Converting Paradox DOS to Windows 1

[pseudotechnonerd]

My company has finally made the decision to hurl themselves into the 21st Century and convert our legacy database application from Paradox DOS 4.5 to the Windows Version 10. Yeah!

I'm trying to determine if the Scripts BeginRecord and Editor functions in the DOS version has similar functionality in the Windows version. If yes, where do I find it? The Help function has not been all that helpful.

Thank you to anyone who can help me.

 

[TonyMcGuire]

Well, I haven't used Paradox for DOS in a long time, so give me some leeway.

BeginRecord - is that 'move to the first record'? If so, home() MAY be somewhat close. What EXACTLY is the situation, and what EXACTLY are you trying to do?

Editor? There is no editor, as such, in Paradox for Windows. There is the TEXTSTREAM functions, for working with text files, but no editor function as in Paradox for DOS. What is it you are trying to do, EXACTLY?

There is a learning curve to switching. There are a BUNCH of new functionality gizmoes. There is no tool for converting from DOS to Windows Paradox; but there is quite a bit of code that doesn't need to be converted. How much of the 'no convert' stuff you used determines how much more or less you have to learn to move your code to Windows.

But if you are looking for help on this, you'll have to have patience with me/us, just as we'll need to have patience with you, while explaining what is going on and what you are trying to accomplish. There'll be a lot of misunderstanding since we will undoubtedly use different terms for the same thing.

Hang in there, and we'll do the same.



Tony McGuire
"It's not about having enough time; we have the rest of our lives. It's about priorities.

 

[pseudotechnonerd]

OMG Thank you, Tony! Hi, my name is April. At last, someone who speaks Paradox-ese. LOL Believe me, I'm a very patient individual, Tony, and will hang in there for as long as it takes.

My company uses Paradox to maintain the various Participant databases for each of the fundraising events we produce. Back in the mid to late 90's, both the IT Director and Manager created a ton of "scripts" to perform the various processing functions, i.e. data entering batches of registrations, adding these batches to a specific database, performing look-ups to search for specific records to enter their fundraising totals, etc., etc.

I'm tasked with with the monster project of converting all the tables, forms, reports and scripts from DOS into Windows. Yeah, I know but I'm not in the driver's seat on this one. And yes, I'm quite aware that Borland never created a DOS to Windows conversion module and also know that I'm on my own. But now that you have be so kind to step forward...

Sorry but no, I'm not a programmer by trade but I understand what specific function each individual "script" performs as well as how to update them. From what I've been able to determine as well as what I've been told, there are 2 different "script" formats.

The following is how a couple of the "scripts" read when you open them with "SCRIPTS > EDITOR > OPEN".

I know that this format was created from "SCRIPTS > BEGINRECORD":
{Modify} {Restructure} {Regimprt} Down Ins Right "suffix" Right
"a4" Right Down Ins Right "title" Right "a4" Right Down Down
Right Right CtrlBackspace "a10" Right Down Down Down Down Down
Down Down Down Down Down Down Down Down Ins Right "team lea"
"der" Right "a2" Right End Down "last updated " Right "d"
Right "updated by" Right "a3"

And this format was created from "SCRIPTS > OPEN":
BatchAddDate = MATCH(TODAY(), "../../..",batMonth,batDay,batYear)
IF NUMVAL(batMonth) < 10
THEN batMonth = "0" + STRVAL(NUMVAL(batMonth))
ENDIF
AddBatchPassword = "yakuza"
TempBatchDir = "l:\\offlinda\\"
FinalBatchDir = "l:\\batches\\"
MasterTable = "l:\\evt_live\\S08WALK"
LogTable = "ADDW" + batMonth + batDay
LookupTable = "LKUP" + batMonth + batDay
DupesTable = "DUPE" + batMonth + batDay
ReportTable = "l:\\reports\\lkuprpts"
ReportNumber = "1"

;~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~;PROCEDURES

PROC GetPassword(Word)
WINDOW CREATE @5,5 WIDTH 25 HEIGHT 1 TO PasswordWindow
@ 1,1 ? "Password: "
ECHO NORMAL ; Shows the message in the window.
ECHO OFF ; Hides password input.
FOR Chances FROM 1 TO 3
ACCEPT "A15" REQUIRED to CheckPassword
IF NOT RETVAL
THEN WINDOW CLOSE
RELEASE VARS ALL
QUIT
ENDIF
IF CheckPassword = Word
THEN ECHO NORMAL
WINDOW CLOSE
RETURN
ELSE MESSAGE "Wrong Password. " + STRVAL(3-Chances) + " to go."
SLEEP 1500
MESSAGE ""

Does any of this look familiar or make any sense to you? How and where do you suggest I begin to re-write these "scripts"?

Thanks again!

 

[TonyMcGuire]

scripts beginrecord is **recording** a script from onscreen actions. I was seeing it as record as in a record in a table. Everything below that is the actions that were recorded.

The scripts | open is just a script stored on disk that you can open/modify while open, as well as 'run'.

The procedure is stored code that you (probably) reuse in various places. In the case of this procedure, it displays a form on screen that accepts a password.

These things are possible in Paradox Windows, except recording of scripts.

Well, and the first script does a programmatic restructure of a table, keystroke by keystroke. That isn't possible in PdoxWin either, but there are several ways the same thing can likely be done.

Is this what you are looking to see?



Tony McGuire
"It's not about having enough time; we have the rest of our lives. It's about priorities.

 

[pseudotechnonerd]

Yes, this is exactly the kind of help I need. Thanks again!

OK, so the "recording of scripts" does not exist in the Windows platform. Not so good but not the end of the world either.

There's no ability to do a programmatic keystroke by keystroke restructure of a table "but there are several ways the same thing can likely be done." I can work with whatever I need to.

By the way, I've already purchased a couple of programming manuals which I assumed wouldn't hurt.

I assume a good place to start should be a review of the ObjectPAL Tutorial to familiarize myself, right?

Sorry to sound like such a novice but what are the steps that I need to go through to begin re-creating the stored code from my DOS scripts to the Windows platform?

Thanks again for your help and support especially since the response I got from a person from another group was basically that I should give it up.

 

[TonyMcGuire]

Well, here we go but only a small bit tonight. Looooong day today and early one tomorrow.

I know that this format was created from

"SCRIPTS > BEGINRECORD":

(Yes, exactly) You can edit and save, then play the script later if you wish or it could be a 'one-up' script that will only be used one time and then deleted. Do you realize what is going on? (It sounds like it.)

In Paradox for Windows, you would open a File | New | Script and start typing; none of the work is done for you.

To manage 'objects' you declare a name for an object and state the type of object it will be. Generally you want to establish a format and stick with it or use one in common use by many programmers. Not sure how 'normal' my names are but I'll just start and you tell me when you get bolloxed up.

; declare a variable block (set of variable names)
var

  rptReport    report 
; Paradox for Windows reports are standalone files, 
; not connected to tables.  unlimited #s of reports
; and forms per table

  frmForm      form  
; same goes for forms in Paradox for Windows

  tcTcursor    tcursor
; a tcursor is a pointer to a table that can
; do all kinds of cool stuff to the information
; in the table with lickity-split speed
endVar

And sorry, I gotta stop there.  I'm outta gas.
I REALLY wish this site had the ability to edit our posts available.

I've got some stuff I gotta do first thing in the morning and then I'll check back in.  Let me know if my style is helpful, or whether may you think I don't have any.  :)



Tony McGuire
"It's not about having enough time; we have the rest of our lives.  It's about priorities.