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R O B E L L E T R I A L H A N D B O O K This trial tape contains two products: QEDIT for HP e3000 SUPRTOOL for HP e3000 Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. Suite 201, 15399-102A Ave. Surrey, B.C. Canada V3R 7K1 Toll-free: 1.888.robelle (1.888.762.3553) Phone: 604.582.1700 Fax: 604.582.1799 E-mail: support@robelle.com Web: www.robelle.com September 2000 Program and Manual Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1981-2001 Permission is granted to reprint this document (but not for profit), provided that copyright notice is given. QEDIT and SUPRTOOL are trademarks of Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. How to Install Your Robelle Trial Thank you for taking the time to evaluate Robelle's software tools for the HP e3000. The enclosed tape contains trial copies of two products: QEDIT full-screen text editor SUPRTOOL fast database extractor These notes show you, step by step, how to install the trial tape and how to run the software. Do not use the installation instructions in the user manual because they are for licensed versions of the products, not for trial versions. The installation process takes only a few minutes. Follow the installation steps in this section, then refer to the product-specific information in subsequent sections of this handbook. If You Already Have Robelle Products The enclosed trial programs do not replace your existing versions of these products. You can safely install your trial even if you already have Qedit or Suprtool installed on your system. Installing the Trial If you are trying Qedit, you will probably want to use the interface to the compilers. Warn users not to compile (e.g., :Cobol, etc.) during the installation so that the install job can access the compilers. Step 1: Restore the Files You begin by restoring all the files from the tape. :hello manager.sys {log on as system manager} :file rtape; dev=tape {use appropriate device} :restore *rtape; @.@.robelle; create {restore everything} This restores all the files into the Robelle account, creating the account and groups if they don't already exist. Step 2: Set Up the Account and Groups The TrialA.Job.Robelle job ensures that the Robelle account and all its groups have the proper security and capabilities. :stream triala.job.robelle This job may prompt you for your Manager.Sys password(s). It will check whether the Robelle account has password protection against unwanted logon connections. If the Robelle account already existed with a password, that password will not be changed. If there was no password, the TrialA job will assign a random password to the account, and you will get a message similar to this: ==== Robelle Trial Installation ==== = For your protection, the Robelle = account has been assigned a = password of K1812711 ==================================== Wait for the job to send this completion message to the console and to Manager.Sys: ==== Robelle Trial Installation ==== = Robelle account is built. ==================================== Step 3: Install the Trial Programs The TrialB.Job.Robelle job sets up the trial programs. :stream trialb.job.robelle This job will prompt you for your Robelle account password, which may have been shown to you in the previous step. If the Robelle account already existed before restoring the files in step 1, the password remains unchanged from whatever it was before starting. Your successful trial installation displays the following message: ==== Robelle Trial Installation ==== = Robelle trial is fully installed. = = See the Robelle Trial Handbook = for product-specific information. ==================================== If you already had some Robelle products on your system before installing this trial, you will get a message listing the product components that could not be renamed from the trial distribution group to the production group. The message may be similar to this: ==== Robelle Trial Installation ==== = One or more trial programs could = not be installed into the Pub = group of Robelle, and are still in = the Pubtri group: = QEDIT = HOWMESSY = This is probably because you = already have a licensed = non-expiring version of the = program. Contact Robelle if you = don't think this is the case. ==================================== There is nothing wrong with putting a trial copy on your system if you already have a licensed version of the product. For example, if you already have Suprtool on your system and you ordered a trial of Suprtool with Allbase access, your licensed non-expiring version of Suprtool would still be in the Pub group, and the expiring trial of Suprtool+Allbase would be in the Pubtri group. In this case, you would run the trial version from Suprtool.Pubtri.Robelle instead of Suprtool.Pub.Robelle. If you have any questions, call our tech support staff. Check the Product-Specific Trial Notes When you have finished installing your trial, go to the appropriate section of this handbook for product-specific information. User Manuals and Help Files Your trial package includes a printed copy of the user manuals. Each printed manual also has a CD, which contains a copy of the manual in the WinHelp format of Microsoft Windows. You can use the Help command to access the entire user manual for your Robelle product in the form of on-line Help. If you need additional copies of the manual, you can print them yourself. You will find the manual files in the Doc and Qlibdoc groups. To print the manual files, use the Printdoc program. :run printdoc.pub.robelle Printdoc is menu-driven and very easy to use. Printdoc asks you for information; if you are unsure of the answer, you can ask for help by typing a question mark (?) and pressing the Return key. Printing a manual involves two steps: choose one of the manuals on the menu and select a printer. Printdoc supports most types of LaserJet printers and regular line printers. QLIB and Bonus Software QLIB is Robelle's library of contributed tools, which we provide free to our customers. We encourage you to experiment with this software. The Contributed and Bonus Software for the HP e3000 (Contents.Qlibdoc) has a complete list of the tools. With each trial, we include the following QLIB programs: Qcopy converts between Qedit and Keep files Prose formats text (supports the LaserJet) Pscreen copies your HP terminal screen to printer We also include these four Bonus programs with your trial: Select manages user menus HowMessy reports on database efficiency Spell checks English spelling Compare shows the differences between two files Spell requires an additional install job (Dictmain.Spjob.Robelle) to build the dictionaries on your system. For details, see the "Install the English Spelling Dictionary" section of this handbook. We hope you enjoy using these tools during your evaluation. Expiry of Trial Programs The programs on the trial tape will work only for a limited time, but it should be long enough for you to decide whether you want to license the software. Whenever you run a trial program, the program banner displays the number of days remaining in your trial period. For example, Qedit. Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1977-2001. (Version x.x Expiring) Expires in 28 days Licensee: DEMO - Mega Corp Inc. If you have started using the programs in your production and have become dependent on them, you should call us with your purchase order number before the software stops running. Call Us If You Need More Help We are happy to answer your questions on the installation and use of Robelle products. Technical support is available Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Standard Time at 1.888.robelle (1.888.762.3553). You will find that the Robelle techies are knowledgeable and friendly. They are also more than willing to help you get the most from the products you are evaluating. Getting Started with Qedit After installing your demo tape, try a few simple tasks to get a feel for the Qedit environment. For example, try editing the Qedit change notice file. The following set of commands will change text, undo the change, then go into Visual: :run qedit.pub.robelle /text qedit.docchg.robelle /change "Robelle"Xyzzy" all /undo /visual {press F8 to get out of Visual} You can use Qedit to examine any file in the Robelle account. For example, you can look at the file that contains the daily hints (these help you get the most out of Qedit): /l qedhint.help.robelle {display file on your terminal} /lq $lp qedhint.help.robelle {send it to line printer or LP} /exit { LQ hides line numbers} Installing the NM Compiler Interface If you are on MPE/iX, we suggest an additional installation step so that you will not need to use the Keep command before compiling. The trial installation job has copied the original compiler command files from Pub.Sys to Stdcmd.Sys as a backup. Now you need to stream the Qcompxl.Qeditjob.Robelle job to adjust the command files in Pub.Sys. You need to run the NM compilers with XL="qcompxl", a subroutine library that makes Qedit workfiles accessible to the compilers. Use the following commands to perform this step: :run qedit.pub.robelle /text qcompxl.qeditjob.robelle /modify first {insert Manager.Sys passwords} /stream * {launch current file as job} The Qcompxl job stream converts all the command files for COBOL, Pascal, FORTRAN, C, and RPG. From this point, you should be able to compile a Qedit file or a Keep file, either within Qedit or at the MPE/iX prompt, by invoking the usual command name. For example, :pasxl pasfile.source {at the MPE prompt} :run qedit.pub.robelle /pasxl pasfile.source {within Qedit} /pasxl * {the current file} Using Qedit with the Classic Compilers (MPE V, CM) Qedit works well on both MPE V and MPE/iX. When you installed the trial, the Robtrial job automatically installed the Qedit CM interface for the MPE V compilers. It is ready to go. The interface for MPE V compilers allows you to compile any source file from within Qedit, whether the format is a Qedit workfile or a Keep file. Use the Set Language command to define the language of your file (Set Lang Pas, Lang Fortran, etc.), and Set Whichcomp to select a compiler. To compile your file, either use the generic :Compile command or use the command for the specific compiler. For example, :run qedit.pub.robelle /text file.source {use Text on any source file} /set lang pascal {identify the language} /compile * {* is your current file} /pascal * /set lang cobol /set whichcomp cobol 85 /compile cobfile.source There is one limitation during your demo period: to compile from the MPE prompt, you must first use the Keep command on your file. You can remove this restriction after you purchase Qedit. Removing the Qedit Compiler Interfaces If at the end of your demo period you decide not to purchase Qedit, you will want to remove all the compiler interfaces. Use :Purgeacct Robelle to purge the CM interface; if you keep the Robelle account, purge the Q.Robelle group to remove the CM interface. The NM compiler interface is installed in the form of a set of changes to the compiler command files in Pub.Sys. To undo these changes, :Copy the original command files from Stdcmd.Sys to Pub.Sys: :hello manager.sys,pub :listf @.stdcmd :copy pasxl.stdcmd,pasxl.pub;yes {repeat for each command file} Installing the English Spelling Dictionary Qedit has built-in Spell and Words commands to check the spelling of English words. If you want to use these commands, the main dictionary file must be installed (or updated if you are already a Robelle user) by streaming the Dictmain job. By default, American spellings are selected. To use British spellings (for example, colour instead of color), set the SpellAmerican JCW to False. Although this job stream can take 30 to 60 minutes, you do not have to wait for it to finish before you go on to try the rest of Qedit. :run qedit.pub.robelle {or use :Editor} /text dictmain.spjob.robelle /modify first {Mgr.Robelle passwords} /modify "setjcw SpellAmerican" {for British spelling} /keep robtemp /exit :stream robtemp :purge robtemp {contains passwords} See the Spell User Manual for more details. Qedit is Customized for the Demo Period When you installed your demo tape, the Robtrial job customized Qedit for the benefit of novice users. When you run Qedit, it first executes the commands in a file called Qeditmgr.Pub.Robelle. This file contains the standard Set options for all Qedit users. For example, Set UDC On tells Qedit to search out your User Defined Commands and enable them for you. To see what options have been enabled for you, list the configuration file with the following command: :run qedit.pub.robelle /listq qeditmgr.pub.robelle q "This Qedit configured for new users." set tabs hp on {enable tab stops in Line mode} set window (upshift) {ignore case when string searching} set vis above 5 {show 5 lines above current line} set vis below 15 {show 15 lines below current line} set vis update on {read and update screen when browsing} set list page on {LP list has page numbers and heading} set udc on {Qedit recognizes and performs UDCs} set mod hp on {use D line edits instead of Control-D} You can also create Qeditmgr files for logon accounts or logon groups. To use these files, run Qedit with special Parms. :run qedit.pub.robelle;parm=1 {uses Qeditmgr.Pub} See the Qedit User Manual for more details on Qeditmgr files and different run Parms. Questions about Converting Qedit and Editor Files Q: How do I convert a file into the special Qedit format (file code = 111, compressed), giving the Qedit file a different name? A: /text efile; shut qfile {use your own file names} The Text command copies the contents of Efile into a temporary workfile called Qeditscr; the Shut command saves Qeditscr as a permanent Qedit file called Qfile. Q: How do I convert a Qedit file back to Editor format? A: /open qfile; keep efile The Open command makes Qfile the active or current file in Qedit; the Keep command copies the contents of Qfile to the Editor-style file called Efile. Q: How can I do the two conversions described above, but retain the original file name? A: /text efile; shut * /text qfile; keep The Shut * command retains the same file name that was used on the Text command; the Keep command without a file name uses the same file as the last Text command. Q: What happens at the end of my trial if I forget to convert my Qedit files back to Editor format? A: Don't worry, we won't hold your files for ransom. We supply a program called Qcopy.Qlib.Robelle (without an expiry date), which converts files to and from Qedit format. For example, use these commands to convert Qfile (a Qedit file) back to Editor format and retain the same file name: :run qcopy.qlib.robelle >from=qfile >exit Q: How can I convert a group of files into Qedit format without having to Text and Shut each one separately? A: Use our contributed program Qcopy. In the following example, all the files in the Source group are converted into Qedit format and put into their own new Qsource group (the originals are left in Keep files). :newgroup qsource :run qcopy.qlib.robelle >from=@.source; to=@.qsource; qedit >exit The syntax is almost identical to FCOPY. For more information, print the Qcopy user manual. :run printdoc.pub.robelle;info="qcopy.qlibdoc.robelle" Common Questions about Using Qedit Q: How do I cut and paste across files in Visual Qedit? A: To copy, type HH in the two blank columns to the left of the text on the first and last lines of your text, and press the Enter key. This puts the lines in a Hold file. Now Open or Text the other file, put the cursor at the line where you would like to add your lines, then type AH in the blank columns to add the lines from the Hold file. To move lines, type DD (just as you typed HH) to simultaneously delete and save lines. They are saved to a file called Hold0. Now Open or Text the other file and type A0 to add the lines from the Hold0 file. Q: How do I perform the Change, Append or List $lp commands while in Visual Qedit? A: You can type any Qedit or MPE command after "===>" at the top of the screen, then press F7 to execute the command. You do not need to keep track of line numbers if you mark the lines you want with ZZ (on the first and last line) and then use ZZ in the command: ===> change "pascal"pascale" zz Q: How can I get Reflection to transfer Qedit files between my PC and the HP e3000? A: Reflection's file transfer program, Pclink.Pub.Sys, knows how to read Qedit files, so you do not have to do anything special to receive Qedit files from the HP e3000. To create a file in Qedit format when you return a PC file to the HP e3000, append ;Q to the host file name. Q: Doesn't Qedit Modify use Control-D to Delete instead of D? A: Yes, the default Modify in Qedit does use control characters, which allow you to do many edits in one pass, with many powerful functions such as append, split, splice, etc. But the Robtrial installation job configured Qedit to use HP-style Modify instead, so that you would have less to learn. To switch to the Qedit-style Modify, use Set Mod Robelle. The difference between Set Modify Robelle and Set Modify HP is that the invisible control characters allow you to line up your changes with the characters being edited on the line above. You always know where you are because the cursor stays beneath the current character. For a complete list of control characters and their functions, type Help Modify. Qedit has another Modify option, Set Mod Qzmodify, which is a what-you-see-is-what-you-get version of Qedit modify. Because Qzmodify uses single-character reads, it is not recommended on networks (imagine single-character packets!) or on the MPE/iX DTC (which is like a network). Q: When I try to open a file, what does the following message mean? /open data66 DATA66 Error: you can only Open Qedit workfiles (code=111) A: It means the file is not in Qedit format. The Open command works only on Qedit files, which can be identified by their "111" code when you do a Listf command. If you get this message, you should use the Text command, not Open. Getting Started with Suprtool Suprtool provides access to your data many times faster than other programs and enables you to perform time-consuming DP functions easily with a few simple commands. The typical Suprtool task consists of extracting some data for a report, then feeding the Suprtool output file into the final report program. For example, you might fill a Quiz subfile with the subset of qualified records, then feed that subfile into the Quiz report program for final reporting. The Suprtool package consists not only of Suprtool, but also of other programs that perform useful database functions. These programs include STExport and Suprlink. STExport: Data Export Utility STExport converts fields in a self-describing input file into a delimited output file that can be imported into many different applications. It can be called from within Suprtool (via the Export command) or as a stand-alone program (:Run STExport.Pub. Robelle). Suprlink: Multi-Dataset Access Suprlink is a program that works with Suprtool to add multidataset capability to Suprtool. To use it, you must :Run Suprlink.Pub. Robelle or use Suprtool's Link command. Try the On-Line Demo The Suprtool on-line demo walks you through the basic Suprtool features. It describes the concept of tasks and shows the common commands used to speed up access to your data. It gives a brief introduction to Suprlink, which is used to combine information from multiple sources into one file. To start the demo, just invoke the UDC that we provide: :setcatalog udc.demo.robelle :sdemo The demo is designed to give you an overview of Suprtool's capabilities so that you will want to experiment on your own. Use Suprtool to Accelerate Slow Batch Reports You achieve the maximum benefit from Suprtool when you use it with your slowest report. Typically, Suprtool can produce the same report five times faster. But you need to modify your report program to read a file instead of a dataset. Native Mode and Compatibility Mode Suprtool is available in native mode (NM) for MPE/iX and compatibility mode (CM) for MPE V, with the same features in both modes. You can compare Suprtool's serial read speed for TurboIMAGE datasets and MPE files against other programs, both in NM and CM. On MPE V systems, Suprtool has improved the performance of these serial reads by two to ten times. On MPE/iX systems, Suprtool can do serial reads up to eight times faster than usual, but the improvements are typically greater on MPE V. Suprtool can achieve these performance improvements because it can bypass most of the MPE V operating system, but it cannot bypass the MPE/iX virtual page manager. These results from one MPE/iX test show Suprtool's potential. In this test, Suprtool scanned a large detail dataset that was absent from memory, checked each record, but did not write an output file. The test measured raw serial read capability. Suprtool was 2.5 times faster than a standard NM program, and it used only one-seventh the CPU time. When the whole dataset was in memory, Suprtool completed the task over nine times faster than an NM program calling DBGET in mode-2. Comparison of elapsed time; dataset not in memory CPU time NM program 115 seconds Suprtool 17 seconds Wall time NM program 120 seconds Suprtool 47 seconds Comparison of elapsed time; dataset in memory CPU time NM program 109 seconds Suprtool 12 seconds Wall time NM program 112 seconds Suprtool 12 seconds If You Are CPU-Bound Suprtool uses the technology of multi-record access (NOBUF/MR) to achieve large reductions in CPU overhead. In many cases Suprtool reduces CPU overhead to one-eighth the overhead of serial DBGETS. On a CPU-bound MPE/iX system, these significant savings mean that you can run Suprtool without excessively burdening your CPU as other programs do. Analyzing Performance Data It is better to test Suprtool with your own database and your own application needs than to trust a generic performance test. The ideal test is an actual production report whose poor performance is causing problems. If Suprtool delivers improved results on an established report, you know you can achieve even greater speed in actual practice. Use Suprtool as a front end to your problem reports; produce a small extract file that contains just the fields and records needed for your final program. Once you get that working, consider using Suprlink to combine data from other files or datasets. For comparison purposes, run your Suprtool test at the same time you would normally run the original program. You will not get a fair comparison if you compare a stand-alone midnight run against a midday run, or if you compare two runs in succession, in which case MPE/iX would benefit the second run by already having the files in memory. A Case Study - Get vs Chain You have several choices when you decide how to extract the data for your report. One user had a report that consumed 18 hours on his Series 955. With only a short window for batch processing each night, the job at this site spilled over into the prime shift. By the time the report finished, it was a day late and a new report was running. His boss was considering going to a 960 to reduce the job time. The programmer tried Suprtool as a front end, but it only reduced the time to 15 hours. When he called Robelle in disappointment, we investigated his application. He had used the Chain command, which he thought would be the fastest search path, because he had a TurboIMAGE search item for his key values. When we suggested a serial Get command instead of a random-access Chain command, the job time fell to 4.5 hours. Get was faster than Chain, even though it had to look at every entry in the dataset. Why? Get reads many contiguous records with each access to MPE, while Chain must call TurboIMAGE to retrieve each chain entry. Since the entries on the chain are seldom in the same disc block, the Chain command generated many more disc accesses, which were randomly distributed over the disc space. In this situation, the user was selecting 11% of the dataset (261,230 out of 2,307,685 entries). Chain had to do about 424,000 random disc reads, while Get did only 14,471 serial reads, a reduction of 97%. On the other hand, the Chain command would have been faster if the user had selected fewer than 15,000 entries. You can use the Set Statistics On command to see how many disc reads a Get command uses; if the number of reads is less than the number of entries selected, Get is usually faster than Chain. What Is Faster and What Is Not? Not all parts of the Suprtool product give equal performance boosts. The primary technology of Suprtool is large NOBUF/MR reads and writes. By asking the operating system for many records at once instead of invoking the system software for each record, Suprtool can dramatically reduce the CPU overhead of a task. This technology is present when you use the Input and Get commands, but not the Chain command. For some tasks the Get command must revert to using the slower standard database reads, in which case it always prints a warning. If and Extract Can Be Faster The If and Extract commands are very powerful when reducing a large input file to a small output file that contains just the selected data. Although these commands are reasonably efficient, they usually consume as much processing time as the serial read itself. The If command does partial evaluation of expressions. That means you should place the tests that are most likely to fail at the start of the expression, and place the table lookups (which are slower) at the end. Arranging the expression in this order minimizes overhead. If you use the Extract command, you can reduce the size of the output record and greatly improve sort times (if all sort keys are extracted). Sort Is Faster on MPE/iX The use of HP sort intrinsics in Suprtool/V means that sort times should not change much on MPE V. Suprtool/iX uses its own built-in sort algorithm, which is typically faster than the HP intrinsics. Put and Delete Run at MPE Speed The Put and Delete commands are the biggest source of overhead in Suprtool. These commands call the same TurboIMAGE intrinsics that are called by your programs; they do not use NOBUF/MR. There is a way to improve their speed, but it comes with many caveats and warnings (see Set Defer command). The Dbedit subsystem, an interactive editor for dataset entries and chains of entries, does not use NOBUF/MR. Dbedit is strictly a convenience, not a performance aid. Suprlink Is Usually Faster Suprlink is a tool that links fields from multiple files with a common key value into a single file. It links sorted files which Suprtool extracts from IMAGE datasets, and KSAM and MPE files. Suprlink uses NOBUF/MR techniques, and in many cases gives you an improvement in performance over random database accesses. However, if you must repeatedly sort files with large records, Suprlink may not help you. Performance is optimized if you extract only the fields you need from each input source record, not the entire record. Speed Demon Is Faster Speed Demon, an intrinsic library for 3GL programs, provides a high-speed replacement for TurboIMAGE serial Gets. The NM version returns records at the same speed and with the same low CPU overhead as Suprtool. Consider calling Speed Demon in your programs when you need to process more than 50% of the records in a file; it eliminates the need to read Suprtool's output file. Obtaining Accurate Measurements The performance results obtained from Suprtool, as with any program, vary according to the record and sort sizes, the number of records, and the current efficiency of your application. Measuring performance on any computer system is a challenge, but it is especially challenging on MPE/iX, with its demand-paged virtual memory and complex scheduler. Some tests do not show such a marked improvement as the examples we describe. We recommend that you test Suprtool against your own database. Suprtool works best when selecting a small subset of a big dataset. The bigger the dataset and the smaller the percentage extracted, the better the performance improvement. Once you have selected a task to measure, the difficulty of making a fair comparison arises. This can be trickier than it seems. For example, if you run your regular task first on MPE/iX, then run the Suprtool task, you will almost certainly find the Suprtool task faster, simply because the first task has made most of the data resident in memory. At Robelle, we are confident in our performance measurements because we follow these guidelines: 1. We do every test at least five times. It is rare for each test to be identical. 2. The results of all MPE/iX performance tests are affected by how much of the file is in memory. We use the Klondike Nugget (available from Lund Performance Solutions) to measure how much of our test files is in memory before we start each test. 3. We start each test by flushing all files out of memory. We do this with the unsupported Fflush tool. This program is difficult to obtain (unfortunately we cannot give you a copy), and you probably need a new version for each new release of MPE/iX. You might try getting a copy from your HP SE. 4. We run tests in the middle of the night and make sure that no other sessions or jobs are running during each test. Performance Summary Suprtool is a performance tool not because every Suprtool command is always fast, but because performance is one of our top priorities for new features. We always look for the fastest way to do any task, even if that means Suprtool can't be quite as flexible as other software tools. The Suprtool User Manual contains application notes on using Suprtool with development environments, such as Quiz, Transact, COBOL, and others. Look in the index for your favorite tool (Quiz users, for example, check the index for "Quiz report writer"). Allbase Databases Suprtool now supports Allbase databases. You can open an Allbase database with the Open command and choose input tables with the Select command. For more details, see the Suprtool Change Notice included with this trial package. Using Suprtool with IMAGE Suprtool speeds up programs that serially read and select data from big IMAGE datasets. Suprtool performs best when you are selecting less than 50% of the entries from the dataset (for more information see the Speed Demon User Manual). To replace a serial scan of a dataset, follow these steps: 1. Use the Get and If commands of Suprtool to scan and select the entries you need. 2. You have an option to sort the records with Suprtool and extract only the fields that you need. 3. Use the Output command to write the selected records to an MPE file. 4. Change the application program to read the MPE file instead of the IMAGE dataset. This step gives each record in the file exactly the same layout as a record from the dataset. Using Suprtool with MPE and KSAM Files Reports that read MPE or KSAM files can also benefit from Suprtool's speed. Follow the same steps as above, with these exceptions: 1. Use the Input command to select the input file. 2. You need to use the Define command to inform Suprtool about fields in your file. You Define only the fields that you need in the If or Extract commands. 3. Follow steps 2 through 4 above. Suprtool and Quiz/QTP You can use Suprtool to significantly speed up serial extracts with 4GLs and application systems. In many cases the changes to existing applications are minor. The "Suprtool and PowerHouse Applications" section in the Suprtool User Manual describes one way to link Quiz, a product of PowerHouse, with Suprtool, without making any changes to the PowerHouse dictionary. Suprtool does a fast preliminary scan of the largest dataset and feeds the selected results into Quiz for final reporting. Common Questions about Suprtool Q: Can Suprtool improve the speed of my Query reports? A: Suprtool's output is an MPE file. Although Query can't produce a report directly from an MPE file, it's possible, with qualifications, to substantially speed up Query reports using Suprtool and an empty copy of the database. The Suprtool User Manual describes the method (check the index for "Query program"). Q: Can I produce reports with Suprtool itself? A: Yes, you can use Suprtool to produce the data for your report programs. Suprtool can usually extract your data many times faster than a report writer. Suprtool creates extract files that are passed to your report programs. Suprtool's List command is handy for quick-and-dirty reports, but it is not intended to be a full report writer. Q: Can Suprtool do something like a Quiz Link command? A: The Suprlink program may help you. It can be even faster than Quiz Link, but it is less general in scope. See the Suprlink User Manual for details. What to Do When You Complete Your Evaluation Thank you for participating in this Robelle trial. We hope you have been able to see just how much our products can do for you. RECYCLING NOTE: Instead of throwing away the trial tape or spending money to return it to us, feel free to re-use the tape for your backups. You can pass the manuals on to another HP e3000 user if you like. Ordering Robelle Products If you would like to order any of the Robelle products, call us with your purchase order number, and we will ship you a licensed (non-expiring) tape. Software Support When you buy a Robelle product, you receive free software support for one full year. This entitles you to technical support, our What's Up, DOCumentation? newsletter, all the helpful tools in QLIB, and the next update tape for your product. Cleaning Up Your System Please purge the trial programs from your system. Be sure not to purge the licensed Robelle programs that you have on your system. If you do not have any licensed products, it is safe to log on as Manager.Sys and purge the entire Robelle account (i.e., :Purgeacct Robelle). If you do this on an MPE/iX system, you need to copy @.Stdcmd.Sys to @.Pub.Sys so that you restore the original command files for HP's NM compilers. If you have licensed products, you have to purge the trial programs individually. The documentation for each product contains a list of file names for the trial product (e.g., Qedit.Pub.Robelle includes file names for Qedit trial, etc.). If you have experimented with Qedit and still have some of your files in Qedit format, do not purge the program Qcopy.Qlib. You need this program to convert files back to Editor format. For more details, see the "Questions About Converting Qedit and Editor Files" section above.