Re: Do we need C-Isam?

In Article <3hg6bn$af4@ccnet.ccnet.com> John Antypas writes: >Subject says it all... > >My company currently uses Informix for its database tasks. A third >party product uses a C-Isam database to store its data. We'd like to >get at that data. Since we already have Informix it all its variants, >do we need to purchase C-Isam? If not, how might we get at this data >from, for example, ESQL/C apps? > >Thanks for the help... > You shouldn't need C-ISAM - what you are going to need, however, are the schemas for the product in question. What you then do is use these to create an empty database, and then delete the files in the database directory and use link to link them to the real application files. After that, you can use ESQL/C to interface to your database, using database fields, and it will interwork with the other application. Caveats: The above is the common method of interworking between a number of Accounting packages and Informix. You have to make sure that you fully understand the way the other application works and, in particular, make sure none of your Informix applications populate any columns with NULL. Non database applications simply don't understand the concept and, if they are written in C, you'll suddenly find your application will only display half the screen, having interpreted your NULL as the C \\0 terminator for character strings. Regards Neil Neil S. Briscoe | The Three Stages of Life: Aldershot, Hants, England | First, you believe in Father Christmas neil@salmon.demon.co.uk | Then you don't believe in Father Christmas nbriscoe@cix.compulink.co.uk | And then, you are Father Christmas