Downloading the Student Free-Trial Version of Serf®
Serf is an advanced ASP.NET Web creation environment invented by the author for the purpose of creating database-driven portals and instructional management systems on the World Wide Web. There are two ways to use Serf. First, you can run it in a turnkey mode as a self-contained package that automatically creates the screens for you. Most installations run Serf in this turnkey mode. Second, authors who have Visual Studio can add the Serf controls to the Visual Studio toolbox, from which you can drag them onto your design surface to create highly customized applications that are powered by the Serf database.

The free-trial student demonstration version is a fully functioning copy of the retail product with one important limitation: it will only serve users who log on from the server on which it is installed. If someone tries to log on from a different IP address, Serf will inform them politely that this is a free-trial student demonstration version that must be licensed in order to serve other users. Licensing is explained at the retail Serf Web site.

To download and install the student free-trial version of Serf, follow these steps:


Adding Serf Controls to the Toolbox
After you install Serf, it will come up as a turnkey system that will automatically begin generating the screens for you. When you log on to Serf as an administrator, for example, all of the administrative screens will be available to you, including the ability to register end users. In addition to having Serf generate these kinds of screens in turnkey mode, advanced authors can take Serf apart, so to speak, by separating it into components that you can add to the Visual Studio toolbox. To add the Serf controls to the toolbox, follow these steps:
  • Use Visual Studio to open the project of your choice.
  • Right-click any item inside the toolbox.
  • When the quick menu pops out, choose Add Tab.
  • At the bottom of the toolbox, your cursor will be flashing inside the newly added tab.
  • Type the name you want the new tab to have. In this example, type Serf, then press Enter.
  • The newly added tab appears at the bottom of the toolbox.
  • Right-click anywhere inside the Serf tab to pop out the quick menu, and choose Customize Toolbox to bring up the Customize Toolbox dialog.
  • Click the .NET Framework Components tab to reveal the registered server controls.
  • Click the Browse button, and navigate to the folder that contains the dynamic link library named Serf.dll. Depending on the configuration of your hard drives, the path to this library is probably c:\inetpub\wwwroot\serf\bin.
  • Click the file named Serf.dll to select it, then click the Open button.
  • Click Namespace to sort the controls by namespace, then scroll down to find the Serf controls listed under the Serf namespace, as illustrated below.
  • Click to check the Serf controls you want (probably all of them), and then click OK to close the Customize Toolbox dialog.
  • The Serf controls will appear on the Serf tab of the toolbox.
  • Now you can create highly customized pages powered by the Serf environment.



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