HTML elements on a single or multiple Web pages. Styles can be defined in any of the following ways:

• Using inline styles
• Using an embedded style sheet
• Using an external (linked) style sheet

Using Inline Styles

Inline styles are style definitions that are applied to the style property of a particular HTML element, and are placed directly inside the element on which it has to be implemented. Inline styles are used when one wants to apply one-time formatting to an HTML element.

To use inline styles in a Web page, use the style attribute in the relevant HTML tag. For example, if the text of a paragraph has to be displayed in italicized and Arial font, then the style for the tag will be as shown in the following markup.

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ASP.NET - Custom Controls

Custom Controls are controls that are created by combining two or more controls and can be reused in multiple Web applications.

Following types of custom controls can be created:-

• Web user controls
• Web custom controls
• Templated user controls

Web user controls

Web user controls are containers that can be created by combining one or more Web server controls. After creating a Web user control, it can can be treated as a unit and define properties and methods for it. Web user controls are similar to ASP.NET Web pages in the context that they contain both a user interface page and code.

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ASP.NET - Web Server Controls

Processing of Server Controls on a Web Page

The processing of a server control depends on two situations, whether the page is requested for the first time by the client or it is posted back to the Web server when the user interacts with the Web page.

When a page is requested for the first time, the server controls are processed in the following sequence:-

1. Initializing
2. Loading
3. PreRendering
4. Saving
5. Rendering
6. Disposing
7. Unloading

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ASP.NET - The Page Class

All Web forms are instances of the ASP.NET Page class, which is defined in the System.Web.UI namespace. The Page class inherits theTemplateControl class, which in turn, inherits the Control class. As a result, the Page class provides useful events that can be used in the code.

Page Events

ASP.NET uses an event-driven model of programming. This model of ASP.NET defines a sequence of events that are raised during the lifecycle of a Web page. Following are some of the page events:

• Init - It is the first event that occurs when the server executes an ASP.NET page. It occurs only once in the entire lifecycle of an ASP.NET page.
• Load - It is fired after the Init event, when the page is requested for the first time and whenever the page is reloaded. This page is used to initialize the variables and the state of controls that are used in the page.

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ASP.NET Web Page Code Model

A Web page is made up of the following two components:

1. The Visual portion
2. The programming logic

ASP.NET provides two models for managing the visual elements and code:

1. Single-file page model
2. Code-behind page model

The Single-file Page Model

In the single-file page model, HTML markup of the page and its programming code are in the same physical .aspx file.

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Anatomy of an ASP.NET Application

ASP.NET applications are generally divided into multiple Web pages. Every Web page in an ASP.NET application shares a common set of resources and configuration settings.

Each ASP.NET application is executed inside a separate application domain. These application domains ensure that even if a Web application causes a fatal error, it does not affect other applications that are currently running on the same computer.

Each Web application is a separate entity that has its own set of data. It can be described as a combination of files, pages, handlers, modules, and executable code that can be invoked from a virtual directory on a Web server.

Directories Used in ASP.NET Web Applications:

Bin: Stores all the compiled .NET components (DLLs) that an ASP.NET Web application uses.

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Exploring ASP.NET

ASP.NET is a server-side technology that enables programmers to create dynamic Web applications. It has a number of advanced features such as simplicity, security, and scalability that help s in developing robust Web applications. These advanced features of ASP.NET are based on the .NET Framework.

ASP.NET in the .NET Framework

ASP.NET is built on the Microsoft .NET Framework. Microsoft introduced the .NET Framework to help developers create globally distributed software with Internet functionality and interoperability. 

ASP.NET has the following elements:

• Web Form Pages
• Configuration files
• XML Web Service files

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Introducing Web Development / ASP.Net

One of the most popular server-side technologies used today for developing Web applications is ASP.NET.
WEB applications are programs that are executed on a Web server and accessed from a Web browser. These applications enable organizations to share and access information on the Internet and corporate intranets.
This information can be accessed from anywhere and at any time. In additions, Web applications can support on-line commercial transactions popularly known as e-commerce. An on-line store accessed through a Web browser is an example of a Web application.
A Web Application consists of Web pages. Web pages can be of the following types:

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Microsoft previews update to Windows 8

Microsoft has previewed Windows 8.1 (Microsoft / May 30, 2013)

Microsoft is providing a first look at Windows 8.1, and among the new features in the update is the return of the Start button that was taken away in Windows 8.

Additionally, users will have more options for what they set as their Start Screen background. Users can select images with motion or select their desktop picture (a picture of their family, for example) as the background for the Start Screen. They'll also be able to further customize the Start Screen by arranging their apps using more tile size options.

Other improvements to the upcoming version of the Windows operating system include the ability to set the device lock screen as a photo slide show, improved built-in apps and a new search screen that will display results from the Web as well as local files.

Users will also have more options for multitasking. When users display two apps on their device screen at once, they'll be able to resize the view of the apps in more ways. Currently, one app takes up about two-thirds of the screen while the second app is relegated to what's left.

Heavy-duty users will also be happy to know that Microsoft plans to improve the settings in Windows 8.1 by putting all of the computer options on one page. Windows 8 settings are scattered throughout the device, with some options located in one settings application and the rest in the desktop settings menu.

Microsoft said it will keep blogging about upcoming features over the next few weeks. It plans to release a preview version of Windows 8.1 on June 26, timed to its developer conference, and roll out the update to Windows 8 to users later this year.

By Salvador Rodriguez

May 30, 2013, 9:45 a.m.

3D Printing Revolution

3D printing is a process of making a three-dimensional solid object of virtually any shape from a digital model. 

3D printing is achieved using an additive process, where successive layers of material are laid down in different shapes.

3D printing is considered distinct from traditional machining techniques, which mostly rely on the removal of material by methods such as cutting or drilling (subtractive processes).

A materials printer usually performs 3D printing processes using digital technology. Since the start of the twenty-first century there has been a large growth in the sales of these machines, and their price has dropped substantially.

The technology is used in jewellery  footwear, industrial design, architecture, engineering and construction (AEC), automotive, aerospace, dental and medical industries, education, geographic information systems, civil engineering, and many other fields.

3D printing has already changed the game for manufacturing specialized products such as medical devices but the real revolution will come when designers start to rethink the shapes of objects.

Materialise, a pioneer in the process...............

A 3D vase called The Hidd, designed by Dan Yeffetlamp is seen at the Belgian company Materialise, the biggest 3D printer in Europe, in Leuven January 24, 2013.

A 3D table lamp called the Lotus.MGX, designed by Janne Kyttanen, is seen at the Belgian company Materialise, the biggest 3D printer in Europe, in Leuven January 24, 2013.

Recently, Microsoft Joined the List of Hacked Companies

Microsoft has disclosed that it recently fell victim to the same type of cyberattack that targeted Apple and Facebook.

"During our investigation, we found a small number of computers, including some in our Mac business unit, that were infected by malicious software using techniques similar to those documented by other organizations," the company said on its Security Response Center website Friday.

"We have no evidence of customer data being affected and our investigation is ongoing," it said.

Microsoft joins a list of companies that've recently reported being hacked, including Facebook,Apple, Twitter, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Apple and Facebook were both targeted via a vulnerability in Oracle's Java platform, and Microsoft said Friday it was hit by a similar attack.

"This type of cyberattack is no surprise to Microsoft and other companies that must grapple with determined and persistent adversaries," it said.