Data Based Advisor articles from April 1990

Data Based Advisor archives from April 1990

Diehard. (comments on dBASE, strategic languages and Grumpfish's Fun Library) (Editor's File) (editorial)
April 1, 1990... Diehard Do you really believe the dBASE language will still be around two or three years from now (snicker, snicker)?" That's the question I've heard from database product managers all over this country, including those at Microsoft, IBM,...

On the clock with TimeScribe. (WordTech Systems Inc.'s time documentation system) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... On the Clock with TimeScribe You're in the middle of a project when the phone rings. It's a client with a problem. You talk him through it and hang-up. Now, how much do you charge him? Did you forget to look at the clock? Do you guess at...

DataEase International, Inc. (announces DataEase 4.2 and XDOS for Unix) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... DataEAse International, Inc. DataEase International, Inc. announced DataEase 4.2, a version that integrates DOS extender technology. This releases addresses up to 16M of RAM (don't worry, it'll still run in 640K). It uses Rational Systems,...

Forbes and Rouse. (announcement of dbVIEW 1.5) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Forbes and Rouse Forbes and Rouse announced dbVIEW version 1.5. The package contains an add-in card and software that the company claims allows users to query DBF files 100 times faster, index their record structures with all the keys active...

Memories. (Integrated Development Corp.'s SmartMem allocation software) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... Memories If you use Clipper Summer '87, you know it imposes a rather heavy memory penalty. Your applications grow quickly as you add features to them. SmartMem, from Integrated Development Corp., provides a couple of alternatives to...

Good form. (Orbit Enterprises' Formset forms development software) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... Good Form Forms management is a fad I like. Why not save time and trouble by mixing data with paperwork? Problem is, most forms managers seem geared toward users and offer little help to dBASE developers. Likewise, dBASE and its...

Check Point for R:BASE. (The Collins Group's Check Point utility program) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... Check Point for R:BASE In the dBASE world, damaged databases are usually caused by trashed headers and premature end-of-file markers. Utilities like Comtech Publishing's dSALVAGE Professional excel at fixing this kind of damage. The most...

Netlogic. (announces DOS DDEX toolkit) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Netlogic Netlogic announced DOS DDEX, a toolkit that lets DOS developers modify programs to exchange data with Microsoft Windows applications on a network. It does this in real time using the Windows' Dynamic Data Exchange protocol. It tricks...

Aspetuck Group Inc. (announces new data transfer utilities agiXport and agiMport) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Aspetuck group, Inc. Aspetuck Group, Inc. announced agiXportand agiMport, data transfer utilities. agiXport lets you export data from dBASE files into fixed-field or delimited ASCII files. It then writes the ASCII file to the output device....

Software Science. (TOPAZ 2.8) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Software Science Software Science released TOPAZ version 2.8. TOPAZ lets you write applications in Pascal that work with standard dBASE files and syntax. Version 2.8 lets you include self-centering dialog boxes in your applications. You can...

Database Software Consultants. (dCL-Net Library 3.0) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Database Software Consultants Database Software Consultants announced version 3.0 of their dCL-Net Library. The dCL-Net Library is written in Clipper. It has an education component that provides the generic network and Clipper-specific...

Borland International, Inc. (Paradox 3.0 for academic use) (Data Bytes) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Borland International, Inc. Borland International, Inc. announced a new academic edition of Paradox. If offers the full power of Paradox 3.0 for the educational community for $69.95. Contact Borland International, Inc., 1800 Green Hills Rd.,...

SQL goes to the beach. (Structured Query Language) (SQL Server Missionary Conference, Jan 1990)
April 1, 1990... SQL Goes to the Beach Okay, the conference starts at 2 p.m., conveniently allowing you to at least put in an appearance at the office before your flight. Now it's 8 p.m. the same day, and the keynote speaker is about to begin a session...

C factory. (Vestronix Corp.'s Pro-C) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... C Factory Pro-C is environment for generating applications. It combines the ease of use and development speed of a fourth-generation (4GL) database system with the execution speed of compiled C programs. Pro-C provides an integrated...

The well-dressed disk. (packaging of software products) (The VAR Report)
April 1, 1990... The Well-Dressed Disk I assume you try to make the right physical impression when visiting clients. You know, teeth brushed, hair combed (or not, as style dictates), appropriate clothing. But what about your software? Do you deliver...

Programming power reports. (report writing with Microrim's Extended Report Writer) (Software Review) (R:BASE Lab) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... Programming Power Reports R:BASE's Reports Express has always been a leader among report writers. But there are some things you just can't do in R:BASE's reports module. For example, there's no way to specify that sections of the report...

Structure matching, part 2. (matching and linking tables with Paradox) (The Paradox Programmer) (technical)
April 1, 1990... Structure Matching, Part 2 What happens when you have two Paradox tables, A and B, with similar structures and you try to copy reports, forms, and other family objects from one to the other? Paradox stops you could with an error message...

Subqueries, part 4. (Hands-on SQL) (technical)
April 1, 1990... Subqueries, Part 4 This month ends our four-part discussion on SQL subqueries. Subqueries are rather complex compared to other SQL operations. I strongly recommend you read the January through March articles before jumping into this...

Applications generator, part 1. (using dBASE IV's Control Center) (dBASE IV Primer)
April 1, 1990... Applications Generator, Part 1 This month we'll put everything we've created over the last 15 months inside a single shell. Once we're finished, we can add new customers to our database and maintain information on existing ones. We can...

Prep work, part 2. (writing interrupt callers and using compiler macros) (Hardcore Clipper) (technical)
April 1, 1990... Prep Work, Part 2 I'd hoped to be writing about a released version of 5.0 by now (early February). Alas, it's still in beta testing. Instead, let's continue our discussion of 5.0's preprocessor that we started in the March issue. I...

Special events, part 1. (developing event driven programs) (The Fox Files) (technical)
April 1, 1990... Special Events, Part 1 FoxPro has added many few features to the dBASE language, including useful memo fields, a fantastic BROWSE implementation, windows, and much more. But perhaps the most important change engendered by FoxPro isn't a...

Front-end friendly. (developing interfaces for database servers) (includes related article on server vernacular) (DB Connections) (technical)
April 1, 1990... FRONT-END FRIENDLY Lately there's been a lot of talk and press coverage about client-server computing. Database servers are now the prime example of "distributed processing." In a marketing frenzy not seen since artificial intelligence...

Pete Tierney discusses Oracle's simple strategy. (Oracle Corp.s' senior vp) (interview)
April 1, 1990... Pete Tierney Discusses Oracle's Simple Strategy Data Based Advisor focuses on desktop application development. Oracle's presented itself to that audience as being a significant alternative to the products they've been using. What does Oracle...

Conquest: inside Oracle Corp. (company profile)
April 1, 1990... Conquest: Inside Oracle Corp. You've seen the advertisements. Oracle's strengths compared to 's weaknesses (fill in the blank with the name of your favorite database management system). The most memorable ad might be an Oracle jet...

Gupta on.... (Gupta Technologies' president and CEO Umang Gupta) (interview)
April 1, 1990... Gupta On... The Gupta SQLBase Server comes from a company dwarfed by Microsoft, Ashton-Tate, and Oracle, but don't let that fool you. Gupta Technologies supplies accessible software on the popular PC platforms--DOS, OS/2, and...

Applied Force. (Sophco Inc's Force compiler) (includes related article on benchmark tests for dBASE language implementations.) (Software Review) (evaluation)
April 1, 1990... Applied Force dBASE programmers have been calling for a real compiler ever since dBASE II became available. Depending on your programming style and preferences, your wait may be over--or you may decide you don't want a real compiler after...

Artful.Lib. (program library) (Clipper Developer)
April 1, 1990... Artful Applications, Inc. Like other general libraries, Artful. Lib provides 300 or so functions to support arrays, date and time, database management, memo fields, printers, and strings. In addition to the standard categories. Artful....

Comet. (CompuSolve's background communications utility) (Clipper Developer)
April 1, 1990... COMET CompuSolve COMET is a background communications utility for Clipper, FoxBASE+, and dBASE programmers. COMET lets you run programs while you download or upload information through a COM port. With COMET, your programhs functions can...

dGE. (Pinnacle Publishing's graphics software) (Clipper Developer)
April 1, 1990... dGE Pinnacle Publishing dge is a feature-rich graphics package, written in C and assembler, for dBASE dialects. dGE offers state-of-the-art graphing and drawing capabilities with complete graphic support. The dGE manual is well...

Incremental searching. (dBASE data searching) (dBASE Language Programming) (technical)
April 1, 1990... INCREMENTAL SEARCHING Data searches are pretty standard. Typically, your users enter the search data into data entry routines. The program then SEEKs the data in the active index and shows it on screen or displays some error message...

It's about time, it's about pace. (Fox Software's FoxPro) (Dataline) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... It's about Time, It's about Pace PERRYSBURG, OH -- Well, it's a little late, but Fox Software released its much-awaited multiuser version of FoxPro in late February (originally scheduled for release a month after the appearance of FoxPro single...

The little train that could. (Ashton-Tate reports loss and other news) (Dataline)
April 1, 1990... The Little Train that Could TORRANCE, CA -- On the other side of the country, the news isn't quite as dramatic, but it is just as compelling. For the third quarter in a row Ashton-Tate reported a net loss, this time $28.6 million for its...

Nifty products of the month dept: San Diego, CA. (Xpert Software's Complete dBASE Program Library) (Dataline) (product announcement)
April 1, 1990... Nifty Products of the Month Dept. SAN DIEGO, CA -- Okay, it's true. Home boys and girls have the advantage when it comes to Dataline (keep that local economy fed...). That's why we're pleased to tell you about Xpert Software's Complete dBASE...

Going big time. (Microrim, Inc.'s new CEO Jack Noonan) (Dataline)
April 1, 1990... Going Big Time REDMOND, WA -- Microrim, Inc., makers of the R:BASE line of database management systems, took on a new president and CEO. Jack Noonan, "a career software executive with extensive experience in product and support," comes from a...

Freudian slip? (ACCFIN Software's ALINK) (Dataline)
April 1, 1990... Freudian Slip? OREM, UT -- Ads for ACCFIN Software's ALINK, a dynamic overlay manager for Clipper, offer the following tidbit in very tiny print: "Clipper is a Trademark of Nontucket Corp." (our emphasis). Want to know more about their...

Keeping up appearances. (Jan 1990 conference Software Development '90) (Dataline)
April 1, 1990... Keeping up Appearances OAKLAND, CA -- Dataline stopped off to visit Miller Freeman's respected conference, Software Development '90, which took place in February. The gathering offered dozens of technical sessions. Among the most popular...

A house divided. (developments in the dBASE language) (Notes from the Underground) (column)
April 1, 1990... Issues surrounding the dBASE language are probably the most emotional in computing today, and the situation won't get better in the near future. By authoring this column, I find myself in the thick of controversies that are difficult to...