My Hundredth Article

An overview of the last 102 articles

I really can't believe that I have managed to write 102 articles for this blog in the last year and a bit. When I first started the blog I only imagined writing the odd bit here and there and saw the site purely as a place to make public some of my more useful coding tips. I never imagined that I could output this amount of content by myself.

A hundred articles has come and gone pretty fast and as with all magazines, tv shows and bloggers stuck for an idea I thought I would celebrate my hundred and 2nd article by reviewing my work so far.

Recovering from an SQL Injection Attack

This was the article that started it all and it's one that still gets read quite a bit. It's a very detailed look at how to recover an infected system from an SQL Injection Attack and includes numerous ways of avoiding future attacks as well as quick sticking plasters, security tips and methods for cleaning up an infected database.

Linked to this article is one of my most downloaded SQL scripts which helps identify injected strings inside a database as well as removing them. This article was written after a large site at work was hacked and I was tasked with cleaning up the mess so it all comes from experience.

Performance Tuning Tips

I have wrote quite a few articles on performance tuning systems both client and server side and some of my earliest articles were on top tips for tuning SQL Databases and ASP Classic sites. As well as general tips which can be applied to any system I have also delved into more detail regarding specific SQL queries for tuning SQL 2005 databases.

Regarding network issues I also wrote an extensive how to guide on troubleshooting your PC and Internet connection which covered everything from TCP/IP settings to tips on the best tools for cleaning up your system and diagnosing issues. On top of that I collated a number of tweaks and configuration options which can speed up FireFox.

Dealing with Hackers, Spammers and Bad Bots

My job means that I have to deal with users trying to bring my systems down constantly and I have spent considerable time developing custom solutions to log, identify and automatically ban users that try to cause harm to my sites. Over the last year I have written about SQL Denial of Service attacks which involve users making use of web based search forms and long running queries to bring a database driven system to a halt. I have also investigated new hacking techniques such as the two stage injection technique, the case insensitive technique, methods of client side security and why its almost pointless as well as detailing bad bots such as Job Rapists and the 4 rules I employ when dealing with them.

I have also detailed the various methods of using CAPTCHA's as well as ways to prevent bots from stealing your content and bandwidth through hot linking by using ISAPI rewriting rules.

Issues with Browsers and Add-Ons

I have also tried to bring up to date information on the latest issues with browsers and new version releases and have covered problems and bugs related to major upgrades of Firefox, Chrome, Opera and IE. When IE 8 was released I was one of the first bloggers to detail the various browser and document modes as well as techniques for identifying them through Javascript.

I have also reported on current browser usage by revealing statistics taken from my network of 200+ large systems with regular updates every few months. This culminated in my Browser survey which I carried out over Christmas which looked at the browsers and add-ons that web developers themselves used.

Scripts, Tools, Downloads and Free Code

I have created a number of online tools, add-ons and scripts for download over the last year that range from C# to PHP and Javascript.

Downloadable Scripts Include:

• A guide on creating your own framework
• Parsing a Robots.txt file
• A Debugger wrapper object
• Linked List Object
• Lazy Form Validator
• Parsing a querystring
• Cross Browser CSS Style Object - Correctly Measuring Font Sizes
• Browser Object
• Test for event support without browser sniffing
• Correctly measure element dimensions - The top frameworks don't do it properly!
• Return IE 8 comparability settings

Tools from www.strictly-software.com/online-tools:

• Javascript Unpacker Tool
• My IP Checker Tool - Is your proxy safe
• Super Search Tool - Anonymously search the top 3 search engines at once
• Web Scanner - Check out remote domains for links, emails, logons, scripts and more
• URL Shortener - Create Aliases for URL's
• Strictly IT Jobs - Search for your next IT vacancy
• Customisable Javascript Compressor tool - Minify your script
• Twitter Translator - Translate any public feed into 40+ languages
• HTML Decoder and Encoder tool

SQL Scripts include:

• Find blocked and long running queries
• Great database performance report - 16+ different reports all in one!
• Find text in a database
• Update stored procedures automatically
• Generate Full Text Index Scripts - corrects a missing feature from SQL 2005
• Remove HTML with User Defined Functions

Search Engine Optimisation

As well as writing about coding I also run a number of my own sites and have had to learn SEO the hard way. I have wrote about my experiences and the successful techniques I have found that worked in a couple of articles printed on the blog:

• Setting up a new site for SEO
• Search Engine Optimisation - The basics and Snake Oil Salesmen
• Implementing SEO too late in the day

So there you go an overview of the last year or so of Strictly-Software's technical blog. Hopefully you have found the site a good resource and maybe even used one or two of the scripts I have posted. Let me know whether you have enjoyed the blog or not.