I've been told for numerous releases that Infragistics was going to beef up their documentation (as it used to be for releases years ago) and it has yet to be changed. I've provided samples over and over of things that should be easy to do (and are once you figure out the magical method that isn't documented) but aren't listed in the help file because it's automatically generated using a tool that only lists classes without examples, or decent usage examples, or even context for usage.
I'd like to challenge Infragistics to either live up to their word on the documentation OR hire a developer that has never used their controls before and have that developer try to create a robust site with both server-side and client-side code, using their controls AND only able to get information from the documenation/help file.
I don't think it can be done, or easily done at the very least. Not without having to constantly turn to the forums, or simply pulling one's hair out.
Another huge missing piece is documentation on the building blocks of the webDataGrid. I know it is a view on top of columns or abstracted bits and pieces all so that you can support the various features. But it is way to complicated with so many options one doesn't have a clue where to start.
What is needed is some simple business use cases and then implement that across all the different examples. A example of this would be modifying the display of text in various controls in a grid. Not the simple case of setting the whole row to red but programatically setting different columns based on data.
So bold a label cell, set the text of the dropdowndate picker to Red, set the bounded column for a certain dataField to gray and italics and disable the link control embedded in the template for column 2.
I would expect if I bought the suite that I could find an example of this in both WinForms/WebForms. It took me 25 mins to mock this up in a winform for a prototype and we are giving up after weeks of dabbling in the webDataGrid.
Also if another one of my developers writes a line of code like 'grid.items(2).something' I will die. Since when was it accepted practice to hard code index values anywhere. Once data change and every column is shot. If it is bad practice why on earth are most examples and forum posts using code like that? There should be simple documented best practices to get any column. I'm find with different formats for templates or bounded columns but it needs to be clear and simple.
Maybe there needs to be some layers abstracted to make this a bit simpler as I can't grasp why I can't do
grid.row[x].column.["SomeKey"]. Editor or Template or control etc.
thanks
jack
For hte most part videos are absolutely worthless for me. I've been coding for over 15 years, I want to be able to quickly look up what I'm looking for, not spend time scrolling through a video hoping for that one nugget of information I need - which in most cases if there at all, is just shown as text in someone else's instance of Visual Studio in the video and which I can't even copy code from but have to type it out. Videos are good for novices.
Also, the very few examples that Infragistics has now, seem dominated by techniques of declarative binding in the aspx/presentation layer versus programmatically in the code-behind. Really? How many enterprise applications can get away with that? Are the majority of users that paid in excess of $1000 for an Infragisitics license going to be coding on mom's website or rather enterprise developers?
Some things that would be great to have...
Some other issues I've had include trying to find include:
Honestly, by just generating the help file it's become nearly worthless. It almost needs to be scrapped and have a dedicated team just go through each control and write a help/usage file. Heck, start it and just release them by control and call them 'enhanced help' or something. Please just do something and do it soon!
~Chris
Forum Search Results should return one item per Thread, not one item per Response.
Database stored procedures should be paid more than lip service. There are numerous entries where support resources said, "stored procs are just like any other data source," but I've found that to be untrue.
If I start with a control bound to a SQL data source with a Select statement, then switch the binding to a SQL Data Source with identical schema from a stored procedure as the SelectCommand, the behavior of the bound control seems to change.
As somebody stated above, it seems ridiculous for me to spend so much time on trial and error. I'm a long time user of Infragistics Winforms controls, but a newer user of the ASP.net controls (not new to ASP.net). So I know what to expect from Infragistics controls. It shouldn't be so hard to implement in my ASP.net app.
People love to bash 3rd party controls, and those who recommend them (me), so I expect more samples, docs, and support from the vendor.
jimkennelly,
Interestingly, tech support does have the capability of calling into the clients machine now. They started it a few months ago. Why you wouldn't have heard about it is another problem here. I have requested it several times and of course it made life easier.
Ed
Also would recomment that you somehow integrate your support chat with the ability to connect to the user. If this could be frictionless after the first install, would speed up the problem solving a lot. Recently implemented a windows fat client with a VNC support for end users and its the best thing ever for support. Understand web based is more difficult but I use GotoAssist for my clients that I have to support and it workswell. Most of the time when the user has a problem, the code / components are right there on the screen to be seen. Lots and lots of time is wasted talking back and forth to describe the problem.