In this Visual Studio 6.0 edition of the MSDN Library, the MSDN Content Development team brings you the release of the full HelpDesk sample—a 24,000-line sample application that shows you how to build a scalable, distributed Web-based application.
The sample is an intranet application for reporting and resolving technical-support problems. It uses various Microsoft technologies, such as Microsoft Transaction Server, SQL Server, ActiveX Data Objects, Active Server Pages, and COM as parts of a complete package.
You may have been following this project through the articles published in the January 1998 MSDN Library release (listed at the bottom of this page). What's new for this release of the MSDN Library?
To get started with the sample right away, go to Kevin Marzec's "MSDN HelpDesk Installation and Deployment" for the HelpDesk setup files and installation instructions. The more hardcore out there may want to go straight to "The HelpDesk API Reference," compiled by Robert Coleridge. We've also collected the following new articles, which detail different client applications for the system:
Robert discusses the HelpDesk client that allows an administrator to maintain the database and to control system parameters. He also teaches you how to create a Windows Explorer–style application in Visual Basic.
Steve uses his DHTML technician client for the HelpDesk sample as an opportunity to explore data binding, data source objects, and some pretty neat DHTML tricks.
This article, a nice compliment to "DHTML, Data Binding, and a HelpDesk Technician Client," finds Steve explaining how to build a browser-based statistical monitoring application for the HelpDesk system using DHTML, ActiveX Controls, and DirectAnimation.
Venu walks you through the functionality of the Visual Basic User and Technician clients for the HelpDesk sample.
In this collaborative article, the MSDN writing team holds a postmortem on the HelpDesk project as a whole, discussing obstacles, pitfalls, Trojan horses, and lessons that were learned.
For your convenience, here is a recap of the previously published HelpDesk articles:
The MSDN Online Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/msdn/) contains an up-to-date Known Issues page for the sample at http://www.microsoft.com/msdn/news/feature/020298/issues.htm. Look here if you have any problems setting up the sample.
Remember that this is an unsupported sample application. Please don't contact our tech-support line for answers to your questions about HelpDesk—they are not prepared to provide support for this sample application.