I have been trying to convert some VB code that I have used to sort and collate parts lists for my cabinetmaking business into Xbasic but some of the functions I was using are not available in Xbasic and I wonder if any one out there has some advice as to how I might proceed.
My data consists of strings that look like this " 2 @ 11-1/2 X 30-1/2". The program I have ( which I originally wrote with some help in GWbasic) takes a list of comma delimited values, changes them to decimal numbers, sorts from biggest to smallest, collates equivalent parts and then changes them back to the string values and prints a list of the collated values from biggest to smallest.
I was using an approach database to create the delimited files and then GWbasic and later Visual Basic 5.0 to sort and print my lists. The overall process using these various programs was pretty clunky and I bought Alpha5 thinking that I could refine my process within one environment.
I have created an input form that works well and I can export delimited files of my parts for various materials which is an improvement already over my previous system. But I got stuck on the VB InStr() function which helps me isolate the numbers in my string from the non numeric characters. Also I am a bit lost with the function creation dialogs in Xbasic and I don't seem to be able to recreate my functions in Xbasic.
I admit I am not the worlds best programmer but I really like A5 and I want to understand it better. I read through the tutorials and A5 made easy but there is something I'm not getting. The tutorials focus on your standard name and address data and there aren't many examples that relate to what I am trying to do.
The question I would ask the local Gurus is: Does it make sense to proceed trying to convert my code to Xbasic? Is there a more direct way to sort data like this than to export the delimited values to a text file and then use an Xbasic program to sort and collate them.
Any advise would be appreciated.
Thanks,
My data consists of strings that look like this " 2 @ 11-1/2 X 30-1/2". The program I have ( which I originally wrote with some help in GWbasic) takes a list of comma delimited values, changes them to decimal numbers, sorts from biggest to smallest, collates equivalent parts and then changes them back to the string values and prints a list of the collated values from biggest to smallest.
I was using an approach database to create the delimited files and then GWbasic and later Visual Basic 5.0 to sort and print my lists. The overall process using these various programs was pretty clunky and I bought Alpha5 thinking that I could refine my process within one environment.
I have created an input form that works well and I can export delimited files of my parts for various materials which is an improvement already over my previous system. But I got stuck on the VB InStr() function which helps me isolate the numbers in my string from the non numeric characters. Also I am a bit lost with the function creation dialogs in Xbasic and I don't seem to be able to recreate my functions in Xbasic.
I admit I am not the worlds best programmer but I really like A5 and I want to understand it better. I read through the tutorials and A5 made easy but there is something I'm not getting. The tutorials focus on your standard name and address data and there aren't many examples that relate to what I am trying to do.
The question I would ask the local Gurus is: Does it make sense to proceed trying to convert my code to Xbasic? Is there a more direct way to sort data like this than to export the delimited values to a text file and then use an Xbasic program to sort and collate them.
Any advise would be appreciated.
Thanks,
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