Having used the PureCM Visual Studio Client for a couple of years I got a real shock when I had to do some work in Xcode. Creating a read-only workspace and checking out the files manually sounded like way too much overhead. So I created a writable workspace and ran check consistency when I needed to submit. This worked ok, but I really missed the way the PureCM Visual Studio client tracks which files I am editing. So when I got my hands on our 2011/2 beta the first thing I wanted to try was the workspace monitor. If you flag a workspace as monitored, then PureCM will keep track of when fil... [More]

One change which you will probably not notice after installing 2010/2 is that submitted changesets are automatically merged to features in the background. If you work in a larger team with many developers using features then you will soon see the massive performance improvements. Prior to 2010/2 when you submit a changeset, this changeset is automatically merged to all features as part of the submit. This means that you are waiting around for this to finish until you can carry on working. Plus the server is locked so other users cannot submit until all the automatic merges are complete. This ... [More]

With the 2010/1d release, Windows users will now have a choice between using SQLite or SQL Server for the PureCM server. We are currently beta testing the MySQL database for Linux and Mac users so this should become available in the next six months. This blog will help you decide whether to stick with SQLite or switch over to SQL Server. I will also look at the differences between running the server on Windows, Linux or Mac using SQLite. If you are using the native database (pre 2010/1 release) then we recommend you upgrade to SQLite or SQL Server as soon as possible. Both of these databases ... [More]

Tim has already described how to schedule tasks and features in Part 3 of the series. This blog will build on this to show how you can reschedule a task or feature. This is one of the major benefits to using features – you can choose which version the feature will be completed in.  For example you might start a feature in Version 1 thinking it will only take a week. The developer working on the feature will submit changes to the feature. If you realize it will take longer than expected you can move the feature to Version 2. Because the developer only submitted changes to the featur... [More]

In the last blog Tim described how a developer works with tasks to complete small units of work. I will follow on from this to discuss how a developer works with larger pieces of work. My Features We have already introduced the concept of a feature and described when a manager should create a feature as opposed to a task. So lets assume a manager has already assigned a feature to you. After a feature has been assigned to you it will appear in the ‘Workspaces’ view under ‘My Features’. From here you can: Open a workspace for the feature. This will allow you sele... [More]

This blog is an introduction to creating projects, versions and releases using PureCM 2010. Creating a Project   The first thing you need to do is create a PureCM project. A project is a self-contained set of files. You can share files between projects using components, but this is too big a topic to discuss here. Launch the PureCM GUI and go to the Projects View. Right-click the ‘Projects’ tree item and select ‘New Project’. Here you can specify a name and description for your project Creating Versions   A project will contain one or more versions. How... [More]

The 2010/1 release of PureCM was packed full with so many new features that it is easy to overlook some of the more important ones. So I wanted to focus on one of the new features I am really excited about – features. Working with Features   To create a feature in PureCM open the Projects view, right-click a version and select ‘New Feature’.  From here you will specify the name of the feature and a description. You can see a video of this on the PureCM website. To start working on the feature go to the My Workspaces view and select ‘Add Workspace... [More]

Any code you write should be submitted within 24 hours. If you have made changes to code on any of your projects which has not been submitted in the last day then you need to read this. Back to Basics   Let’s recap on why it is importance to check code in frequently: ·        Your changes are safe – so they won’t be lost if your laptop breaks. ·        Other people can take over your work – if you have to go on emergency leave. ·       ... [More]