Get Logged In Users values from sql table

[Steve Workings]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

I use an intermediary page between the Login and the Main menu in nearly every application. Most apps have a handful of such session variables. My biggest app has about 40 to start and may establish and hold additional items as the user progresses.

Lee's right that sessions do expire and that can cause a problem.

For those apps that require the equivalent of no session expiration, the main menu page (for simplicity's sake here) has some javascript on a timer that fires every 5 minutes. That javascript requests a 1 byte, 1px x 1px image from the server, effectively renewing the session every 5 minutes as long as the browser is open. Works very nicely, doesn't create a load problem.

However, with the advent and growth of mobile/disconnected applications, more and more we're storing them not as session variables but as elements in the e object or for the lesser-used variables in localstorage (because it's slower).

Richard - sorry to see you're having some problems. Here's a very simple sample snippet that may help:

. . .
sql = "select ID, Firstname, Lastname from USERS where somefilterhere"
cn.execute(sql, args)
rs = cn.resultset
session.Firstname = rs.data("Firstname")
session.Lastname = rs.data("Lastname")
. . .

[Davidk]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

State variables are an excellent alternative to session variables. They are easily and readily accessible from both client and server side.

[lvasic]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

I started using state variables and they seem to be working fine until one of my staff got a new computer. Then it seemed like a timing issues. As if the computer was too fast. If she used any other computer it worked, if she used her new one it said the variable wasn't there. I traced it with the debugger and there seems to be a moment when the state variable isn't accessible. I haven't had time to go back and really figure it out. I created a work-around for now...

[Davidk]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

I use State variables and namespace variables almost exclusively now and haven't seen an issue. It'd be interesting to understand why your app is having trouble.

[lvasic]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

When I get a chance... I can't get it it to fail in the IDE or debugger. It only fails on the new computer... I'm having other timing issues as well. Production is IIS with last Official Alpha release. My reports are called with arguments. Sometimes when my users press the preview button the first time they will get an error that there are no parameters. When they press the button the second time the preview works. That happens on all computers. I'm not sure if it is the update or going to IIS that caused this, but that is when it started. I didn't change any code in that area.

[Steve Workings]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

Lee - you might, as a matter of general practice, put a small delay on those function calls that are depending on a previous one. Adding a setTimeout() for just 50 ms doesn't make any difference to the user but can make all the difference to a dependency.

[lvasic]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

Thanks Steve. I was thinking about doing something like that. I just don't why it has been working for years without issue and after I moved to IIS it started doing it. I'm still learning the nuances of IIS.

[Steve Workings]

Re: Get Logged In Users values from sql table

I think the issues you're describing aren't server-side, but client-side which is why my suggestion focused on the javascript. Someone's got a new computer and it processing the javascript faster than your other users. Voila, trouble.

I seem to recall (do *not* bet on this) that a while ago Alpha announced they were wrapping all or nearly all javascript functions with a short timeout -- maybe just 10 ms. And this makes a lot of sense, even if my recollection is wrong.