Data Based Advisor articles from October 1992

Data Based Advisor archives from October 1992

Dataline. (Brief Article)
October 1, 1992... SCOTTS VALLEY, CA -- Not only did August see Borland International ship Paradox 4.0, it also witnessed the rather quiet release of ObjectVision 2.1 and ObjectVision PRO. OV is a sort of non-programmer application development tool for Windows....

Odds and ends. (Editor on the Go) (Column)
October 1, 1992... Client/Server Status: At Digital Consulting's recent Database World (also called Client/Server World) in Boston, I moderated a panel on the state of client/server. Representatives from Borland, Gupta, Microsoft, and Oracle fielded my...

WindowsMAKER Professional. (Blue Sky Software's program development software)(Test Drives) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
October 1, 1992... If you're a Windows application developer who uses C and the Windows Software Development Kit (SDK), you're probably interested in visual programming aids. You must still hard-code the bulk of an application's internal functionality, but with...

Softwatch. (Directory)
October 1, 1992... [TABULAR DATA OMITTED]

Remote Clipper Control. (Gilmore Software's Gilmore Remote API function library for remote communications)(Application programming interface)(Test Drives) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
October 1, 1992... As a consultant in a small shop, I've found that user support can be a time-consuming problem and there are very few tools to help deal with it effectively. I've included as part of my utility toolkit pcAnywhere, CloseUp, and Carbon Copy,...

Feedback. (Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 1992... Take to the skies I just read your August editorial that included comments about the communications systems that airlines are adopting for their passengers (Editor on the Go). In-Flight Phone Corp. has installed the computer screens in...

Corrections. (Brief Article) (Correction Notice)
October 1, 1992... Corrections Brenda L. Davis of Coors Brewing Co. noticed a slight mistake on page 69 and 70 of Linda L. Briggs' "Groupware at work at Coors Brewing." Carol Stream is not the consultant; it's the name of the town where Mark Job the...

Access SQL tables thru Clipper. (structured query language; Aladdin Publishing's ClipSQL query program) (Test Drives)(Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... Aladdin Publishing released new versions of its SQL access function library for Clipper. ClipSQL, which allows Clipper Summer '87 and 5.01 applications to access SQL tables, now supports Microsoft/Sybase SQL Server, Oracle SQL server, and Gupta...

DataBoss Xbase Engine. (Kedwell Software's add-on module to DataBoss C for data base application development) (Test Drives)(Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... Kedwell Software released the DataBoss Xbase Engine, an add-on module that lets DataBoss C users build Xbase-compatible C database applications. With the new engine users can produce DBF files and NDX indexes in the dBASE format. The Engine,...

Clipper 5: a Developer's Guide.
October 1, 1992... This book is a great introduction to the new concepts introduced with Clipper version 5.01. It would not, however, be an appropriate choice for the novice programmer. Coverage of the newer concepts in Clipper, like code blocks,...

Dynamics of Clipper, 2nd edition.
October 1, 1992... Fuller and Brawley have embarked on a quest not only to inform their readers about Clipper, but to impart some of their more philosophical observations about programming (the discussion about the three types of programmers slayed me). They...

The Clipper Interface Handbook.
October 1, 1992... This book is intended for the intermediate to advanced Clipper programmer, with special concentration on interfacing Clipper with assembler and C. The chapter covering the new Get, TBrowse, TBColumn, and Error Systems is full of solid...

Illustrated Clipper 5.0, second edition.
October 1, 1992... Aimed directly at the new Clipper user (either Summer '87 or 5), or even someone who knows little or no programming. The book begins by showing the design of basic mailing list and checkbook applications. The bulk of the book is taken up by...

Clipper Programming.
October 1, 1992... This book was written as an overall introduction to programming in Clipper, and as such succeeds to a great degree. The authors spend a good deal of time discussing the essential tools needed to be an efficient Clipper programmer, such as disk...

Programming in Clipper 5.
October 1, 1992... This is the most recently published book I reviewed. The information provided is well organized, with excellent coverage of all Clipper functionality and good use of graphical images to illuminate concepts. Advantages: This book is easy...

Clipper Programming Guide, 2nd edition, version 5.
October 1, 1992... This was the first Clipper 5 book I purchased (mainly because it was the first I could find in print), and it overwhelmed me. I was a dBASE programmer, trying to feel my way into the Clipper world, and this book, while a very good advanced...

Straley's Programming with Clipper 5.0.
October 1, 1992... After reading this book, I realized how little I know about Clipper. Mr. Straley shows his encyclopedic knowledge of Clipper 5.01, with an easy-to-read style. Coverage of code blocks, arrays, and the new Error, Get, and TBrowse systems is...

Clipper Programmer's Reference.
October 1, 1992... This book is what it purports to be--a reference to Clipper 5.01. It covers all of the basics of Clipper and provides good introductory information to the more advanced functionality provided in 5.01 via objects, arrays, and code blocks....

Using Clipper, 3rd edition.
October 1, 1992... This book serves as an introduction to working with compiled dBASE III PLUS code via Clipper and as a reference to Clipper commands and functions. It contains source code for an invoicing application and a reference guide. Advantages:...

Compiled Xbase apps for UNIX. (Desktop Ai's X2c Xbase compiler)(Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... Desktop Ai is now offering X2c, an Xbase compiler, for all major UNIX platforms. The company claims that X2c directly compiles dBASE III PLUS, Clipper, and FoxBASE+ programs--with no additional work by the programmer--into C executable modules...

Bar code data entry for SBT. (Data Base Associates' IC-BAR System bar-code package for SBT's Series 6 DOS accounting package)(Test Drives) (Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... Data Base Associates shipped the IC-BAR System, a bar code package which interfaces with SBT's Series 6 DOS accounting system. With IC-BAR you can create sales orders, purchase orders, and physical inventory transactions by scanning bar codes...

Doesn't stand a chance. (Xbase) (Column)
October 1, 1992... At last! All the vendors are working in perfect harmony to define a standard...NOT! Pardon my cynicism, but the first attempt at a standard was a bust. There were several reasons, including the typically suicidal Ed Esber stance that...

The Xbase standard - it's about time. (Column)
October 1, 1992... I was thumbing through a box of back issues of Data Based Advisor the other day, and came across an old Tom Rettig ad that had me belly laughing again--four years after it was conceived. It's a cartoon depicting the "Tower of dBabel." A sharp...

Introducing...a new migration strategy. (Memo to Management) (Column)
October 1, 1992... Over the years, Information Systems (IS) departments have developed a variety of methods to cope with changing technology. They've done everything from scrapping the old and starting over, to running both the old system and the new one. ...

RAD results: what is RAD, and how can I try it with the tools I have? (rapid application development) (Database Report ) (Cover Story)
October 1, 1992... How productive is your organization's development staff? No matter where you might place yourself in the developer/consumer spectrum, the answer is probably "not as much as I'd like them to be." Even after the major drives of the '80s to...

RAD-style group dynamics. (Rapid Application Development) (RAD Results: What is RAD, and How Can I Try it With the Tools I Have?)(Database Report) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... When it comes to system development, rapid or otherwise, it's the people, not the tools, that ultimately determine success or failure. Knowledge of business processes (user perspectives) and talents in system design and development (traditional...

Getting at your data via QBE. (query-by-example programming language)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... Query-by-example is one of those terms, like "relational" and "dBASE-compatible," that has many connotations. Just as people use relational to mean "multi-table," query-by-example often denotes any query method that involves using example...

DataEase's QBE/Quick Reports. (query-by-example; DataEase International Inc.'s data base package) (Database Report)
October 1, 1992... DataEase's QBE departs radically from the QBE standard in two ways: (1) It uses a form rather than a table metaphor, and (2) It's more of a report generator than a query tool (note that the QBE module is subtitled "Quick Reports") How...

dBase IV's QBE. (Ashton-Tate Corp.'s data base management system; query-by-example)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... Many vendors have begun to implement methods of accessing and manipulating data that don't require knowledge of a programming language. These options include menu-based (pick-list) systems, the point-and-shoot approach, and graphical...

FoxPro's RQBE. (Fox Software Inc.; Relational Query By Example)(data base management system)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... FoxPros's Relational Query By Example (RQBE) allows users to query single or multiple tables, filter records out of the result, order the result records, and send the resulting data set into temporary or permanent tables. These tables can be...

Paradox's QBE. (Borland International Inc.'s data base management system)(query-by-example)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... The QBE capabilities in Paradox go beyond being able to ask questions about tables. Paradox's QBE is more than just a query tool; it's a data manipulation language. Using Paradox's QBE, you can easily change tables, and you can include the QBE...

R:BASE's QBE. (Microrim Inc.'s data base management system) (query-by-example)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... R:BASE 4.0's QBE differs from Zloof's QBE in several areas. Microrim has rearranged the screen to maximize the usable space. The table name is now above the skeleton table, and the field selection check mark is to the left of the field names....

Superbase's QBE. (Software Publishing Corp.'s data base management system)(query-by-example)(Database Report)
October 1, 1992... Among the many additions to Software Publishing Corp.'s new version of Superbase is a flexible QBE facility. Superbase QBE is robust, taking full advantage of the Windows graphical user interface (GUI) to simplify query creation and execution....

R:BASE 3.1D: 4.0 for your 286. (data base management system, Intel 80286 microprocessor) (Brief Article)
October 1, 1992... Except for the speed, you can have all the new features of R:BASE 4.0 even if you don't have a 386 or 486 or have less than 2.5M of memory. When you upgrade to 4.0 or buy a 4.0 LAN Pack, you'll find a card in the package that you can...

R:BASE breaks a few Windows. (Microrim Inc.'s data base management system; version 4.0) (Brief Article)
October 1, 1992... Microrim used the Watcom C Compiler and Rational System's DOS4GW extender to make R:BASE 4.0 into a 32-bit protected-mode program. The DOS4GW extender program follows the DOS Protected Mode Interface (DPMI) specification. This spec was created...

R:BASE 4.0 matures in 32-bit release. (Microrim Inc.'s data base management system) (Software Review) (Evaluation)
October 1, 1992... R:BASE Single-user, $795; Upgrades: single-user, $195; 5-user LAN pack, $249; from other DBMS products, $299 Microrim 15395 S.E. 30th Place Bellevue, WA 98007 (206) 649-9500 Fax (206) 746-9483 Version 4.0 of Microrim's R:BASE...

Publishing from your database. (Database Report)
October 1, 1992... Ventura Database Publisher, $295 Ventura Software 800-822-8221 619-673-0172 InfoPublisher, $795 PageAhead Software 800-967-9671 206-441-0340 dbPUBLISHER Pro+, $695 Developer's Extension, $595 Digital Composition Systems 800-527-2506...

14 steps to winning client/server development. (Application Development) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Most developers are aware that client/server computing and downsizing are the wave of the future. Many developers are working with "client/server" products and testing tools. But the popularity of client/server has created a demand for...

Database confidential.
October 1, 1992... Clipper internal errors continue to rack up frustration big-time. But Buzz is optimistic. According to Computer Associates' Xbase guy Mark Sokol, one of the first actions CA took after completing the buyout was to lock three Clipper...

Calendar of events.
October 1, 1992... Networld--The latest in networking news and products. October 13-15, Dallas Convention Center, Dallas. For more information, contact conference planners at (800) 829-3976 or (201) 346-1400. Downsizing Expo-Canada--Four events in one:...

Interface with C. (C and Clipper programming languages) (Brief Article)
October 1, 1992... Vendors and developers of libraries that use C and assembler routines must know that their routines are being called from Clipper; thus they write special code that receives parameters from and returns values to Clipper. This means that...

Debugging C and assembler code with Clipper. (Brief Article) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... You can't use the Clipper debugger to trace through C or assembler code. However, you'll probably have a greater need to debug C and assembler (C/ASM) code than Clipper code, so if you write anything but simple routines, get a C/ASM debugger....

Give and take - DynArray commands. (Brief Article) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Give And Take--DynArray Commands Just as there are several new PAL commands which create dynarrays as output, there are others which use dynarrays as input. The commands that create dynarrays, such as SYSINFO and WINDOW GETATTRIBUTES, are...

CopyToDynArray. (dynamic arrays) (Brief Article) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Indexing a dynarray with a text string--such as A["Last Name"]--is reminiscent of how you index a fixed-length array created by the COPYTOARRAY command. That leads to the question, "How can you do a COPYTODYNARRAY?" In other words, how can you...

Two-dimensional arrays. (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... No doubt some people will point to dynarrays as offering an approach for creating two-dimensional arrays, an often-requested feature that PAL lacks. It's true, you can simulate a 2-D array using a dynarray, but I don't recommend doing...

Implementing an audit trail. (Data Integrity) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... More and more organizations are using relational database management systems (RDBMSs) to develop mission-critical applications. These applications address diverse business functions, and often involve many users and large amounts of...

"Rightsizing" on the manufacturing line. (use of Cykic Software's MultiBase data base management system at Aydin Controls)(Case Study)
October 1, 1992... For Aydin Controls, the challenge was updating a partly mainframe, partly manual system to keep track of parts and workers on an assembly line. Links to the mainframe had to be maintained and barcode readers had to be added to the...

Program mouse events into your dBASE apps. (Borland International Inc.'s dBASE IV 1.5 data base management system)(dBASE Developer)(Column) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... One of the more exciting things about the new version of dBASE IV is that Borland has finally included some mouse support. While there are several weaknesses and omissions in the implementation, there's a lot you can do with what they've given....

Exclusively mine - how not to share data. (FoxPro data base management system) (The Fox Files)(Column) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... In "Exclusively Yours" (DBA July 1992), we showed how to share databases in a multi-user application. This month we'll see how to create databases that should not be shared. In multi-user applications we're frequently required to create...

Extend Clipper with mouse support, part I. (Hardcore Clipper) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Clipper doesn't natively support a mouse, but several third-party libraries provide mouse support. It's also fairly easy to provide your own. In this article we look at how to communicate with the mouse using software interrupts. We'll write...

DynArrays: arrays with a twist. (dynamic arrays)(Paradox Programmer)(Column) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Paradox 4.0 has added a new type of array to PAL--the dynamic array. At first, dynamic arrays seem simple enough and worth only passing interest. But the more you work with them, the more you'll find that dynamic arrays have great potential....

Internationalize your applications with Unicode. (Systems Integration Tips)(Column) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... Your database application is doing well in the U.S. and you want to spread out to foreign markets. There's a lot involved in meeting other language needs. This used to mean using a variety of code pages and standards. If you wanted to add...

Consider concurrency early in the development process. (Client/Server Developer)(Column)
October 1, 1992... The other day I was talking to a reservationist at a major hotel chain. I was told that one of the days I was planning to stay at the hotel was sold out. The reservationist said the hotel could give me a confirmation number for Day 1 and Day...

Glossy Visual Basic vs. industrial-strength GFA Basic. (Microsoft Corp.'s Visual Basic vs. GFA Software Technologies Inc.'s Basic program development software)(BASIC for Windows) (Software Review) (Column) (Evaluation)
October 1, 1992... GFA BASIC GFA Software Technologies 27 Congress Street Salem, MA 01971 800-766-6432, 508-744-0201 Price: $99; Professional, $295 Visual Basic Microsoft Corp. One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052-6399 800-922-3675,...

Colorize your FoxPro apps. (applications)(FoxPro Developer) (Software Review) (Column) (Evaluation)
October 1, 1992... When I first got FoxPro over two years ago, the first thing I did was to sit down with the Color Picker for a week and create new color sets. I've been fiddling with the same ones ever since. The Color Picker is fun but it can be enormously...

A bit of spice.... (DB Connections) (Column)
October 1, 1992... Someone once said, "Variety is the spice of life." DBADVISOR Forum can attest to that--whether you need solutions to tricky programming problems, the best design techniques for a particular task, or even a job. New R:BASE release ...

Code blocks: what, where, and why? (Clipper Basics) (Column) (Tutorial)
October 1, 1992... The Clipper 5 feature that receives the most blank stares from Xbase programmers climbing aboard the Clipper bandwagon has got to be code blocks. The problem isn't with understanding the definition. Staunch Xbase developers can learn new...

Europeans go direct. (includes related articles on a comparison of software prices in the US and Europe and tips for buying and selling software direct)(Developer Report) (Column)
October 1, 1992... All over Europe, a tiny--but significant--revolution is taking place. Canny software buyers are turning their backs on the big-name distributors in their countries, opting instead to purchase programs direct from American vendors. Despite the...

Borland holds BRIEFing. (Borland International Inc.'s program editor, BRIEF 3.1) (Test Drives)(Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... Borland Int'l shipped BRIEF 3.1 for DOS and OS/2. Borland acquired BRIEF, a program editor, from Solution Systems. New features include mouse support, extended memory specification, redo, and dialog box support. BRIEF 3.1 is $249.95....

New pricing for dGT. (BlackHawk Data Corp.'s pricing for Database Graphics Toolkit) (Test Drives)(Brief Article) (Product Announcement)
October 1, 1992... BlackHawk Data Corp. announced new pricing and upgraded documentation for dGT (Database Graphics Toolkit). The single-user version is $295, while the royalty-free version, dGT Unlimited, is $595. Registered users can upgrade to dGT Unlimited...