Jim Lawrence
accessd at shaw.ca
Sun Jan 27 13:51:56 CST 2013
Hi Stuart:
That is impressive. Too bad I never had a chance to try it out.
Those were the "Gold Rush" days of computers. The database and systems
market was growing like crazy then. Anyone smart and willing to work hard
could turn a really good buck...obviously you did.
CPM, huh...first DOS, but was multi-user capabilities. If Microsoft had not
been so struck on being different all their slashes could have been the
right way, their system would have been multi-user and network ready. Worked
with CPM, on government managers' Kypros (the precursor of the laptop...it
was as heavy and big as a PC but came with a suit-case handle so it was
portable). If you know CPM well, then UNIX and now Linux would seem like
home.
One of my contracts was working on an ancient accounting system for the
government from 1992 to 2000. The database was called DC/2. (Interesting
aside: the database was originally commissioned and then sold by a mortuary
company out of Chicago...a good location for that type business...very high
volumes.) Its language was like a macro assembler code; OP code, Operand and
value. Returns and loops were just offsets pushed into the local stack,
followed but a return OP code. No real-time keys or indexes, those tasks
were over-night batch files. The system had thousands of users and was the
back-bone of two of the largest government ministries. We were on call 24x7.
The system was originally on an IBM Mainframe, using a version of CPM, then
it was migrated to a VAX, using VMS (the first modern virtual UNIX), then it
migrated to DataPoint on UNIX servers and finally to Linux servers. I
understand that it has now been abandoned (R.I.P) and replaced by an Oracle
DB with their PL/SQL language and their GUI FE but of course it is running
on Linux.
Things sure move fast in the computer world.
Jim
-----Original Message-----
From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Stuart McLachlan
Sent: Sunday, January 27, 2013 12:59 AM
To: Discussion of Hardware and Software issues
Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] database
I really liked it. It was my primary development environment between 86 and
93. First on
C/CPM then on DOS.
I built some major systems in it including the system used to track all the
material moved by
SAT for the construction of the Kutubu oil pipleine (up to 15 x 20 ton C130
loads per day for 3
years - one of the biggest civilian airlifts in history). Then when they
built the Lihir goldmine, I
wrote Ver 2 to manage the movement of everything for the construction by
barge from Lae
to Lihir.
I never got into the Windows version because I switched to Access in 93
(v1.1). But in it's
day it was very powerful and great for RAD. It was like Access/VBA in some
ways in that
you could do a lot of heavy coding inside forms and reports.
I was still occasionally writing mashups to suck data from DOS based
Dataflex accounting
systems into Access etc until about 10 years ago.
--
Stuart
On 26 Jan 2013 at 23:59, Jim Lawrence wrote:
> That is one of the few databases that I never worked with. Did some
reading
> up on it at the time but for some reason, probably that no contracts asked
> for it, never used it.
>
> What was it like to work with?
>
> Jim
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Stuart
McLachlan
> Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2013 10:24 PM
> To: Discussion of Hardware and Software issues
> Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] database
>
> 1989? You should have built it in Dataflex :-)
>
>
> On 26 Jan 2013 at 20:46, Jim Lawrence wrote:
>
> > Hi Shamil:
> >
> > This database had it beginning in 1989.
> >
> > Oracle was hardly noted in 1993 (but I did get a free copy), MS Access
was
> > just a toy until 1997 (Took a full two week training course in MS Access
> > (version 2) in 1993(?) fully paid for by Microsoft), R:Base was
excellent
> > but it needed virtually a server to run on or maybe a main-frame,
Paradox,
> > one of the first real desktop databases but not very multi-user
friendly,
> > then the whole Dbase series...only DBaseIII was good...did a lot of work
> on
> > this package and its various offspring; clipper and Foxbase (and
FoxPro).
> >
> > Foxbase was the first real database, fast and multi-user. Before that I
> was
> > building applications, in AcuCobol/Basic/Fortran on top of
Btrieve...fully
> > multi-user when running on a Novell LAN network (also ran on UNIX and
> > Xenix). Then there was Smartware (1984), the first full office suite,
that
> > was also fully programmable...even had a full modem and terminal
> > communications package. Other incredible databases that somehow pasted
> under
> > the radar were Clarion, very eloquent in design, would compile almost to
> > assembler and SuperBase, one of the fastest databases ever built...but
it
> > needed to remap the hard-drive. There were a number of other databases
but
> > the names escape me for now.
> >
> > The database in question was initially built in Informix on SCO
> UNIX/Xenix.
> > If there had been OSS Linux at the time, I would have never moved the
> > product to Windows. The windows version was a cross between Angoss, a
> > derivative of Smartware and Informix. Very fast and very reliable and I
> have
> > a full unlimited license as the IBM bought up Informix and the Windows
> > software division closed down.
> >
> > Minis and Mainframes (VAX) came before, the first age and Windows and
> Oracle
> > databases came after, the third age...and now the fourth age is is the
> > Internet. As you can see, I have a long and very messy history in
> databases
> >
> >
> > Jim
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> > [mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of
Salakhetdinov
> > Shamil
> > Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2013 5:20 PM
> > To: Discussion of Hardware and Software issues
> > Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] database
> >
> > Hi Jim --
> >
> > <<<
> > there was no Oracle, Linux, MySQL etc etc...
> > >>>
> > But Oracle was available already - twenty years ago - in January 1993:
> >
> > - Oracle - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle_Database
> >
> > as well as:
> >
> > - dBase - http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/DBase
> > - R:Base - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R:Base
> > - Paradox - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_(database )
> > - MS Access - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Access
> > - dbVista (Raima Data Manager) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raima
> > - ...
> >
> > Have you used file system "database" that "ancient" times to get your
POS
> > software to fit into memory?
> > Are you still keeping (some of) your POS application system production
and
> > history data out of a database?
> >
> > Thank you.
> >
> > -- Shamil
> >
> > , 26 2013, 16:40 -08:00 "Jim Lawrence" <accessd at shaw.ca>:
> > >Constraints? What's a constraint? ;-)
> > >
> > >What's all that fancty talk...this database is over twenty years old,
> there
> > >was no Oracle, Linux, MySQL etc etc...
> > >
> > >Jim
> > >
> > >-----Original Message-----
> > >From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> > >[mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of
> Hans-Christian
> > >Andersen
> > >Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2013 4:15 PM
> > >To: Discussion of Hardware and Software issues
> > >Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] database
> > >
> > >
> > >Does this database have constraints in any shape or form? If the
database
> > is
> > >capable of constraints (most modern databases do, but older ones, I
feign
> > >ignorance) and it was implemented properly, it makes life a heck of a
lot
> > >easier, since you can a quick overview of the relationships between
> > >different tables - thus making your life easier.
> > >
> > >- Hans
> > >
> > >
> > >On 2013-01-26, at 11:28 AM, "Jim Lawrence" < accessd at shaw.ca > wrote:
> > >
> > >> Hi Gustav:
> > >>
> > >> I do have incredible confidence in you guys.
> > >>
> > >> It never hurts to be a little overly cautious with these sort of
events
> > >and
> > >> who knows, there may be a obvious "got-ya" that I have over-looked.
> > >>
> > >> Jim
> > >>
> > >> -----Original Message-----
> > >> From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> > >> [mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Gustav
> Brock
> > >> Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2013 10:50 AM
> > >> To: dba-tech at databaseadvisors.com
> > >> Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] database
> > >>
> > >> Hi Jim
> > >>
> > >> I must say you have great confidence in us. After a couple of months'
> > >> planning you ask for good advice within the hour!
> > >>
> > >> That said, and as already mentioned, I would certainly look for
setting
> > >> cascade deletes.
> > >>
> > >> /gustav
> > <<< skipped >>>
> > >
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>
>
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