1 - So BleedYellow is hosting a Sametime server?

Are they only allowing browser access or, since I still haven't gotten around to installing Sametime, can I integrate my Notes install for testing?

I admit, not up on Sametime details other than a general idea of what it does and how it integrates with notes, but I'd love to be able to play with it.

Great blog Rock, keep up the good work.

2 - Oh hell. I posted that comment on the wrong entry.
Please disregard, I'm gonna go hide now.

3 - Hi Rocky,

I hope you can help me. I want to sort a list - see below

020/MDN/2007
019/MDN /2007
021/MDN/2008

I want 021/MDN/2008 at the top of the list followed by 020/MDN/2007 and 019/MDN/2007

I have tried a formula with @Sort but it's not working. I am new to Lotus Notes so your help is greatly appreciated

4 - @3 - Hey there Tanja.
Sorry to barge in and be an ASW, but I wrote a fairly detailed post (with sample code) on sorting lists a few years back. { Link }

Hope this helps!
-Devin.

5 - @3 (Tanja) - Devin has hit upon some of my favorite bits of code for doing unusual sorts like this - @Transform and custom @Sorts. Devin and I have even exchanged ideas in this regard, and he took those ideas and ran with them in the post he provided - which is exceptional, especially as it gets refined in the comments. I would highly recommend digesting what Devin has taught to truly understand the power of @formulas in general, and @Transform & custom @Sort in particular.

But, I know that many Domino developers are short on time - so let's look at a quick-n-dirty technique for sorting your list in particular.

Before we dive in, we should define, in "regular language" (American English for me, Southern style ), what we're trying to do. Once we clearly define what we want to do, we can convert our description to @formula code.

It appears you want to sort your list overall in descending order, from right to left, based on the forward slash (" / ") delimiter. Now, the middle may always be "MDN", but I don't know that, so it is probably good to handle that as well.

Now if you simply test @Sort using your example list, it would appear the solution to this specific problem is very straightforward. If you use the [DESCENDING] keyword for your @Sort, it will appear that you're getting the result you desire, because using [DESCENDING] sorts left-to-right, in descending order. You would wind up with a list of:

021/MDN/2008
020/MDN/2007
019/MDN/2007

Which looks right at first pass, but it is right simply because the numbers on the left happen to be in descending order. If, however, we had a list of:

"020/MDN/2007" : "025/MDN/2007" : "021/MDN/2008"

And tried to use @Sort with a [DESCENDING] keyword you'd get:

025/MDN/2007
021/MDN/2008
020/MDN/2007

And this is obviously wrong. So how do we accomplish what we want?

Like most code solutions, there are a variety of ways to accomplish this task; however our goal is to come up with a solution that is elegant, efficient, and functional - and also understandable. Remember, sometimes it is OK to add an extra line or two rather than combining multiple steps into one line, if it makes the code easier to understand for humans. Code that is easy to understand is easy to maintain. Given this, I've come up with a couple of ways to do this - one that is easier to understand, and one that is more complex but shorter. Keep in mind that these are only a couple of ways to do this; either one of these may or may not be the best way, but they are simply two ways that work.

Solution 1
list := "020/MDN/2007" : "025/MDN/2007" : "021/MDN/2008";
list_1 := @Word(list;"/"; 3) +"/" + @Word(list; "/"; 2) + "/" + @Word(list; "/"; 1);
list_1 := @Sort(list_1; [Descending]);
list := @Word(list_1; "/"; 3) + "/" + @Word(list_1; "/"; 2) + "/" + @Word(list_1; "/"; 1);
@Prompt([Ok]; "test"; @Implode(list; @Char(10)))

This solution simply puts the third part up front, and the first part in the back. By doing this you can use the straightforward [DESCENDING] keyword with @Sort, and then simply flip them back to the original positions to get the desired final list. This method is easy to understand, is straightforward, and it works.

But there's another way to do this as well - taking advantage of the [CUSTOMSORT] capability of @Sort.

Solution 2
list := "020/MDN/2007" : "025/MDN/2007" : "021/MDN/2008";
list := @Sort(list; [CustomSort]; @Word($A; "/"; 3) + "/" + @Word($A; "/"; 1) < @Word($B; "/"; 3) + "/" + @Word($B; "/"; 1));
@Prompt([Ok]; "test"; @Implode(list; @Char(10)))

In this solution we simply take the first and third parts of the list, and use them to perform the sort. We put the third part first, then a delimiter, then the first part; and then we use the "less than" comparison operator (<) to test the values to determine if the items need to be switched.

Both of these solutions result in a list sorted like this:

021/MDN/2008
025/MDN/2007
020/MDN/2007

Basically the second technique is doing the same thing that the first solution does, but it combines the steps into one line as a part of the [CUSTOMSORT] @sort. It is smaller code, and is therefore probably a teeny bit more efficient, but not noticeably so. My recommendation is to use the one that best fits in your situation; and given that you're new to Lotus Notes/Domino, the first solution may be easier for you to understand and maintain compared to the second solution.

I would recommend you check out Devin's post concerning @Sort and @Transform; also, I have a lengthy explanation of [CUSTOMSORT] @sort and how it works here: { Link }

I hope this helps, and gives you enough information to dive in deeper and understand all that the @formula language has to offer. Many people who are new to Lotus Notes/Domino immediately discount the @formula language, and this is a mistake; the @formula language is extremely powerful and fast, and it would serve you well to learn it. There is a wealth of information about the @formula language, here at my blog and all over the Domino blogosphere. Take a look around, continue to learn and ask questions, and you'll be a guru in no time!

Best of luck!

Rock

6 - @1 and 2 (Kurt) - LOL, no problem posting in the wrong spot - I do it quite a bit myself

To answer your question, yes BleedYellow.com has a Sametime server available for public use, if you register a profile at BleedYellow.com ( { Link } ). I have done what you said - I have used it in my integrated ST client in my Notes client, and it works great. However I would recommend getting the latest Sametime client, as it is very useful and powerful.

In fact, you can go here { Link } and download the trial version of Sametime. The Sametime client included in that download is NOT timebombed; it is the full Sametime Connect 8 client, in all its glory.

So, download it, connect to BleedYellow, and give it a try. See you there!

Rock