Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcsun!cernvax!chx400!forty2!eichi
From: eichi@forty2.UUCP (Stefan Eichenberger)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: Clipper
Message-ID: <1220@forty2.UUCP>
Date: 16 Feb 90 17:50:21 GMT
References: <22844@usc.edu> <20900016@pewter>
Reply-To: eichi@forty2.UUCP (Stefan Eichenberger)
Organization: Exp. Physics University Zuerich
Lines: 52

In article <20900016@pewter> tenbarge@pewter.ucs.indiana.edu writes:
>
>/* Written  6:18 pm  Feb 12, 1990 by ajauch@ics.uci.edu in pewter:comp.databases */
>In article <22844@usc.edu> atieu@skat.usc.edu (Anthony Tieu) writes:
>>Need a review on Clipper, the dBASE compiler. Does it really
>>compile dBASE code into EXE files without modifications? How
>                                    ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
                     ^^^^^^^^^^^
.....
>I wouldn't say that the modifications were due to Clipper's limitations but
>rather differences in a program that is compiled versus one that is
>interpreted.  Also, Clipper enhancements that add to the dBase language are not
>part of dBase 3+.
>
>
>Kris Tenbarge
>tenbarge@silver.ucs.indiana.edu

About the only limitation is that a compiler has to know at compile time,
what commands should be translated. Therefor, nasites such as the following
macro substitution is not allowed:

    command = 'use'
    &command database

where database is a *.dbf file.

Of course, parameters can with no problems be substituted:
    dbfile = 'database'
    use &dbfile
is just all right. 

Furthermore, Browse, create and such full-screen commands of dBase III
are not supported by clipper - there are separate utilities supplied
to create a new database, create from a structure file is all right, and
there is a replacement for browse, which better fits in a programmers 
environment.

There are many enhancements to dBase III +, and of course execution is much 
faster. *.ndx files are supported, but there are also faster *.ntx
files as indexes available.

The smallest *.exe file created however is about 100 kByte, about the 
only drawback.


Hope this helps.
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UUCP:      ...mcvax!cernvax!forty2!eichi         Stefan Eichenberger
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