Quick recap
Rony led a comprehensive meeting covering topics such as markup languages, cascading style sheets, and tools for web resource processing and Windows program interaction. He demonstrated various programming techniques including the use of Curl, Rex, and OLE Info tool, and explained concepts like piping and redirection in operating systems. The conversation ended with discussions on small projects and homework assignments for the participants.
Next steps
All students to come up with 3 small project ideas using Rex to control 2 Windows programs by Monday.
All students to present their 3 project ideas on Monday morning.
All students to choose one of their 3 project ideas to implement.
All students to create a Rex program implementing their chosen project idea by Tuesday.
All students to present and demonstrate their implemented project on Tuesday morning.
All students to complete the two small homework assignments over the weekend.
Rony to send AI-generated meeting summaries from Zoom over the email list over the weekend.
All students to download and familiarize themselves with the OLE info tool utilities if not using ORex 5.1.
All students to practice using the curl command for interacting with web services.
All students to review the concepts of HTML, XML, and markup languages covered in the session.
All students to experiment with redirecting standard input/output/error in Rex programs.
All students to practice using the Parse keyword for extracting information from HTML text.
All students to review the usage of OLE objects and methods for controlling Windows applications.
Summary
Cascading and Normal Messages Explained
Rony clarified the difference between cascading and normal messages in response to Reggie's question. He explained that cascading messages can be used to save space and avoid repetition, but they might be confusing when mixed with normal messages. Rony also encouraged the participants to ask questions if anything was unclear. Charlotte and Sharlet joined the meeting later, and Rony introduced a feature of the Zoom menu system that generates a brief summary of the talks.
Markup Languages, DTDs, and CSS Explained
Rony discussed the concept of markup languages, emphasizing the importance of Document Type Definitions (DTD) in specifying a markup language. He detailed the history of markup languages, from the Standardized General Markup Language (SGML) developed by IBM to the widely-used Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) for the World Wide Web. Rony also explained the complexities and simplifications of markup languages, the role of empty elements in XML, and the significance of unique attribute values. Furthermore, he introduced the concept of cascading style sheets (CSS) for defining formatting rules and demonstrated the process of formatting HTML text using a CSS.
Understanding CSS and HTML Formatting Properties
Rony discussed the use of Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to improve the formatting of documents for consistent viewing across different browsers. He explained the basics of HTML formatting properties and CSS, including setting font properties, background colors, and other visual elements using relative sizes. Rony also introduced the concept of a parse tree, which represents the hierarchical structure of a document, and emphasized the importance of understanding tag and class attribute formatting rules as well as the role of the Document Object Model (DOM) parse tree in rendering HTML text.
Rony Demonstrates Rex Link Extraction
Rony demonstrated how to extract a link from a web page using Rex, a programming language. He explained the process of navigating to the web page, waiting for the HTML text to load fully, and then using the Parse keyword statement to extract the link. Rony emphasized the importance of ensuring the HTML text is fully loaded to avoid any issues. A question was raised about the methods "body" and innerHTML, but the answer was not provided in the transcript.
Internet Access, HTML, and Browser Wars
Rony discussed the challenges and potential solutions for accessing the internet using different operating systems. He demonstrated the use of the Curl command for fetching HTML text from a website and redirecting the output to a Rex array in a programming context. Rony also explained the principles of HTML and XML, the Document Object Model (DOM), and its programming interfaces, including the use of JavaScript. He delved into the evolution of Microsoft's Internet Explorer and its impact on the browser wars, and expressed concern about the lack of a widely accepted standard body for modern HTML. Lastly, he suggested some resources for further learning about HTML.
Curl Tool Overview and Integration
Rony introduced the Curl tool, explaining its history, purpose, and how to use it to access and process HTML web resources. He also mentioned the possibility of integrating Curl commands into Rex programs via the address system. Following the Curl tutorial, there was a brief discussion about the methods originating from MS Internet Explorer and the potential shift to Curl as the default. Rony then welcomed everyone back from a 15-minute break and indicated that the next part of the presentation would focus on working with Windows programs.
OLE Info Tool Functionality and Usage
Rony presented and explained the functionality of the OLE Info tool, a set of programs designed to interact with Windows programs. He highlighted its ability to interrogate methods, properties, events, and constants of Windows applications, and its usefulness in understanding and working with Windows programs, particularly for students and users of older Windows versions. Rony also demonstrated how to use the tool to analyze registered proc and class IDs, generate HTML documentation for various objects, and create Rex programs that define published OLE constants. He emphasized the importance of using 64-bit versions of Windows and Rex for modern systems and the tool's potential to reveal undocumented properties.
Regs Directory and Windows Program Control
Rony explained the functionality of the 'getOleConstants.rex' program, which generates a Regs Directory and saves constants for use in Windows programs. He demonstrated how to use the program and access the saved constants using the environment symbol. Rony then assigned a task to the group to develop three project ideas by Monday, with one idea to be selected and demonstrated on Tuesday. The projects were to focus on using Regs to control two Windows programs in a useful or interesting way, with possibilities ranging from combining words with Excel to utilizing any available Windows command.
Operating System Commands and Redirection
Rony provided a comprehensive overview of operating system commands, focusing on their usage, switches, arguments, and return codes. He demonstrated how to use various commands in Windows and Unix, including directory listing, file copying, and sorting, and highlighted the importance of using double quotes around file names containing blanks. Rony also introduced the concept of the Rex program, which can be used to execute commands on both Windows and Unix systems, and explained its functionality, process management, and the significance of the PATH variable. Lastly, he discussed the redirection of standard files, including input, output, and error, and demonstrated how to redirect standard in, out, and error to different files.
Piping, Redirection, and Rex Programs
Rony explained the concept of piping in operating systems, using the pipe symbol to redirect the output of one program as input to another. He demonstrated how this technique can be used in a chain of commands, and how each program's standard input, output, and error can be redirected. He also introduced the concept of the null device and discussed the functionality of Rex programs in piping. Furthermore, he explained the use of redirection in Unix to filter and sort text, and how to combine multiple programs using redirection. He also mentioned that the same technique could be applied on Windows.
Programming Tools and Techniques Discussion
Rony discussed various tools and techniques used in programming, with a focus on the 'quote' routine, the 'Carl' command, and the Curl tool. He demonstrated how to use these tools for tasks such as directory listing, data retrieval, and text translation between languages. Rony also emphasized the importance of understanding the system and registering for authorization keys when using web services. He concluded by leading a session on small projects involving Curl and Windows programs, setting homework for the group to work on these over the weekend, and encouraging them to enjoy their time off.
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