Blog
Paul Seal's personal blog
Blog posts
This post gives you the code and simple instructions on how to create your own custom integration for slack, written in .NET C#
dev·dotnet Why you should not write comments in your code.Over the years, I have heard both sides of the argument about whether you should or shouldn't write comments in your code. In this post, I make my argument as to why I think you should avoid writing comments in your code.
tools How to find the hidden dinosaur game in Google ChromeThis post shows you how to find the hidden dinosaur game in Google Chrome, without having to turn off or disconnect your internet.
tools 10 FREE, highly useful, tools for web developersOver the years I have found many useful free tools to help me in my job as a Web Developer. In this post, I share 10 of my favourite free tools with you so you can get the benefit of them too.
dotnet How to use bundling to minify css and JavaScript in MVC and UmbracoThis post shows you how to set up and use bundling and minification in your MVC website. There are specific instructions on how set it up for Umbraco websites too.
dotnet How do you use the try catch finally blocks?I must admit, in the past when I just want some code to run, but it's not critical if it fails, I have written a try catch block which looks like this.
dotnet Please tell me you don't write if true equals trueIt drives me crazy when I see code where someone is checking a boolean to see if it is true or not and they write it like this.
dotnet MVC Custom Model Property Validation AttributesThis post shows you how to create your own custom validation attributes in MVC. You can then decorate your model properties with them on your forms.
tools Free productivity tool - WorkflowyIf, like me, you like to write lists to help you focus on what’s required to complete a certain job, and sometimes break the bullet points into mini lists themselves, then this online tool should help you. Workflowy allows you to do just that, it’s free, really easy to use, and it is available on web, iOS and Android.
tools Test your programming skills with Project EulerIf you enjoy writing code and solving puzzles, you will love Project Euler. It is filled with mathematical puzzles which require you to write some code to get the answer. You could use the problems as a chance to write out the solution in a different programming language.
dotnet SHA 256 and SHA 512 hash examplesThis post contains examples of how to generate a SHA 256 and SHA 512 hash key with the examples in C# and VB.NET This solution matches the expected result for Ingenico's implementation for their payment gateway.
tools·dotnet LINQPadI recently came across this fantastic resource. It is called LINQPad. You can use it to test any C#, F# or VB snippet or program. You can even use it to query databases in LINQ or SQL. It's ideal if you find some code on the internet that you want to quickly test, or if you want to play with the new features in C# 6 without having to set up a windows console/forms app or website.