Free Forms

[Jan Pitesa]

Newbee coming from Foxpro. Large (100+) node network. Designing time entry app. Currently (Fox) create temporary local table for time entry. Field validations in screen (form) in Fox. After done entries appended to time.dbf.
In Alpha, designed sets, set field rules, designed form, no problem (lies!). Created script to use time() to create unique dbf name and attach path to local C:\dbfs\, copy time.dbf structure and all .dd* files to temp dbf. All OK. Now what? Can't reallocate time entry form to temp dbf that doesn't exist. Can't create new form without attaching to a dbf. Any suggestions?

[JohnZaleski]

RE: Free Forms

I'm curious. Why do you need the local table to have a unique name? Does this add something to the app? It sounds like all you are going to do is eventually append these records into a common networked table.

[Jan Pitesa]

RE: Free Forms

Force of habit. Now that I think of it, no reason. Was done when temp files were all on the server so no user got same file name (back in days of slow network and even slower workstations). Using local file no reason. Does this help?

[JohnZaleski]

RE: Free Forms

I don't think you have to get fancy or tricky to allow all users to enter time into their own table on their local drive ( for future appending )
The way I would do it is have the same table in some common named path on the c-drive of all users. This table will be part of the database - it will be the only table not in the networked app path. After time is entered into this table, you could append the time into time.dbf on the network. Then you could zap the local table rather than erasing and recreating.

[martinwcole]

RE: Free Forms

John - how, basically, do you setup the local table and address it locally.

If the adb is on, say, //myserver/c:/alpha/myapp

how do you get the "local table" and its forms to be referenced back to the local workstation from within the app itself - or do you just use path address when opening it, etc.

like form.view("someform@xxxx")

[JohnZaleski]

RE: Free Forms

You make a directory on the c-drive, put the actual table and dictionary files in that directory, and add it to the database.
When you put a new user on the netwok, you must take care to create the same directory on the c-drive and copy the dbf and dictionary tables from some holding place on the server.

[Jan Pitesa]

RE: Free Forms

Working on this now. At home so not able to test on network but seems to work fine, thanks. To help answer Martin's question if file is mirror of network file highlite table and "duplicate". This will allow you to copy field rules and dict., ect. Problem have to do this for every machine. Other potential problems is local_x is to be mirror of network_x and change field rules or structure of network_x must change for all local_x. Rebuilding everytime would eliminate this but need to test for time lag and/or if app looks for this table when not expected and it is not built until going into specific form.

Note: Use part of script from learn alpha article on "Restructure" to get routine code needed and added path and filename code if you need.

[JohnZaleski]

RE: Free Forms

It really is less complicated than that, expecially since the table will be emptied out a lot.
Have an empty copy of the table and the dictionary files in a folder on the network.Have a text file with a version indicator in the same folder.
When a user opens the app, if the test version indicator is prior to the one on the network, copy the files from the network to the local drive - no restructuring, concern over field rules or extra work to restructure the table more than once.

[martinwcole]

RE: Free Forms

thank's