Data Based Advisor articles from December 1993

Data Based Advisor archives from December 1993

Still waiting for the shakeout. (client/server tools market; Cognos introduces Axiant and Unify Corp. introduces Unify VISION database application development tools) (Brief Article ) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Pundits have been predicting a consolidation of the client/server tools marketfor some time. Whil e there has been some shrinkage, due to mergers and acquisitions, it appears that there are more new client/serv er development tools popping up...

The tortoise and the tortoise? (race to market between Borland's dBASE for Windows and Computer Associates' Visual Objects for Clipper packages) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... There's no obvious leader in the race to market between Borland's dBASE for Windows and Computer Associates' Visual Objects for Clipper. dBASE for Windows is ahead because it'sin beta at this writ ing, but reportedly about a month behind...

Oracle lights a fire. (excitement over Oracle Corp.'s improved finances and management changes) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... Quite a few developers returned from Oracle Corp.'s International Oracle UsersWeek, held in late S eptember, fired up about Oracle--the products and the company. Part of the excitement is due to the company's improved financial performance....

Codeless as far as the eye can see. (Harbor Software introduces codeless Harborview Visual Application Builder) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... In the "I'll-see-you-a-buzzword-and-raise-you-one" category is Harborview Visual Application Build er from Harbor Software of Manchester, Mass. (508-526-1376). This tool's claim to fame:it's the brainchild of InterBase architect Jim Starkey,...

You ASKed for it. (The Ask Group plans to strengthen its development tools in 1994) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... Mirroring Sybase's strategy, The Ask Group of Mountain View, Calf. (415-969-4442), which markets t he Ingres database server, plants to beef up its development tools in the next six months. Its OpenROA D product, which stands for Open Rapid...

Conferences reveal the future. (Editor on the Go) (Editorial)
December 1, 1993... I recently attended four very different conferences, on Oracle, FoxPro, Paradox, and dBASE. Each yielded news and insight. And each occurred in Orlando, Florida! (And the two other Orlando conferences I attended this year and I think I'm...

Feedback. (Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 1993... Not Fax-ual I appreciate the opportunity you provided my company to list our product called xDot in "Your Guide to Clipper Add-Ons" (Agust). Being noticed in your magazines is important to my company due to your impressive market...

Corrections. (Correction Notice)
December 1, 1993... An addendum to the product news in the October issue: Rick Spence points out that his company, Software Design Consultants, is the key European distributor of the CAClipper software products CLReport, CLWindow, CLText, and CLGroup from Building...

VBAssist provides true custom control. (Sheridan Software VBAssist 3.0 Visual Basic development software) (Software Review) (Test Drives) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... VBAssist 3.0, $179 Sheridan Software Systems Inc. 65 Maxess Road Melville, NY 11747 (516)753-3661 Visual Basic developers, take notice: VBAssist 3.0, from Sheridan Software, can save you hours of tedious development time. Unlike other...

HP OmniBook 300 - for computing on the road. (subnotebook computer) (Test Drives) (Hardware Review) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... OmniBook 300 with 42M hard disk, $1,850 Hewlett Packard Mobile Computing 1000 N.E. Circle Blvd. Corvallis, OR 97330 (503) 757-2004, fax (503) 750-5488 Ever since the Tandy 100 made mobile computing seem remotely possible, mobile...

New FoxFire! for Windows. (MicroMega Systems Inc. releases FoxFire! for Windows query and report writer for FoxPro for Windows) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... MicroMega Systems, Inc. released FoxFire! for Windows, a FoxPro for Windows query and report writer. Like it DOS sibling, FoxFire! for Windows can produce multi-table queries, summary, detail and cross-tab reports, labels, mail-merge,...

Messaging on a VIM. (Lotus Development Corp. ships Lotus VIM Developer's Toolkit 2.0; Vendor Independent Messaging interface) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Lotus Development Corp. shipped Lotus VIM Developer's Toolkit 2.0, for creating mail-enabled and message-based applications for multiple computing platforms and messaging services using the Vendor Independent Messaging (VIM) interface. (VIM is...

SuccessWare's Latest. (SuccessWare Inc. ships The Six Driver 1.5 replaceable database driver for CA-Clipper) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... SuccessWare shipped The SIx Driver 1.5, a replaceable database driver (RDD) for CA-Clipper. The latest version now supports conditional and compound indexes and index scoping, allowing instant dictionary support, user-defined database...

Contact manager for FoxPro. (Galaxy Systems & Resources Inc. releases Liaison contact management system) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Galaxy Systems & Resources, Inc., released Liaison, a contact management systgem written in FoxPro. Aimed at developers and consultants, it's network ready, and [unkeyable] with on-line help and a user manual. [unkeyable] also comes with...

Wall Data RUMBAs with Microsoft. (Wall Data Inc.'s RUMBA 5250 terminal emulation software for Windows and Windows NT access to IBM AS/400 applications) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Wall Data, Inc., RUMBA will provide an applet for Microsoft's SNA Server for Windows NT. The applet will allow Windows and WinNT users to access IBM AS/400 applications. Microsoft will bundle the RUMBA 5250 Applet with the SNA Server as a...

FilePro Plus makes UNIX PC-friendly. (The Small Computer Co. Inc.'s database application development software) (Test Drives) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... FilePro Plus, $699 and up The Small Computer Co., Inc. 41 Saw Mill River Road hawthorne, NY 10532 800-847-4740, (914)769-3160 Fax (914)769-2150 NEW FilePro Plus is a DOS character-based product targeted primarily at developers. It...

A C++ with a view. (Liant Software releases C++/Views 3.0 object-oriented application framework for building graphical user interfaces) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Liant Software released C++/Views 3.0, an object-oriented application framework for building graphical user interface (GUI) apps among Windows, OS/2 Presentation Manager, OSF/Motif, and Mac environments. C++/Views 3.0 has more than 100...

La Strada del La Dolce Vita. (The Road to the Good Life)
December 1, 1993... La Strada del La Dolce Vita by Craig Yellick, $40 Alto Microcomputer 7151 metro Blvd., Ste. 100 Minneapolis, MN 55439 (612) 942-8452 Dolce Vita for Windows, a utility for creating CA-Clipper applications for Windows, has recently drawn...

SQL for Model 204. (Computer Corporation of America ships Select* database access software for SQL connectivity to CCA's Model 204 database management system) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Computer Corporation of America (CCA) shipped Select* (read Select Star), which provides SQL connectivity to CCA's Model 204 database management system. Select* passes SQL requests through a Novell NetWare gateway and uses Novell NetWare for...

GUI client/server from Neuron Data. (Neuron Data Inc. releases Open Interface Elements and C/S Elements client/server graphical user interface development tools) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Neuron Data, Inc. released Open Interface Elements and C/S Elements, two client/server GUI development tools. Open Interface Elements is a message-based script language, and includes interface objects, called "power" widgets, which prfovide...

BroPlus - data access from the outside in. (SmartCode Programming's BroPlus database access software) (Test Drives) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... BroPlus, $129, with source code $199 SmartCode Programming 22323-6 Sherman Way, #185 West Hills, CA 91303 (818) 710-9323, fax (818) 710-9391 As a Clipper developer, at one time or another you've probably had to look at or manipulate tables...

How to standardize your GUI. (CompuFlex International releases Corporate Graphic Standard Design Kit for creating corporate graphic standards for client/server applications) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... CompuFlex released the Corporate Graphic Standard Design Kit, a kit for creating a corporate graphic standard for client/server applications. It includes The Corporate Graphic Standard Handbook, which is a comprehensive review of Microsoft...

One from Trio. (Trio Systems ships C-Index/II database function library) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... Trio Systems shipped C-Index/II, a database function library for reducing support problems caused by damaged databases. C-Index/II prevent applications from untimely rebooting, power outages, and motherboard fires. A new PowerFaul Protection...

POS from MicroBiz. (MicroBiz Corp. ships The Business Controller 3.3 series point-of-sale software) (Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
December 1, 1993... MicroBiz Corp. has shipped The Business Controller series version 3.3, point-of-sale software that can be used for inventory and customer tracking, purchasing and receiving, vendor tacking, sales reporting and invoice or receipt printing. New...

And the winner is.... (1993 Readers Choice Awards)
December 1, 1993... Each year we ask you, our readers, the question, "What product is the best...?" It's a simple question without simple answers. Part of the challenge is that you each work differently, and so do your favorite products. Another factor is that...

New and improved. (Computer Associates International Inc.'s CA-Clipper/ExoSpace rates Best New Product) (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... Surprise! Yet another Clipper utility, CA-Clipper/ExoSpace, gets top honor for Best New Product. CA-Clipper/ExoSpace lets you run your apps above DOS' 640K barrier. As for Best New Database Manager, it's no surprise top honor went to...

DOS environment. (Microsoft FoxPro 2.5 rates best database manager) (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... DOS is still the environment of choice for many serious developers. Like last year, FoxPro took top honors in the Best Database Manager caregory, with honorable mention going to CA-Clipper. For two years running, CA-Clipper has won Best...

Xbase environment. (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... Once again, CA-Clipper is the Best Application Development Product, and Microsoft FoxPro wins the Best Interface. Softcode from Bottleworks Development Corp. is a new winner in the FoxPro and dBASE Add-on categories. Class(y) from ObjectTech,...

Macintosh environment. (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... The Macintosh's ease of use, pure graphical interface, and built-in networking make it the development environment of choice for some developers. This year's choice for Best Database Manager for Macintosh is FoxBASE+ for the Macintosh....

Client/server. (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... This category includes front-end tools, back-end databases, and network software. Our readers chose PowerBuilder as the best front-end development product. SQLWindows and Visual Basic each deserve an honorable mention. On the back-end side...

Third-party tools and utilities. (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... If your development product of choice doesn't include a component or is missing functionality, what's developer to do? Turn to the third-party for help! If there's a need to be filled, and money to be made, you can be assured that some...

Best of breed. (1993 Readers Choice Awards) (Brief Article)
December 1, 1993... These products are the best of the rest. They don't fit neatly into any of the other categories but you use them daily to develop sophisticated business solutions for your clients. Listed here as winners and honorable mentions are products you...

Bar code directory. (Buyers Guide)
December 1, 1993... AddressMate Software 6715 Canyon Trail El Cerrito, CA 94530-1705 (510) 237-7460, fax (510) 237-7437 AddressMat for Windows Price: $99.95 Features WYSIWYG labe/envelope layout mode, and Paradox-compatible database. Supports POSTNET...

Facts on fax (and a few opinions). (DB Connections)
December 1, 1993... More clients now require that their database applications allow them to send faxes easily. Consequently, more consultants are turning to their colleagues in the Database Advisor Forum for hints on how to add fax-functionality to their systems....

dBASE IV Compiler version 2.0 - a second look. (Borland International's compiler) (Software Review) (includes related article on geography of a bar code) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... Those of you who read my article six months ago on Borland's dBASE Compiler version 1.0 will recall that I was disappointed with the product I received. My "observations" fell into two categories. The first concerned the history of the dBASE...

Reading between the lines: bar code basics. (includes related article) (Database Developer) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... I've got a confession to make. The first time I saw a bar code--about 20 years ago, on a carton of milk at the supermarket--I was intimidated. What did this picket-fence array of bars and spaces mean? What was it trying to hide from me? I...

Bar code scanners - your application's "eyes." (Database Developer) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... Scanners are the "eyes" of a bar code system. Simply explained, scanners read the information encrypted in a bar code symbol and pass the image to a decoder. A wide variety of scanners are available for any data collection need, so you need...

Committee focuses on core standard. (X3J19 September 1993 meeting) (includes related article on government interest in XBase standard) (XBase standard update)
December 1, 1993... At the fifth meeting of X3J19 in September, the committee faltered over the same issues of scope and direction that confounded the fourth meeting in June, but definite progress was made toward defining the scope of the standard, and more...

SQL tools speed development. (Bradmark Technologies' SQLWatch, STRO-WARE's SQL Director, Datura Corp.'s Desktop DBA and SQL Spy and Intelligent Environments' SQL/Workbench) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... SQLWatch, $795 (single-user) to $1,995 (up to five servers) Bradmark Technologies 4265 San Felipe Houston, TX 77027 (713) 621-2808; 800-ASK-BRAD SQL Director, $1,995 STRO-WARE 12000 Pico Blvd., Ste.203 Los Angeles, CA 90064 (310) 575-1932;...

Inside Sybase SQL Server. (database application development software) (includes related article)
December 1, 1993... Sybase SQL Server was an early poineer of the concept of client/server. There are several variations and definitions of client/server, but the traditional model splits applications into two divisions. The client, also known as the "front-end"...

ODBC does distributed joins between databases. (Microsoft's Visual Basic 3.0 includes ability to access databases supporting the Open Database Connectivity interface) (Client/Server Advisor) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... For database developers, the most noteworthy new features of Microsoft's Visual Basic 3.0 are its high-level tools for accessing databases. The new Data control allows developers to peruse a database table without writing a single line of...

Superbase does client/server. (Software Publishing Corp.'s Superbase for Windows database application development software) (Client/Server Developer) (Client/Server Advisor)(Column) (Evaluation)
December 1, 1993... As a contributing editor for Data Based Advisor, I'm periodically called to presentations by various software vendors. The purpose of these presentations is to get an in-depth look at some of the latest software products or releases. The...

The event-message-action paradigm. (Client/Server Advisor: Inside SQLWindows) (SQLWindows Application Language) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... The SQLWindows Application Language, or SAL, is similar to other procedural languages. It has data types, constants, variables, operators, and statement for calling functions, looping, branching, and so on. Where it differs from traditional...

Master PowerBuilder's OO features. (database application development software; object-oriented programming) (Client/Server Advisor: PowerBuilder Pro) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... Object orientation is one of the most powerful features of Power Builder. By taking advantage of these capabilities, application development is simple and faster, and program maintenance is more bearable. Although there a few limitations to...

Arkwright Insurance overhauls application development. (Client/Server Advisor: Case Study) (Arkwright Mutual Insurance Company implements Sapiens international Corp. N.V.'s SAPIENS Vision system)
December 1, 1993... Sapiens USA, Inc. 4001 Weston Pkwy. Cary, NC 278513 (919) 677-8711 Fax (919) 677-8537 SAPIENS Vision, Prof. version for Windows, $3,500; Prof. version for Windows NT, $5,000; Windows basic to workstation development license $2,000 to 8,000. ...

Need help designing help desk systems? (interview with SHL Systemhouse's Edward E. Reynolds, Jr.) (Client/Server Advisor: On-Line) (Interview)
December 1, 1993... Edward (Ed) E. Reynolds, Jr. is a Senior Technical Architect with SHL Systemhouse (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), a systems integration and outsourcing organization. He's one of SHL's elite Technology Network "TechNet" gurus, a group of about a...

Installing Lotus Notes. (Lotus Development Corp.'s workgroup software under OS/2 2.1 on Novell networks) (Client/Server Advisor: Systems Integration Tips) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... Lotus Professional Developers Program Lotus Development Corporation One Rodgers Street - 6N Cambridge, MA, 02142 800-338-7357 (617) 693-4448 Microsoft Corp. One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052-6399 800-227-4679 (206) 936-8661 Note is...

Database confidential. (humor) (Column)
December 1, 1993... Beam me up, Scotty! While Buzzy played with Compaq's prototype "mobile companion" (which he calls the BDA, or Buzz Digital Assistant) he received an unusual galactic communication anomaly. An alien intelligence beamed an infrared message...

Calendar of events.
December 1, 1993... LOTUSPHERE '93--A new conference geared toward commercial and corporate software developers, Lotus Business Partners, and Lotus Notes users. Technical sessions will be offered on Lotus product plans, developer tools, and systems acrchitecture....

From Clipper's bag of tricks. (Computer Associates' CA-Clipper) (Hardcore Clipper) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... This month's columb features a mixed bag of little known or underused CA-Clipper features. First, I'll show you how to compile with warnings and how to use a little-used compiler switch, /ES. Then we'll look at another lit[le-used...

Should you use custom controls or the Windows API? (application programming interface) (Microsoft Visual Basic application development software) (includes related article) (Visual Basic Expert) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... Want to learn a cool trick? It's a great way to deal with lots and lots of custom controls that you've added to your tool palette. Click your mouse on the top of the tool palette, and move it down to the bottom of your screen, so just the top...

Network programming basics. (CA-Clipper database application development software) (Clipper Basics) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... As you begin to get comfortable with the CA-Clipper language, the transition to network applications is a logical progression. In this article, I discuss the basics of multi-user programming using the various built-in features in Clipper. ...

Error handling in ObjectPAL applications. (how Borland Paradox database application development software handles errors) (Paradox Basics) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... Error handling is an important part of any professional programd. In this month's column, I'll examine the basics of how Paradox handles errors. Next month I'll look at strategies for providing custom error handling in ObjectPAL applications....

An Access basic grab bag. (Microsoft Access database application development software) (includes related article) (Access Developer) (Column) (Tutorial)
December 1, 1993... With vendors falling over themselves to provide every conceivable feature in their Windows databases, it's a wonder you have to do any work at all. But even the latest and greatest programs sometimes leave out a few items. Here are three...