function trim( sInString )
{
  sInString = sInString.replace( /^\s+/g, "" ); // strip leading
  return sInString.replace( /\s+$/g, "" );      // strip trailing
}

function leftPad( val, size, pad )
{
  var result = new String(val);
  if( pad == null )
    pad = " ";
  while( result.length < size )
    result = pad + result;

  return result;
}