Introducing The First 3GL Client/Server Development Environment for UNIX


Database Xcessory is an advanced visual development environment featuring a powerful SQL widget toolkit. With Database Xcessory developers can build Motif interfaces that interact directly with relational databases without writing a single line of X, Motif, or SQL code.

Visual Development Increases Productivity

Database Xcessory speeds client/server application development with its WYSIWYG user interface development environment. Developers work faster because they can build complex C and C++ database applications using drag and drop.

Database Xcessory applications get their database functionality from a set of Motif-based SQL widgets. The widgets work closely together to generate SQL queries at runtime, pass the queries to a database server, and automatically format the results on the user interface.

Key Features

Prior to Database Xcessory developers were forced to choose between the productivity of 4GL solutions and the performance and scalability of 3GLs like C, C++, and SQL.

User Interface Development Environment

Database Xcessory integrates the SQL widget toolkit into an advanced Motif visual development environment. It also implements a rich set of object oriented design features which provide simple ways to create, store, reuse and share interface parts.

Building Environment

Database Xcessory features an integrated Schema Browser which offers the developer a visual representation of the structure and contents of the database. It also serves as the main mechanism to link interface objects to the database. To create a fully-functional database application, the developer simply selects fields from the Schema Browser and drags them into the interface. Database Xcessory automatically creates SQL widgets and sets the resources necessary to allow them to display the results of database queries.

Another way to place new widgets on the interface is to select them from the Palette. The Palette gives the developer access to the full set of Motif widgets as well as the SQL widget toolkit and graph widgets.

Testing Environment

To test the application, the developer simply enters "Play Mode." In Play Mode the application fills SQL widgets with real data from the database, and lets the developer use the controls just as if it were a compiled application. Any data changes in Play Mode are rolled-back when the developer reenters "Build Mode."

Object Oriented Design

Database Xcessory classes implement the object oriented design methodology proposed by Motif expert Doug Young of Silicon Graphics Inc. Classes are collections of widgets which can be saved onto the Palette and reused throughout the application and in future projects. When a class definition changes, all of the instances based on that class are updated, throughout the entire application.

Database Xcessory also supports styles , which are named groups of Motif resources that can be applied to any of the widgets in the application. With styles developers can create and enforce a corporate style guide. Like classes, if a style is edited, all of the widgets governed by the style will be updated to reflect the change.

Large Project Support

Database Xcessory was designed to help developers to organize the details of large client/server projects with dozens of developers and hundreds of forms. DX has a complete suite of data managers to track styles, constants, procedures, identifiers, data types, and files.

In addition, Database Xcessory is closely integrated with the leading CASE tools for UNIX, including: SunSoft WorkShop, CenterLine's CodeCenter and ObjectCenter, Mercury Interactive Corporation's Xrunner, and Pure Software Inc.'s Purify.

Database Xcessory Architecture

The key to Database Xcessory lies in its use of DatabasePak, a powerful SQL widget toolkit highly optimized for UNIX development. These widgets follow the standard Motif API, offering a lower learning curve for Motif programmers doing client/server development.

The toolkit contains three different types of widgets:

These widgets work closely together to generate SQL queries at runtime, pass the queries to a database server, and automatically format the results for the end user.

The SQL widgets also offer:

Full transaction control
Developers can control exactly when changes to data are committed to the database.
Cascading queries
Applications built with Database Xcessory automatically trigger cascading queries based on the specified relationships between master and detail displays.

Dynamic SQL or Stored Procedures

DatabasePak allow developers to use dynamically generated SQL or stored procedures to access data in Sybase or Oracle.

System Requirements

User Interfaces:	Motif v1.2.x, X11R5

			Minimum		Recommended
Memory:			24 MB		32 MB
Graphics Display:	1024 x 768	1280 x 1024

Disk:			23 MB

Platforms

SunOS 4.1.x; Solaris 2.3+; HP UX 9.0.x.

Supported Databases

Oracle 7.1.x; Sybase 4.x; Sybase 10.x.