Re: Good User Guides for Informix Online DS 7.23 and NewEra

Billy Wheeler wrote something for a serious discussion: > Rather than give you a long lecture on delegation, its easier to say that delegationallows one to create an object which will either preprocess methods associated with the delegated object, or handle the method completely. It allows you to control an object outside of its normal position within the hierarchy. (It all depends on how delegation is designed.) This means that it can be both part of the language and the class library. The stock broker is the simplest example for people to refer to. But basically think about any situation which you may want to control the object outside of the normal messaging hierarchy. Think of a master/slave or master/detail relationship. What happens when you try to span a single window in a New Era app? > > > } Even if it is not *static*, C code is extremely simple. Heck, they > } even teach it in some high schoolsthese days. :-) Keep in mind that > } one should not have to have obfuscated code or pointers to arrays of > } pointers to structures in one's business code. > > But then what's the point of using C? :-) > C is the most portable language. There isn't a single plaform which exists that doesn't have C ported or cross compiled for it. (OK maybe the Java chip might be the first.) No other language has the same portability. (Java is coming close, but have you ever seen embeded java outside of the smart card?) > } As far as being static, even if you write it in any language, you > } will still have to maintain it. However if you write it in C, the > } odds are you will only have to maintain one copy of code. Both 4GL > } and New Era can access the C code. So you have multiple platform > } support, which New Era no longer provides. You can even access the > } code from other languages/environments as well. > > My point is based on a great deal of painful experience -- C is a lot > harder to maintain than a 4GL or NewEra code base. > No, not really. I guess, since I've had to write everything from 6502, 6809 assembler, to C, etc....code is code. Thats what RCS, CVS are made for. Of course, having a good debuging environment helps. :-) The point I am trying to make though is that if you have re-usable code, that is on different platforms and different apps, then C becomes the best language. (Can you say N.E. is not portable?) > } Of course, if and when 7.X and 9.X merge and Informix offers C, C++ > } and JAVA as stored proceedure languages, you now have server side > } code. (CSPL, JSPL ? Ne C'est Pas? :-) > > Hehe. > > } > } You should be creating functional layers as much as possible. 2) > } > } Do not rely on the Class Libraries provided with New Era. > } > } (Can we say garbage?) > } > > } > I think he means the AFCL here. Have a look at NEWT, from > } > http://www.dchsoftware.co.uk -- it's downloadable. > } > } Perhaps. Of course, its a third party product and blows away the > } *one* vendor theory. :-)Delegation can exist within the AFCL versus > > Well, the AFCL was written by a third party as well, and AFAIK is > unsupported by Informix. At least NEWT was written by an ex-Informix > employee... :-) > I always thought it was sold with the N.E. code. The problem was that Informix vendorgot together and wrote their object class library without understanding what they were doing. NEWT seems like a second generation. Informix would have to rewrite their class libraries from the ground up to take care of the inherent problems in AFCL. I doubt that they would want to spend that kind of money. (Like they really have that type of cash sitting around.) I guess you could create an application level of objects which would handle the application interface with the OS. Then the root windows would merely fall in below the application level in the messaging hierarchy. Delegation could be added in to the root object so that all objects will inherit it. (I think you can do this without having to change the language at all. ) But this all seems to skip an important question when dealing with NE as a useful language. First, it only runs on Windblows. This may not seem important, but you no longer have the portability that 4GL had accross multiple platforms. Second, lets look at the competition. Java, Delphi, OpenStep, Access, VB/VC++, CDE, TK/TCL, add your other favorites here. Based on the costs of learning the language and the potential market, Java makes the most sense. Java skill sets will cost the same, however, they will allow one to write and support applications from embedded systems, to real time trading systems, or home banking systems. (Or even turn your phone into an ATM machine. :-) Of course Java will also run on the big iron too. So, that's the other problem with N.E. as a tool, its out classed by its competition. There is no edge to using it. At least with 4GL, it was easy, somewhat portable, and you could write reports to do anything. > > > > Excuse while I go and find some British beef to chew on... > And what ever happened to the Spice Girls?Put on too much weight for ya? :-) [Or is the wife reading this over your shoulder?] -Mikey BTW, the rumors of my stalking Saranga for blackmail evidence so that he'll do the port to Linux are *greatly* exagerated..... [With Photoshop we can create our own! :-] {Said only as a joke. If anyone gets offended, lighten up! }