Using Enums to Replace #define's with Strongly-typed Variables

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"On Show" script substitute for ArchestrA graphics

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While developing a control screen using ArchestrA graphics, I found that the "On Show" script provided for graphics is flaky at best. This is especially apparent when referencing dynamically referenced objects in the script. In this case, the graphic can be used by several different objects. In order to allow it to get it's bearings on startup, it is embedded in another graphic. That graphic has a "while showing" script with a statement something like this:

MyGraphic.OwningObject = InTouch:MemoryNodeID + "some other text to dynamically build the object name";

This allows me to use "Me.WhateverUDA" type references in my graphic to interact with the object assigned as "OwningObject" above. The problem is that any "Me.WhateverUDA"-type statements I put in the "On Show" script don't work because of timing issues. The "On Show script apparently fires before the "OwningObject" statement above.…
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Setting up Jenkins, GoogleTest, & Mercurial (with a local repository)

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Over the past couple days, I've been trying out GoogleTest and attempting to get it working with Jenkins for continuous integration.  I wanted to have the GoogleTest suite run during the Jenkins build and report the results to Jenkins.  I also wanted Jenkins to tie in with Mercurial commits for a seamless, automated system.  I suppose it wouldn't be Continuous Integration without it, right?  My inexperience with all three of the technologies led to a few pitfalls, which is my reason for this post...

I wanted to get a working solution with a couple basic GoogleTest tests.  As a quick start, I found Lee Francis Wilhelmsen's blog post and simply downloaded his solution (found in his "closing" section).  As he describes, I had to download the gtest code and link his projects to it.  In my case, I downloaded the gtest code to "C:\Projects\gtest-1.7.0".  Then, for each project in his solution, I opened the project properties and set "Additional Include D…
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Dynamic Object Oriented programming in ArchestrA

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As with most developers using Wonderware products, I often have to get creative to compensate for the limitations in the development platform, scripting language, etc. Lately, I've been need to create "objects" (in the object oriented programming sense of the word, not the app server sense). That is I need collections of data describing some real world thing.

For example, I have been creating a callout feature for a client's SCADA host system. The callouts are stored in a SQL database and my scripts pull out a whole set at a time. Each callout has various attributes such as the callout type, the comparison operator (>, <, =, >=, <=), the setpoint, etc. This presents two issues. First, how do I keep all of these pieces of information together for each callout without creating & deploying App Server objects for each one. Second, at any given time, there will be a variable number of callouts.

I have used the following method (read complete hack) t…
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