What was the last inserted IDENTITY value?

One of the nice things you get from using OLE DB is that you can readily access the last inserted IDENTITY value without resorting to the funny @@IDENTITY. You just insert the new row and read back the inserted value - it's that simple. If you use the .NET CF 2.0 ADO .NET provider for SQL CE 3.0 you can also use a similar technique. Read all about it here.

Installing CAB files from desktop .NET

Data Port Console is now on Draft 15 and I decided to move ahead and promote it to Beta. There are still lots of features that I will add in the future (both during Beta and after the product goes "gold"), but there was one on the top of my list that had to be done right away: installing the device server from within the application. This is actually quite necessary for Windows Mobile 5 devices (both Pocket PC and Smartphone) because the installer CAB not only deploys the required DLL but also enables RAPI connectivity.

The code I wrote for the installer is quite simple and I decided to write a short article on this. You can read it here.

Who put SQL CE 3.1 in my C:\Windows\System32?

I have this one to figure out. My brand new Vista Ultimate box has a mysterious version of SQL CE 3.1 installed in C:\Windows\System32 that is referred to by the registry as:

Microsoft.SQLLITE.MOBILE.OLEDB.3.0

Say what!?!? SQLLITE???

P.S.: Yes, it looks like it is causing trouble: IAlterIndex does not work in my PC even after reinstalling SQL Compact Edition 3.1...