Tripping in .Net

It has been a few years now but I have another opportunity to play on a .Net project. Being so used to the Java way this is going to take a little getting used to. My colleges keep snickering at me. It has something to do with the audible sound I make when frustration sets in. "Oh but this is so easy with ant, what evil is this msbuild trying to foist on us", "This would be so much easier in Eclipse".

It's the little things. I want to copy a file and replace a string within it. A simple template replacement process or in java terms, ant copy filter. NAnt doesn't support it either so I feel the need to learn msbuild.

So I have a fred.msbuild file but you open it in VS and it gives you schema errors on all the property tags because msbuild uses the tag name as the property name. So where is the MSBuild editor? MS makes everything a dialog and thats too hard for build scripts. I just need an editor.

The script can now "Copy" a template file, then "FileUpdate" is to do string replaces in it. Oh I have a lot to learn.

I fully expect to be assimilated in another few weeks and will start extolling the beauty of this new world. Until then, it is painful while the new gadgets are being surgically implanted into my brain.

I am looking forward to the new C# language features.