What tools do you use to administer analyze and otherwise manage your AWS SimpleDB(s)? - amazon-simpledb

I'm working on OS X, so it has to at least work there, but I generally prefer tools that support multiple platforms.
It's possible that I'm being too picky, but the JavaScript demo that Amazon provides doesn't quite seem like enough...

Mindscape SimpleDB Management Tools is a great add-in for Visual Studio that lets you query, create and generally manage your SimpleDB instances visually. You will need to be a Visual Studio user to get the benefit of it as it must be hosted in Visual Studio.

Finally wound up stumbling over this list of SimpleDB administrative tools.
For whatever it's worth, I'm about to try out the Firefox plugin.

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Anyone would like to share their experience using TFS for Application life cycle management

we are developing white label web and mobile healthcare application for our clients. our product is evolving rapidly and we are supporting existing clients and going to support new clients.
current development workflow involves SVN for source code, requirement documents tracking and mantis for defect tracking.
We are considering VS TFS 2010 based Application life cycle management for our organization. we are hoping that VS TFS 2010 will help us streamline the following
1) Requirements Management
2) Source code Version control
3) Build automation
4) Test management
just wondering is anybody have experience using VS TFS 2010 and would like to share their experiences? is there any worthwhile alternatives to VS TeamSystem?
Preface: This is a personal opinion and I have no ties to Microsoft other than that I develop with their tools for their platform, even though I come across as a Microsoft lover in this answer. (which I am - I love .NET development)
I haven't used TFS 2010, but I HAVE used the 2005 Team Suite including TFS and the Visual Studio versions supported. We didn't move forward to 2008 or 1020 because of how extraordinarily difficult the 2005 version was to install. However, once we got it installed... Loved it. The project management tools were intuitive, and worked well. Setting up builds was a breeze, and it did everything I wanted it to do simply and efficiently.
Since then, however, we've adopted open source tools to do the same type of stuff. As I said, the install of 2005 was a NIGHTMARE and even though the 2010 version of Team Foundation Server installs VERY easily (I tested it myself and demonstrated it to the poor team who helped with the 2005 version just to show them how much better it is), I was unable to convince my team to give it a second chance. They chose to stick with tools that didn't need to be upgraded as often, and that were easier to upgrade when it did need to be done.
If it were just me, I'd be using it. This is one of those things where things just work right, and work together seamlessly. And the available documentation (MSDN, videos, etc) is exhaustive. I doubt any other set of tools is as well-documented.
It's just too bad that the experience with the older version was so bad that nobody else here will give the newer version a fair shake.
As for alternatives - it's not open source, but Atlassian has a nice set of tools. They work well for Java and we're using some of them in our .NET shop. We're using SVN for source control. That's about the only thing I like better about our new environment than I did the Team System.
I started at a new company 2 months back that uses TFS 2010 exclusively (for source control and issue/task tracking), and I haven't been able to get comfortable with it. Previously, I've mainly used SVN for source control and either OnTime (by Axosoft) or Fogbugz (Joel Spolsky) and have loved them both.
I don't know if it's the way they're using TFS (branching is nothing as nice as it was in SVN... and they have Product Backlog Items, Sprint Backlog Items, Bugs, Impediments, and god knows what else to keep track of) but I find it way too convoluted.
I think the tools a developer uses should assist the dev, not get in the way of. If I have to stop and think about how to branch code or assign an issue, then something's wrong with my tools (or I just need to spend more time learning them... which doesn't make sense to me either).

TFS support (plugin, external tool, etc) from within MonoDevelop?

Is there an easy way to integrate TFS for version control into MonoDevelop? I have a new MacBook Pro and an trying to determine which things I can do with Mac native apps and which I will need to run using Parallels.
I downloaded the Microsoft Visual Studio Team Explorer Everywhere 2010 command-line client, and was able to create a workspace, map a working folder and get the latest code. However, it would be nice to perform a get latest from inside MonoDevelop. In the Options there are External Tools I can try and setup, but I thought someone might have already done this. Has anybody done this?
Also, I see the the opentf project lists an alpha-quality MonoDevelop addin in the Feb 4, 2008 Release Notes, but that is two years ago. Has anybody used this?
You can always use Svn Bridge. In order to use it you will need to install it on the TFS server itself. It will then allow your TFS server to communicate via SVN protocol.
I retry to post an answer (sorry for my english i'm french). I has the same problem than you, i make some software for WP7 from visual studio and i use TFS in my compagny and want to make iphone applications with monotouch.
I Try openTF but i need direct integration in monodevelop, i find nothing in the internet and i decide to make my addin.
I release a test version (free of course) than you can try, it's integrate directly in monodevelop with TFS, and work for me on my mac.
You can see my blog at teamaddins.com i think it's can help.
Bruno
The least-bad solution I've come up with for Xamarin + TFS is to set up TFS through a Windows machine as normal, mount the TFS workspace as a SMB fileshare on the Mac, and manage checkouts manually in Visual Studio.
It's klugey, but there doesn't seem to be any reliable TFS tooling available for Mac.

Group project via Team Foundation 2010

We will be doing a database driven logistics system for our Software Analysis and Design course. What we want to do is to work on the project simultaneously so that we can finish the project earlier. Is TFS the right tool for this? If yes, how do we start? What are the steps to set up the TFS? We use VS 2010.
Thanks.
This is a very broad question. TFS is an excellent code repository that does allow for multiple developers to have a centralised code base (which sounds like what you are after).
The first thing you will need of course is the TFS 2010 installation disk and ideally a separate box to install it on. Although the installation and set up can differ slightly on differing OS, i would recommend following the installation guide here and posting any specific and more detailed questions as you come across issues.
Is TFS the right tool for this: Maybe. It may be a bit much overhead to use for a course.
How do you start: If you have Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate, TFS should be included. Everything is installation wizard based, and the install (can) give you everything you need. For what you want, a stand-alone installation using SQL Server Express should be fine.
If you're looking for something lightweight that you all could use for source control, you might want to consider some of the git/svn hosting services (e.g. http://unfuddle.com). There's no direct integration with Visual Studio without a third-party tool, but it will give you the basics of being able to share source code among your team.

What is the best Ruby on Rails environment for a Visual Studio user?

I've been a Visual Studio user since 1997, and used VB 3.0 before that. My whole professional life has been spent inside the Microsoft development environments.
Now I would like to branch out into Ruby on Rails to try something different, and it doesn't have the kind of vendor support that C# does (for very obvious reasons).
For someone coming from the world of Visual Studio, what is the best total environment (IDE, tools, gems, etc) to set up for RoR development on Windows that would make the transition easier?
If you want to stick with Visual Studio, you can always use the Ruby in Steel plugin by Sapphire Steel. The best traditional IDE for Ruby is probably NetBeans, it even has a special stripped-down Ruby Edition.
However, note that unlike less expressive languages like Java, C# or VB.NET, you can not only get by, but even be more productive with a good text editor than with a traditional static IDE. IDEs like NetBeans, Eclipse and Visual Studio are designed with static languages in mind, and trying to force Ruby into that ecosystem is just unnatural.
There is a nice article on The Best Environment for Rails on Windows by Fabio Akita that you might want to read. While I don't agree with everything he writes (mostly because I don't use Rails), it is a pretty good introduction of how you might want to setup a development environment specifically for Rails.
Try JetBrains RubyMine. When installing it, you have the option to set it up to match Visual Studio environment settings. All the short cuts are the same as Visual Studio. It even switches the copy and paste keys from command to control on a Mac. It's a bit expensive considering how many free options there are but in my eyes its worth it.
This thing is so highly customizable it's almost overwhelming.
Netbeans! Its got the most similar features. I developed for years in VS before the switch. It was the only one that I really liked and felt comfortable using.
Netbeans.org
You might find that RadRails (Aptana) is an excellent choice: (http://www.aptana.com/rails) - NOTE: Make sure you look at the Features and Comparisons tab as RadRails has many compelling features. Additionally, I have used Aptana Studio for JQuery development and it help me to be very productive.
I have tried Netbeans and it seemed very promising as well but that is mentioned many times so I thought to offer another approach I was aware of.
Hope this helps!
I use netbeans for two reasons. I like the visual studio style navigation pane and for the debugger.
Be warned though, Netbeans is pretty slow. It doesn't bother me that much because I too am slow.
I also dislike the filename tabs because you can easily be confused about what file you are working on since there is no directory information unless you mouse over the tab.
In 2018? Visual Studio Code! These things always seem to come full circle right?

Delphi: Moving away from VSS

We are team of few Delphi developers who have been using VSS since years (I know it's a pity), but we don't use any of the advanced features of VCS, so it was working fine in many cases (but some times it was driving me crazy :( ).
The good thing that we have with VSS that we use third-party plug-ins to integrate VSS with Delphi, which is working great, but now when our projects becomes larger, and we would like to move a way from VSS.
I have looked at few other VCS (free and commercial) and found most of them seems be made for Linux guys, and you have to use command line for many admin work(I know I'm windows guy :P).
What I'm looking for the new Version control that it should be easy to use and to maintain and Integrated nicely with Delphi IDE (D2007), or at least have a good UI for the Admins an developers.
Just use SVN and an excellent TortoiseSVN client which integrates with the Windows Explorer.
P.S. Found this question: What is the best set of tools to develop Win32 Delphi applications? and this Delphi IDE/TortoiseSVN integration tools in one of the answers: http://delphiaddinfortortoisesvn.tigris.org/
You should at least take a look at JVCS. It integrates with the Delphi IDE, it's written in Delphi and is open source, and you can choose from a number of databases including Firebird to store your archive in.
There is Team Coherence (http://www.teamcoherence.com/) which is written in Delphi and integrates with the IDE very well. We still use it. Support is patchy though.
Most people seem to be moving to SubVersion though.
Team Coherence is a good choice. They just released a new client, so it looks like support is alive and well.
Unless you are directly heading to SVN (which I wouldn't recommend, if you're thinking on something free go to Git or Mercurial) check Plastic SCM. Find a couple of Delphi specific tutorials here:
http://codicesoftware.blogspot.com/2008/06/branching-and-merging-with-delphi-part.html
http://codicesoftware.blogspot.com/2008/06/branching-and-merging-with-delphi-part_02.html
Our Delphi team recently (last year ) upgraded from VSS to Perforce which is an absolute joy to work with. It is expensive but is well worth it. It makes source code control one of the tools of your trade rather than a chore or a hinderance. It has good GUI tools, a great commandline when required and there is a free Delphi IDE integration available online.
It does take a bit of getting used to, but is worth putting in the effort when you get to the point where you can create branches with abandon and merge changes knowing you dont ever have to worry about losing any changes ever. Its fast, efficient and a pleasure to use.

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