Data Based Advisor articles from July 1992

Data Based Advisor archives from July 1992

Dataline.
July 1, 1992... MENLO PARK, CA -- Gupta Technologies and Novell have entered into an agreementwhereby the latter, which owns 19 percent of Gupta, will distribute Gupta's NLM-based products. Considering that Novell's sales channels include 12 to 14 major...

Who are we...?
July 1, 1992... Whenever I go to a Conference or Expo, strangers to the magazine ask "What's Data Based Advisor?" It's a simple enough question that deserves a good answer. However, a good answer depends on a number of factors, most importantly on you,...

Nothing stays the same.... (Editor on the Go) (Editorial)
July 1, 1992... This issue of Data Based Advisor is different. Actually, the same, only different. We've made a few changes--large and small--as a result of many months of research and analysis into your needs. If you've been part of our focus groups, or...

Feedback. (Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 1992... Yes, I can! In "SQL Solutions" (November 1991), Melissa Dunn mentioned two drawbacks of the RQBE: unavailability of the Expression builder, and inability to do subsqueries. While the expression builder isn't available when doing a...

Pack. (dBFast 1.7c: Bugs & Fixes)
July 1, 1992... PACK In dBFast, PACK takes the format of PACK [IN AREA], where [IN AREA] is an optional parameter indicating a work area other than the selected area. When I issue a PACK command in dBFast--with or without the optional argument--I get...

Header(). (Clipper 5.01: Bugs & Fixes)
July 1, 1992... HEADER() Header() seems to be a popular UDF name, however, Clipper 5.01 introduced its HEADER() function. If you redefine this function by using another UDF of the same name, you'll get an "Undefined Symbols" message if RECSIZE() or...

CDX. (FoxPro 2.0; Bugs & Fixes)
July 1, 1992... CDX There are situations where COPY TO WITH CDX results in a corrupted CDX file. It only seems to occur when DELETED is set ON and there are deleted records in the database. Consider the following code fragment: SET DELETED ON USE...

A smiling Grumpfish. (Grumpfish Inc.'s Grumpfish Library) (includes related brief interview article with Grumpfish Inc.'s Greg Lief) (Software Review) (Test Drives) (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... The Grumpfish library should be called the "Every Function You've Always Wanted to Write, But Couldn't Justify The Time To Write It" library. If you want your applications to really "wow" your users, this library is definitely worth a look....

VI gives Clipper apps the Windows look. (Pinnacle Publishing Inc.'s Visual Interface Clipper class library) (Software Review) (Test Drives) (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... Visual Interface (VI) is a Clipper class library aimed at programmers who want to give their applications a Windows-like front end. It won't help you to write code to run under Windows, but it'll give your DOS programs that distinctive Windows...

Why I think CA bought Clipper. (Computer Associates International Inc.'s acquisition of Nantucket Corp.) (Opinions)
July 1, 1992... Was it object-orientation (OO) that attracted Computer Associates to Nantucket Corp.? I think so. If you couple Clipper's use of OO with a healthy base of installed PC applications, you have a very attractive package. A large financial...

Who will buy WordTech? (Opinions)
July 1, 1992... Since this latest round of acquisitions--Microsoft's purchase of Fox Software and Computer Associates' buyout of Nantucket Corp.--one question I've been pondering is who will buy WordTech? After all, they possess a viable Xbase language...

Oracle adds new "Card" to the deck. (Oracle Corp.'s Oracle Card 1.1 for Windows) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... Oracle shipped Oracle Card version 1.1 for Windows, its graphical application development tool. It now supports DB2, dynamic data exchange (DDE), and international character support (ICS). The programmer's extensions, previously sold...

zApp that DOS app. (Inmark Development Corp.'s zApp for DOS program development software) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... Inmark Development Corp. released zApp, an application framework for DOS. It gives DOS applications the look and feel of Windows apps, including Windows-style pull-down menus, dialogs, scroll bars, and controls. It's compatible with the zApp...

Impromptu takes snapshots. (Cognos Inc.'s Impromptu 1.1 SQL query tool for Windows; structured query language) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... Cognos, Inc. announced Impromptu 1.1, an SQL query tool for Windows. Version 1.1, which should be available when you read this, has a utility for saving and querying data pulled from the corporate database as "local snapshots" on the user's...

SPSS presents the numbers. (SPSS for Windows) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... SPSS, Inc. announced SPSS for Windows. The Base system offers many statistical capabilities such as summary, means comparison, ANOVA models, bivariate, nonparametric and partial correlation, linear regression, nonparametric tests, and multiple...

OS/2 is the FOCUS. (Information Builders Inc.'s Presentation Manager Focus) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... Presentation Manager (PM) FOCUS, an object-oriented development (OOD) tool for OS/2, should be available from Information Builders by the time you read this. PM FOCUS is compatible with IBM's Common User Access (CUA) guidelines, and...

Oodles of new OOD tools. (object-oriented development; Blue Sky Software Corp.'s WindowsMAKER 4.0 Professional for C/C++, Robohelp and Magic Fields) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... WindowsMAKER 4.0 Professional for C/C++, an OOD system for Windows, should be available from Blue Sky Software. It generates C/C++ source code for Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC), a new class of libraries of Windows interface and system...

Finally, Enfin supports OS/2 2.0. (Enfin Software Corp.'s Enfin/3) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... Enfin Software is shipping Enfin/3, its object-oriented application development tool for OS/2 2.0. The company says the product will perform substantially faster under the 32-bit operating system. The new version also supports IBM's CUA...

Speedy 4GL tool. (BOS National Inc.'s Global Speedbase 4GL) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... BOS National, Inc. shipped Global Speedbase 4GL, a fourth-generation programming language for DOS and UNIX. Speedbase includes Speedquery, a menu-driven SQL database query system, and a system manager that lets any Speedbase program run under...

Ingres for Windows. (Ingres Corp.'s Ingres/Windows4GL for Windows 3.1) (News; Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
July 1, 1992... INGRES/Windows4GL for Windows 3.1, should be available. The company says the 4GL application development tool combines a GUI, an object-oriented 4GL, and an application manager in a single environment. The company hadn't yet priced the product...

Database confidential. (Column)
July 1, 1992... How does the world feel about the Computer Associates purchase of Nantucket? The Buzz-line brings these gems, allegedly but anonymously from the competition. Borland: "The PC world's most recalcitrant development team just got bought by...

The Relational Database Advisor: Elements of PC Database Design.
July 1, 1992... The first one is The Relational Database Advisor: Elements of PC Database Design, written by Kimberly Maughan Saunders. A consultant and developer who specializes in Paradox applications, her style is informal and practical, and her target is...

Designing Quality Databases with IDEF1X Information Models.
July 1, 1992... Tom Bruce's hardback, Designing Quality Databases with IDEF1X Information Models, targets MIS professionals, students, and managers involved in an organization's information system. Bruce, a V.P. with Bank of America, comes from a mainframe...

At the desktop: PCs have become the preferred platform for developing and deploying corporate applications.
July 1, 1992... PCs have become the preferred platform for developing and deploying corporate applications For the past few years, there's been a movement toward developing and deploying applications at the desktop. This has occurred because managers...

Mainframe meets Micro ... Computer Associates buys Nantucket!
July 1, 1992... Computer Associates buys Nantucket! Another move just occurred in the consolidation of the Xbase industry. In a deal that appears to have started almost immediately after Microsoft announced its purchase of Fox Software, Computer...

Users grade their products. (29 database management systems)
July 1, 1992... Naturally, we had to enlist the aid of users, because they're the ones who understand so intimately those hidden charms and flaws that product reviews can so often gloss over. In total, Data Based Advisor's editorial and technical staff...

Backlog busting with client/server.
July 1, 1992... A major West Coast financial services firm, responsible for managing assets worth more than $50 billion, uses a service bureau to maintain its database system. The data is physically located on a mainframe on the East Coast, but the service...

Porting apps to server back ends. (applications)
July 1, 1992... Client/server is one of the hottest terms in the computer press today, but the technology is still relatively young. While client/server offers many promises, the reality is that there are still a myriad of problems to solve when it comes to...

Downsizing delivers; experts at Boston University's Downsizing Expo say downsizing saves money over time, but the first few years may be more expensive than the old system.
July 1, 1992... Experts at Boston University's Downsizing Expo say downsizing saves money over time, but the first few years may be more expensive than the old system. LOS ANGELES--Downsizing applications from mainframes or minicomputers to PC-LANs saves...

Open and shut: dBASE IV's low-level file functions give you direct access to all files.... (dBASE Developer column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... By now most of you have seen the light and have upgraded to dBASE IV 1.5. If you haven't, go out and do it. There's enough new stuff to make the change worth-while--like low-level file functions. First, just what the heck are low-level...

Add graphics to your Xbase applications now! (Software Review) (overview of evaluations of nine graphics software packages) (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... Information has historically meant either text or numerical data. Today, scanners, fax boards, and drawing programs make graphics information available to those of us who are artistically deficient. So what if I can't draw a straight line? I...

Advanced Image Toolkit. (Pinnacle Publishing Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... Sun Country Software Publishers claims the Advanced Image Toolkit (now published by Pinnacle Publishing, Inc.) is for "developers and computer artists, alike" and that neither needs to be a programmer. There's some truth to this. The...

Database Graphics Toolkit. (Blackhawk Data Corp.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... The Database Graphics Toolkit (dGT) from Blackhawk Data Corp. doesn't offer a battery of graphics functions. Instead, it provides five modules--PHOTO, VCR, EXHIBIT, LASRTRAX, and GSAY--to support graphics applications. If your application can...

Espia. (Devices Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... Espia, from Devices, Inc., approaches graphics support from a new direction. It lets you include graphics figures as database objects from within interactive dBASE IV or FoxPro--without any programming. The version I tested supported dBASE IV....

Flipper. (Proworks) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... You've probably familiar with Flipper from Proworks as a Clipper library tool to create business charts. The Flipper manual notes that it not only makes charting easy, but that it lets you draw circles, boxes, lines, and ellipses. It controls...

PCX Programmer's Toolkit. (Genus Microprogramming Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... The key word here is "Programmer's!" The toolkit contains libraries, units, and include files to support Microsoft C 5.x and 6.0, Quick C 1.x and 2.x, Borland C++ and Turbo C/C++, JPI C and C++, Lattice C, Turbo Pascal 4.0, 5.x, and 6.0, JPI...

PicturePlus. (Advanced Imaging Technologies Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... PicturePlus, from Advanced Imaging Technologies, is another package that's found a "different way" to meld graphics into applications. Instead of offering programmed function calls, PicturePlus uses a 4GL-like product to define graphics...

QuickView Plus. (Seabreeze Engineering Associates Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... QuickView Plus from Seabreeze Engineering is a highly-focused product. While most of these graphics packages relate to picture management, QuickView Plus is specifically concerned with document image management--images of printed documents. The...

The SilverPaint Library. (SilverWare Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... This solid and simple product goes beyond basic industry-standard PCX graphic support. It includes functions to draw figures (boxes, circles, lines, and dots), create sounds, and even write text and accept keyboard input in graphics mode. ...

T-Base. (Videotex Systems Inc.) (Software Review) (one of nine evaluations of graphics software packages from 'Add graphics to your Xbase applications now!') (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... When Bob Cope of Loren Industries needed to build an on-line jewelry catalog, he settled on T-Base from Videotex Systems and FoxPro. "We looked at other libraries, but what sold us on T-Base was the ease of setting it up--things went really...

Exclusively yours: here's when and how to lock files and records in your multi-user applications.... (The Fox Files column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... One of the most pressing issues facing FoxPro developers is how to properly create multi-user applications. This month we investigate the best ways to edit a single record in a database file. Along the way, you'll see some fundamental...

Graphic indicators: implement a scroll bar that lets users know how index creation is progressing.... (Hardcore Clipper column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... It can take some time to create a complex index on a large database, and users aren't known for their patience. If they don't know the computer is doing something, they may simply turn it off! You may have seen how applications for...

Plug 'n play printing: use Reporter() to create a print procedure for all your apps.... (Paradox Developer column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... One of the functions you probably include in most your applications is printing. "Printing" includes printing to a printer, screen, or file. Because this is such a common, recurring need, it really pays to have a general-purpose printing...

Decisions, decisions: selecting your cabling and 32-bit operating system. (Systems Integration Tips)
July 1, 1992... Is your network wiring up to snuff? More importantly, are your new cabling installations able to achieve 100-megabit transfers for a 100-meter run? One hundred megabits on unshielded twisted pair wiring is an up and coming standard. ...

Run 3.0 apps trouble-free under 3.1. (development with Microsoft Corp.'s Windows) (Windows Developer column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... If you're doing Windows development, one of the problems you face is the issue of compatibility between Windows 3.0 and Windows 3.1. While 3.1 offers increased stability, certain applications won't run without modification; others have received...

DataBoss: this C/C++ code generator can help you build database applications quickly. (Kedwell Software Pty. Ltd.'s code generator) (Software Review) (C/C++ Developer column) (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... I had the privilege of introducing you to Data Based Advisor's column on C and C++ database development. In that column I said that developing in either language without adequate tools is a painstaking task. That's because C and C++ are...

ObjectView's new Basic: the improved language in this product can save you front-end development time.... (Matesys Corp.) (Software Review) (Basic for Windows) (Evaluation)
July 1, 1992... The improved language in this product can save you front-end development time... The new corp of Windows development tools may make your life much easier. Don't balk, however, when I tell you that they use Basic as their mainstay...

Getting the most from technical support; how to make the voice on the other end of the line work for you! (Client/Server Developer)
July 1, 1992... How to make the voice on the other end of the line work for you! To kick off this column, I'll address what I think is one of the hottest topics on the minds of client/server developers--getting good technical support. Your reaction is...

Tools of the trade. (DB Connections) (Column)
July 1, 1992... Today's desktop applications developer enjoys an unprecedented abundance of tools and add-on products. Some make life easier by taking over tedious and repetitive tasks, others open up new vistas of technical capability. All seem to spark...

Application structure part 1: it all depends on how you READ it. (includes related article on an organizer for the READ system) (FoxPro Basics column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... Although the Screen Builder makes READ windows easier to design than ever before, FoxPro 2 has introduced some new complexities into the art of integrating these READs--and the data-entry process--with the rest of an application. In the...

Preprocessor primer. (Clipper Basics column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... Prior to the release of Clipper 5, the concept of an integrated preprocessor was foreign to most Xbase developers. Preprocessors have, however, been around for a long time in the C world, and their usefulness continues to shine. A...

Coding menus in Paradox 4.0: present pop-up and pull-down menus to users with these new PAL menuing commands.... (Paradox Application Language) (Paradox Basics column) (Tutorial)
July 1, 1992... Present pop-up and pull-down menus to users with these new PAL menuing commands... Now that Paradox 4.0 has arrived, there's a new array of options for presenting menus to users. PAL provides facilities to create both pop-up menus and...

Getting the sale: how you manage the sale is just as important as the skills you'll provide to your clients. (includes related article on finding sales leads) (The Developer Report)
July 1, 1992... How you manage the sale is just as important as the skills you'll provide to your clients. Acquiring new clients is often the most difficult part of being a consultant. Competition is fierce, especially in metropolitan areas such as New...