Xref: utzoo comp.databases:2339 comp.sys.ibm.pc:27508 comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d:2691 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!yale!cmcl2!ccnysci!alexis From: alexis@ccnysci.UUCP (Alexis Rosen) Newsgroups: comp.databases,comp.sys.ibm.pc,comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d Subject: Re: Dbase compilers information Message-ID: <1602@ccnysci.UUCP> Date: 16 Apr 89 10:14:20 GMT References: <2430@cps3xx.UUCP> <3785@utastro.UUCP> Reply-To: alexis@ccnysci.UUCP (Alexis Rosen) Organization: City College of New York Lines: 45 In article <3785@utastro.UUCP> hgcjr@utastro.UUCP (Harold G. Corwin Jr.) writes: >Speaking of database managers: I'm about to embark on a cataloging >project that will eventually entail working with many MB of data files, >both numerical and ASCII. I'm looking for recommendations for a dBase >III or IV compatible, relational, programmable database manager with at >least a subset of SQL implemented, that supports IBM's high order ASCII >character set, AND that supports a LONG text field (4KB or more would be >fine). The text field is needed to carry along notes on the catalog >entries. Since I'm running an 8MHz AT clone, some sort of optimization >for speed would also be desirable (additional machine features if >important: 640K base memory, 2M extended memory, 80287 coprocessor). > Leading contenders so far include r:Base for DOS, Paradox (though >the text field would have to be kludged from a bunch of 255B fields), >and FoxBase Plus (I don't know if version 2.1 supports a text field >beyond 512B). Any others that I should be thinking about? I'll >summarize if there is enough interest. Many thanks! First of all, Neither Paradox or rBase are in the least bit compatible with dBase. Fox is by far the fastest, and FoxPro, due early June, is up to three times faster than the current version. SQL support isn't there yet, but they are working on a Novell-based server product which will speak both Dbase and SQL (and it will really speak SQL, not translate like dBase IV). As for long text, Fox has memo fields but you can't use them for much in the current version. FoxPro, on the other hand, has unlimited-length text fields (maybe limited to 4GB- not a real problem :-) which can be manipulated like and text object. (In addition, the length of program lines can be up to 1K now, wihch can be convenient.) For example, you can say Stuff(Replicate("abcde",5000), 5000,10000,"x") which evaluates to a string which is 20,000 bytes long. More practically, you can test for emptiness or a particular substring, and you can index on these fields and search for them. I know this will be in FoxPro because I saw it not five days ago at comdex. In general, FoxPro is an astonishingly slick package. When you see it, you won't believe your eyes. It's like nothing ever done on a PC before (but in fact it's rather exactly like something that was done on a Mac: FoxBase+/Mac). --- Alexis Rosen alexis@ccnysci.{uucp,bitnet} alexis@rascal.ics.utexas.edu (last resort)