Re: Client/Server on the AS/400

[Vernon Hamberg <hambergv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Marc

At 02:59 PM 5/25/1998 -0400, you wrote:
>
>I've been asked to create GUI screens that access the data on the AS/400. 
>We are
>currently not using any development tools, other than SEU (if it can be
>called a tool
>: - )  ).  It would also be nice to have a good tool on the AS/400 to
>develop with.
>I've been looking at BCD's ProGen Plus and the Client/Server option.  Does
>anyone
>have any experience with this?

Haven't used

>Visual Basic and PowerBuilder have been mentioned.  Do these work well with
>the AS/400?  What is the best data communication software to handle data
>manipulation?  

Both VB & PowerBuilder are excellent. Data access is usually accomplished
with ODBC. Client Access has a very good ODBC driver, but you need to
install the entire base product to get it. OTOH, it is free after the first
license. Other drivers (HiT, WallData, etc.) are probably per seat.

The CA 95 ODBC User's Guide is excellent. It has lots to help you
concerning performance. Basically, write to the ODBC API (or equivalent)
and avoid the default Jet engine for data access.

>I have also read, on this list, that in order to create stored procedures
>using SQL
>that the C compiler is required, which we don't have.  Is using RPG for
>this
>a relative simple task?

The answer here is a bit complicated, I think. In v4r2 Not available in
earlier releases), you can write stored procedures using an extension of
SQL that includes decision constructs, etc. This source gets converted to
C, and that's why you need that compiler. This source is probably very
propietary, limited to AS/400 only. (?)

OTOH, if you want to embed SQL in an RPG(IV) program, no problem. YOu just
need the SQL licensed product, so that you have the SQL precompiler.

Actually, all non-interactive AS/400 programs can be stored procedures. The
reality is far from the promise where these so-called SQL stored procedures
are concerned, IMO.

Another option I'd look at is Domino on v4r2. Having seen a little of it,
it promises pretty native access to AS/400 data and lets you generate both
Notes databases (i.e., applications) _and_ Web pages from the same
development environment.

Another option is Net.Data, which is quite easy to use after the initial
coupla days to get comfortable with it. Also, you need some HTML knowledge,
but you could use a graphical HTML designer, even Word 97 (?), to get the
initial HTML. Then insert Net.Data macro statements to get the data.

HTH

Vernon Hamberg
Systems Software Programmer
Old Republic National Title Insurance Company
400 Second Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN  55401-2499
(612) 371-1111 x480


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