Simtel MSDOS 1992 June/SIMTEL_0692.cdr/msdos/database/onbase.arc/ONBASE.DOC

Text File | 1987-10-22 | 24.7 KB | 552 lines

                    ONBASE (V1.43 10/22/87)
    Onbase  is a memory resident program which allows a  user
to  rapidly  access, create, modify and delete data  from  custom
single screen databases. Onbase is meant to allow a user to  have
on  line any information which may be needed in a quick and  easy
retrieval fashion. Examples of an Onbase application might be:  a
phone  number program which allows Hot Key access to  your  phone
directory,  or a product price sheet which could be called up  in
response to a phone query.

                    Features:
1.)  Three user definable on-line databases at a time.
2.)  User definable hot keys.
3.)  Very simple creation of new databases.
4.)  Program functions in both single and multi-user environments.
5.)  Easy export and import of data to and from other programs.
6.)  Quick and responsive on a PC, really snappy on an AT.
7.)  Sophisticated Technology overcomes most Popup problems.
8.)  Handcrafted in Assembly language to consume a minimum amount
     of the machine's resources for the functions achieved.
9.)  Size of databases limited only by size of disks.
10.) Password protection of files available.
11.) Very low cost.
12.) Allows up to 12 keys per record, 130 fields per record

     System requirements: IBM PC,XT,AT,PS2 or compatible computer
(either standalone or networked using Novell Netware) running DOS
3.1  or  greater.  Supports monochrome (Hercules  or  MDA)  ,CGA,
enhanced CGA, (PS2 model 30),EGA,and VGA adapters.

     Onbase is distributed under the Shareware concept. For those
not familiar with the idea: Shareware is an attempt to hold  down
the  cost of software by minimizing the costs of  publishing  and
distribution.  Shareware  is  similar in concept  to  the  "Honor
System"  method of candy sales; both are based on the  fact  that
most people are honest enough to pay for what they get. Shareware
offers the advantage of allowing a customer to try out and test a
program  before  buying  it. It is a simple  fact  of  life  that
computer  users pass software around. Shareware legitimizes  this
fact:  feel  free  to  pass this  package  to  your  friends  and
associates. No matter how you came to possess this software - you
may become a registered owner of it by sending fifteen dollars by
check or money order to:

                           Robert Canup
                           PBTV
                           P.O. Box 31075
                           Houston, TX 77231


Protect  the  concept  and  advantages  of  Shareware:  become  a
registered owner today.

 Commercial site licensing is available upon request.





An  additional inducement to registering ownership of  Onbase  is
this program:

Each 100th person purchasing Onbase receives a check for
$100.00
Each  1,000th person purchasing Onbase receives a check for
$1,000.00.
Each  10,000th person purchasing Onbase receives a check for
$10,000.00.
Each  100,000th person purchasing Onbase receives a check for
$100,000.00.
Each  1,000,000th person purchasing Onbase receives a check for
$1,000,000.00.



     "If you are lucky the things you forgot are the things which
didn't matter."
                                        M. Robert Showalter

     Great  care and effort has been expended in the  coding  and
testing of these programs to insure their correct  functionality.
Unfortunately  testing can only show a program to be  faulty,  no
amount  of  testing can show a program to be error free.  If,  in
using  these programs you do uncover a boundary  condition  which
causes  the  code  to malfunction please feel free  to  send  the
specifics  of the circumstances which caused the failure  to  the
above address. Every effort will be expended in order to  attempt
to correct bugs which are uncovered in this fashion.
        Due to the unfortunate times in which we live I am forced
to include the following notice:

               ***** LIMITATION OF LIABILITY *****

UNDER  NO  CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL THE AUTHOR OF  THESE  PROGRAMS  BE
LIABLE FOR DAMAGES EITHER DIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL, RESULTING FROM
THE USE OF THESE PROGRAMS.


     The  philosophy of Onbase is "Lean and Mean".  Onbase  lacks
windows, colors, sound effects, and fancy opening displays. While
they make  programs appear to be more "Professional"; such things
serve  only to annoy someone whose goal is to accomplish as  much
as  is  possible in a given period of time.
      To produce an output BASIC requires source code which gives
it  a list of instructions to perform. Onbase is similar in  that
respect.
     Let  us  take a phone look up database as an example  of  an
Onbase  application. If one wanted an Onbase screen which  looked
like this:





                 P H O N E   D A T A B A S E

Name:
Title:
Phone number:
Address 1:
Address 2:
City:
State:
Zip:
Notes:
Date entered:          Time entered:
Document serial number:

     Where entering someone's name would bring up the rest of the
information  on  the  screen, it would  be  necessary  to  supply
Onbase with a source screen which looked like the following.

                 P H O N E   D A T A B A S E

Name:!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Title:..........................
Phone number:@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Address 1:.................................
Address 2:.................................
City:#########################
State:..
Zip:.....
Notes:..........................................................
Date entered: \%%%%   Time entered: |^^^^
Document serial number:~$$$$$$$$$

     Several  things  stand out about the source screen  for  the
Onbase  application. Ten different symbols appear on  the  source
screen  which  do not appear on the data  inquiry  screen.  These
symbols are the key to generating an Onbase application.
     The  first  different  symbol which appears  on  the  source
screen  and  not  on the application screen is '!'.  '!'  Is  the
symbol for a primary key; that is '!' marks the location by which
information  is normally found. It is usual in looking  for  some
one's  phone  number  to  know their  name.  The  number  of  non
displayable  symbols which appear grouped together  indicate  how
long a field is. In the above example the 33 '!' symbols in a row
next  to  the  'Name:' means that Onbase will  accept  up  to  33
characters  for a persons name. You determine the length  of  the
fields  that you wish to use when you lay out your Onbase  source
screens.
     The next symbol on the screen is: '.' This symbol is used to
denote  a field which Onbase will fill in with  information.
     Also  appearing  on the screen are the  symbols  '@'and  '#'
these represent secondary keys which may be selected by the  user
to find information: In the above example you might need to  know

who a phone number belongs to; in which case you would select the
use of the '@' key for use. (It will be explained later how to do
this.)  In  a similar fashion '#' represents a tertiary  key  for
data lookup.
     The available symbols for keys are:

!@#$%^&*()_+

     The  above  makes sense if you look at the  row  of  symbols
above the number keys on a standard PC keyboard: these are simply
the top row of keys shifted to uppercase. The primary key is  the
most  important key you expect to be using; normally when  Onbase
is invoked it is the key which is in effect. The other keys  have
no  precedence  over  each other. No key has to  be  assigned  in
physical  order on the screen: the Primary key might be the  last
physical line on the screen, and follow all of the other keys  on
the  screen.  At  least  one key  is  required  for  each  Onbase
application; otherwise Onbase would have no idea what information
to supply to the user.
     The  difference between a field with '.....' and one of  the
key  fields such as '!!!!!!' or '&&&&&&&' is that Onbase  can  be
asked to find data in a key field, but not in a simple data field
denoted by periods. The reason that one does not make every field
a  key  field is that key fields require more space on  the  disk
than  non  key fields. In addition, because of this,  a  database
which has many key fields will take longer to enter data onto the
disk than a database with fewer key fields.
     Also appearing on the source screen are the symbols "\ | ~ "
these  symbols differ from the field symbols in that  they  cause
the computer to supply information to a given screen at the  time
that  the data screen is recorded onto a disk. These  fields  may
also  be  made  into  search key  fields  by  entering  a  legal,
available  key  field identifier immediately after the  "\  |  ~"
appears.  The  example screen shows the proper way  to  make  key
fields for the time,date and serial number fields. Note that nine
key  symbols  follow  the serial number  field,  while  four  key
symbols follow both the date('\') symbol and the time('|')  char.
These  values are the only proper sizes to use when making  these
fields  key fields. Be sure to leave enough space on  the  screen
for  the  date, time, and serial number fields  to  display.  All
three  fields require nine character spaces after the  identifier
character. Example:

NOT ENOUGH ROOM FOR DISPLAY IN THIS EXAMPLE

Date:\&&&& Time:|@@@@ Document number:~+++++++++

THIS DISPLAY HAS ENOUGH ROOM FOR PROPER DISPLAY

Date:\&&&&      Time:|@@@@      Document number:~+++++++++


     In  order  to  supply  Onbase with a  source  screen  it  is
necessary to use an editor such as Edlin or Wordstar in the  non-
document  mode,  to  create the source screen. The  name  of  the

source  screen  is  any legal DOS file name  from  one  to  eight
characters,  followed by .QWB for a file extent. The name of  our
sample program is 'PHONE.QWB'.

     As  was pointed out earlier in this text Onbase is a  memory
resident  program, meaning that it can be brought up at any  time
by activating ALT 1, ALT 2, or by ALT 3 key sequences. The reason
that  three  key  sequences can bring Onbase up  is  that  Onbase
allows  three  separate Databases to be active at  a  time.  When
Onbase is loaded into memory it is done by typing :

     Onbase filename1 filename2 filename3

where  filename1  , filename2 and filename3 are the  names  of  3
Onbase  source  files. As was stated earlier; Onbase  assumes  an
extent  of QWB for its files, so it is not necessary  to  include
.QWB  on  the  end of these names. Onbase will  search  both  the
current  directory and the directory \QWIK\ for the named  files.
Onbase  creates the directory \QWIK\ if it does not exist, so  it
is  not necessary for the user to worry about this. Filename1  is
brought  up  as a data base by means of the ALT 1  key  sequence,
filename2 is activated by ALT 2, and filename3 by ALT 3 .

     In some cases the ALT 1,2,3 sequence may conflict with other
programs,  and it may be desirable to change the active hot  keys
to some other combination. Onbase allows this with the  following
command line:

    ON_BASE /H 6 8 J FILENAME1 FILENAME2 FILENAME3

The /h or /H option makes the three active hot keys ALT 6, ALT 8,
and  ALT J. (Or ALT j, as the computer is not case sensitive  for
ALT  key  combination.) The legal ALT keys are 0 - 9 and A  -  Z,
giving a total of 36 available keys.

     Onbase also allows databases to be password protected. There
are two methods of causing this password protection to occur. The
first way is to enclose the filenames to be protected in brackets
the first time that a new database is created. Example::

     Onbase /h 5 a 9 filename1 [filename2 filename3]

In  the above example filename2 and filename3 would both ask  for
passwords  provided that the above command line  represented  the
first  time that either of these files had been used. The  second
way  to password protect a file will be explained later when  the
menu line options are described.

     When Onbase is resident in memory activating it by  pressing
one of the active hot keys will bring up the appropriate database
in  the  search mode with the cursor pointing  to  the  currently
active  key position. If searching for data is not the  operation
that  you  wish  to perform simply press the  Enter  key  without
typing anything else. Onbase will then display the following line
at the bottom of the screen:


record: Enter,Modify,Delete,Search | change:Keys,Applications,Passwords

This  the  main menu line for Onbase and represents  the  options
which  are  available  to  a user. The first  half  of  the  line
represents  operations  which  may  be  performed  on  individual
screens of data, which Onbase refers to as records. If you wished
to  enter  new data into a database you would  select  the  Enter
option from the menu line by typing an 'E' or an 'e'. Onbase will
then  position  the  cursor on the first physical  field  on  the
screen  and  accept data. After you have finished  entering  data
into each field on the screen press the ENTER key. When you  have
completed the last field on the screen Onbase will  automatically
save  the information on your disk drive. In some cases, where  a
screen  might  have several potential empty fields, it  would  be
annoying to enter several keystrokes to finish the screen. Onbase
allows you avoid this by allowing you to press the PgDn key as  a
key  meaning: Accept the rest of the screen as blanks. In  effect
PgDn is an accept screen key where Enter is an accept field  key.
Printed  on the bottom line of the screen when in the Enter  mode
is the line:

Press Enter key with no data in the first line to return to menu

The  Search  option  is identical to the  mode  in  which  Onbase
functions  when  it is first activated. When the search  mode  is
active the following line will be displayed at the bottom of  the
screen:

What record do you wish to find?

When  data has been entered in the search key field, Onbase  will
attempt  to find the asked for record. If it can't find a  record
which  exactly  matches  the information asked  for  Onbase  will
display the next record in the database. Onbase will then display
an  option  line  at  the bottom of the  screen  which  reads  as
follows:

fetch: next(PgDn),previous(PgUp),first(Home),last(End). New key(Enter)

The  keys in parentheses are the keys which would be  pressed  to
cause  Onbase  to  perform  the  function  to  the  left  of  the
parentheses. For example if the PgUp key was pressed Onbase would
find  the  record which proceeded the current record in  the  key
sorted  order.  This  line allows the user to  scan  through  the
database. (For example: if you were looking for records in  which
the  the key field was duplicated and other data  was  different,
the  PgDn and PgUp keys would be of great use.) The Home and  End
keys  allow  you  to  find the first  and  last  records  in  the
database. Pressing the Enter key will allow you to search by  key
for new data.
     The Modify and Delete options both work in similar  fashion.
Let  us explore the Modify option first. When modify is  selected
the cursor is immediately placed at the location of the currently
active  key  field. The following line is displayed on  the  last
line on the screen:


What record do you wish to find?

When  data has been entered in the search key field, Onbase  will
attempt  to find the asked for record. If it can't find a  record
which  exactly  matches  the information asked  for  Onbase  will
display the next record in the database. Onbase will then display
an  option  line  at  the bottom of the  screen  which  reads  as
follows:

Is this the correct record? Y/N:

Answering 'N' or 'n' will bring up the option line shown next:

fetch: next(PgDn),previous(PgUp),first(Home),last(End). New key(Enter)

Which performs in the same fashion as the same line in the Search
mode.  When the Enter key is pressed at this prompt, Onbase  will
again ask:

Is this the correct record? Y/N:

Answering  this question with a 'Y' or 'y' will cause  Onbase  to
number the fields on the screen and ask:

Which number field to be active?

Answering  this question with a number will allow you  to  modify
that numbered field. When you wish to Exit the modify mode Onbase
will then modify that data on the disk.

The  Delete mode works in the same fashion except that  answering
the question:

Is this the correct record? Y/N:

with  a  yes will cause the record shown to be deleted  from  the
current  database.  In both the Delete and Modify  mode  pressing
return in answer to this question will cause Onbase to return  to
the main menu line.

     The  change:  options  part of the main menu  allow  you  to
change  the  active  key  for  searching,  the  currently  active
database and the Password. If no Password is active then one will
be created for the current file. Once a password is installed  on
a  program it may not be removed, only changed.
     One valuable addition to the Onbase package is the  Basepath
program. Basepath allows data to be transferred between an Onbase
database  and  other programs. Basepath produces  standard  comma
delimited  sequential files when in the export mode, and  imports
standard  comma delimited files. These files are compatible  with
the  Mail merge section of Wordstar etc. Most  Database  programs
are  capable  of working with comma delimited  sequential  files.
This allows one to enter, and have on-line, data by using Onbase;
and  then use the report writing capability of a program such  as

Borland's Reflex to analyze the data that had been entered.
Example of a standard comma delimited file for the Phone database
illustrated above:


Aaron A. Aardvark,,,555-5555,123 Phone Knee Rd.,,Houston,Tx,77000,"This
field has both an internal comma, and""quotes""",10/3/87,14:23:02,000000363

While the above looks confusing visually to a human, studying  it
will reveal it's basic simplicity to a machine. The first line of
the  sequential  file would be displayed in  our  example  Onbase
screen as follows:


                 P H O N E   D A T A B A S E

Name:Aaron A. Aardvark
Title:
Phone number:555-5555
Address 1:123 Phone Knee Rd.
Address 2:
City:Houston
State:Tx
Zip:77000
Notes:This field has both an internal comma, and "quotes"
Date entered:10/3/87   Time entered:14:23:02
Document serial number:000000363


     We  note that fields that are skipped in the display  screen
are  shown  as  ,, in the comma delimited  file.  Also  note  the
differences  between the note field in the two. Any  field  which
contains a comma in it is surrounded by quotes; and any quotation
marks  appearing  in  a  field are  expanded  to  double  quotes.
Basepath automatically handles these cases for you.
     To cause Basepath to export data from an Onbase database  to
a comma delimited file you would use the following command line.

BASEPATH /Knn FILENAME {\PATH\COMMANAME.EXT}

The /Knn, \PATH\, and .EXT sections of the line are optional.
Examples:

BASEPATH  /k01 phone {phoney}

BASEPATH PHONE {\TEST\PHONEY.SEQ}

basepath /k00 phone {\test\phoney}

The  first example would produce a file sorted by key  number  1,
(the field identified by the '@@@@@' character) from the database
\qwik\phone.dta ,would name it phoney.seq, and would place it  in
the current directory. The last two examples do the same thing as
each  other: Both sort the file by key 0 ( the '!!!!!'  key)  and
place the file in the directory \test\.

     To cause Basepath to enter data into an Onbase database  one
would reverse the the order of the filenames on the command line
Example:

BASEPATH {PHONEY} PHONE


The /Knn option is meaningless going in this direction as  Onbase
creates all keys for the data when it is entered. The /Knn option
is not allowed on the command line when importing data.

Onbase is a multi-user program designed for use on a LAN machine,
as well as on a single user machine. Onbase uses Softcraft's well
known  file access method Btrieve. In order for Onbase to run  it
is necessary to install Btrieve in the computer's memory.  Simply
adding the line:

Btrieve /p:2048

to the autoexec.bat file in the root directory is the easiest way
to  insure  that this condition is met. Btrieve/N  ,  the  Novell
network version of Btrieve is distributed with Onbase.
     If  you have an expanded memory board in your  system  which
conforms  to the Lotus - Intel - Microsoft EMS standard,  Btrieve
will  use this board for its buffers and caches. This will  speed
up  file access, but it may cause conflicts with  other  programs
wishing to use the EMS board. The solution for this problem is to
change the Btrieve command line to read as follows:

Btrieve /E/P:2048

     Since   Onbase   is  designed  to  work  in   a   multi-user
environment,  as  well as the more familiar  single  user  field,
certain aspects of the program become important to users in a LAN
situation.  Two areas of concern to people using a database in  a
multi-user environment are 1). Data integrity, 2). Data security.
Onbase  allows  handling  of  both  of  these  concerns.   Record
modification  is handled with transparent locks: users  accessing
data  being  modified  at a different work station  will  not  be
locked  out  from  reading the old  unmodified  data  from  their
screen.  Only in the case that a second user attempts  to  modify
data already being modified by someone else will the second  user
be notified of the data locked situation. Data security is  aided
by the ability of Onbase to require a password from a user before
allowing access to the data in the file.
      Pressing ESC at any time will cause the work that you  were
doing before Onbase was invoked to be restored.

                  Gotchas, hints and tips.

     No program is perfect, each has its own set of quirks  which
are  caused  by  the specific technology used  to  implement  the
program. Onbase allows you to pop up a productivity program  like
Sidekick  while Onbase is active. (The opposite is not  true;  if
Sidekick  is activated first Onbase cannot be popped up.)  Onbase

uses a much more sophisticated method of handling DOS re-entrancy
problems  than  the  typical  Pop  up.  A  side  effect  of  this
technology  is that immediately after exiting from Onbase it  may
happen  the hot keys which activate Onbase become inactive  until
one or more characters; possibly a string of characters up to and
including a carriage return, are entered.
     Onbase requires that all 3 filenames available for databases
be provided to it. If the names are not supplied then Onbase will
ask for them.
     It  is  not  permissable to skip a key when  laying  out  an
Onbase screen. If the '$' key was the last one used then the next
key used is required to be '%'.
     Since Onbase uses the last line on the screen for displaying
prompts,  No  Onbase  application may use more 24  lines  in  its
source screen.
     Onbase will pop up only if the currently active screen is in
one of the 80 column text modes; color or black and white.
     Many  people find a program, which beeps at the operator  in
the event of an errant key stroke, annoying. Entering the  Onbase
command  line  with  the /b or /B option  will  cause  Onbase  to
suppress this beeping. Example:

     ONBASE /B/H 7 Y M PHONE MSG [PRICE]

     The driver for the Proteon network board conflicts with  the
Btrieve  use of Interrupt 7bh. Novell's fix for this conflict  is
contained in Novell Technical Bulletin number 141. If your Novell
network  locks up a work station when Btrieve is loaded  and  you
are  using Proteon boards, the fix in this bulletin  will  remedy
the problem. Why Novell does not implement this fix in all of the
drivers  which are distributed for Proteon network boards  is  an
interesting  question.  Directing this question  to  the  nearest
Novell  representative  is recommended. Attempting  to  emphasize
this question by striking said representative about the  head and
shoulders with a blunt object is probably counter productive, and
in  most  locations, is prohibited by law under the  "cruelty  to
dumb animals" statutes.
                                        Bob Canup
                                        10/9/87
Revisions:
     1.40 Production release 10/12/87
     1.41 Intensity revision 10/14/87
     1.42 Screen trash cleanup after app change 10/14/87
     1.43  Allows date,time,doc numbers before keys 10/22/87