Phaser 3.20 was released today. The open source 2D game framework gains a few new features including improved Spine support, a more consistent Pixel Art game mode configuration as well as support for video playback. Additionally the release contains several smaller new features, dozens of fixes and improvements.
Hey, it me – throwing more things at the wall to see what sticks. Reddit’s a great (also: terrifying) platform, and often an interesting source of news and insight into what people are interested in at any given moment. In the past I’ve used it as for a variety of things, but today I thought I’d take that a step further.
While browsing r/iOSGaming I happened to come across a thread talking about child-friendly games on Apple Arcade. As a new parent myself (even though I don’t use iOS specifically) these kinds of things interest me, as my daughter is already showing interest in phones and has some idea of how they work. Introducing her to games is the next logical step.
But where to start? That’s something I think I’ll tackle further down the line but for any parents out there wondering the same, and since Apple Arcade is currently the new shiny thing, I thought I’d share a distillation of the reddit thread (OP – u/yworker) for your convenience. I’m listing them by post and whether or not anyone concurred – some posters recommended several games in one go.
To clarify, the OP was specifically asking about games for three-year olds, so YMMV on some of these recommendations:
Sneaky Sasquatch (Seconded)
Frogger in Toy Town and Painty Mob
Dodo Peak, Fledgling Heroes
Cricket Through the Ages
Assemble with Care (Seconded)
There were some non-Arcade suggestions in that thread as well, but I wanted to try and remain on message. Let me know what you think or whether you have any suggestions of your own – kids are growing up with an unprecedented level of access to technology, and anything we can do to help each other out is appreciated.
Redesigning Configuration Refresh for Azure App Configuration
August 27th, 2019
Overview
Since its inception, the .NET Core configuration provider for Azure App Configuration has provided the capability to monitor changes and sync them to the configuration within a running application. We recently redesigned this functionality to allow for on-demand refresh of the configuration. The new design paves the way for smarter applications that only refresh the configuration when necessary. As a result, inactive applications no longer have to monitor for configuration changes unnecessarily.
Initial design : Timer-based watch
In the initial design, configuration was kept in sync with Azure App Configuration using a watch mechanism which ran on a timer. At the time of initialization of the Azure App Configuration provider, users could specify the configuration settings to be updated and an optional polling interval. In case the polling interval was not specified, a default value of 30 seconds was used.
public static IWebHost BuildWebHost(string[] args)
{ WebHost.CreateDefaultBuilder(args) .ConfigureAppConfiguration((hostingContext, config) => { // Load settings from Azure App Configuration // Set up the provider to listen for changes triggered by a sentinel value var settings = config.Build(); string appConfigurationEndpoint = settings["AzureAppConfigurationEndpoint"]; config.AddAzureAppConfiguration(options => { options.ConnectWithManagedIdentity(appConfigurationEndpoint) .Use(keyFilter: "WebDemo:*") .WatchAndReloadAll(key: "WebDemo:Sentinel", label: LabelFilter.Null); }); settings = config.Build(); }) .UseStartup<Startup>() .Build();
}
For example, in the above code snippet, Azure App Configuration would be pinged every 30 seconds for changes. These calls would be made irrespective of whether the application was active or not. As a result, there would be unnecessary usage of network and CPU resources within inactive applications. Applications needed a way to trigger a refresh of the configuration on demand in order to be able to limit the refreshes to active applications. Then unnecessary checks for changes could be avoided.
This timer-based watch mechanism had the following fundamental design flaws.
It could not be invoked on-demand.
It continued to run in the background even in applications that could be considered inactive.
It promoted constant polling of configuration rather than a more intelligent approach of updating configuration when applications are active or need to ensure freshness.
New design : Activity-based refresh
The new refresh mechanism allows users to keep their configuration updated using a middleware to determine activity. As long as the ASP.NET Core web application continues to receive requests, the configuration settings continue to get updated with the configuration store.
The application can be configured to trigger refresh for each request by adding the Azure App Configuration middleware from package Microsoft.Azure.AppConfiguration.AspNetCore in your application’s startup code.
public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IHostingEnvironment env)
{ app.UseAzureAppConfiguration(); app.UseMvc();
}
At the time of initialization of the configuration provider, the user can use the ConfigureRefresh method to register the configuration settings to be updated with an optional cache expiration time. In case the cache expiration time is not specified, a default value of 30 seconds is used.
public static IWebHost BuildWebHost(string[] args)
{ WebHost.CreateDefaultBuilder(args) .ConfigureAppConfiguration((hostingContext, config) => { // Load settings from Azure App Configuration // Set up the provider to listen for changes triggered by a sentinel value var settings = config.Build(); string appConfigurationEndpoint = settings["AzureAppConfigurationEndpoint"]; config.AddAzureAppConfiguration(options => { options.ConnectWithManagedIdentity(appConfigurationEndpoint) .Use(keyFilter: "WebDemo:*") .ConfigureRefresh((refreshOptions) => { // Indicates that all settings should be refreshed when the given key has changed refreshOptions.Register(key: "WebDemo:Sentinel", label: LabelFilter.Null, refreshAll: true); }); }); settings = config.Build(); }) .UseStartup<Startup>() .Build();
}
In order to keep the settings updated and avoid unnecessary calls to the configuration store, an internal cache is used for each setting. Until the cached value of a setting has expired, the refresh operation does not update the value. This happens even when the value has changed in the configuration store.
Try it now!
For more information about Azure App Configuration, check out the following resources. You can find step-by-step tutorials that would help you get started with dynamic configuration using the new refresh mechanism within minutes. Please let us know what you think by filing issues on GitHub.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 10-21-2019, 12:08 PM - Forum: Windows
- No Replies
How AI is helping children overcome their speech disabilities
The idea immediately appealed to brothers Alex and Cosmin, who founded Ascendia after seeing how their mother, a teacher, struggled to meet all her students’ needs with limited resources. What started as a personal passion project has flourished in the last decade to become a multinational company operated by 33 staff in nine countries. So far, Ascendia has created over 1,100 hours of educational content supporting students, parents and teachers alike. As Cosmin Malureanu puts it, “our goal is to get teachers comfortable with new technologies, so they can prepare the next generation for the jobs of the future, not those of the past.”
With the support of Alex and Cosmin, Daniela and her team set about creating a solution to help children working to overcome their speech disabilities – a solution now known as Timlogo.
Timlogo is an interactive, digital speech development tool that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse children’s pronunciation and diagnose their specific speech issues, and then recommend the most relevant course of exercises to correct these. The tool’s offering also learns and adapts over time, meaning that as children improve, the suggested exercises evolve too.
Most importantly, Timlogo is designed to be fun, integrating games, characters and stories that spark a child’s imagination and hold their attention. Teacher and speech therapist Dragan Georgeta explains: “Many children become anxious when they struggle to pronounce certain sounds. But in Timlogo, they are introduced to cartoon characters who tell a story around each sound and encourage them to join in and attempt to pronounce it.” This gamification creates a feeling of inclusion and boosts children’s confidence, something that is key when it comes to overcoming speech difficulties.
Contribute at the kernel and IoT edition Fedora test days
Fedora test days are events where anyone can help make sure changes in Fedora work well in an upcoming release. Fedora community members often participate, and the public is welcome at these events. If you’ve never contributed to Fedora before, this is a perfect way to get started.
There are two upcoming test days in the upcoming week. The first, starts on Monday 30 September through Monday 07 October, is to test the Kernel 5.3. Wednesday October 02, the test day is focusing on Fedora 31 IoT Edition. Come and test with us to make the upcoming Fedora 31 even better.
Kernel test week
The kernel team is working on final integration for kernel 5.3. This version was just recently released and will arrive soon in Fedora. This version will also be the shipping kernel for Fedora 31. As a result, the Fedora kernel and QA teams have organized a test week for Monday, Sept 30 through Monday, October 07. Refer to the wiki page for links to the test images you’ll need to participate. The steps are clearly outlined in this document.
Fedora IoT Edition test day
Fedora Internet of Things is a variant of Fedora focused on IoT ecosystems. Whether you’re working on a home assistant, industrial gateways, or data storage and analytics, Fedora IoT provides a trusted open source platform to build on. Fedora IoT produces a monthly rolling release to help you keep your ecosystem up-to-date. The IoT and QA teams will have this test day for on Wednesday, October 02. Refer to the wiki page for links and resources to test the IoT Edition.
How do test days work?
A test day is an event where anyone can help make sure changes in Fedora work well in an upcoming release. Fedora community members often participate, and the public is welcome at these events. If you’ve never contributed before, this is a perfect way to get started.
To contribute, you only need to be able to download test materials (which include some large files) and then read and follow directions step by step.
Detailed information about both test days are on the wiki pages above. If you’re available on or around the days of the events, please do some testing and report your results.
The Elder Scrolls 6 Petition: Please Bethesda, Put This Character In The Game
Dear Bethesda,
At E3 2018 you revealed that you're making Elder Scrolls VI, a new entry in the much loved Skyrim line of video game product. You showed us next to nothing, but everyone still lost their dang minds. And who could blame them? The *NOT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ACTUAL GAME* trailer gave fans a brief look at a world they have so much invested in. The rousing orchestral rendition of the Elder Scrolls theme conjured memories of their fondest times with the franchise: filling a room full of cheese wheels, talking to a dog, turning dragons into Macho Man Randy Savage.
What we do know about it comes from Todd Howard himself, and it's that it's probably going to be some time until the game is ready for us to play. Howard said it's "not coming anytime soon" and, "I don't even know what the world is going to be like when it comes out."
It might look more like Fallout if we're not careful, am I right folks?
Anyway, it's clear the game is still early in development, which means this is the perfect time for us, the gamers--the fans--to get our requests in ... Because that's definitely how game development works.
My request is a simple one and it involves including a character that has become critical to fantasy fiction. A figure that transcends intellectual properties and franchises to become part of the tapestry of the genre, as necessary as swords and shields, magic and mysticism, small cheese wheels and big cheese wheels. I am, of course, talking about the great and powerful Potion Seller.
Although the scale of the story may be small, what it depicts is still impactful. The knight, preparing to go into battle, asks for the Potion Seller's "strongest potions," to which the Potion Seller responds by rebuking his request. His potions, as it turns out, are too strong for the knight, according to the seller, and thus the knight would not be able to handle them.
The knight, exerting whatever authority he has, attempts to press on, demanding that the Potion Seller give him his "strongest potions" once again. "My strongest potions will kill you, traveler, you can't handle my strongest potions," he replies. In this moment, the message behind the story becomes clear. You see, in the eyes of the Potion Seller, the knight is just another person, a "traveler." Whatever accolades the knight has gathered in battle thus far are not important, for the seller, the power of his potions are all that matter and it is his responsibility to ensure that they are only given to those he has confidence in ... for their own good.
"YOU BETTER GO TO A SELLER THAT SELLS WEAKER POTIONS," says Potion Seller, attempting to make the knight see sense.
The knight, taken back by the Potion Sellers unwavering morals and values, arrogantly asserts himself once again. "I'm telling you right now," he begins, "I'm going into battle, and I need only your strongest potions." The arrogance of the knight becomes clear. This is a story about hubris and how it can be the undoing of even the most self-assured heroes.
"MY STRONGEST POTIONS WOULD KILL A DRAGON, LET ALONE A MAN," the Potion Seller clapeth back. "YOU NEED A SELLER, THAT SELLS WEAKER POTIONS ... because my potions ARE TOO STRONG." The knight's desperate pleas are cast aside, "YOU CAN'T HANDLE MY STRONGEST POTIONS. NO ONE CAN!!!!!!!! MY STRONGEST POTIONS ARE FIT FOR A BEAST LET ALONE A MAN."
In this moment, it becomes clear that "Double U, Double U, Double U Dot YouTube Dot Com Forward Slash Watch Question Mark V Equals R Underscore FQU4KzN7A" is also the story of how those that the masses would dismiss as a lowly member of society--a mere potion seller--can wield strength even greater than champions of the realm.
He may be branded "a rascal with no respect for knights" but, ultimately, the Potion Seller stuck to his convictions. He respected the power of his potions and, in the face of a would-be hero, he stuck up for himself, begging the question: Who was the real hero?
Answer: It's the Potion Seller
In The Elder Scrolls VI, whatever it may become, players will inevitably be cast as the hero and go on a journey to save the lands, untangle political turmoil, and become a legendary figure for the peoples of the lands to sing songs about and deify. But there's also an opportunity to make the little characters count, to remind adventurers that, while they may be on a quest to decide the fates of many, others have their own destinies, be it collecting wheels of cheese or choosing who to sell potions to.
And who better to remind people about this than arguably the most important representation of the little-guy-standing-up-for-himself fantasy archetype, the Potion Seller. He deserves to be in The Elder Scrolls VI. He is too important to fantasy fiction not to be. To that end, we at GameSpot have created a petition to urge Bethesda to reach out to acclaimed author Justin Kuritzkes and bring Potion Seller to The Elder Scrolls VI. Please sign and support this noble cause.
Laigter is an open source tool for Mac, Windows and Linux that enable you to create normal, parallax and specular maps for 2D sprites very easily. This enables your 2D game to easily have a 3D effect, while also enabling more advanced lighting capabilities. The 1.7 release contains a number of quality of life improvements such as better threading to improve UI responsiveness and auto reloading maps that have been modified externally.
Now Laigter auto-reloads images being modified from external program! This makes it easier for users that wanted to make the texture at the same time than the normal map. This also lets you modify custom heightmaps and specular maps externally and see results almost live! This was implemented by flamendless! (BTW, if you like indie horror games, you MUST play his game Going Home).
Now maps are generated in background thread, making GUI more responsive.
Now Laigter supports rendering multiple textures at the same time! Just Ctrl+click on the textures list, and every selected item will be rendered, and processed in real time! Note that they will be rendered at the same order they were selected. Once rendered, you can click on them in the preview widget, to move, scale, or change settings to them! You can also select multiple of them with Ctrl and modify the same setting to all of them at the same time! Check this twit if you want to see an example!
Minor Changes:
Updated About Dialog! This is because of new contributions and new Patreon. Thanks Lodugh! (By the way, check out Ldugh’s games, they are pretty cool).
Changed all code language to english. Users will not notice this, but this is helpful for people that wants to contribute coding.
Applied clang-format to all code. Same comment than previous item.
Added automatic generation of qm files, and removed them from git.
Grayed out “Add Light” button, when preview is not selected. That button often caused confusion when not in preview, because it entered the add light mode, but nothing was visible.
Added a contributing guide for new developers that want to help!
Now “Lights per texture” option is disabled by default. This made more sense for the new multiple texture feature.
Added “Preview” export option to export dock, and changed the behaviour of the export preview button in toolbar. Makes more sense now. Button in toolbar will export everything being rendered (except for lights icons), and the option in the dock will export the original texture with the processing applied.
Bug Fixes:
Fixed casting in shaders, that caused Laigter not to work with some glsl versions.
Fixed bug that caused “Cut” radio button not to work on some situations.
Translations:
Laigter is now translated to French! thanks to Calinou!
Laigter is available here, with the source code available on GitHub under the GPLv3 license. You can learn more about an earlier version of Laigter in our video below.
10 Things Call of Duty Mobile Doesn’t Tell You (But Really Should)
By Andrew Smith08 Oct 2019
The Call of Duty franchise is one of the most recognised in the era of modern gaming. The series is available on a multitude of platforms; and has dabbled with mobile in the past. On October 1, 2019 Call of Duty: Mobile released on Android and iOS devices, bringing the competitive world of first-person online shooters to mobile devices in a way only a few have attempted before.
If you’re thinking of trying it out, here are ten things that Call of Duty: Mobile doesn’t tell you.
Are there Microtransactions in Call of Duty: Mobile?
Anyone who is familiar with mobile gaming knows microtransactions are typically a staple, especially for free games. In the case of Call of Duty: Mobile, the story is no different. As a free to download game, players can expect microtransactions in the form of COD Points.
These can be used to purchase skins, experience cards, and the premium Battle Pass. Similar to Fortnite and other popular free-to-play games, CoD Mobile features a free and a premium Battle Pass. For the price of 800 COD Points ($10 USD), players can access the Premium Battle Pass and for 2000 COD Points ($25 USD), players can purchase the Premium Pass Plus which will automatically bump them up 25 Tiers. As you might expect, the Battle Pass is filled with skins, points, credits, xp boosts, and even loot boxes.
Speaking of loot boxes, these can be purchased with COD Points as well, and offer players the chance to win a variety of weapon skins which are divided up into three different rarities. Developers have also disclosed the CoD: Mobile loot box odds within the game, which can be seen below.
Epic (Purple): 1.30%
Rare (Blue): 40.70%
Uncommon (Green): 58%
Different skins can also be purchased in the store with CoD Points, for a variety of prices. There are multiple CoD Point packages currently available in the store, ranging from $1-$99 USD. You can see a full list of bundles below.
80 Points – $1
400 Points – $5
800 Points – $10
2,000 Points – $25
4,000 Points – $50
8,000 Points – $100
How to Level Up in Call of Duty: Mobile
If you’ve got your eye on an item in the Battle Pass, then you might be wondering how to level up in CoD: Mobile. The simple answer is to gain as much XP as possible. The more complicated answer involves strategically choosing what game modes you play.
To level up fast, you’re probably going to want to stick to Unranked PvP matches instead of the Ranked matches, simply because they are easier, and you’ll be able to farm a little bit more XP during each match. If you’re getting bored and want to switch things up, you can also play Domination mode which nets a fair amount of XP and can be completed quickly.
One mode you’ll want to avoid if you’re trying to farm XP is the Battle Royale mode. While it does tend to net more XP than others, the games take a long time. You may get 4,000 XP from a Battle Royale game, but you’ll also sacrifice a large chunk of time. Instead, you could have gotten 2,500 XP in each match from three or more Unranked PvP games in the same amount of time.
Are there Bots in CoD: Mobile?
After a few rounds of the hit mobile game, players might become suspicious of CoD: Mobile bots and AI. There are a couple things that might tip you off, but the most obvious will likely be that some players are really bad. While it may seem like you are playing against bots, there is currently no evidence of this. Since playing requires an internet connection and there is no option for offline play, chances are that you are in fact playing against real people.
How to add friends in Call of Duty: Mobile
If you and your friends want to play together, then you’ll probably want to add them as a friend. There are a couple of different ways to add friends in Call of Duty: Mobile. For starters, you’ll want to click the icon of two humans on the top of your screen. This is the friend page, from here you can connect with friends from social media, find recent players, see your friends list, or add friends from the suggested list or search their name/ID.
If you can’t remember your username or want to find your ID number, you can locate the information within the settings. Simply click the gear icon to the right of the friend’s icon and go to the “Other” tab. On the bottom of the screen, you should see your ID number as well as your username.
How to 1v1 in Call of Duty: Mobile
We all have that one friend whose only comeback consists of “1v1 me in CoD bro.” Well, if you want to settle the scores in the mobile version, you can do that in a few simple steps. From the home screen, select multiplayer and then the “Private” button in the bottom left corner.
You’ll be taken to a versus screen where you can set up two different teams with your friends. You can add up to five players on each team or you can set up a 1v1 match. Simply select the friend you want to face in a 1v1 match from your friends list and choose the map and mode you want to play on. Then begin the game and show your friend who’s boss.
How to Change your Name in CoD: Mobile
If you’d like to change your CoD: Mobile nickname, you can do that by following a few simple steps. Unfortunately, it is not as simple as clicking a button to change your name, but it is possible. For starters, you’ll need to link your account with Facebook, if you don’t, you won’t be able to change your name. You can do this by going to the settings within the game and clicking the “Link” button in the top right corner.
Once you do that, you’ll be prompted to sign up with Facebook, but you will keep your original nickname. If you want to change your name, you’ll need to uninstall and reinstall the app. Don’t worry, you won’t lose your account or any of your progress. Once you reinstall the app and open it up, you’ll have to login with Facebook again and you’ll be prompted to change your nickname.
How to use Voice Chat in CoD: Mobile
If you want to play with your friends, then you also might be interested in using voice chat in CoD: Mobile. However, there is some good news and some bad news. The good news is that using voice chat is really simple. Simply choose the “Multiplayer” option on your homescreen then press the little microphone in the bottom left corner.
The bad news is that a lot of players are reporting issues with voice chat, saying they are receiving “server timed out” messages. While this is annoying, it’s likely just a simple bug that developers will be able to fix in the near future. So, hold on tight, soldier.
Call of Duty: Mobile Controller Support
If you’re a fan of console gaming, then odds are you prefer a controller in your hand when playing Call of Duty. Unfortunately, despite being available during beta testing, developers have pulled controller support from CoD: Mobile for the time being. There is no official word if it will be coming back or if it is gone forever. However, a lot of insiders are speculating that controller support will be back sometime in the future.
Can you play CoD: Mobile on PC?
Despite being a mobile game, players will in fact be able to play CoD: Mobile on PC. GameLoop, a child company of Tencent (CoD: Mobile developers), has made the game available on PC via an emulator. Since the company is associated with the developers, you don’t need to worry about getting in trouble for emulating the game.
You can check out the Call of Duty: Mobile emulator on the GameLoop website. This will allow players the ability to experience the mobile game with a mouse and PC. Further, the emulation download is only 10 MB, which shouldn’t take more than a few seconds to download, depending on your internet speeds.
When is Zombies coming to Call of Duty: Mobile?
A lot of players have been hoping that a Zombies mode would be coming to CoD: Mobile. After all, Zombies is one of the staple modes for Call of Duty franchise as a whole. Unfortunately, Activision has been rather quite a Zombies mode release date. Aside from mentioning that it is in development, no one really knows when to expect a release. A Halloween release seems like the perfect time to launch the Zombies mode, with it being spooky season and all, but it remains to be seen if that will happen.
Call of Duty: Mobile is available to download now on iOS & Android.
Please also see the full list of breaking changes in ASP.NET Core 3.0.
To upgrade an existing ASP.NET Core 3.0 Preview 7 project to Preview 8:
Update Microsoft.AspNetCore.* package references to 3.0.0-preview8.19405.7.
In Razor components rename OnInit to OnInitialized and OnInitAsync to OnInitializedAsync.
In Blazor apps, update Razor component parameters to be public, as non-public component parameters now result in an error.
In Blazor WebAssembly apps that make use of the HttpClient JSON helpers, add a package reference to Microsoft.AspNetCore.Blazor.HttpClient.
On Blazor form components remove use of Id and Class parameters and instead use the HTML id and class attributes.
Rename ElementRef to ElementReference.
Remove backing field declarations when using @ref or specify the @ref:suppressField parameter to suppress automatic backing field generation.
Update calls to ComponentBase.Invoke to call ComponentBase.InvokeAsync.
Update uses of ParameterCollection to use ParameterView.
Update uses of IComponent.Configure to use IComponent.Attach.
Remove use of namespace Microsoft.AspNetCore.Components.Layouts.
You should hopefully now be all set to use .NET Core 3.0 Preview 8.
Project template updates
Cleaned up top-level templates in Visual Studio
Top level ASP.NET Core project templates in the “Create a new project” dialog in Visual Studio no longer appear duplicated in the “Create a new ASP.NET Core web application” dialog. The following ASP.NET Core templates now only appear in the “Create a new project” dialog:
Razor Class Library
Blazor App
Worker Service
gRPC Service
Angular template updated to Angular 8
The Angular template for ASP.NET Core 3.0 has now been updated to use Angular 8.
Blazor templates renamed and simplified
We’ve updated the Blazor templates to use a consistent naming style and to simplify the number of templates:
The “Blazor (server-side)” template is now called “Blazor Server App”. Use blazorserver to create a Blazor Server app from the command-line.
The “Blazor” template is now called “Blazor WebAssembly App”. Use blazorwasm to create a Blazor WebAssembly app from the command-line.
To create an ASP.NET Core hosted Blazor WebAssembly app, select the “ASP.NET Core hosted” option in Visual Studio, or pass the --hosted on the command-line
dotnet new blazorwasm --hosted
Razor Class Library template replaces the Blazor Class Library template
The Razor Class Library template is now setup for Razor component development by default and the Blazor Class Library template has been removed. New Razor Class Library projects target .NET Standard so they can be used from both Blazor Server and Blazor WebAssembly apps. To create a new Razor Class Library template that targets .NET Core and supports Pages and Views instead, select the “Support pages and views” option in Visual Studio, or pass the --support-pages-and-views option on the command-line.
dotnet new razorclasslib --support-pages-and-views
Case-sensitive component binding
Components in .razor files are now case-sensitive. This enables some useful new scenarios and improves diagnostics from the Razor compiler.
For example, the Counter has a button for incrementing the count that is styled as a primary button. What if we wanted a Button component that is styled as a primary button by default? Creating a component named Button in previous Blazor releases was problematic because it clashed with the button HTML element, but now that component matching is case-sensitive we can create our Button component and use it in Counter without issue.
Notice that the Button component is pascal cased, which is the typical style for .NET types. If we instead try to name our component button we get a warning that components cannot start with a lowercase letter due to the potential conflicts with HTML elements.
We can move the Button component into a Razor Class Library so that it can be reused in other projects. We can then reference the Razor Class Library from our web app. The Button component will now have the default namespace of the Razor Class Library. The Razor compiler will resolve components based on the in scope namespaces. If we try to use our Button component without adding a using statement for the requisite namespace, we now get a useful error message at build time.
NavLink component updated to handle additional attributes
The built-in NavLink component now supports passing through additional attributes to the rendered anchor tag. Previously NavLink had specific support for the href and class attributes, but now you can specify any additional attribute you’d like. For example, you can specify the anchor target like this:
Improved reconnection logic for Blazor Server apps
Blazor Server apps require a live connection to the server in order to function. If the connection or the server-side state associated with it is lost, then the the client will be unable to function. Blazor Server apps will attempt to reconnect to the server in the event of an intermittent connection loss and this logic has been made more robust in this release. If the reconnection attempts fail before the network connection can be reestablished, then the user can still attempt to retry the connection manually by clicking the provided “Retry” button.
However, if the server-side state associated with the connect was also lost (e.g. the server was restarted) then clients will still be unable to connect. A common situation where this occurs is during development in Visual Studio. Visual Studio will watch the project for file changes and then rebuild and restart the app as changes occur. When this happens the server-side state associated with any connected clients is lost, so any attempt to reconnect with that state will fail. The only option is to reload the app and establish a new connection.
New in this release, the app will now also suggest that the user reload the browser when the connection is lost and reconnection fails.
Culture aware data binding
Data-binding support (@bind) for <input> elements is now culture-aware. Data bound values will be formatted for display and parsed using the current culture as specified by the System.Globalization.CultureInfo.CurrentCulture property. This means that @bind will work correctly when the user’s desired culture has been set as the current culture, which is typically done using the ASP.NET Core localization middleware (see Localization).
You can also manually specify the culture to use for data binding using the new @bind:culture parameter, where the value of the parameter is a CultureInfo instance. For example, to bind using the invariant culture:
The <input type="number" /> and <input type="date" /> field types will by default use CultureInfo.InvariantCulture and the formatting rules appropriate for these field types in the browser. These field types cannot contain free-form text and have a look and feel that is controller by the browser.
Other field types with specific formatting requirements include datetime-local, month, and week. These field types are not supported by Blazor at the time of writing because they are not supported by all major browsers.
Data binding now also includes support for binding to DateTime?, DateTimeOffset, and DateTimeOffset?.
Automatic generation of backing fields for @ref
The Razor compiler will now automatically generate a backing field for both element and component references when using @ref. You no longer need to define these fields manually:
<button @ref="myButton" @onclick="OnClicked">Click me</button> <Counter @ref="myCounter" IncrementAmount="10" /> @code { void OnClicked() => Console.WriteLine($"I have a {myButton} and myCounter.IncrementAmount={myCounter.IncrementAmount}");
}
In some cases you may still want to manually create the backing field. For example, declaring the backing field manually is required when referencing generic components. To suppress backing field generation specify the @ref:suppressField parameter.
Razor Pages support for @attribute
Razor Pages now support the new @attribute directive for adding attributes to the generate page class.
For example, you can now specify that a page requires authorization like this:
@page
@attribute [Microsoft.AspNetCore.Authorization.Authorize] <h1>Authorized users only!<h1> <p>Hello @User.Identity.Name. You are authorized!</p>
New networking primitives for non-HTTP Servers
As part of the effort to decouple the components of Kestrel, we are introducing new networking primitives allowing you to add support for non-HTTP protocols.
You can bind to an endpoint (System.Net.EndPoint) by calling Bind on an IConnectionListenerFactory. This returns a IConnectionListener which can be used to accept new connections. Calling AcceptAsync returns a ConnectionContext with details on the connection. A ConnectionContext is similar to HttpContext except it represents a connection instead of an HTTP request and response.
The example below show a simple TCP Echo server hosted in a BackgroundService built using these new primitives.
public class TcpEchoServer : BackgroundService
{ private readonly ILogger<TcpEchoServer> _logger; private readonly IConnectionListenerFactory _factory; private IConnectionListener _listener; public TcpEchoServer(ILogger<TcpEchoServer> logger, IConnectionListenerFactory factory) { _logger = logger; _factory = factory; } protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken stoppingToken) { _listener = await _factory.BindAsync(new IPEndPoint(IPAddress.Loopback, 6000), stoppingToken); while (true) { var connection = await _listener.AcceptAsync(stoppingToken); // AcceptAsync will return null upon disposing the listener if (connection == null) { break; } // In an actual server, ensure all accepted connections are disposed prior to completing _ = Echo(connection, stoppingToken); } } public override async Task StopAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken) { await _listener.DisposeAsync(); } private async Task Echo(ConnectionContext connection, CancellationToken stoppingToken) { try { var input = connection.Transport.Input; var output = connection.Transport.Output; await input.CopyToAsync(output, stoppingToken); } catch (OperationCanceledException) { _logger.LogInformation("Connection {ConnectionId} cancelled due to server shutdown", connection.ConnectionId); } catch (Exception e) { _logger.LogError(e, "Connection {ConnectionId} threw an exception", connection.ConnectionId); } finally { await connection.DisposeAsync(); _logger.LogInformation("Connection {ConnectionId} disconnected", connection.ConnectionId); } }
}
Unix domain socket support for the Kestrel Sockets transport
We’ve updated the default sockets transport in Kestrel to add support Unix domain sockets (on Linux, macOS, and Windows 10, version 1803 and newer). To bind to a Unix socket, you can call the ListenUnixSocket() method on KestrelServerOptions.
In preview8, we’ve added support for CallCredentials allowing for interoperability with existing libraries like Grpc.Auth that rely on CallCredentials.
Diagnostics improvements for gRPC
Support for Activity
The gRPC client and server use Activities to annotate inbound/outbound requests with baggage containing information about the current RPC operation. This information can be accessed by telemetry frameworks for distributed tracing and by logging frameworks.
EventCounters
The newly introduced Grpc.AspNetCore.Server and Grpc.Net.Client providers now emit the following event counters:
total-calls
current-calls
calls-failed
calls-deadline-exceeded
messages-sent
messages-received
calls-unimplemented
You can use the dotnet counters global tool to view the metrics emitted.
We’ve added support in Visual Studio that makes it easier to manage references to other Protocol Buffers documents and Open API documents.
When pointed at OpenAPI documents, the ServiceReference experience in Visual Studio can generated typed C#/TypeScript clients using NSwag.
When pointed at Protocol Buffer (.proto) files, the ServiceReference experience will Visual Studio can generate gRPC service stubs, gRPC clients, or message types using the Grpc.Tools package.
SignalR User Survey
We’re interested in how you use SignalR and the Azure SignalR Service, and your opinions on SignalR features. To that end, we’ve created a survey we’d like to invite any SignalR customer to complete. If you’re interested in talking to one of the engineers from the SignalR team about your ideas or feedback, we’ve provided an opportunity to enter your contact information in the survey, but that information is not required. Help us plan the next wave of SignalR features by providing your feedback in the survey.
Give feedback
We hope you enjoy the new features in this preview release of ASP.NET Core and Blazor! Please let us know what you think by filing issues on GitHub.
Review: BRV-Mini speakers pack big sound in a portable package
If you’re looking for a portable speaker that can keep up with you on all your adventures, take a look at Braven’s BRV-Mini. Their small size hides big sound in a tough, but diminutive package.
Braven’s new pint-sized portable Bluetooth speakers, the BRV-Mini, are ultra-rugged, ultra-portable speakers designed to go just about anywhere. We took a look at these rugged little speakers to see if they held up to our expectations.
Appearance and features
The BRV-Mini is a small, squat speaker that I would place in the ultra-portable category. A single speaker is roughly the circumference of a can of soda, meaning it drops pretty easily into a bag if you want to take it on the go. The included lanyard allows you to hang it from a carabiner if you want to take it with you on a trek through the great outdoors.
As an added bonus, two BRV-Minis can be paired together, giving you a stereo experience or to help fill a larger room with more sound. I found that these work wonderfully as portable desk speakers, giving me the ability to pair two with my iPad to play podcasts as I work.
The BRV-Mini is waterproof IPX7 rated and even floats, meaning that it’s safe to take poolside or along for a canoe trip. Its rugged design also makes it the perfect stocking stuffer for teens and tweens who might still be a bit hard on their tech gear.
The BRV-Mini speakers are available in a few different colors, including black, gray, red, and navy blue. I have a pair of the navy blue and think they look pretty great. These speakers boast an outdoorsy, rugged look, so they might not be the best gift for someone who prizes a sleek, minimalist aesthetic.
Sound and performance
I’ve used enough Braven products at this point to know that they generally produce some quality speakers. The BRV-Mini is no exception. Despite its small size, the BRV-Mini packs some serious punch. The speakers have a substantial amount of bass and clear, defined mid- and high-range. The maximum volume is extremely impressive for a speaker this small, and there’s not a lot of sound degradation at higher levels. Overall, this is what I would consider a solid-sounding speaker. Pair two BRV-Minis together and it’s even better.
As for hands-free speaker calling, I wasn’t impressed. I haven’t found many Bluetooth speakers that can double as a viable hands-free option, and this one didn’t blow me out of the water. It does, however, work well enough to control Siri on my Mac mini if I need that functionality.
The battery life is also worth talking about. At a low to medium volume, you can easily get upwards of 10 to 12 hours out of a single speaker, though pairing two together does reduce this a bit, as does playing audio at higher levels of volume. The speakers can be charged via USB-C and charge fairly quickly. I, for one, incredibly thankful that Braven has ditched the significantly more annoying micro-USB in favor of the far superior USB-C.
It’s also worth noting that the BRV-Mini features Bluetooth 5.0, which means it has an impressive amount of range. Provided there’s not too much physical interference, it’s possible to pair two speakers together and put them in different areas of your house for uninterrupted listening.
Ease of use
Like most of Braven’s products, these speakers are pretty easy to use. I was able to pair one with my computer, iPhone, and iPad without needing to turn to the instruction booklet. Braven has clearly marked the BRV-Mini’s play button with the Bluetooth symbol—just press and hold to enter pairing mode.
Pairing two together did require me to read the booklet, but fortunately, it’s a two-step process that takes mere seconds to complete. It’s definitely one of the more painless pairing processes I’ve had to endure.
Overall
Again, I’ve had enough experience with Braven to not be surprised that these are great little speakers. While they’re not going to replace a thousand dollar home audio system, I think that they have their place. As I said earlier, these are great speakers for kids who might still be a bit rough on gear, as well as outdoor enthusiasts. If you’re looking to grab one —or two —you can get them from Zagg for $39.99 each.
