Shareware Overload/ShartewareOverload.cdr/database/rbnotes1.zip/RBASE1.NOT

Text File | 1986-11-06 | 160KB | 4,101 lines

SDF   ,
                   NEWS FROM TECH SUPPORT, #1
              -----------------------------------
This is a new feature.  Rather than having you sort thru all the messages to
find the new info, we will post it here first and then put it in the message
section later.  We will be trying to keep you up to date on the latest and
greatest ideas, tips, problems, workarounds, etc. as they happen.

IMPORTANT:  We are trying to establish how effective this board is to users.
   Please leave a message with your feelings about it in the General area of
   the message section.  Your input is vital to the maintenance and improvement
   of this board.

1) 2 new books about R:base products:
          -Using R:base 4000
             by J. Erickson and N. Baran
             publisher: Osborne Mcgraw-Hill
          -The Book of R:base
             by G. Roeder
             publisher: All-Hands-On Press
2) Filegateway:  When transferring data from Lotus, many people have commented
      that sometimes integer data in Lotus comes thru as real data in R:base.
      The reason for this is that Lotus allows 16 bits for storage of an
      integer value, 32000 is the largest integer that can be stored.  Over
      this, the number is stored internally by Lotus as a real value, even
      though it is displayed on the screen as an integer.  Use the following
      guidelines:
            numbers <= 32000 : will be transferred as integer unless there is
                               a decimal point and a number past the decimal.
            numbers > 32000  : will be transferred as real
      Also remember that Filegateway will look at ALL data values in the
      incoming file before assigning the data type, so even if there is only
      one value > 32000, it will be assigned to a real data type.
3) If you are running on a hard disk, but you have to boot it from a floppy
         disk, it can be annoying when it looks to the floppy drive for
         command.com when you exit a program.  To avoid this, put the
         following command in your config.sys file on the floppy booter,
         and put a copy of command.com on the root directory of your
         hard disk.
             SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM C:\ /P
4) If you are doing string concatenation (ie firstnm & lstnm), if the total
         number of characters is the same for two consecutive rows, a character
         from the first row will drop into the space in the second row.  To
         fix this, there are two things you can do:
            1) break on firstnm and reset the concatenated variable.
            2) outside report writer, set a variable "space" to "alt 255"
               (alt 255 is the decimal value of the ascii blank)
               Inside report writer, define the following variables:
                   x1 = firstnm + .space
                   name = x1 + lastnm
5) Reports - how to print a grand total with no detail.
         Mark your report with report headers and report footers, and locate
         your grand total on one of the footer lines.  It is not possible to
         do this procedure without a break of some kind, so what you can do
         is set a report variable to a constant (ie v1 = 3) and set a break
         level on that variable.  Don't mark any break headers or footers and
         don't reset any variables.
6) When running an application created in Express, many people have mentioned
         that the rules they had defined were not being displayed on the
         screen.  If the rule was violated, the machine would beep, but no
         error message would be displayed.  This is because Express sets the
         error messages off and messages off, and it thinks of these messages
         as error messages.  All you need to do is insert a custom in Express
         and set the error messages on before loading data, and set them off
         again when you're all finished loading (or editing) data.
7) Time arithmetic:  the only form of time arithmetic that you can do is
         time - time = integer (# of seconds).
8) This was not a documented feature in R:base 4000, but if you hit the F2
         key during data entry or editing using forms, it would clear every-
         thing to the right of the cursor.  This is not available in R:base
         5000 because they are using F2 for other functions.
9) XRW - If you are using DOS 3.1, XRW will not output to the printer. You
         will get an error that says there is an error creating the output
         file.  Workaround:  output to a disk file, and use the DOS print
         command to print the file to the printer.
10) In command files, you can use variables as the row, column specifiers
         in "at 11,12" statements.  ie "at .line,.clmn".  This is very
         useful for controlling screen positions.
11) After loading R:base 5000, if you try to open a database and get the
         error "out of file handles" and "unable to open file", it means that
         you did not properly configure your system.  You need to have a
         config.sys file on your root directory or boot disk, and reboot
         your machine afterwards.    (config.sys should say files=20)
12) If you are trying to convert from R:base 4000 to R:base 5000, and your
         convert program seemed to run very quickly and gave the message
         "conversion complete", but it didn't seem to do anything, it is
         probably because the database was not open.  What has happened
         in many cases is that people do not properly configure their system
         (config.sys -->files=20) and when the program tries to open the
         database, it gives an error -out of file handles- unable to open
         database.  However, messages are set off so you never see it.
         You need to go back and configure your system properly and then
         run the convert program one more time.

tech notes 2
                   NOTES FROM TECH SUPPORT, #2
                ---------------------------------
Notes from Sysop:
      -Instead of converting all these items to messages, I am going to be
       putting each editorial file in Files area, Demos section.  They will
       be numbered, so if you call and find out that you missed one, you
       can download or type out the other editorials.
      -A HUGE thank-you to all of you who are leaving messages supporting this
       BBS!   (pssst - I think it's working!)
      -Just wanted to let you know that we will be undergoing some changes in
       the operating procedures of this BBS from our end in the next few weeks.
       Hopefully you won't notice any changes, but if you do, please bear with
       us until we get our new people and procedures in place.

1)  IBM Enhanced Color Graphics appears to work with R:base 5000.

2)  When to use variable forms instead of table forms:
         - whenever you wish to input data from one form into more than
           one table.
         - when multi-page forms are desired
         - when you want to display some data on a data entry form that
           cannot be edited
         - when "lookups" are desired
           ie - you want the operator to enter the customer number and
            R:base to display the customer's name, address, etc.)
         - when on-screen calculations are needed
         - when you want to load information from the screen into variables
           instead of directly into a table
3)  How to clear a portion of the screen when using variable forms:
         - A) create a "blank" form.  To do this, you must use the edit mode
           in forms to put an "alt 255" in the upper left and lower right
           corners of the form.  By doing this, the form appears blank even
           though it actually has two characters on it.  (Variable forms must
           have some characters on it, it can't be completely blank).
           You can then draw this form at any particular point on the screen.
           The only limitation is that you can only "draw" five times before
           doing a "newpage".
         - B) Another way to clear a portion of the screen is to use the "write"
           command.
                   write "   (40 blanks)   " at 11,1
                   write "   (40 blanks)   " at 11,40
             and repeat for each line you want cleared
         - C) You can also use the "write" command to write 80 blanks:
                   write " ........(lots of blanks - total of 80).......+
                   ......" at 11,1
         - D) To clear several lines, use the method described in C) within
              a while loop:
                   set var line to 11
                   while line lt 24 then
                     write "   (the 80 blank method described in C)
                           " at .line,1
                     set v line to .line + 1
                   endw
         - E) This method involves more typing, but it appears to be a little
              quicker than method D).  Use the method described in C), but
              repeat each write statement for each line you want cleared:
                   write "  (80 blanks)
                         " at 11,1
                   write "  (80 blanks)
                         " at 12,1
                   write "  (80 blanks)
                         " at 13,1
                   etc., etc.
         - F) The last method appears to be the fastest of all.  It involves
              the use of the "alt 255" special character.  You use one
              "write" statement with as many lines as needed of alt 255's.
                   write "....(use your F4 repeat key to repeat an alt255)....
                   ...........................................................
                   ...........................................................
                   ........do this for how ever many lines you want to clear..
                   .........." at 11,1
4) To select all rows for a particular month, day, or year, use wildcards.
   The only rule for wildcards with dates is that you must include the
   delimiters:
         ...where tdate = */14/*
         ...where tdate = */*/85
         ...where tdate = jun/*/*
         ...where tdate = "jun 14/*"
         ...where tdate = */*/85
         ...where tdate = */*/1985
5)  If you are a consultant or VAR and would like to have your name in our
         consultant list, please write a letter to that effect to:
             VAR/Consultant Manager
             Microrim, Inc.
             3380 - 146th PL SE
             Bellevue, WA  98007
6)  XRW - We have a reported workaround for the problem of not being able to
    DOS  output a report to the printer (you have to output to a file and then
    3.1  use the DOS print command to send it to the printer).  When prompted
         for the output device, type in PRN: instead of PRINTER.
7)  If you are having "strange" problems with programs hanging during loading
         or in some cases during operation, check to see if you have any
         programs installed in memory.  In almost all cases, if you remove
         these memory-resident programs, the R:base programs (Express, Gateway,
         etc.) will work fine.
8)  A few notes about the operation of this board.
         - If you try calling and it rings and rings and never answers, it is
           because I am on.
         - If you want to escape out of reading the logon files (new product
           info, etc.) hit ^C.
9)  Reading the answers to the questionnaire question about making the BBS
         user list available, it appears that you are split just about
         even.  Therefor, to avoid any conflict, it will be voluntary.
         If you leave your name, city, st, phone (optional), and what kind
         of applications you're into, I will put this information in a text
         file and put it in one of the Files areas.  I would encourage you
         to become involved in this because a great deal of valuable infor-
         mation is available from other users working on the same type of
         application as you.
10) A user has very generously contributed a utility that allows you to run
         R:base 4000 in color.  I am putting it in the DEMOS section of the
         Files area.  We have not done extensive testing on it, but he tells
         me he hasn't had any major problems with it.
11) There is a new version of LABELS.MAC called NEWLAB.MAC in the Applic
         area of the Files section.  There is also another method for
         doing many-up lables called LAB2.CMD, which uses an altogether
         different approach.

tech notes 3
******************************************
NOTES #3 FROM TECH SUPPORT - JULY 12, 1985
******************************************

We will be putting new issues of this file on every 2 or 3
weeks and will be rotating the authorship among all the TECH
SUPPORT ANALYSTS so you will find a variety of writing
styles.  We will also be publishing much of this info in
the R:base EXCHANGE.

Back issues of these notes can be found in the FILES
section.



**************************
SAVING RESULTS OF COMMANDS
**************************

It is often useful to save the results of some R:base
commands in a table of their own.  For example, you might
want to save:

o  Subtotals and other calculated information from a report
o  The results of a tally command
o  The results of a directory (to keep a table of your
   files).

This can be accomplished by sending output to a file and
then loading the file into a previously defined table.  For
example, to store the results of a TALLY command you would:

1. set mess, err mess, and bell off
2. output to a filename
3. issue your TALLY command line
4. output terminal
5. load the file as ascii into your table (defined with 1

text column to hold the item and 1 integer column to hold
the number of occurances.
6. check the first row and if it has garbage in it then
delete it.

Similarly, if you have 31 daily backup datafiles to be
loaded into a table, you can do it without having to enter
31 commands at the keyboard.  Simply copy the 31 files to
your hard disk (making sure that they are the only files
with a .BAK extension in the current directory) and use the
following command file to do all the work overnight:

OUT TEMPFILE.DAT
DIR *.BAK
OUT TERMINAL
OPEN dbname
DEFINE
COL
FILENAME TEXT 8
TAB
FILES WITH FILENAME
END
LOAD FILES FROM TEMPFILE.DAT AS ASCII
DEL ROWS FRO FILES WHE LIM = 2
DEL ROWS FRO FILES WHE COU = LAS
SET VAR LIMIT INTEGER
SET VAR COUNTER INTEGER
COM LIMIT AS ROWS FROM FILES
WHILE COUNTER LE .LIMIT THEN
  SET VAR CURFILE TEXT
  SET VAR CURFILE TO FILENAME IN FILES WHE COU = .COUNTER
  SET VAR CURFILE TO .CURFILE + ".BAK"
  LOAD tblname FROM .CURFILE AS ASCII
  SET VAR COUNTER = .COUNTER + 1
ENDWHILE

The SET POINTER command was not used because in this case,
where only one access is made to a particular row, SET
POINTER will not save any time.



*************************
BACK UP YOUR APPLICATIONS
*************************

As a general rule we recommend that you backup all three of
your application files before going into EXPRESS to change
an application.  Before erasing any of your application
backups be sure to fully test your current version to ensure
that it is completely operational.



*************
EXPRESS QUIRK
*************

If you have a column defined as TEXT with a length of 10 or
more and you are entering only numbers into it, you may have
trouble pulling up your record using only the EDIT option if
you are requesting a value at execution time.  The reason
for this is that the EXPRESS does not currently allow you to
put a TEXT datatype on the FILLIN variable used in the EDIT
command.

To avoid this problem, use RBEDIT on your .APP file to add
the code necessary to TYPE the FILLIN variable.  Remember
that after using RBEDIT you should not go back and attempt
changes with EXPRESS or your changes will be obliterated.
After making the change, use RCOMPILE to make a new
procedure file (the .APP file is the application file and
the .APX file is the current procedure file - but you can
give it any name you choose).

An alternative workaround is to use EXPRESS but do not use
the EDIT pick.  Instead, use the CUSTOM pick and write the
four lines of code yourself.  Your code will be similar to
the following:

SET VAR WHVAL TEXT
FILLIN WHVL USING "ENTER THE CODE NUMBER YOU WANT: "
EDIT USING formname WHERE colname EQ .WHVAL
CLEAR WHVAL



*******************************
PROBLEMS WITH PRINTING REPORTS?
*******************************

If you have problems when printing your reports it may be
setting for the number of lines per page inside your report.
Try putting the setting at 58 or 60 lines (using the SET
option in the REPORTS command.  Do not set it to be equal to
the number of lines per page (usually 66) or extra pages may
eject when printing your reports.

In general your setting should be equal to the number of
lines you want to print per page.



****************************
SUBTOTALING WITH R:BASE 4000
****************************

Subtotaling with R:base 5000 can easily be accomplished by
using the report writer.  Subtotaling in R:base 4000 can be
accomplished using the method described below.

Customers often want to add up the balance on each of their
accounts (all the invoices minus all the payments) and store
it in a BALANCE field for each of the accounts.

Here is a method.  This method assumes that you have two
relations - one (INVOICES) with the various invoice charges
and payments in it (i.e., a transaction file) and a second
relation (ACCOUNTS) with all the account numbers in it
(i.e., the master relation).  The ACCOUNTS master relation
has only one record per account with all the information
such as the account number, name, address, phone number,
etc. and has one additional field BALANCE that holds the
current balance for the account.

The RUNBALS.CMD below is run every night to put the new
balances into the master ACCOUNTS relation, thus always
keeping the account balance information current.
Admittedly, this is slow but it does work.

LISTING OF RUNBALS.CMD:
COMPUTE LIMIT1 AS ROWS FROM ACCOUNTS
SET VAR COUNTER1 = 1
WHILE COUNTER1 LE .LIMIT1 THEN
  SET VAR VACCT# TO ACCT# IN ACCOUNTS WHE COUNT = .COUNTER1
  SET VAR COUNTER1 TO .COUNTER1 + 1
  COM LIMIT2 AS COU ACCT# FRO INVOICES WHE ACCT# = .VACCT#
  SET VAR COUNTER2 = 1
  SET VAR BAL TO $0.00
    WHILE COUNTER2 LE .LIMIT2 THEN
      SET VAR INV$ TO INVAMT IN INVOICES WHE +
        ACCT# = .VACCT# AND COUNT = .COUNTER2
      SET VAR PAY$ TO PAYAMT IN INVOICES WHE +
        ACCT# = .VACCT# AND COUNT = .COUNTER2
      SET VAR BAL TO .BAL + .INV$
      SET VAR BAL TO .BAL - .PAY$
      SET VAR COUNTER2 TO .COUNTER2 + 1
    ENDWHILE
  CHA NEWBAL TO .BAL IN ACCOUNTS WHE ACCT# = .VACCT#
ENDWHILE

Voila!! there you have it.  It works because WHE COU = n
will find the nth occurance of the item meeting the rest of
the where clause.  This allows you to write one devil of a
subtotaling command file.

The only teeny little problem with this method is that
it will not work with keys.  You may, therefore, want to
delete keys at the beginning of the procedure and then
rebuild them again at the bottom.

Also, do not forget that you do not want any NULL values in
the INVAMT and PAYAMT fields, so you might want to use the
CHANGE command before running the RUNBALS.CMD to change all
null fields to zero.

tech notes 4
******************************************
NOTES #4 FROM TECH SUPPORT - JULY 26, 1985
******************************************

This is issue number 4 in our series of bi-weekly technical
tips.  Back issues can be found in the FILES section.



********************************************
AUTOMATICALLY FILLING IN PORTIONS OF COLUMNS
********************************************

Using variable forms along with the string concatenation
feature of R:base 5000 it is easy to automatically fill in
portions of fields eliminating the need for operators to
enter such things as:

o  Dashes in social security numbers.
o  Parentheses and dashes in telephone numbers.
o  Slashes in DATE columns.
o  Colons and seconds on TIME columns when all you have is
   hours and minutes.
o  Commas, decimal points, and/or dollar signs in numbers.

All the operator need do is enter the appropriate numbers
directly from the number pad.  This can save alot of data
entry time and improve the productivity of your application.
At the same time the column is displayed on the screen with
all the special characters to aid in reading and verifying
accuracy.

This feature is easily implemented using variable forms with
the concatenations taking place before a record is loaded
into the table with the LOAD command.  This way you can also
do all your error trapping before actually adding the record
to the database.

Use the following steps to implement this idea.

1.  Using the FORMS command set up your variable form and
    locate a text variable for each portion of the column
    that you want to split into pieces leaving a space
    between the end of one (E) and the beginning of the next
    (S).  Then go into edit mode and put the separation
    character between each of the pieces.

    For example, social security numbers have 3 pieces
    separated by dashes.  You could name these variables
    VSSN1, VSSN2, and VSSN3.  Now during data entry the
    operator will be bouncing over the dashes to enter the
    various pieces and will still be able to read the final
    result easily because the dashes will be on the screen.

2.  Before loading the SSN into the data base you would want
    to concatenate the three pieces together by using the
    following commands:

    SET VAR VSSN TO .VSSN1 + "-"
    SET VAR VSSN TO .VSSN + .VSSN2
    SET VAR VSSN TO .VSSN + "-"
    SET VAR VSSN TO .VSSN + .VSSN3

The variable to use in the LOAD command would be .VSSN.  Any
error trapping tests should be performed prior to loading
VSSN to the database.  Remember that RULES work only with
table forms, not with variable forms.

Using this same idea you can automatically insert commas,
dollar signs, and/or decimals in long numeric fields when
they are all going to have the same number of commas (e.g.,
they will all be over 1,000 but under 1,000,000).  Again
this allows the best of both worlds - easy readability along
with fast data entry.



**************************************************
WILDCARDS, THE "NOT CONTAINS" CONSTRUCT, AND RULES
**************************************************

In most places, other than RULES, where you want to say DOES
NOT CONTAIN textstring, simply use the following where
clause:

...WHERE colname NE *textstring*...

where textstring means any string of characters from 1 to
1500 long and colname has a TEXT datatype.

Using wildcards in RULES can be interesting.  In RULES the
asterisk and the question mark are sometimes taken as
literal characters rather than as wildcards when an operator
other than CONTAINS is used in the condition.  After using
some commands, however, RULES may start using the asterisks
as wildcards.  We are currently researching this but in the
mean time it is best not to use the wildcards in your RULES.

The one exception is when you want to check for the
existance of certain valid characters in certain positions
in a column.  This can easily be done with RULES.  In order
to do this you need to adhere to the following requirements:

o  The column you are checking must be TEXT.
o  The operator used in the condition must be CONTAINS.
o  To check certain postions, use the question mark.

For example, the following rule checks for dashes in the
correct position in social security numbers (SS#):

"Invalid SS number" SS CON ???-??-????

This next rule checks for an X in position 2.

"Invalid product code" PRODID CON ?X*

We have had several other interesting experiences with
wildcards in R:base 5000 version 1.0 that we want to share
with you.  Because of the global nature of wildcards it
would be a good idea not to use literal asterisks and/or
question marks in your data.  You could get into trouble
later with commands like the following:

1.  DEL ROWS FROM tblname WHE colname CONTAINS *
2.  DEL ROWS FROM tblname WHE colname CONTAINS "*"


The first command above will not delete rows even if the
colname does contain an asterisk.  Likewise the SELECT
command using the WHERE clause in 1, will not find rows even
if they do contain an asterisk.  However, the CHANGE command
will change those rows that contain the literal asterisk
when using the WHERE clause in number 1.

The second command will delete ALL the rows that have a
value other than NULL.  Be careful with this one.  Using the
where clause in number 2 with the select command results in
only those rows containing the literal asterisk being listed
but using it with the CHANGE command results in all non-NULL
fields being changed. The bottom line:

o  It is easy to construct a NOT CONTAINS condition using
   the R:base 5000 wildcards.
o  It is a good idea not to use the asterisk (*) and/or
   question mark (?) in your data.
o  Be very careful when using wildcards in global data
   changing commands like DELETE, CHANGE, and ASSIGN. You
   may get unexpected results.



*******************
AUTOMATIC NUMBERING
*******************

With R:base 5000 it is very easy to automatically number
certain columns such as CUST# with sequential numbers.

Use variable forms to set up the data entry screen.  This
way you can have the customer number calculated and put into
the VCUST# variable before even showing the form to the
operator to enter the other information for that particular
customer.  In the command file you can calculate the number
to start a given data entry session with the following two
commands:

COMPUTE VCUST# AS MAX CUST# FROM tblname
SET VAR VCUST# TO VCUST# + 1

From then on all you need do is include the

SET VAR VCUST# TO VCUST# + 1

command in your WHILE loop right before you DRAW the variable form for the next

Note that I have put a V in front of the colname to indicate
that it is a variable that will be loaded into that
particular colname.  Although this is not required; it is a
big help later when you are trying to remember just what is
a variable and what is a colname and which variables go into
which columns.  I even go so far as to try to make all my
colnames 7 characters or less so that if I ever want to use
a corresponding varname it is easy to simply insert a V as
the first character.  You may find this to be a useful
"R:base 5000 programming/documentation standard" it will
make maintenence of your application and training of new
personnel much easier later on.



*********************************
USING ALT 177 IN YOUR APPLICATION
*********************************

Application developers have requested the ability to "shade
in" the areas of the screen where operators are supposed to
enter values so that they will know where to put the data.
You can do this easily by using the ALT 177.  To enter this
character, hold the ALT key down and enter 177 on your
number pad (do not use the numbers on top of the letters).

The ALT 177 produces a shaded area on your screen the size
of the cursor.  It can be used to indicate the number of
spaces to enter:

o  In response to a FILLIN command prompt
o  In a variable form
o  In a table form

ALT 177s can be used as defaults in both kinds of forms to
show the operators where to enter data.  You should use it
only when all the characters must be entered so that
operators do not have to "blank over" the ALT 177s before
going on to the next column or entry.  To use them as
defaults the easiest method is to create your form using the
FORMS command, locate your variables or colnames, and then
go back into the (E)DIT mode in FORMS and put ALT 177s in
covering the S, the E, and all the spaces between them.

ALT 177s work as text characters and can actually be entered
into the database.  However if your variable (in the case of
variable forms) or your column (in the case of table forms)
is defined as INTEGER, REAL, DOLLAR, TIME, or DATE, the
entire area must be filled in or blanked over to remove all
the ALT 177s or you will get an error message.  This is a
good way to ensure that a required field is entered when you
do not want to have to use a RULE.

To make sure that all character positions in a TEXT field
are entered, you might think you could add a rule to trap an
entry containing an ALT 177 in RULES by using the wildcards
to create a "does not contain" condition.  However, this
does not work because RULES usually searches for the literal
* and ? rather than using them as wildcards.

The answer is to use variable forms for data entry.  You are
then able to make sure that all characters have been entered
by using a section of "error trapping" code similar to the
following (bear in mind that ALT 177s will not come over the
modem - they look like "1"s):

.
.
.
WHILE varname EQ "*▒*" OR varname EQ "* *" THEN
WRITE "ERROR - You must fillin the entire code"
NEW
DRAW varformname WITH ALL
EDIT VAR varname USI varformname RETURN keylist
ENDWHILE
.
.
.

This code will trap the operator in a loop until there are
no longer any ALT 177s (or blanks) in the response.  This
particular code should not be used if you want embedded
blanks because it does not allow it.  If imbedded blanks
were allowed the operator could simply blank over the ALT
177s and get out of the loop.







************
JUST FO
 FUN
************

Because customers are always asking us how their database
could have been destroyed we put together the following song
lyrics.  Sing it to the tune of 50 WAYS TO LEAVE YOUR LOVER.

We know that a destroyed database is no laughing matter, but
we think that a little humor is a great tension reliever and
maybe will even help in preventing future damage by
encouraging you to keep several recent backups.

So here it is .....

50 WAYS TO TRASH YOUR DATA
by John Pfeifer with chorus by Microrim Tech Support

The problem is all inside your drives, they said to me
The answer is easy if you buy new ones from me
I'd like to help you, but there's the matter of my fee
there must be 50 ways to trash your data

Just treat it like a toy, Roy
Spill your coffee or your tea, Lee
Bump the keyboard on a pack, Jack
Control C for a thrill, Jill
Flip the main power switch, Mitch
Swap your disks and retry, Guy
Power surge on the line, Tyne?
Reload the same name, Mame
Copy only file two, Lou
Static charge cause some pain, Jane?
I think ya got the idea, Lia

There must be 50 ways to trash your data

He said it's really not my style to be so rude
But I hope you realize that your setup is REAL crude
Upgrade your processor and change that attitude
There must be 50 ways to trash your data.

Turn off the machine, Jean
Format it all, Paul
Error in your LOC.DAT, Matt
An electrical storm, Norm
Look at all that dust, Gus
Backup bad over good, Wood
Did you have a head crash, Nash?
Wash your disks in the sink, Link
Fry your data in the heat, Pete?
Watch that parity err, Jere
I think ya got the idea, Lia

There must be 50 ways to trash your data

We hope you don't get caught without a backup!



********************
HOW TO CALCULATE AGE
********************

Calculating the age of a person or item is easy with R:base
5000, simply issue the following three commands:

SET V VBRTHDAY TO BRTHDAY IN tblname WHERE ...
SET V VDAYS TO .#DATE - .VBRTHDAY
SET V VAGE TO .VDAYS / 365.25
tech notes 5
********************************************
NOTES #5 FROM TECH SUPPORT - AUGUST 16, 1985
********************************************

New issues of these tech notes are published here every 2 to
3 weeks and much of the information will also be published
in the R:base EXCHANGE.  Back issues can be found in the
FILES section.




****************************************************
HOW TO MASK OUT THE .00 OF A DOLLAR FIELD IN REPORTS
****************************************************
By Kay D. Dayss and MariEsther Burnham

Using the following trick shot it is possible to mask out
the cents portion (the .00) of a dollar field in the R:base
report writer.  This is especially useful on large dollar
amounts when you don't care about the pennies.

STEP 1.  Go into REPORTS and call up your report.  In
         (D)efine mode create a "blank" variable using the
         following expression:

         BLANK = "   "

         Put 3 blanks inside the quote marks.

STEP 2.  Go into (L)ocate mode and locate the BLANK variable
         somewhere near the dollar column that you want to
         blank out the decimal point and cents on.

STEP 3.  Leave REPORTS saving your changes.  Issue the
         following command:

         EDIT ALL FROM REPORTS WHERE RNAME = reptname

         Use the down arrow key to get to the LAYOUT
         section.  You will know you are there when you see
         the word LAYOUT in the RDATA column.

         The next rows will have information similar to the
         following in the RDATA column for each of the
         located columns and variables:

         col/varname    row#  col#  length  ...

         First, find the row containing the colname for the
         DOLLAR column and note the row#.  Next, subtract 3
         from the length and add the result to the col#.
         Note the result.

         Now find the row containing the BLANK variable (it
         should be nearby).  Change its row# to the one
         noted above and change its col# to be equal to the
         result of the calculation you did above.

The BLANK variable will now print over the the last 3 places
on the dollar column location.

This procedure will only work if you locate the BLANK
variable after you locate the DOLLAR column.




*************************************************
LINING UP THE DECIMAL POINTS IN YOUR REAL NUMBERS
*************************************************
By Kay D. Dayss

It is possible, using the trick shot below, to line up the
decimal points of REAL numbers in your reports.

Keep in mind that without using scientific notation REAL
numbers can use up to 7 total print positions (a maximum of
6 number positions plus the decimal point).  Up to 5 numbers
are possible to the right of the decimal point (when there
is only 1 on the left) and up to 6 numbers to the left of
the decimal point (when there are none to the right).  When
there are no numbers to the left of the decimal point a zero
is printed and you are still only able to have 5 numbers to
the right.

Any numbers larger or smaller than the limits discussed
above will cause the REAL number to be represented in
scientific notation and this trick shot will not work on
them.

Therefore the trick to getting all the decimal points to
line up is to use a TEXT variable of length 12.  Basically,
you will need to move the numbers into the TEXT variable in
the right place putting the decimal point in position 7.
Then using the change command place the TEXT variable into a
special TEXT column you have set up in your table to hold
the now alligned value.  You would then print the TEXT
column in your report.

In this example the REAL column is REAL# and the TEXT column
to be printed is PRINT# with a length of 12.

SET VAR BLANK5 = "     " *(5 blanks inside the quotes)
SET VAR BLANK4 = "    "  *(4 blanks inside the quotes)
SET VAR BLANK3 = "   "   *(3 blanks inside the quotes)
SET VAR BLANK2 = "  "    *(2 blanks inside the quotes)
SET VAR BLANK1 = " "     *(1 blank inside the quotes)
SET POINTER #3 VERR FOR tblname WHERE REAL# EXISTS
WHILE VERR EQ 0 THEN
  SET VAR VREAL# TO REAL# IN #3
  SET VAR VREAL# TEXT
  IF VREAL# CON ?.????? THEN
    SET VAR VREAL# TO .BLANK5 + .VREAL#
    GOTO DONE
  ENDIF
  IF VREAL# CON ??.???? THEN
    SET VAR VREAL# TO .BLANK4 + .VREAL#
    GOTO DONE
  ENDIF
  IF VREAL# CON ???.??? THEN
    SET VAR VREAL# TO .BLANK3 + .VREAL#
    GOTO DONE
  ENDIF
  IF VREAL# CON ????.?? THEN
    SET VAR VREAL# TO .BLANK2 + .VREAL#
    GOTO DONE
  ENDIF
  IF VREAL# CON ?????.? THEN
    SET VAR VREAL# TO .BLANK1 + .VREAL#
  ENDIF
  LABEL DONE
  CHANGE PRINT# TO .VREAL# IN #3
  CLEAR VREAL#
  NEXT #3 VERR
ENDWHILE




*****************
XRW REPORT SAMPLE
*****************
by MariEsther Burnham

This is a sample of how to write an XRW program for the
following  situation:

There is a Master file (PATIENTS) and a Transaction file
(VISITS).  Each patient may have made 0-n visits. The
desired report is a listing  of visits by patients, where
patients who have not made any visits are not listed and the
patient name is only printed once.

The concepts presented in this example can be applied in any
situation where you have a master record with 0-n
transaction records associated with it.  For example:

     o  customers and their invoices
     o  parts and their cost history
     o  finished goods and their parts lists
     o  invoices and their cash receipts

This sample report also allows sorting by patient name.

REPORT RVISIT FOR DRDB

VARIABLES
  FLAG INTEGER
END

FOR EACH ROW IN PATIENTS SORTED BY LASTNAME
  FLAG = 0            {Initialize the flag variable}
  FOR EACH ROW IN VISITS SORTED BY TDATE WHERE PID = PID IN PATIENTS
    IF FLAG = 0 THEN  {This is the first time through this loop}
      FLAG = 1
      PRINT           {print patient info}
      2  10 "Patient name: " STRIP ( FRSTNAME ) " " STRIP ( LASTNAME )
      END {print}
    END {if}
    PRINT             {print visit info}
    1 20 "Visit date: " TDATE
    2 20 DESCRPT
    END {print}
  END {for each .. visits}
END {for each .. patients}

tech notes 6
********************************************
NOTES #6 FROM TECH SUPPORT - AUGUST 30, 1985
********************************************

New issues of these tech notes are published here every 2 to
3 weeks and much of the information will also be published
in the R:base EXCHANGE.  Back issues can be found in the
FILES section.

Note that a small change was made to the NOTES #5 editorial
article.  You may want to download the new version which can
be found in the FILES section and is titled EDTORIAL.5.  All
that was done was to change all references to ALT 255s to
actual blanks to prevent printer problems later on.




********************************
MOVING STRINGS TO NULL VARIABLES
********************************
by Mario Valverde

PROBLEM:

RE: R:base 5000 version 1.0 (fixed in version 1.01)

When moving variable substrings to a variable which was previously null,
if the value being moved is less than four characters in length, then, the res-
ult of the move will produce a variable with a length of four.  That is, the
value being moved will be padded with trailing blanks.

SOLUTION:

Make sure that the receiving varaible is never null at the time it receives
the character string.  That is, make sure that the variable has been initial-
ized to at least a single character value prior to receiving the new character
string.

EXAMPLE:

SET VAR V1 TEXT
SET VAR V2 TEXT
SET VAR V1 TO "ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"
SET VAR V2 TO "Y"
MOVE 2 FROM V1 TO V2 AT 1


The example above will produce a V1 variable value with a length of two.
If the variable V2 had not been set to an initial value (i.e., was null), then,
the resulting value of V2 would have been four characters in length.  That is,
it would have been ZZ__ where _ represents a trailing blank.




**********************************
DEBUGGING YOUR EXPRESS APPLICATION
**********************************
by Kay D. Dayss

Application EXPRESS automatically turns messages, error
messages, and echo off.  This makes it hard to debug your
application but you will want them off when demonstrating to
your customer.

An easy solution is to add a temporary menu pick on your
main menu, choose CUSTOM as the action, and enter the
following three commands:

SET MESS ON
SET ERR MESS ON
SET ECHO ON

Then when you want to debug your application all you have to
do is first pick your debug menu choice before going to any
of your other choices.

You may also set up another temporary pick to turn debugging
off.

After the application is fully developed you can delete
these picks from your main menu and your application is
ready to be used.



***********
QUICKY TIPS
***********
by Kay D. Dayss



PROBLEM:  When unloading reports and/or forms into files,
          editing the files, and then trying to bring them
          back into the REPORTS and/or FORMS tables
          sometimes gives an error message indicating that
          excess data values will be ignored.

          The problem is that somewhere in your report or
          form, you have put quotes in (probably when you
          were in EDIT mode of FORMS or REPORTS).  R:base
          then trys to make another field out of those
          quoted items.


SOLUTION: Set QUOTES to an unused character such as # before
          doing the unload and then after loading the FORM
          or REPORT back in set QUOTES back to the "
          character.

============================================================

PROBLEM:  A customer reported that a 60K file compiled into
          a 1000K file.

SOLUTION: Before recompiling with RCOMPILE, erase the
          original compiled file so that a brand new
          compiled file is created.

============================================================

PROBLEM:  Using the GT, GE, LT, LE operators in WHERE clause
          in combination with TEXT columns and the ASTERISK
          as a wildcard does NOT work.  It gives you an
          error message:

          -WARNING- No rows satisfy the WHERE clause

          even though rows do satisfy it.

SOLUTION: Use only the EQ or NE operators in combination
          with WHERE clauses and the ASTERISK.

EXAMPLE:  SEL ZIP FRO tblname WHE ZIP GE 11100 AND ZIP LE 55599  - will work
          SEL ZIP FRO tblname WHE ZIP GE 111*  AND ZIP LE 555*   - won't work

============================================================

PROBLEM:  When printing a report everything bunches over to
          the left.

SOLUTION: You may have ALT 255s in your TEXT columns - get
          them out by using the CHANGE command and
          everything will be AOK.  The ALT 255 looks like a
          blank but when sent to some printers that support
          ascii codes only to 127 (such as the OKIDATA 2410
          PACEMARK) it can cause some strange things to
          happen.  Sometimes it sends a bunch of carriage
          returns and sometimes it prevents the printhead
          from advancing to the next position or tab stop.

          Remember to check any variables you are printing
          for the ALT 255 also.  And remember that when you
          print a program you have written that has ALT 255s
          in it, you will find the same problem.

          Some printers, use ASCII codes up to and even
          beyond the ALT 255 and on these printers you will
          not experience any problems.

EXAMPLE:  CHANGE NAME TO -0- WHERE NAME CON "* *"
          *(NOTE: THERE IS AN ALT 255 INSIDE THE QUOTES AND
          BETWEEN THE ASTERISKS - TO ENTER IT HOLD THE ALT
          KEY DOWN, ENTER 255 ON THE NUMBER PAD, AND THEN
          RELEASE THE ALT KEY)

============================================================

**********************
ERROR CODE DEFINITIONS
**********************

The following list contains the meanings of all the error
code values that your error variables can take on:

 CODE       MSG
 ---------- ------------------------------------------------------------------
          0 NO ERRORS
          7 UNABLE TO OPEN DATABASE
          8 MISSING DATABASE NAME
          9 ILLEGAL DATABASE NAME
         10 UNABLE TO CLOSE DATABASE
         12 -WARNING- UNRECOGNIZED SET KEYWORD
         13 ERRORS IN VARIABLES. CORRECT WITH REPORT COMMAND.
         14 MORE THAN 1600 BYTES OF DATA FROM INPUT
         15 ERROR IN WRITING
         19 ERROR IN CLOSING
         22 ILLEGAL BOOLEAN OPERATOR BETWEEN VARIABLE AND VALUE
         26 SWITCHING INPUT BACK TO KEYBOARD
         29 THE HELP TEXT FILE IS NOT AVAILABLE
         30 THERE IS NO HELP TEXT FOR THE <COMMANDNAME>
         31 UNABLE TO OPEN FILE
         32 ILLEGAL FILE NAME
         33 INPUT FILE NOT FOUND
         39 SYNTAX IS INCORRECT FOR THE COMMAND
         40 UNRECOGNIZED COMMAND - RETYPE IT
         41 -WARNING- UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO THE TABLE
         42 ILLEGAL TABLE NAME
         43 <TBLNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED TABLE
         44 I/O PROBLEMS - CHECK FOR FULL DISK
         47 ILLEGAL COLUMN NAME
         48 TOO MANY TABLES DEFINED - LIMIT IS 40
         49 NEW TABLE IS WIDER THAN 1530 BYTES
         50 TOO MANY COLUMNS IN THE DATABASE - LIMIT IS 400
         51 MORE THAN 10 SORTED COLUMNS
         52 NEW TABLE HAS TOO MANY COLUMNS
         55 NEW TABLE NAME IS A DUPLICATE
         56 -WARNING- NO ROWS SATISFY THE WHERE CLAUSE
         57 RESERVED WORDS CANNOT BE USED FOR NAMES
         62 -WARNING- AN OWNER PASSWORD SHOULD BE DEFINED WHEN USING
            PASSWORDS
         63 -WARNING- THIS PASSWORD DOESN'T ALLOW YOU TO VIEW ANY TABLE
         65 I/O ERROR ON OUTPUT FILE - CHECK FOR FULL DISK
         67 INTERNAL ERROR IN LOC.DAT
         70 ILLEGAL BOOLEAN OPERATOR BETWEEN COLUMN NAME AND VALUE
         75 ILLEGAL LIMIT SPECIFICATION
         82 THE PROMPT FILE IS NOT AVAILABLE
         83 THERE IS NO PROMPT TEXT FOR THE COMMAND
         85 YOUR ERROR VARIABLE MUST BE OF TYPE INTEGER
         89 -WARNING- VALUE TRANCATED TO 40 CHARACTERS
         89 -WARNING- VALUE TRUNCATED TO 40 CHARACTERS
         90 TABLE NOT DEFINED
         91 RULE COMPONENTS MUST APPLY TO THE SAME TABLE
         92 UNRECOGNIZED BOOLEAN EXPRESSION
         93 NO DATABASE OPEN
         94 <COLNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED COLUMN NAME
         95 COLUMNS MUST BE THE SAME TYPE AND LENGTH
         96 VALUE INCOMPATIBLE WITH COLUMN
         97 RULES MUST BE JOINED WITH AND or OR
         98 TABLE MUST BE SPECIFIED
        101 INSUFFICIENT SPACE TO PROCESS RULES
        102 INCOMPATIBLE RULES TABLE ALREADY EXISTS
        103 TOO MANY TABLES TO DEFINE RULES
        104 TOO MANY COLUMNS TO DEFINE RULES
        116 YOU MUST BE THE OWNER TO CHANGE RULE CHECKING
        118 INCORRECT NUMBER OF VALUES FOR THIS TABLE
        125 -WARNING- EXCESS DATA VALUES IGNORED
        126 MISSING TABLE NAME
        127 CANNOT LOAD WITH PROMPTS AND AN AS CLAUSE
        128 CANNOT LOAD WITH PROMPTS AND FROM A FILE
        129 NO FILE SPECIFICATION
        131 INCORRECTLY SPECIFIED (ROW,COL)
        132 UNIDENTIFIED AS CLAUSE
        133 YOUR USER AND OWNER PASSWORD MUST MATCH
        137 -WARNING- NO ROWS SATISFY THE WHERE CLAUSE
        138 <RPTNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED REPORT
        139 ALL VALUES IN QUALIFYING ROWS ARE MISSING
        149 FUNCTION MUST BE COUNT, MIN, MAX, SUM, AVE, ROWS, OR ALL
        150 SUM AND AVE ONLY WORK WITH INTEGER, REAL, AND DOLLAR COLUMNS
        153 COLUMN IS TOO LONG FOR TALLY
        154 TOO MANY VALUES FOR TALLY
        166 -WARNING- NO TABLES ARE DEFINED
        177 -WARNING- NO COLUMNS ARE DEFINED
        181 COLUMNS MUST BE DEFINED BEFORE TABLES
        185 ILLEGAL OWNER PASSWORD
        186 YOU MUST ENTER THE CORRECT OWNER PASSWORD
        193 EXISTING COLUMN NAMES CANNOT BE REDEFINED
        194 ALLOWABLE COLUMN TYPES ARE TEXT, INTEGER, REAL, DATE, TIME, AND
            DOLLAR
        196 COLUMN LENGTH MUST BE BETWEEN 1 AND 1500
        197 YOU CANNOT SPECIFY A LENGTH FOR DATE, TIME, OR DOLLAR
        198 ILLEGAL PASSWORD NAME
        205 -WARNING- UNRECOGNIZED SET KEYWORD
        206 ILLEGAL DATE FORMAT SPECIFICATION
        207 SCREEN WIDTH MUST BE GREATER THAN 40 AND LESS THAN 256
        209 VARIABLE LIMIT HAS BEEN REACHED
        213 -WARNING- NO VARIABLES DEFINED
        214 YOU MUST BE THE OWNER TO CHANGE RULES CHECKING
        217 TOO MANY NESTER WHILE COMMANDS
        218 TOO MANY COMMANDS IN A WHILE LOOP
        219 RBEDIT CANNOT MAKE THIS FILE ANY BIGGER
        220 DISK I/O ERROR IN PACK COMMAND
        247 A WHERE CLAUSE IS REQUIRED
        250 ASSIGN COMMAND REQUIRES INTEGER, REAL, OR DOLLAR COLUMN
        251 CANNOT ASSIGN VECTOR COLUMN
        252 EXPRESSION CANNOT BE EVALUATED
        253 OPERATOR MUST BE + - X / OR %
        267 OWNER PASSWORD IS INCORRECT
        275 NEW NAME IS A DUPLICATE
        276 ILLEGAL PASSWORD NAME
        301 INCORRECTLY SPECIFIED (ROW,COL)
        302 UNIDENTIFIED AS CLAUSE
        303 YOUR USER AND OWNER PASSWORDS MUST MATCH
        310 JOINING COLUMNS DIFFER IN TYPE OR LENGTH
        316 UNABLE TO OPEN RELOAD FILE
        317 MISSING DATABASE NAME
        318 ILLEGAL DATABASE NAME
        319 WRITE ERROR ON RELOAD FILE - CHECK FOR A FULL DISK
        325 NO DATABASE OPEN
        326 VARIABLES MUST BE 8 CHARACTERS OR LESS
        336 SOME EXPRESSIONS CANNOT BE EVALUATED
        344 INCOMPATIBLE REPORTS TABLE ALREADY EXISTS
        345 TOO MANY TABLES TO DEFINE REPORTS
        346 TOO MANY COLUMNS TO DEFINE REPORTS
        349 -ERROR- NO COLUMN NAMES OR VARIABLES HAVE BEEN LOCATED
        350 CANOT RECOGNIZE VARIABLE NAME
        355 -ERROR- NOT A COLUMN OR VARIABLE NAME
        356 ERROR(S) IN VARIABLES. CORRECT WITH DEFINE.
        363 -ERROR- THERE ARE NO VARIABLES DEFINED
        366 CANNOT RECOGNIZE TYPE
        367 INVALID RESULT TYPE FOR EXPRESSION
        368 CANNOT RECOGNIZE NUMBER
        369 VARIABLE NOT DEFINED
        370 NUMBER GREATER THAN THE NUMBER OF VARIABLES
        371 NUMBER LESS THAN <N>
        380 -ERROR- ALREADY 40 VARIABLES DEFINED
        381 CANOT RECOGNIZE VARIABLE NAME
        382 VARIABLE EXISTS. REDEFINE IT (Y/N)?
        383 ILLEGAL CHARACTER IN VARIABLE NAME
        384 VARIABLE NAME CANNOT BE A KEYWORD
        385 VARIABLE CANNOT HAVE THE SAME AS A COLUMN
        387 CANNOT RECOGNIZE EUAL SIGN (=)
        388 CANNOT RECOGNIZE FIRST OPERAND
        390 CANNOT RECOGNIZE OPERATOR
        399 A WHERE CLAUSE IS REQUIRED
        400 NO FORMS HAVE BEEN DEFINED
        401 <FORMNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED SCREEN FORM
        402 UNABLE TO OPEN FILE
        403 ILLEGAL FILE NAME
        404 INPUT FILE NOT FOUND
        415 ROW OUT OF BOUNDS
        417 COLUMN IS OUT OF BOUNDS
        419 TOO MANY TABLES TO DEFINE FORMS
        420 TOO MANY COLUMNS TO DEFINE FORMS
        426 NO FORMS HAVE BEEN DEFINED
        427 <FORMNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED SCREEN FORM
        428 -WARNING- NO DATA EXISTS FOR THIS TABLE
        429 INSUFFICIENT SPACE TO PERFORM EDIT
        439 YOU HAVE MORE THAN 23 LINES ON THE FORM
        440 FORM DEFINITION IS INCOMPLETE
        441 LAYOUT DATA IS INCOMPLETE - CHECK IT OUT
        442 YOU HAVE TOO MANY COLUMN NAME LAYOUTS
        443 YOU HAVE DUPLICATE LAYOUT ENTRIES
        444 YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY COLUMN NAMES DEFINED IN THIS FORM
        446 REPORT DEFINITION IS INCOMPLETE
        447 REPORT DATA IS INCORRECT - CHECK IT OUT
        453 EXPRESSION CANNOT BE EVALUATED
        455 SPECIFIED OFFSET OUT OF RANGE
        462 ENDWHILE OR ENDIF MISSING IN AN INPUT FILE
        464 ATTEMPTING TO IMPROPERLY TERMINATE A WHILE OR IF BLOCK
        465 WHILE AND IF COMMANDS ARE NESTED BEYOND MAXIMUM
        466 NO WHILE OR IF BLOCKS ARE OPEN ON CURRENT INPUT SOURCE
        468 THE SCHEMA OPTION MAY NOT BE USED WITH AS DIF OR AS MPLAN
        474 YOU DON'T HAVE PERMISSION TO MODIFY REPORTS
        480 YOUR VALUE DOES NOT HAVE THE SAME TYPE AS YOUR VARIABLE
        484 VARIABLE TYPE DOES NOT MATCH COLUMN TYPE
        485 NO COLOR BY THAT NAME
        486 YOU CAN'T HAVE THE SAME FOREGROUND AND BACKGROUND
        487 THAT COLOR CAN'T BE USED AS BACKGROUND
        488 VARIABLE NOT DEFINED
        490 VARIABLE TABLE IS FULL, USE AN EXISTING VARIABLE OR CLEAR A
            VARIABLE
        491 NUMBER OF CHARACTERS MUST BE 1 TO 1500
        492 VARIABLE MUST BE AN INTEGER
        493 INVALID ROUTE NUMBER OR ROUTE DOES NOT EXIST
        494 YOU DON'T HAVE MODIFY PERMISSION ON FORMS
        495 INVALID OPERATOR
        496 CANNOT RECOGNIZE SECOND OPERAND
        498 ERROR(S) IN VARIABLES. CORRECT WITH DEFINE.
        500 SORTING FILE PROBLEMS - CHECK FOR FULL DISK
        504 INSUFFICIENT SPACE TO PROCESS REPORTS COMMAND
        505 -ERROR- MAXIMUM NUMBER OF COLUMN NAMES, VARIABLES LOCATED
        509 VARIABLE LIMIT EXCEEDED
        510 -ERROR- PAGESIZE MUST BE LESS THAN 1000
        512 FILE TOO LARGE FOR RBEDIT
        526 FILE NOT FOUND
        527 INVALID DIRECTORY
        528 INVALID DRIVE
        538 COLUMN LENGTH MUST BE BETWEEN 1 AND 1500
        539 YOU CANNOT SPECIFY A LENGTH FOR DATE, TIME, OR DOLLAR
        540 COLUMN MAKES TABLE WIDER THAN 1530 BYTES
        545 <COLNAME> IS IN ANOTHER TABLE. USE A DIFFERENT NAME
        548 TOO MANY COLUMN NAMES IN THE DATABASE - LIMIT IS 400
        550 UNABLE TO RENAME FILE
        551 OUT OF FILE HANDLES
        561 ROW IS OUT OF BOUNDS
        562 COL IS OUT OF BOUNDS
        563 VARIABLE IS NOT FOUND
        564 VARIABLE MUST BE AN INTEGER
        565 NUMBER IS OUT OF RANGE
        566 DISPLAY OR RUN PROCEDURE NOT FOUND
        567 NOT A RUN PROCEDURE
        568 NOT A DISPLAY PROCEDURE
        569 CAN'T OPEN SOURCE FILE
        570 CAN'T CREATE DESTINATION FILE
        571 DISK FULL
        576 INVALID DRIVE
        589 INTERNAL ERROR - OUT OF DYNAMIC SPACE
        590 INTERNAL ERROR - HEAP ALLOCATION ERROR
        592 NOT A MENU PROCEDURE
        593 INVALID DATA IN THE MENU FILE
        594 UNABLE TO FIND MATCHING LABEL FOR <LABELNAME>
        595 INTERNAL ERROR - OUT OF DYNAMIC SPACE
        601 TOO MANY VARIABLES DEFINED. PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE
        604 CANNOT DRAW ANY PART OF A FORM ABOVE OR BELOW SCREEN LIMIT
        605 INTERNAL ERROR - OUT OF DYNAMIC SPACE
        605 NO FORMS HAVE BEEN DEFINED
        607 <FORMNAME> IS AN UNDEFINED SCREEN FORM
        609 INTERNAL ERROR REFERENCING VARIABLE
        612 <TBLNAME> IS NOT A VALID TABLE
        613 <COLNAME> IS NOT A COLUMN IN TABLE <TBLNAME>
        614 <OPERATOR> IS NOT A VALID OPERATOR
        622 CONNOT RECOGNIZE WHERE OPERATOR
        623 WHERE CLAUSE IS INCOMPLETE
        624 TOO MANY CONDITIONS IN THE WHERE CLAUSE
        635 VARIABLE TYPE DOES NOT MATCH COLUMN TYPE
        637 ERROR VARIABLE NOT FOUND
        639 INVALID SHOW PARAMETER
       2020 VARIABLE <VARNAME> IS NOT DEFINED
       2045 -ERROR- COLUMN <COLNAME> IS NOT IN THE TABLE <TBLNAME>
       2053 -ERROR- COLUMN NAME <COLNAME> IS USED MORE THAN ONCE
       2058 -WARNING- LENGTH AFTER INTEGER OR REAL DEFINES A VECTOR. PLEASE
            ENTER NO LENGTH
       2071 -ERROR- COLUMN <COLNAME> MUST BE COMPARED TO <DATATYPE> VALUE
       2076 <COLNAME1> AND <COLNAME2> DATA TYPES CANNOT BE COMPARED
       2099 TOO MANY CONDITIONS FOR A RULES. THE MAXIMUM IS 10.
       2121 COLUMN <COLNAME> MUST BE A VALID <DATATYPE>
       2123 -WARNING- COLUMN <COLNAME> WILL BE TRUNCATED
       2136 -WARNING- NO DATA EXISTS FOR THIS TABLE
       2137 -WARNING- NO ROWS SATISFY WHERE CLAUSE  -  END-OF-DATA
            ENCOUNTERED (SET POINTER)
       2182 VALID DEFINE COMMANDS ARE OWNER, COLUMNS, TABLES, PASSWORDS,
            LIST, RULES, ETC.
       2189 COLUMN <COLNAME> IS ALREADY USED IN THIS TABLE
       2194 ALLOWABLE COLUMN TYPES ARE: TEXT, INTEGER, REAL, DATE, TIME, AND
            DOLLAR
       2199 THE FOLLOWING COLUMNS ARE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH A TABLE
       2201 THE ABOVE COLUMN NAMES WILL BE LOST IF YOU LEAVE THE DEFINE MODE
       2273 NEW NAME IS ALREADY BEING USED FOR A COLUMN WHICH DIFFERS IN TYPE
            OR LENGTH
       2277 COLUMN <COLNAME> IS NOT COMMON TO EITHER TABLE
       2279 -ERROR- TABLES <TBLNAME1> AND <TBLNAME2> HAVE NO COMMON COLUMN
            NAMES
       2307 -WARNING- <COLNAME> IS A DUPLICATE COLUMN NAME, YOU SHOULD RENAME
            ONE OF THEM
       2529 TYPE CONVERSION ERROR CHANGING <VARNAME> TO TYPE <DATATYPE>
       2531 CANNOT EXECUTE <COMMAND> WITH MORE THAN 39 TABLES DEFINED
       2534 -ERROR- COLUMN <COLNAME> IS NOT DEFINED
       2536 ALLOWABLE COLUMN TYPES ARE TEXT, INTEGER, REAL, DATE, TIME, AND
            DOLLAR
       2541 -ERROR- COLUMN <COLNAME> IS ALREADY USED WITH THIS TABLE
       2546 CANNOT USE THE REMOVE COMMAND WITH ONLY ONE COLUMN IN THE TABLE
       2610 VARIABLE <VARNAME> NOT DEFINED IN THE FORM



***************************
DATA TYPE IN VARIABLE FORMS
***************************
by Marianne Jeager

When you define a form, it is stored in the Forms table.
If you do a "select all fro forms" and look in the layout section, you normally
see 3 numbers after the column name.  These numbers represent the line number,
beginning position number and the located length.  With variable forms, there is
a fourth number after the variable name, with a code indicating the data type of
the variable.  The codes are as follows:

        1     integer
        2     real
        4     date
        5     time
        6     dollar
        -20   text (the negative of the length of the text)
tech notes 7
***********************************************
NOTES #7 FROM TECH SUPPORT - SEPTEMBER 20, 1985
***********************************************

New issues of these tech notes are published here every 2 to
3 weeks and much of the information will also be published
in the R:base EXCHANGE.  Back issues can be found in the
FILES section.



*********************************
LONG VARIABLE LENGTH TEXT COLUMNS
*********************************

Some applications use long text fields and customers have
indicated that they would like to be able to store these fields as
variable length "memos" as some other products allow.

The following files can be used to mimic this "memo" feature.  You
may of course adapt the example presented by these files to your
own needs.  If your application is TEXT intensive, you will want
to pay particular attention to this article.


RUN BUILD.CMD
-------------
This command file will create a database with one
table consisting of 2 columns.


RUN MEMO.CMD
------------
This command file will present you with a menu of 3 choices:

    1         Create a memo
    2         Print a memo
    3         Quit


In this example a memo number is assigned to each memo entered.
This number is the only thing that is actually stored in the
database.  Also, the number is turned into a DOS filename by adding
.MEM as an extension. Therefore, if 55 is the memo number, a file
called 55.MEM is created.  The actual text inside the memo is
stored in the 55.MEM DOS file.

Depending on your needs, a number or a name may be stored in the
R:base TEXT column that holds the memo name and used as the actual
DOS filename.  R:base stores the filename and DOS holds the file.

This feature could be extended and used to store a long variable
length text column for every row in your table.  You would only be
limited by the maximum number of files allowed by DOS.  You could
set up your application to use the number in your unique record id
column (such as CUST#, PROJ#, INVOICE#, SSN# or whatever) as the
memo identifier and DOS file name.  You could use a form to enter
all the information except the long TEXT column and use macros
similar to those below to enter the long TEXT column.

Since DOS files are  used, each memo name would have to be unique
and conform to DOS file naming conventions. The contents of the
MEMO is not stored in the database, only its name is stored.  The
file folding the contents is variable length depending on the data
stored in that file.  If you were using this feature to store a variable length
TEXT item for ea
h row in your table, you would have a DOS file on your disk for
every row in your table.

Clearly, if your DOS systems only allows you to have 64 files, this
would not be a viable option unless you have only a handfull of
rows.  You will need to check with your hardware manufacturer to
find out how many files you can have on your system.  It could be
different depending on what machine you are on.  For example, if
you have an IBM machine with an IBM hard disk, are using PC-DOS,
and have your files in subdirectories, you may have as many files
as you want.

Also keep in mind that if you have 10,000 rows you could have
10,000 files; so doing directories with the DIR command could take
a long time.

RBEDIT is used to create each file. So the size limit on each
"memo" is large.  You can have 769 lines times 80 characters per
line for a maximum of 61,520 characters.  In other words, R:MEMO
feature (described here) allows memos 15 times larger than those
that d other memo feature allows.

With this R:MEMO feature, you could have a memo well over 10 normal
pages long for one row in your table and one only a line or two
long for another row and not waste disk space.


Contents of the BUILD.CMD:
--------------------------
DEFINE MEMO
COLUMN
NAME TEXT 8
MEMOFILE INTEGER
TABLE
MEMO WITH NAME MEMOFILE
END


Contents of the MEMO.CMD file:
------------------------------
SET ECHO OFF
SET MESSAGES OFF
SET ERROR MESSAGES OFF
SET BELL OFF
OPEN MEMO
SET LINES 24
SET VAR LINE INT; SET VAR LINE TO 15   *(ADJUST THESE VALUES TO
                                         FIT YOUR MENU SCREEN)
SET VAR COL  INT; SET VAR COL  TO 35
NEWPAGE
DISPLAY MEMO.TXT
WRITE "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE"
PAUSE
NEWPAGE
DISPLAY MEMO.MNU
FILLIN ANS USING "ENTER YOUR CHOICE  " AT .LINE .COL
IF ANS = 1 THEN
         WRITE "                        " AT .LINE .COL
         FILLIN NAME USING "ENTER NAME  " AT .LINE .COL
         WRITE "                        " AT .LINE .COL
         FILLIN MEMO USING "ENTER MEMO NUMBER " AT .LINE .COL
         LOAD MEMO
         .NAME .MEMO
         END
         SET VAR FILE TO .MEMO + ".MEM"
         RBEDIT .FILE
ENDIF
IF ANS = 2 THEN
         WRITE "                        " AT .LINE .COL
         FILLIN NAME USING "ENTER NAME  " AT .LINE .COL
         SET VAR MEMOFILE TO MEMOFILE IN MEMO WHERE NAME = .NAME
         SET VAR FILE TO .MEMOFILE + ".MEM"
         NEWPAGE
         DISPLAY .FILE
         WRITE "---------------------------------"
         WRITE "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE"
         PAUSE
ENDIF
IF ANS = 3 THEN
         NEWPAGE
         SET LINES 20
         SET MESSAGES ON
         SET ERROR MESSAGES ON
         SET BELL ON
         RETURN
ENDIF
CLEAR ALL VAR
QUIT TO MEMO.CMD


Contents of the MEMO.MNU file:
------------------------------
                              [[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[   1   CREATE A MEMO                  [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[   2   PRINT A MEMO                   [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[   3   QUIT                           [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[                                      [[
                              [[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[


Contents of the MEMO.TXT file:
------------------------------

           ████████████████████████████████████████████████████
           ████                                            ████
           ███                R : M E M O                   ███
           ████                                            ████
           ████████████████████████████████████████████████████




***************************************
R:BASE 5000 VERSION 1.01 - SYSTEM DISKS
***************************************

If you are using a floppy disk system, note that R:base 5000
version 1.01 has a different loading procedure than version
1.0.

1.01 system disk I contains the EXE file
1.01 system disk II contains the OVL file

THIS IS THE REVERSE OF VERSION 1.0!  Although it will be
familiar to users of R:base 4000.

There is also a different floppy disk loading procedure.
When following these instructions (pages 1-8 to 1-10 of the
1.01 manual) you MUST have a disk in drive B or you will get
the abort, retry, ignore message.  If you get this message
press A to abort and start over with a disk in drive B.

Floppy disk users can now use the RBASE.DAT file
by putting it on their database disk and having their database
disk in drive B when they start R:base.




************************************
SOLUTION FOR GRAND TOTALS IN REPORTS
************************************

Briefly, the problem was that with both subtotals and grand
totals in a report, the grand total added in the last item
twice in version 1.0 of R:base 5000 (not a problem in 1.01).

A user reported that he made his date field a break point,
and reset his grand total at this break. He says it works great.




*******************************
HOT TIPS FROM TECHNICAL SUPPORT
*******************************


PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

SOLUTION: When the manual tells you (on page 17-14) to start
          looking at the sample application disk files by
          typing INIT.ORD, men0proc.ord, men1proc.ord, etc.
          note that these are actually blocks in the disk
          files PROCS2.ASC, MENUS.ASC. etc.  In other words,
          they do not exist as stand-alone files.

          You will find INIT as a block in the PROCS2.ASC
          file right after a $COMMAND line that indicates
          that it is a command block.  You will see that the
          INIT block passes control passes control to the
          main menu processing file, MENUS.ORD which has 6
          $MENU blocks named MEN1PROC, MEN2PROC, etc.

          Note too that files with extensions of .ASC and
          .APP are usually ascii files and can be read.  The
          are also known as APPLICATION FILES and are not
          compiled files.  On the other hand, files with
          .ORD and .APX are generally compiled PROCEDURE
          FILES and cannot be read.

============================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Load command against unopened database produces
          "table does not exist error".

SOLUTION: Always open your database before issuing R:base
          commands that relate to that database.
=============================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Typo on p. 10-3, syntax example "2from"

SOLUTION: "2 from".

=========================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Edit or enter table form after calling a
          variable form and get error message "form
          definition is incomplete."

SOLUTION: Put the command "new" immediately before calling
          the table form.

============================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  In 4K users could set a variable to a blank (alt
          255) then they could show this variable to blank
          out a line on the screen. This does not work in
          5K only one char. is blanked out.

SOLUTION: WRITE "                              " +
          AT row# col#

============================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  SET POINTER and keyed columns

SOLUTION: Do not use a keyed column in the WHERE clause with
the EQ or = operator in a SET POINTER command line. Use contains,
GT or LT and all rows will be found or delete the key.  This
problem has been fixed in version 1.01

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  EXPRESS
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  ERROR too many menus defined.

SOLUTION: Express limits are 15 menus total in 3 levels.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:
VERSION:

PROBLEM:  User builds an application with EXPRESS and says
          YES to an RBASE.DAT file.  User then wants to
          get to R> from his/her application but they
          always exit to DOS or family driver menu.  The
          RBASE.DAT file looks like this:

          RUN APPL IN APPL.APX
          EXIT

SOLUTION:    They can hit (ESC) multiple times from the main
          application menu to get to the R> or delete/rename
          the RBBASE.DAT file while at the DOS prompt.  The
          EXIT action option in Express takes you to previous
          menu or the R>.

 =============================================================================

PRODUCT:  EXPRESS
VERSION:  ALL VERSIONS

PROBLEM:  Express wrote application files correctly.  When
          ran got:

          -ERROR- pick2 is undefined variable

SOLUTION: She was using macro w/CLEAR ALL VARS in it.  Instead,
          she should clear only specific variables.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  User wants to select all records for a specific
          month or day or year.

SOLUTION: Set date format so that the desired part of date
          is first, (e.g., mm/dd/yy to select month, dd/mm/yy
          to select day, and yy/mm/dd to select year).  Then,
          to find all the 1985 records, for example, you would
          issue the following command:

          SEL collist FROM tblname WHE datecol = 85/*/*

          You can set date format to mmddyy and use MAY/*/* or
          yymmdd and use 1985.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  all versions

PROBLEM:  Loading a fixed field ascii file using a form,
          and some of the other fields have "missing
          values" that are to be loaded as nulls.  The
          fields in question are type integer.

SOLUTION: Wrong Solution:  You cannot put a -0- in the field,
          you cannot put a '*', for example, and then set
          null *.  In both instances you get the error
          message, field is not a valid integer.

          Right Solution:  Fields that are to contain
          "missing values" must be left blank.  They are
          then loaded as null.

==============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  all versions

PROBLEM:  User cannot get SET COLOR command to work from R>


SOLUTION: Type in MODE CO80 at the DOS prompt before
          entering rbase.

===============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Enter Print rptname, output to terminal, all
          that comes back is:

          more output follows - press [ESC] to quit, any key to continue

          User presses any key, the screen clears, and the
          same message is written on top line.  It keeps going
          like this forever.

SOLUTION: User has not MARKED anything on the report or has not
          MARKED any detail lines or set up any breaks.  User
          needs to go back into reports and MARK.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  XRW
VERSION:  1.2

PROBLEM:  If the error message "Unable to open control
          directive file" appears when attempting to use
          XRW, the operator has probably issued the
          command XRW -R (in an attempt to suppress

SOLUTION: XRW will accept a valid file name after the XRW
          command.  E.G., XRW HOT.CMD     Where HOT.CMD
          contains commands such as: RUN MYREP.REP PRN

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

SOLUTION: Rule Processing - Rules are checked in the order
          the rules appear in the rules table, not in the
          order the data is entered.  If there are two
          mistakes on a table form, and neither passes
          rules, the first message displayed will be that
          of the first rule, rather than the first piece
          of data entered.  Try this with a load with
          prompts, and you'll see how it works.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Edit or enter table form after calling a
          variable form and get error message "form
          definition is incomplete."

SOLUTION: Put the command "new" immediately before calling
          the table form.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  In 4K users could set a variable to a blank (alt
          255) then they could show this variable to blank
          out a line on the screen.  This does not work in
          5K - only one character is blanked out.

SOLUTION: Use the write command to write a blank line to
          the screen, eg write "              " AT 23,1

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  all versions

PROBLEM:  In reports define V1 = anything and then define

          V2 = V1 IN tblname WHERE. . .
          V2 = .V1 IN tblname WHERE. . .

          neither of these two expressions are allowed in REPORTS.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K FileGateway
VERSION:  any version

PROBLEM:  5K Gateway - Couldn't run it or would get to
          main menu and couldn't exit.  Still need SET
          NO87 on AT.  OK with Enhanced Graphics Adapter.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  any version

PROBLEM:  Initializing the #RETURN variable before
          using it in a variable form can cause strange
          results such as data being scrambled.

SOLUTION: 1)  Have them replace #RETURN throughout their
          command file with another varname (e.g., XXX).
          2)  Have them put a line immediately after each
          EDIT VAR or ENTER VAR that says:

          SET VAR XXX to #RETURN

          If both these steps are done, the problem should
          go away.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Grand total in report is not correct, it looks
          like the last item is added twice.

SOLUTION: Check to see if the user is printing a subtotal
          in a PAGE footing and reseting that variable at
          end of page.  This causes grand total of that
          column printed in REPORT footing to be off. (e.g.,
          SUBTOT = sum of column/printed and reset in page
          footer.  GTOT = sum of column/printed in report
          footer).  If subtotal is printed/reset as break
          footer, it does total correctly.


=============================================================================


PRODUCT:  5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Loading a table with dotted variables when one
          or more of the variables contain null value can
          cause a problem when null is set to blank with:

          SET NULL " "

SOLUTION: Best workaround -

          SET NULL -0-
          LOAD tablum
          .V1 .V2 .V3
          END
          SET NULL " "

          If you surround the LOAD block with the SET NULL
          command like this  then when you are drawing your
          variable form your user won't see the -0-, and  the
          load will work correctly.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  When converting from 4K to 5K the date fields
          got turned into a text field.  This was because
          in 4K the date was set to yy/mm/dd.

SOLUTION: If you set the date in 5K to match your 4K format
          before doing the convert then everything is AOK.


=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  When defining a password for a database, to
          test the password, user must exit Rbase and
          reboot Rbase before the password will work properly.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  In reports when you have a page total and a
          report total totalling the same column, the
          report total will add the last record twice
          pagetot = pagetot + column(x)   reptot = reptot
          + column(x).

SOLUTION: To fix this, change the definition to look like
          this   Pagetot = pagetot + column(x)  junk =
          column(x)  reptot = reptot + junk.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Rbase takes 237,088 bytes of memory after
          setting buffers/files/path.  The family driver
          needs approximately 30,352 bytes memory.  Rbase
          will also use up to an additional 64K if
          available.  Therefore the maximum bytes free
          Rbase 5000 will use is approximately 332,976.
          This figure is based on Version 1.0 and may change
          with future versions.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  User had XT with Orchid Turbo 186
          card.  When tried to open DB in turbo mode, got
          "Out of file handles".  OK when ran without
          turbo.  Apparently the turbo mode uses it's own
          config.sys file.  He had only set the config.sys
          for regular mode.

=============================================================================


PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

SOLUTION: Delete duplicates uses keys if there are any.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Customer has device driver for external HD.
          CONFIG.SYS file has 1)device driver for HD.
          2) set buffers.  3)  files.  Wouldn't work.

SOLUTION: Moving it so order was: buffers & file settings,
          device driver for HD.  Then was OK.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Foreign versions, Sorts & special characters,
          Printers.  Special ascii characters
          have ascii character values greater than the
          standard letter values.  Since our sorts are
          based on ascii values, these special characters
          do not sort correctly (alphabetically).

          Also, American printers handle these different
          than printers from the countries for whom these
          characters are normal.  To print a, backspace,
          print an apostrophe.  This will not work well on
          all printers.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  If you set a variable to be used as menu
          variable in choose command to any type including
          integer then choose command produces error
          message "internal error referencing variables".

SOLUTION: Don't initialize the variable used by the CHOOSE
          command.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  Customers are unloading reports and
          then attempting to bring them back in with the
          input command.  They are getting an error
          message telling them that excess data values
          will be ingored.  The problem is that they have
          put quotes around values in their variable
          definition section.

SOLUTION: Set quotes to an unused character like the # key
          before doing the unload and then after the input
          set it back to ".

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  When moving variable substrings to a variable
          which was previously null, if the value being
          moved is less than four characters in length,
          then, the result of the move will produce a
          variable with a length of four.  That is, the
          value being moved will be padded with trailing
          blanks.

SOLUTION: Make sure that the receiving varaible is never
          null at the time it receives the character
          string.  That is, make sure that the variable
          has been initialised to at least a single
          character value prior to receiving the new
          character string.  Example:  SET VAR V1 TEXT
          SET VAR V2 TEXT   SET VAR V1 TO "ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"
          SET VAR V2 TO "Y"   MOVE 2 FROM V1 TO V2 AT 1.
          The example above will produce a V1 variable
          value with a length of two.  If the variable V2
          had not been set to an initial value (i.e., was
          null), then, the resulting value of V2 would
          have been four characters in length.  That is,
          it would have been ZZ  where 00 (2 blanks)
          represents a trailing blank.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

PROBLEM:  DBIII wants text nulls as "  ".

SOLUTION: To get this do the following:

          SET QUOTES=';SET NULL '"  "';SET QUOTES="

          Then R5K will unload nulls in a way DBIII can read.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K and R4K
VERSION:  1.0 and 1.01

PROBLEM:  Why different results with same command file
          under 5K 1.0 & 4K 1.15?  5K appear to round.
          4K 1.15 appears to truncate.

SOLUTION: Some commands didn't round correctly in R:base 5000
          version 1.0 (particularly the ASSIGN command) all
          round correctly in 1.01.  All calculations should
          round in Ver 1.01 R5K.  In version 1.15 of R:base 400
          calculations truncated.

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  4K and 5K
VERSION:  all versions

PROBLEM:  This is a way to # pages in reports in 4000.
          Calculate how many rows will be printed on a
          page, Example:  2 header lines, 5 detail lines,
          pagesize = 52.  #rows/page =(52 - 2)/5 = 10)  2.
          Define expressions as follows:  rowct = rowct +
          1  vp = rowct/10 (this is result of step 1  vp2
          in page header section.  3.  Locate up2 in page
          header section.

SOLUTION: This will also be useful for 5K people who want
          to number pages in reports by company.  Often
          they want to start the numbering sequence over
          when company changes, and the #PAGE system variable
          cannot be reset.

==========================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.01

PROBLEM:  Run command1; endif on a line will not run
          command1.  Input command2; show var; pause will
          show var and pause before command2 will be run,
          but it will run.

SOLUTION: The RUN and INPUT commands are interpreted by
          the computer as : set a flag so that the next
          time input is needed for this command line (the
          line the input or run statement is on) run or
          input the command or file.  However, if a
          semicolon follows the INPUT or RUN, the commands
          following the semicolon are run because they are
          on that command line.  If what follows the semicolon
          does not allow input for the current line (like
          ENDIF or another RUN command) then the first
          command will not be executed.  For example:

          RUN F1;RUN F2;RUN F3       *(will only run F3)

          INPUT F1.DAT; LOAD tblname *(will load tblname
                                       with contents of F1.dat)
          RUN F1; SHOW VAR; EXI *(will do the SHOW VAR and then
                                  EXIT R:base; F1 will never be run)
          RUN F1; SET VAR V1 INT *(will set V1 to Integer and
                                   then will run F1)

=============================================================================

PRODUCT:  R5K
VERSION:  1.0

SOLUTION: When editing data with variable forms, rather
          than a series of change commands, it may be
          faster to:

          DEL ROW FRO tblname WHE keycol = .Vkeycol
          LOAD tblname
          .V1 .V2 . . .
          END

          For this method to work you must have put
          all of the column values for the row into the
          variables.




***************
BOOKS ON R:BASE
***************

This is a list of books on R:base that are currently available or
that will be available by the spring of 1986.

Contact your local bookstore to order these titles.

Microrim currently offers "Managing Information with Microcomputers"
through our telemarketing service.  Call 1-800-547-4000 to order this
book.






BOOK NAME:  Using R:base 5000

AUTHOR:     Jonathan Erickson / Nicolas Baron

PUBLISHER:  Osborne McGraw Hill
            2600 Tenth St.
            Berkeley, CA  94710

CONTENT:    Follow up to OMH Using R:base 4000.  Provides an overview of
            R:Base 5000. Covers design issues, building forms and reports,
            a brief section on the programming language and a review of
            CLOUT and XRW use with R:base.

DUE DATE:   October 1985




BOOK NAME:  Understanding R:base 5000

AUTHOR:     Allan Simpson

PUBLISHER:  Sybex
            2344 6th St.
            Berkeley, CA  94710

CONTENT:    Written for new users of R:base 5000.  Includes glossary of terms,
            explanation of commands, how to build your own programs and
            applications, interface with other software and how to convert
            R:Base 4000 files to R:base 5000.

DUE DATE:   Currently available.  September 1985






BOOK NAME:  Database Processing With Microcomputer Applications

AUTHOR:     David Kroenke / Don Nilson

PUBLISHER:  SRA
            College Division  10th Fl.
            155 N. Wacker Dr.
            Chicago, IL    60606
            ATTN:  Michael Carrigg   [phone]

CONTENT:    College textbook format.  Several complete examples are illustrated
            to study development and use of database applications. Detailed
            sections on Database Design and Database Applications are provided
            along with sections on programming with R:base 5000.

DUE DATE:   After January 1, 1986.

NOTES:      SRA will be provide textbook with 4 disk to universities
            and corporations for classroom use.  Microrim to sell book
            only, not book bundled with disks, through our
            telemarketing services and through retail bookstores.




BOOK NAME:  R:BASE 5000 FOR THE PROGRAMMER (A How-To-Do-It Book)

AUTHOR:     Nelson T. Dinerstein

PUBLISHER:  Scott, Foresman and Company
            1900 E. Lake Ave.
            Glenview, IL   60025

CONTENT:    A programmers guide to building applications with R:base 5000.
            Explores use of the programming language, programming concepts,
            advanced design principles and an example of an R:base 5000
            application.

DUE DATE:   March 1986




  R:BASE 4000 BOOKS



BOOK NAME:  Managing Information with Microcomputers

AUTHOR:     David Kroenke / Don Nilson

PUBLISHER:  Microrim, Inc.
            3380 146th Place
            Bellevue, WA   98007

CONTENT:    Good overview of R:base 4000.  Simple examples illustrate database
            design, menu building, createing forms and reports. Examples of
            use in marketing, manufacturing, finance and project management
            are provided. Use of CLOUT natural language query software is
            discribed.

DUE DATE:   Currently available. 1984 release.



BOOK NAME:  Using R:base 4000

AUTHOR:     Jonathan Erickson / Nicolas Baron

PUBLISHER:  Osborne McGraw Hill
            2600 Tenth St.
            Berkeley, CA  94710

CONTENT:    General information book about R:base 4000.  Covers design issues,
            reports, relational commands, and use of CLOUT along with helpful
            hints section.

DUE DATE:   Currently available.  1985 release.




BOOK NAME:  The Book of R:Base

AUTHOR:     Gilbert M. Roeder

PUBLISHER:  Retreival Technology Corp.
            All-Hands-On Press
            3 Courthouse Lane
            Chelmsford, MA    01824

CONTENT:    Good explanation of R:base 4000 functions. Simple straightforward
            approach. Also covers Microrim's Extended Report Writer and CLOUT.


DUE DATE:   Currently available.  1984

tech notes 8
******************************************
TECHNICAL EDTORIAL #8 -- December 25, 1985
******************************************
Copyright (c) 1985 by Microrim, Inc.



***************
APPLICATION TIP
***************

Many R:base 5000 programmers have requested the ability to execute a
complete command line that has been stored in a variable.  This is
particularly useful when you want the user to enter an R:base command line
in the middle of your application file. It allows your application to be
more flexible.

You can do this by storing the command line in a dummy command file and
then running the command file.

For example, the following segment of code will run whatever command line
the user enters at the MY-APP> prompt:
.
.
.
WRITE "Enter the command +
line you wish to execute +
at the MY-APP> prompt"
FILLIN VLINE USING "MY-APP>"
OUTPUT DUMMY.CMD
SHOW VAR VLINE=70
OUTPUT SCREEN
RUN DUMMY.CMD
.
.
.
Use this macro in your application when you want to pass control to the
operator.



***************
MULTI-UP LABELS
***************
Product:  R:base 5000
          all versions
          R:base 4000
          1.1 or higher

Before reading this article you may want to review chapters 11 and 15 of
the R:base 5000 Manual.  Also note that some of the methods discussed in
this article require some knowledge of programming concepts.

There are several methods in current use that will print "multiple across"
(two-up, three-up, or four-up) labels.  Each of them has its own unique
advantages and disadvantages.  This article is about four of these methods.
Pick the one that is best for your particular needs.

Each one of these methods will also help you to learn how to write R:base
5000 programs.  Even if you are not printing labels you may want to examine
these methods for the examples of R:base programming that they provide.

The four methods (SIMPLE LOOKUP, CONTROL TABLE, LABLES.MAC, and PRINT
TABLE) are described below.  All but the last method can only be done with
R:base 5000.  The last method works in either R:base 4000 (version 1.1 or
higher) or R:base 5000.

The first two of the methods (SIMPLE LOOKUP AND CONTROL TABLE) are more
completely detailed in other articles in this BBS EDITORIAL.

1.  The SIMPLE LOOKUP Method
----------------------------
This method is detailed with step-by-step instructions in the article,
"Multi-Up Labels: Simple Lookup Method" in this BBS EDITORIAL.  Basically,
it uses simple programming and the report writer.  This method does not
require that you create a temporary table.  Instead it does lookups on its
own base table using the report writer.

Because no projecting or packing is necessary, it may be faster than the
other methods.  However, you will need to test it out with your database.
Since it prints a separate report for every line of labels (using different
where clauses), it can be time consuming.   It has to constantly load the
report writer code into memory and then look for the report.

2.  CONTROL TABLE Method
------------------------
This method is detailed with step-by-step instructions in the article,
"Multi-Up Labels: Control Table Method" in this issue of the BBS EDITORIAL.
It uses the report writer, a small (single column) projected table (that is
used to "control" the process), and simple programming (to number the rows
and project the control table).

This method requires a small temporary table which will have to be removed
at the end of the process.  It can be quite fast and it is simple to use
once the report has been set up.

3.  LABELS.MAC Method
---------------------
You will find the LABELS.MAC program on your R:base RBEDIT... utility disk.
It is well documented with multiple comments and it is a real R:base 5000
program.  If you are not a programmer, you may have difficulty
understanding it.

LABELS.MAC uses programming and variables exclusively.  This method does
not use the report writer and does not require a temporary table.  It can
be slower than the other methods unless you send output to a file, run it
overnight, and then print the labels in the morning using the DOS PRINT
command on the file.

Its advantages include the ability to go wider than 131 characters (you can
go as wide as 256).  See the article, "Programming Tips" in this BBS
EDITORIAL for information on a program named NOBLANKS.LAB (a modified
version of LABELS.MAC) that removes blank lines when there is no company or
second address line.

LABELS.MAC provides examples of all of the following programming methods:

o  Passing parameters to an R:base program
o  Using IF blocks to do error trapping
o  Using the SET POINTER command, its error variable (named FOUNDROW),  a
   WHILE loop, and the NEXT command to go row by row through your data in
   your R:base table and load the values of the columns into variables
o  Working with variables in combination with the SET and SHOW commands
o  Using the MOVE command

LABELS.MAC will also give you experience in modifying existing R:base code
so that it will work with your database and your particular column names.

4.  PRINT TABLE Method
----------------------
This method uses a long command file (PRINTTBL.LAB) that can be downloaded
from the FILES section.

The PRINT TABLE method uses the program PRINTTBL.LAB, the report writer,
and a temporary "print" table to print the labels.  The temporary table
used by this method is large; in fact it will take up as much room as the
original table.  After the table is built (which can be done overnight)
this method is very fast. After printing the labels you will need to REMOVE
the print table and then PACK or RELOAD your database (which can take a
while if your database is large).

Essentially, this method builds another table with extra columns for each
of the labels across.  In other words, the PRINT table for three-up labels
there would have the following columns in it:

NAME1
NAME2
NAME3
COMPANY1
COMPANY2
COMPANY3

and so on.  After loading the print table the report prints very fast
because no lookups are required at all.  You simply locate each of the
print table columns in your report and your labels are printed with
lightning speed.  Another advantage to the PRINT TABLE method is that it
can be used with either R:base 4000 (version 1.1 or higher) or R:base 5000
(any version).



*********************
MULTI-UP LABELS:
SIMPLE LOOKUP METHOD
*********************

Read the article, "Multi-Up Labels" (in this EDITORIAL) before continuing.
"Multi-Up Labels" will introduce you to four different methods for printing
multiple across labels.  The SIMPLE LOOKUP method, presented here, is but
one of them.

The SIMPLE LOOKUP method requires only simple command files and the report
writer.

First, you need a column (ROWNUM) to hold the row number for every row in
the table that holds your mailing label information (names, addresses,
etc.).

STEP 1.  Use the EXPAND command to create a column named ROWNUM with an
INTEGER datatype.

STEP 2.  Use the RENUMBER.CMD command file (listed below) to number the
rows in the sort order you want.   Notice the ...SORTED BY ZIP clause in
the SET POINTER... command.  By simply changing this ...SORTED BY clause
you can number the rows in any sort order that you choose.  For example,
you might want to change the SORTED BY... clause on the SET POINTER...
command to ...SORTED BY DEPT ZIP if you wanted your labels to print in zip
order by department.

This command file assumes that your table name is LABELS.  If your name and
address data is in a table with a different name, you need to change the
word LABELS in the SET POINTER... command line to the actual name of your
table.

RENUMBER.CMD
------------
SET VARIABLE CNT = 1
*(initializes the variable
  "cnt" as the counter)
SET POINTER #3 E3 FOR +
LABELS SORTED BY ZIP
*(sets up a route through
  the table in sorted order)
WHILE E3 = 0 THEN
*(sets up while loop. "While
  there are rows to process")
CHANGE ROWNUM TO .CNT IN #3
*(changes the column "rownum"
  to current value of the
  variable "cnt")
SET VARIABLE CNT TO .CNT + 1
*(adds 1 to the counter)
NEXT #3 E3
*(Points at next record in
  the sort order)
ENDWHILE

STEP 3.  Now you need to set up the report (named LABELS in this example)
that will print a set of three across labels.

To do this, you need to set up report variables which look up the second
and third rows in the base table by using the ROWNUM column.  You are
looking up the second and third label in the same table.

Setting up the report is a simple three-step process.  First you need to
understand how the report variables are used to look up the second and
third across labels.  Study figure 1 and the associated comments.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIGURE 1 - SAMPLE REPORT VARIABLES TO "LOOK UP" THE 2ND AND 3RD LABELS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
rn = rownum                *(gets current rownum)
rn2 = rn + 1               *(adds 1 to current row number counter)
name2 = name in table where rownum = rn2
*(this is actually looking forward one row to the next name)
rn3 = rn + 2               *(adds 2 to current row number counter)
name3 = name in table where rownum = rn3
*(this is actually looking forward two rows in the sorted order)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Still in (d)efine mode, you need to also look up the COMPANY, ADDR1, ADDR2,
and CTSTZIP columns in a similar fashion.  When you are finished, the
definition section of your report will be similar to what is listed in
FIGURE 2 assuming your table is named LABELS, and the columns in the table
are: NAME, COMPANY, ADDR1, ADDR2, CTSTZIP:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIGURE 2.  THE COMPLETE SET OF REPORT LOOKUP VARIABLES
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
rn = rownum
rn2 = rn + 1
name2 = name in labels where rownum = rn2
company2 = company2 in labels where rownum = rn2
addr12 = addr1 in labels where rownum = rn2
addr22 = addr2 in labels where rownum = rn2
ctstzip2 = ctstzip in labels where rownum = rn2
rn3 = rn + 2
name3 = name in labels where rownum = rn3
company3 = company3 in labels where rownum = rn3
addr13 = addr1 in labels where rownum = rn3
addr23 = addr2 in labels where rownum = rn3
ctstzip3 = ctstzip in labels where rownum = rn3
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

We recommend that you clear all your global variables before running this
report in order to free up as much memory as possible.  These lookups are
different than those done in the Control Table method.  Here, the lookups
are done based on the value of a row number column.  In the Control Table
method, the lookups are done based on a COUNT that the Report Writer does
during processing.  In other words, the Report Writer counts the number of
rows in the Control Table.

After defining all the variables in (d)efine mode, locate the columns (for
the first-across label) and the variables (for the second-across and third-
across labels) in the (l)ocate mode.  When you finish, the located items
will look like one set of three-across labels.

As the last report set-up step, (m)ark 6 lines of detail in the (m)ark
mode.

STEP 4.  Finally, you need a short command file to control the whole thing
and print the report for every group of three rows in the table.  The
command file in figure 3 will accomplish this for you.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIGURE 3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SET POINTER #3 E3 FOR LABELS SORTED BY ROWNUM
 *(sets the path through the table in order of the row numbers.)
WHILE E3 = 0 THEN
SET VAR REPNUM TO ROWNUM IN #3
 *(gets the row number needed for the report)
PRINT LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = .REPNUM
 *(prints the LABELS report for each 3rd row as sorted)
NEXT #3 E3           *(increments the row pointer)
NEXT #3 E3           *(increments the row pointer)
NEXT #3 E3           *(increments the row pointer)
 *(now the row pointer is pointing at row #4 which will become
   the first label in the next group of three for the next report)
ENDWHILE
---------------------------------------------------------------------------



********************
MULTI-UP LABELS:
CONTROL TABLE METHOD
********************

Read the article, "Multi-Up Labels" (in this EDITORIAL) before continuing.
"Multi-Up Labels" will introduce you to four different methods for printing
multiple across labels.  The CONTROL TABLE method, presented here, is but
one of them.

STEP 1.  Make sure that the table containing the names and addresses has a
ROWNUM column with consecutive integer row numbers. If you do not already
have this, see the article, "Multi-Up Labels: Simple Lookup Method" in this
EDITORIAL for a short explanation.  If you need a more detailed
explanation, see the article, "Auto Numbering" in the November 85 EXCHANGE.
For fastest speed the ROWNUM column should be the first column in the table
and it should be keyed.

Be certain that the row numbers are consecutive.  The rows DO NOT have to
be in a physically sorted order, but there must not be any gaps in the
numbers.  In the example below, the column on the left is fine but the
column on the right will not work because the number 2 is missing.

ROWNUM     ROWNUM
------     -------
     1           1
     3           4
     4           5
     2           3

If you have deleted rows since the last time you numbered your rows, you
will want to renumber them.

STEP 2.  Project any single column of the address table to a new table.  It
does not matter what column you use because it is the number of rows in the
projected table (named CONTROL in this example) that controls the
processing, not the value of its column.  It would be best to avoid DOLLAR
columns and TEXT columns (longer than four  characters), because of the
need to conserve space.  The projected table becomes a "control" table
against which the mailing label report will be run.  It controls the number
lines (or groups) of multi-up labels that will be printed.

Compute the correct number of rows to project by using the following
formula:

Divide the total number of rows in the name and address table (named LABELS
in this example) by the number of labels you will be printing across the
page (three in this example) and discard the remainder.  Finally add one to
the result.  If there are 2,354 rows in LABELS, and you want to print
three-up labels, the answer to the calculation is (2,354 / 3) + 1 or 785.

The project command to use in this case would be:

PROJECT CONTROL FROM LABELS +
USING ROWNUM WHERE LIMIT = 785

You had to add one in order to make sure the last line (or group) of multi-
across labels will be printed.  It may have been truncated away by the
division if there was a remainder after doing the division.  The number of
rows in the CONTROL table controls the number of lines (or groups) of
multi-up labels that will be printed.

For another example, if your name and address data is in a table named
LABELS, and the row number column is ROWNUM, the following segment of code
will create a CONTROL table with the correct number of rows:
.
.
.
SET V UP INTEGER
SET V TOT INTEGER
WRITE "How many labels +
across?"
FILLIN UP USING +
"ENTER 3 FOR 3-UP, +
4 FOR 4-UP, ETC."
COMPUTE NUM AS MAX +
ROWNUM FROM LABELS
SET V TOT TO .NUM / .UP
SET V TOT TO .TOT + 1
PROJECT CONTROL FROM LABELS +
USING ROWNUM +
WHERE LIMIT = .TOT
.
.
.
The projected table CONTROL will be the base table for the MULTI-UP label
report and the LABELS table will be the lookup table.

STEP 3. Using REPORTS, create a report that uses CONTROL as its base table
and does "lookups" against the LABELS table.  The report should pull in the
name, address, and all other information to be printed, and house that
information in report variables.  The report will do the lookups based on a
report variable (named RCOUNT in this example) which is incremented by one
for each row in the CONTROL table.  The report will perform the lookup
based on the RCOUNT variable.  RCOUNT will be used to lookup the
appropriate ROWNUM in the LABELS table.

The report creation step has 6 mini-steps:

o  Name the report (MULTI-UP in this example)
o  Name the table (CONTROL in this example)
o  (S)et pagesize to 0 (zero)
o  (D)efine all the lookup variables (example below)
o  (L)ocate all the lookup variables
o  (M)ark all lines as (d)etail

Figure 1 below is an example of what the defined block of report variables
in the report might look like for three-up labels:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIGURE 1.  DEFINING THE LOOKUP VARIABLES
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
R1COUNT      = R1COUNT + 1
V1NAME       = NAME IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R1COUNT
V1ADDR1      = ADDR1 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R1COUNT
V1ADDR2      = ADDR2 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R1COUNT
V1CTSTZP     = CTSTZP IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R1COUNT
R2COUNT      = R1COUNT + 1
V2NAME       = NAME IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R2COUNT
V2ADDR1      = ADDR1 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R2COUNT
V2ADDR2      = ADDR2 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R2COUNT
V2CTSTZP     = CTSTZP IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R2COUNT
R3COUNT      = R2COUNT + 1
V3NAME       = NAME IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R3COUNT
V3ADDR1      = ADDR1 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R3COUNT
V3ADDR2      = ADDR2 IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R3COUNT
V3CTSTZP     = CTSTZP IN LABELS WHERE ROWNUM = R3COUNT
R1COUNT      = R3COUNT
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(L)ocate the lookup variables (V1NAME, V1ADDR1, V1ADDR2, etc.) across the
page in the appropriate groups (one group for each label).

Because you are using the R:base 5000 report writer you are limited to
label stock that is 131 character positions wide (or less).

Make sure that the ROWNUM column in the LABELS table is the first column
defined, and that it is keyed (use the BUILD KEY command to key it).



****************
PROGRAMMING TIPS
****************
Product: R:base 5000 version 1.01 or higher

This article is based on
two R:base 5000 programs
by Mark Rasmussen
Washington, D.C.

Many programmers have come across the need for something analogous to
subscripted variables.  A subscripted variable, as used here, means a
variable (such as LNCOUNT) that contains another variable name with a
number tacked on to the end of it (such as LINE3).

Creating the subscripted variables is simply a matter of concatenating a
number onto the end of any variable name that you choose.  For example, if
you concatenate the value of an INTEGER variable named SUBSCRPT onto the
end of the literal word "LINE", put the result into a variable LNCOUNT, and
then increment SUBSCRPT each time through a WHILE loop, the variable
LNCOUNT will end up containing the following subscripted variable names:

LINE1, LINE2, LINE3, LINE4, etc.

at different times.  In other words, the first time through the WHILE loop,
LNCOUNT equals LINE1, the second time through, LNCOUNT equals LINE2, and so
on.

All this may seem confusing until you actually study the two R:base 5000
programs (NOBLANKS.LAB and TBL-MENU.MAC) that take advantage of this logic.
Both of these files can be downloaded from the application area of the
FILES section of the BBS.

NOBLANKS.LAB
------------
NOBLANKS.LAB uses subscripted variables to insure that blank lines don't
show up in labels when, for example, ADDR2 is blank (in other words,
contains a NULL value) or the COMPANY is blank.  The subscripted variable
(LNCOUNT) is used to store variable names (LINE1, LINE2, ... LINE6) which
in turn contain the lines for the labels.

NOBLANKS.LAB works for one-up or multiple-up (such as three across, four
across, etc.) labels.  It is a modified version of the LABELS.MAC program
(which prints all the blank lines) located on your R:base 5000 RBEDIT...
utility disk.

TBL-MENU.MAC
------------
TBL-MENU.MAC is an example of a macro that uses subscripted variables to
make and use a "table generated menu".  The "picks" in a table generated
menu come from actual values in an R:base table.  In other words the values
in the table create the menu.

In TBL-MENU.MAC, a subscripted variable (WHVAL) contains variable names
(WHVAL0, WHVAL1, WHVAL2, ... WHVAL9) which in turn contain the values that
were "picked" by the operator and are to be used in a WHERE clause (PRINT
rptname WHERE... for example) as follows:

...WHERE DESCRPT CON .WHVAL1 OR +
         DESCRPT CON .WHVAL2 OR +
         DESCRPT CON .WHVAL3

The  values in WHVAL1, WHVAL2, etc. are picked by the operator from a list
supplied by an R:base table and are then loaded into subscripted variables
to be used by the WHERE clause.  This makes it possible to use a constantly
changing set of picks.

You need to initialize all the WHVALn variables (where n is the subscript)
to a value that you know is not in the table that the WHERE clause will be
acting upon.  For example, TBL-MENU.MAC uses ZZZ as the initial value.
Otherwise, if the operator picks less than 10 items, you will get an error.
Or if the value does exist, rows of data will be included that the operator
did not pick.

In the TBL-MENU.MAC program, the menu of choices is generated by the
following command:

EDIT KEYWORD FLAG FROM KEYLIST

where KEYLIST is the table that holds the menu picks.

To "pick" from this menu, the operator puts an X in the FLAG column next to
the KEYWORDs desired.  The Xed KEYWORDs are then loaded into the WHVALn
variables and used in a WHERE clause.

Table generated menu picks are useful in almost all types of applications
but particularly for:

o  Library, Employment Matching, Project Management, and other applications
   that make extensive use of KEYWORD searches where you want to list the
   keywords and have the operator choose which ones to use.  You want the
   menu to be "table generated" because the keywords are constantly
   changing and the operator can more easily change the values in a
   KEYWORDS table than change an application menu.

o  Accounting and Financial applications where the set of accounts and
   customer numbers (that you may be picking from) change over time.

o  Applications where you want the operator to review a list of items that
   are a close match and then pick the one that "wins".  For example you
   might want to list all the names starting with JO because you are not
   sure whether it was input as JOE, JOSEPH, JO, JOIE, JOSIE, or JOSEPHINE;
   then when you see the list you will be able (based on other info in the
   list) to pick the winner or winners which will then be used in the WHERE
   clause for the actual report.



***********************
MAKING R:BASE GO FASTER
***********************

by Jim Browne
Systems/Communications Manager
Diocese of Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs, CO

Some of you who are running R:base 5000 on the IBM PC-AT may have been
reading about changing the speed of your PC-AT by replacing the original
6.0 mhz CPU crystal with a "faster" one.  This past summer, I replaced the
original crystal in my PC-AT with one that is faster.

The crystal I used is rated at about 16 mhz which, I am told, nets a new
CPU clock speed of about 8.0 mhz.  The results were very rewarding while
running R:base 5000.  If you check the back of just about any PC
publication these days, you will find a variety of third party vendors now
offering these faster crystals.  For about $130.00, one vendor now sells a
a kind of "dial-a-speed" five speed crystal that allows the user to
literally dial up to five different speeds from the back of the PC-AT.  The
idea is that you push up the speed of the 80286 chip in the PC-AT until
your software will not run.

The major improvement for my R:base application (a large mailing list/fund
raising system) was noticed in execution time of WHILE loops.  Just about
all my command files that had WHILE loops ran about 20 percent faster.  The
total print time of reports was cut by about 15 to 20 percent.  I saw very
little improvement, however, in command files that involved LOAD commands.
Screen I/Os improved somewhere in the range of 10 to 15 percent.

As it turns out, the process of changing an PC-AT crystal is quite simple.
The crystal I installed was obtained from Emerald Systems Corp. 4901 Morena
Blvd., San Diego, CA 92117 - [phone] and came complete with
installation instructions that were very easy to follow.  The entire
process took about 35 minutes from start to finish.

CAUTIONS:
--------
There are some cautions to consider.  IBM and their authorized dealers will
tell you that the crystal swap may void your warranty.  IBM has recently
come under some criticism for designing into the PC-AT a "socketed" crystal
and then not allowing owners to change crystals.  They say you change the
crystals at your own risk.  Also you cannot swap crystals on the new PC-AT
with the 30 megabyte hard disk.

Like many IBM users of PC products, I am more interested in increasing the
speed of my computer without destroying my application software than in
warranty concerns.  As of this date, I am successfully running:

o  Microrim's R:base 5000
o  Lotus Development Corporation's Symphony
o  Microsoft Word and
o  RoseSoft's Prokey

on my PC-AT with a 60 megabyte high speed (28 ms access time) disk drive
supplied by Emerald Systems Corporation.  I use an AST Advantage! memory
board with Hercules Computer Technology's color graphics card and the IBM
color monitor.  I have used Okidata 2410 Pacemark, Epson LQ1500, and FX185
printers with the system and have experienced no problems.

Most articles on this subject now say the 8.0 mhz crystal has no effect on
software.  Crystals that run at higher speeds (20 mhz, for example) do have
problems.  Since the crystals only cost about $10.00 to $15.00 each, you
simply buy a few at different speeds and test them out.  If you go faster
than 8 mhz, I strongly recommend you build a test database before you try
it out.  An extra backup of your hard disk would also be smart before you
"blast off".

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS:
--------------------
The actual improvements you will see while using a faster crystal in your
PC-AT will depend on several factors.  We routinely print 15,000 mailing
labels twice each month using R:base.  In an effort to improve the speed of
this process, we were careful to invest in other specialized equipment that
complements the faster crystal speed that the PC-AT can utilize.

First, consider the speed of your disk drive.  The standard PC-AT disk
drive is rated at about 40 ms average seek time (the time needed to "lock
on" to a record in the database)  The drives we use are about 30% faster
than IBM's in average seek time.  The data transfer rate of our drives are
also about 1.5 to two times faster than the standard IBM PC-AT's.  The data
transfer rate helps improve the speed in which we can transfer files from
memory to the hard drive.

Hard drives that exceed the performance of the IBM PC-AT standard 20
megabyte drives are available from several vendors.  We purchase our high
speed disk drives from Emerald Systems.  Emerald, a supplier of high
capacity (up to 240 meg) hard drives used in LANs, PCs and PC-ATs, often
suggests the crystal swap to PC-AT users.  For you "power" users of R:base
5000, you might notice that all hard drives sold by Emerald also have the
ability to exceed the 32 megabyte maximum file size that DOS is limited to.
Try projecting a new table in R:base that causes your *2.rbs file to exceed
32 meg.  It will not run unless your drives can handle files larger than 32
meg.

We also have improved R:base efficiency by printing our large reports (like
the mailing label report) to a disk file.  We never print these long
reports to the printer.  Our 15,000 cheshire mailing labels (printed four
across) take about four hours even with our equipment. We print these to a
disk file at night and use the DOS PRINT command to run the labels the next
day.  The DOS PRINT command allows us to print the labels in background
mode while we access R5K simultaneously from the same PC-AT.

Finally, be sure you have set up the correct CONFIG.SYS file for your PC.
If you have forgotten to include the Buffers=20 command in the CONFIG.SYS
file (like I did!), do so immediately.  The improved speed is dramatic.
Try altering the number of buffers until you achieve the best performance.



***********************
REAL NUMBERS IN REPORTS
***********************
Product: R:base 5000 version 1.01

Page 11-55 of the R:base 5000 version 1.01 manual explains how to align the
decimal points of real numbers in REPORTS by specifying the position of the
decimal point in (E)dit mode.  The bottom of page 11-55 explains that
R:base will attempt to format your REALs the way you want them, but if the
number is too large (scientific notation format) or if the accuracy of the
number is compromised, it reverts to the original real number format.

Review page 11-55 and then take a look at the table in figure 1 which shows
you exactly what all this means in terms of your numbers and how they are
going to look.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Figure 1. Aligned Real Numbers
----------------------------------------------------------------
    A.         B.        C.         D.         E.         F.
    UNALIGNED  R:BASE'S  ALIGNED    ALIGNED    ALIGNED    ALIGNED
    ACTUAL     ORIGINAL  W/DECIMAL  W/DECIMAL  W/DECIMAL  W/DECIMAL
    REAL NUM   REAL NUM  IN SECOND  IN THIRD   IN FOURTH  IN FIFTH
    DESIRED    FORMAT    POSITION   POSITION   POSITION   POSITION
    ---------- --------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ----------
 1) 0.123467     0.12347        0.1       0.12      0.123     0.1235
 2) 1.234567     1.23457        1.2       1.23      1.235     1.2346
 3) 12.34567     12.3457       12.3      12.35     12.346    12.3457
 4) 123.4567     123.457      123.5     123.46    123.457    123.457
 5) 1234.567     1234.57     1234.6    1234.57    1234.57    1234.57
 6) 12345.67     12345.7    12345.7    12345.7    12345.7    12345.7
 7) 123456.7     123457.    123457.    123457.    123457.    123457.
 8) 1234567    .123457E7  .123457E7  .123457E7  .123457E7  .123457E7
 9) -.1234567   -0.12346       -0.1      -0.12     -0.123    -0.1235
10) -1234567  -.123457E7 -.123457E7 -.123457E7 -.123457E7 -.123457E7
11) -123.4567   -123.457     -123.5    -123.46   -123.457   -123.457
12) 123.000      123.000      123.0     123.00    123.000    123.000
13) 000.123      0.12300        0.1       0.12      0.123     0.1230
----------------------------------------------------------------
First, look at lines 8 and 10.  These two numbers have over six digits to
the left of the decimal point and so they are converted to scientific
notation when put into R:base real number format.  Attempts to align them
in columns C, D, E, and F fail because they are in scientific notation.

Next, look at column F in the table. Although lines 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, and 12
have decimal points that appear to be in the wrong place, this is not a
bug.  It was necessary in these cases to revert to the original format in
order to show the true value of the number.  You can see that column F
matches column B (the original format) in each of these cases.  The same
thing has happened in all the other cases where the decimal point appears
to be in the wrong place.

You can predict when this will happen by applying the following general
guidelines:

1. The largest location size in REPORTS for REAL numbers is ten positions.
2. Of the ten, six of the positions are for the real number significant
   digits and one is for the decimal point.
3. The other three positions are only used by scientific notation and/or
   the minus sign.
4. If there are more than six significant digits to the left of the decimal
   point, then the real number is converted to scientific notation.
5. Finally, if there are less than six digits to the left of the decimal
   point, compute the total number of significant digits.  In other words,
   add the number of significant digits that are on the left of the decimal
   point to the number of significant digits on the right.  If the result
   is six or higher, all the significant digits to the left will be
   printed, followed by the decimal point, and then the digits to the right
   are rounded to fit in the remaining space.  This rule overrides any
   decimal point alignment you  have defined in REPORTS.  This is why it
   appears that the decimal points are not aligning the way you want them.

For examples of this last guideline in action, look at the following REAL
numbers in figure 1:

COLUMN C - LINE 7
COLUMN D - LINES 6 AND 7
COLUMN E - LINES 5, 6, AND 7
COLUMN F - LINES 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, AND 12

If you are having trouble aligning your decimal points because of this last
guideline, but you ARE able to print without converting to scientific
notation, then you may want to read, "Aligning Decimal Points in a Report",
in the September 1985 EXCHANGE.  The concepts in the September article
should work even if you are on the "outer limits" because it converts the
REAL number to a TEXT datatype before printing it.



********
HOT TIPS
********

Here are solutions and explanations for some common problems.



===========================================================================
R:BASE COMPATIBILITY
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 5000
         all versions


DESCRIPTION:  How can I tell whether R:base 5000 will run on my IBM
compatible computer.  It is not 100%, but close to it.  What are some
tests?


SOLUTION:  We are not able to guarantee that if your compatible passes
these tests, you will never have problems; however, the chances are good.
Tests include:

o  You are able to bring R:base 5000 up on your computer and everything
   looks normal
o  Color works
o  The F1 key adds a line and the F2 key deletes a line in RBEDIT
o  The F3 and F10 keys work as expected in EXPRESS
o  The R:base 5000 tutorial works on your computer
o  For R:base 5000 Multi-User, the evaluation copy works on your computer
   and LAN system



===========================================================================
FORMS AND REPORTS
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 5000
         all versions


DESCRIPTION:  I removed a column from a table and now I cannot get into my
data entry forms for this table.  I realize that the LAYOUT is incorrect,
but FORMS refuses to bring up my form so that I can correct it.  What do I
do?


EXPLANATION:  Although the column no longer exists, it is still located in
the form.  You need to remove the location of the column from your form by
using the EDIT command.


SOLUTION:  Replacing "formname" with the actual name of your form, enter
the following command at an R> prompt:

EDIT ALL FROM FORMS +
WHERE FNAME = formname

Press the down arrow key until you find the word LAYOUT in the second
column (FDATA) on your screen.

Next, continue to slowly tap the down arrow key until you see the name of
the deleted column in the second column (under the word LAYOUT).  When your
cursor is on that row (highlighting one of the columns), press the F2 key
followed by the [ENTER] key to delete the row.  Finally, escape from the
EDIT and your form will now work because the location of the column that no
longer exists has been removed.  In other words, the LAYOUT has been
corrected.

This same general method will also correct your REPORTS that have this same
deleted column located in them.  In the case of REPORTS, the command to use
is:

EDIT ALL FROM REPORTS +
WHERE RNAME = rptname

If you have renamed a column and that column is located in FORMS or in
REPORTS you can correct the LAYOUT section in your forms and reports by
using the EDIT ALL FROM... command.  In this case, however, you will NOT
want to delete the applicable row.  Instead, type over the "old" name with
the "new" name and then press [Esc].



===========================================================================
RINGING THE BELL
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 5000
         all versions


DESCRIPTION:  I want to ring the bell and print my own error message on the
screen based on my own error trapping routines.


SOLUTION:  Put the following block of code in your program when you want
the bell to ring:
.
.
.
SET BELL ON
SET ERROR MESSAGE ON
OUTPUT TEMP.DAT2
RING MY CHIMES!
SET ERROR MESSAGE OFF
OUTPUT SCREEN
WRITE "This is my error msg"
PAUSE
.
.
.
Since RING is not an R:base command, the bell will sound and the error
message will go into the file where the operator will not see it.  The
WRITE command will now print your error message on the screen.



===========================================================================
ADDING LEADING ZEROS
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 5000 all versions


DESCRIPTION:  I have a part number column that is defined as INTEGER, I
changed it to TEXT using the CHANGE COLUMN... command and now all the
numbers do not sort properly.


EXPLANATION:  TEXT type columns are sorted from left to right.  This is not
a bug; it is the way computers work with TEXT values.  TEXT values are
sorted as indicated below.  Notice that both the numbers and the letters
sort left to right.

2        B
200      BEE
3        C
37       CI
374      CID
38       CH

Therefore, to solve your problem, all you need to do is put in leading
zeros.  With leading zeros the above numbers will sort as follows:

002
003
037
038
200
374


SOLUTION:  To get your text values to sort the way you want them to, you
need to put in leading zeros so that the "ones", "tens", "hundreds", etc.
columns all line up.

In this example:

o  The table is named PARTS.
o  The original INTEGER column (that you changed to TEXT) is named PNUM.
o  The new TEXT column (which will hold the new part number with the
   leading zeros) is named PART#
o  The largest integer part number in the table is four characters long
   which means no more than three leading zeros are required.

Use the following code to change PNUM back to INTEGER and to create the new
PART# column:

*(first change PNUM back
  to integer)
CHANGE COL PNUM IN PARTS +
  TO INTEGER

*(next EXPAND the table
  to include a new TEXT
  column that will hold
  the TEXT part number
  with leading zeros)
EXPAND PARTS WITH PART# +
  TEXT 4

Now, use the following macro to put leading zeros into the PART# column:

*(now set up the WHILE loop)
SET V RESULT TEXT
SET POINTER #3 E3 FOR PARTS
WHILE E3 = 0 THEN
SET V VPNUM TO PNUM IN #3

*(add 3 leading zeros)
IF VPNUM GE 0 AND +
VPNUM LE 9 THEN
SET V RESULT TO 000 + .VPNUM
ENDIF

*(add 2 leading zeros)
IF VPNUM GE 10 AND +
VPNUM LE 99 THEN
SET V RESULT TO 00 + .VPNUM
ENDIF

*(add 1 leading zeros)
IF VPNUM GE 100 AND +
VPNUM LE 999 THEN
SET V RESULT TO 0 + .VPNUM
ENDIF

*(load RESULT into PART#)
CHANGE PART# TO .RESULT IN #3

NEXT #3 E3
ENDWHILE



===========================================================================
RULES
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 4000, 5000, 6000
         all versions


DESCRIPTION:  My rules do not check the column values in the same order as
they are entered.  What is wrong?


EXPLANATION: Rules are checked in the order the rules appear in the rules
table, not in the order the column values are entered.  If there are two or
more mistakes in the data on a table form (which violate rules) the first
message displayed will be that of the first rule, rather than the first
piece of data entered.


SOLUTION:  Using the EDIT ALL... command, change the numbers of the rules
into the order you want the rules to be checked.  For R:base 4000 and 6000
the command to use is EDIT ALL FROM RBSRULES.  For R:base 5000, use EDIT
ALL FROM RULES.

Next, unload the rules data into a file (replace "ruletbl" with RULES if
using R:base 5000, otherwise use RBSRULES):

OUTPUT TEMP.DAT
UNLOAD ALL FOR ruletbl +
SORTED BY NUMRULE
OUTPUT TERMINAL

Finally, delete the old rules table (RBSRULES or RULES) and create the new
one:

REMOVE ruletbl
INPUT TEMP.DAT



===========================================================================
BLANKING OUT A SCREEN LINE
===========================================================================
Product: R:base 5000
         all versions


DESCRIPTION:  In R:base 4000 I could set a variable to a blank (alt 255)
and then SHOW this variable to blank out an entire line on the screen.
This does not work in R:base 5000; only one character is blanked out.

SOLUTION: Use the WRITE command to write a blank line to the screen, for
example,

WRITE "              " AT 23 1

If you were going to blank out an entire line you would include 80 blanks
between the quotes by using the plus sign to continue the blanks on the
next line.  R:base is smart enough not to include the plus sign as a
literal character in the line.  For example, the following would cause line
15 to be completely blanked out:

*(20 blanks per line on four
  lines = 80 blanks total)
WRITE "                    +
                    +
                    +
                    " AT 15 1

Additionally, there is a macro available that will blank out an entire
segment (or block) of the screen.  You can download the BLANK.OUT file from
the FILES section, application area.  Download the file named MESS to
see BLANK.OUT in action.  MESS is a file with all the positions filled with
letters.  To see a blank section appear in the file, issue the following
series of commands:

NEWPAGE
TYPE MESS
RUN BLANK.OUT 5 20 4 30



****************
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
****************

The following Microrim employees contributed programs, concepts, and/or
articles for this EDITORIAL:

MariEsther Burnham
Kelly Cline
Kay Dayss
Marianne Jaeger
Mike Johnson
Paul Scheiner
Liz Shattuck
Richard Traband
Mario Valverde


TECHNICAL SUPPORT
We provide a wide variety of technical support alternatives:

o  Direct line to technical support: [phone].
o  Toll-free hotline available to all continental U.S. Software Maintenance
   Plan (SMP) subscribers outside Washington state.  The toll-free hotline
   is a direct line to our senior technical support staff.
o  Electronic Bulletin Board (BBS): [phone].
o  R:base EXCHANGE technical newsletter.  Free to SMP subscribers and
   available by subscription to others (see coupon at the back of this
   issue).
o  We also have special support programs for Consultants, Application
   Developers, Value Added Resellers (VARs) and Dealers.  To get
   information on how you can be a part of these programs, call (206) 641-
   6619 and ask for the INFO center.  We will send you an entire package of
   information.


TRADEMARK
R:BASE SERIES is a trademark of Microrim, Inc.
Application EXPRESS is a trademark of Microrim, Inc.
FileGateway is a trademark of Microrim, Inc.
CLOUT is a trademark of Microrim, Inc.
XRW is a trademark of Microrim, Inc.
IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corp.
XT and AT are trademarks of International Business Machines Corp.
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LQ1500 is a trademark of Epson America, Inc.
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Okidata is a trademark of Okidata Corporation
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Prokey is a trademark of RoseSoft, Inc.
Hercules Computer Technology is a trademark of Hercules Computer Technology


DISCLAIMER
Microrim, Inc., makes no representation or warranties with respect to the
contents hereof, and specifically disclaims any implied warranties of
merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose.  Further, Microrim,
Inc., reserves the right to revise this publication and to make changes in
the content hereof without obligation to notify any person of such revision
or change and shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for
incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing,
performance, or use of this material.


tech notes 9
********************
*  VARIABLE FORMS  *
********************

In response to your requests for further information on variable forms, we
are including the following five articles in this section:

o  Why or When to Use Varforms
o  Varform Basics & Two-Page Forms
o  Putting "Display Only" Info on a Varform
o  Using Rules With Varforms
o  Loading Several Rows From One Varform



***************************
WHY OR WHEN TO USE VARFORMS
***************************
Product: R:base 5000 all ver

There are a number of reasons to use variable forms instead of tableforms
including:

o  For multi-page forms.
o  To load data, entered on one form, into more than one table.
o  To load data, entered on one form, into more than one row of a table.
o  When you want to display some data on a data entry screen (form) that
   cannot be edited.
o  When lookups are desired.  In other words, you want the operator to
   enter the Customer's number and have R:base lookup and display the
   Customer's name.
o  When calculations are needed on what the operator has entered before
   the data is loaded into the table.
o  Anytime you want to load information directly into variables and you do
   not want to use a whole series of FILLIN command lines.




*******************************
VARFORM BASICS & TWO-PAGE FORMS
*******************************
Product: R:base R:base 5000 all ver


BASIC DATA ENTRY WITH A VARFORM:
-------------------------------
The code for a basic variable form (with three variables VAR1, VAR2, and
VAR3) being loaded to a three column (COL1, COL2, and COL3) table is listed
below.  Note that it is assumed you have defined the variable form (VFORM
in this example) using the FORMS command prior to running this code.

LABEL ENTFORM
  SET NULL " "
  NEWPAGE
  WRITE "Press [ESC] to add this +
  row or [PGDN] to quit" AT 1 1
  DRAW VFORM
  EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGDN
  IF #RETURN = ESC THEN
    GOTO LOADBLK
  ENDIF
  IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN
    QUIT
  ENDIF

LABEL LOADBLK
  SET NULL -0-
  LOAD tblname
    .VAR1  .VAR2  .VAR3
  END

CLEAR VAR1
CLEAR VAR2
CLEAR VAR3
GOTO ENTFORM

Notice that there are threee basic blocks of code.

o  The first block accomplishes data entry (with the DRAW and EDIT VAR
   commands and then passes control based on the RETURN key (ESC or PGDN)
   that the operator chooses.  NULL is set to a blank so the operator will
   not see the -0- on the screen for the NULL variables.
o  The load block is the block that actually loads the values stored in the
   variables into the form.  Until this block is executed, no data that the
   operator entered is saved.  NULL must be set to -0- for the LOAD to work
   correctly.  If it is set to a blank, you may get a kind of blank (ALT
   255) entered into your table when you wanted a NULL.
o  The final block clears the variables and goes back to the top for the
   next form.


BASIC EDITING OF EXISTING DATA:
------------------------------
It is also possible to edit existing data using a variable form.  First,
use the SET POINTER command to point at the row you want to edit.  Next,
use the SET VAR command to pull the data (from the columns in the row you
are pointing at) into variables.  Next, edit the variables with the DRAW
and EDIT VAR commands. Finally, write the new values back to the table with
the CHANGE command.  For example:

LABEL TOP
FILLIN VID USING "Enter the ID +
number for the record you want +
to edit or Q to quit: " at 1 1
IF VID NE Q THEN
  SET POINTER #3 E3 FOR tblname +
  WHERE ID EQ .VID
  SET VAR VAR1 TO COL1 IN #3
  SET VAR VAR2 TO COL2 IN #3
  SET VAR VAR3 TO COL3 IN #3

  NEWPAGE
  WRITE "Press [ESC] to make +
  changes or press [PGDN] to +
  bail out" AT 1 1

  DRAW VFORM WITH ALL
  EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGDN
    IF #RETURN = ESC THEN
      GOTO LOADBLK
    ENDIF
    IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN
      QUIT
    ENDIF

  LABEL LOADBLK
    SET NULL -0-
    CHANGE COL1 TO .VAR1 IN #3
    CHANGE COL2 TO .VAR2 IN #3
    CHANGE COL3 TO .VAR3 IN #3

  CLEAR VAR1
  CLEAR VAR2
  CLEAR VAR3
ENDIF

IF VID = Q THEN
  QUIT
ELSE
  GOTO TOP
ENDIF


ENTERING TWO-PAGE VARFORMS:
--------------------------
Variable forms are also easily demonstrated using multiple page form
emulation as an example.  There is a command file in the R:base 5000 manual
on pages 15-44 and 15-45 giving one example of how to do multiple page form
emulation with variable forms.

The macro presented here (see Figure 1 is a more basic method that does not
require keeping track of page numbers.  Before running the macro you need
to use the FORMS command to create the two variable forms FORM1 and FORM2.
Note that in this example, no data is loaded into the table, until form2
has been entered.  If the operator presses [Esc] after entering information
into form1, the form1 information will not be loaded.  This prevents a
partial record from being loaded.

===========================================================================
Figure 1. BASIC TWO-PAGE DATA ENTRY WITH VARIABLE FORMS
===========================================================================

LABEL FORM1
  SET NULL " "
  NEWPAGE
  WRITE "Press [PGDN] to go on to page two -- [ESC] to quit" AT 1 1
  DRAW FORM1
  EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGDN
    IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN ; GOTO FORM2 ; ENDIF
    IF #RETURN = ESC THEN; QUIT; ENDIF

LABEL FORM2
  NEWPAGE
  WRITE "Press [Esc] to add this two-page record +
  -- [PGUP] to go back to page one" AT 1 1
  DRAW FORM2
  EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGUP
    IF #RETURN = ESC THEN ; GOTO LOADVARS ; ENDIF
    IF #RETURN = PGUP THEN ; GOTO FORM1 ; ENDIF

LABEL LOADVARS
  SET NULL -0-
  *( The following three lines of code are known as the "LOAD block".
     If you need more than one line to list the variables, you can
     use the plus sign to continue on the next line)
  LOAD tblname
    .varname1 .varname2 .varname3 ...
  END

CLEAR varname1 ; CLEAR varname2 ; CLEAR varname3 ; ...
GOTO FORM1

===========================================================================

THE LOAD BLOCK:
--------------
The LOAD block is required to load data to the table.

Remember that the dotted variables listed in the LOAD block are the
variables that you located in the variable forms FORM1 and FORM2.  The
variables must be listed (side by side on the line following the LOAD...
command line) in the same order that their corresponding columns appear in
the table being loaded.  Data is not actually added to your table until the
LOAD block is executed.

Therefore, the operator can go back and forth between FORM1 and FORM2 as
many times as desired and no data will be added to the table until [ESC] is
pressed while the second form is being displayed.

If you have more columns in your table than variables in your LOAD block
you will need to use NULL place keepers.  For example, if the table had
these columns:

NAME  ADDRESS  CITY STATE

and your variable forms were using only the following variables:

VNAME  VCITY

Your load block would look like one of the three examples presented below:

*(LOAD BLOCK EXAMPLE ONE)
  LOAD tblname
    .VNAME  -0-  .VCITY  -0-
  END

Or it could look like this:

*(LOAD BLOCK EXAMPLE TWO)
  LOAD tblname ; FILL
    .VNAME  -0-  .VCITY
  END

Example two works because the FILL command, when included on the LOAD ...
line with the semicolon, will fill all remaining columns (that is all the
columns after the first three) with NULLs.

A third type of LOAD block has a USING clause.  For example,

*(LOAD BLOCK EXAMPLE THREE)
  LOAD tblname USING NAME CITY
    .VNAME .VCITY
  END

The USING clause does not actually load the data; you must still list the
variables to be loaded on the line below the LOAD... command line.
However, the USING clause does allow you to specify which columns are to be
loaded and the order to be followed in loading them.

Remember:

o  Make sure that NULL is set to -0- before executing a LOAD block
o  Specify column names in the USING clause of the LOAD... command line
o  Specify variable names (with dots in front of each one) on the line
   below the LOAD... command line.  Each separate line, between the LOAD...
   line and the END line, will be loaded to a separate row in the table.
   Usually only one row is added at one time so the LOAD block is usually
   three lines long (LOAD..., dotted vars, and END).  For an example of a
   LOAD block that loads more than one row, see the article, "Loading Many
   Rows From One Form" in this Technical Edtorial.
o  Make sure that the order (left to right) in which the column names are
   listed in the USING clause (on the top line) corresponds exactly with
   the order (left to right) in which the dotted variables are listed on
   the middle line.
o  End the LOAD block with END.


THE RETURN CLAUSE:
-----------------
Using the RETURN clause in the EDIT VAR ... command line and excluding
ENTER as an option allows the operator to use the [ENTER] key to bounce
from place to place in the form during data entry.  If ENTER were to be
used in the RETURN clause of the EDIT VAR..., the operator would have to
use the arrow keys to bounce around in the form.

You may want to add error trapping code to the basic code in Figure 1., but
the basic concepts will hopefully help you to better understand variable
forms.

To use variable forms for data entry in an EXPRESS application, you would
build a macro similar to that in Figure 1. and then pull it into your
EXPRESS application by using the MACRO action pick.

SUMMARY:
-------
The basic macro presented in Figure 1. demonstrates the following basics of
variable forms:

o  Use NEWPAGE to clear the screen before a DRAW.
o  Use WRITE to write a message on the first line telling the operator
   what to do when finished with the form.
o  Use DRAW to draw the variable form on the screen.
o  Use EDIT VAR to enter data into the form.
o  Use a RETURN clause on the EDIT VAR command to limit the possible
   values for the #RETURN system variable.
o  Use an IF block for every #RETURN possibility.
o  Use a LOAD block to load the variable values into the table.  Be sure to
   set NULL to -0- right before the LOAD block and list the variables in
   the same order as the corresponding columns in the table.
o  After loading the variables clear each one individually with CLEAR
   varname command.
o  Use the FILLIN, SET POINTER, SET VAR, DRAW, EDIT VAR, and CHANGE
   commands to edit using a variable form.




***************************
DISPLAY ONLY INFO ON A FORM
***************************
Product: R:base 5000 all ver


Before attempting this article, review the "Varform Basics & Two-Page
Forms" article in this Technical Edtorial.

By using variable forms, it is easy to display "information only" data on
the screen in the same form being used for data entry.   For example, when
entering invoices for CUST# 234 you may want to enter 234 and have the
computer display the CUSTNAME, CUSTADDR, etc. to make sure 234 is the
correct number before entering the invoices for that customer.  The
computer can lookup the customer information to display it on the screen.

PROCEDURE:
---------
o  Get the CUST# from the operator with a variable form or with the FILLIN
   command.
o  Using the SET VAR command lookup the values you need to display.
o  DRAW the form WITH ALL to show the values of all the variables.  The
   ones you just looked up will be displayed.  The ones to be entered will
   be blank.
o  Now use the EDIT VAR command and list the names of the variables in the
   form that are to be entered.


EXAMPLE:
-------
The following example code assumes that you have previously set up a
variable form FORM1 with the variables VLOOK1, VLOOK2, VINV#, VINVAMT, and
VCUST# located in it.  It is also assumed that you have two tables, CUST
(with columns CUST#, CUSTNAME, and CUSTADDR) and INVOICE (with columns
CUST#, INV#, and INVAMT).

.
.
.
LABEL LOOKUPS
  CLEAR VAR VCUST#
  NEWPAGE
  FILLIN VCUST# USING +
  "Customer Number: " AT 1 1
  SET VAR VLOOK1 TO CUSTNAME +
  IN CUST WHERE CUST# = .VCUST#
  SET VAR VLOOK2 TO CUSTADDR IN +
  CUST WHERE CUST# = .VCUST#
  WRITE "Press [Esc] to add this +
  invoice, [PgDn] for new +
  customer number, or [PgUp] to +
  quit" AT 2 1

LABEL INVOICES
  NEWPAGE
  DRAW FORM1 WITH ALL AT 3
  EDIT VAR VINV# VINVAMT +
  RETURN ESC PGUP PGDN
  IF #RETURN = ESC THEN
    SET NULL -0-
    LOAD INVOICE
    .VCUST#  .VINV#  .VINVAMT
    END
    SET NULL " "
    CLEAR VINV# ; CLEAR VINVAMT
    GOTO INVOICES
  ENDIF
  IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN
    GOTO LOOKUPS
  ENDIF
  IF #RETURN = PGUP THEN
    NEWPAGE
    QUIT
  ENDIF
.
.
.




*************************
USING RULES WITH VARFORMS
*************************
Product: R:base 5000 all ver

Before attempting this article, review the "Varform Basics & Two-Page
Forms" article in this Technical Edtorial.

It is possible to use rules with variable forms.  Basically, this method
uses the following trick shots to make rules work with variable forms:

o  Draw the variable form at line three (or further down) on the screen to
   enable the error message from the rule to be displayed at the top of the
   screen and the instructions to the operator to be written on line two
   with the WRITE command.
o  Use the command CHECK (with a semicolon in front of it) on the "LOAD
   tblname" line in the LOAD block to turn rules on.

The complete method is outlined in Figure 2.  The method presented will
work with single-page forms.  If you are using multiple-page forms you will
need to revise the method.  The easiest way would be to load each page to a
different temporary data entry table (TEMP1 and TEMP2) and repeat the
unique identifying variable/column (such as ID). TEMP1 and TEMP2 will each
have their own unique rules.  When the data entry session is over, have
your macro INTERSECT TEMP1 WITH TEMP2 FORMING TEMP3 and APPEND TEMP3 TO
MASTER where MASTER is the name of the main table.  Finally delete all the
rows in TEMP1 and TEMP2 and remove TEMP3 so that you are ready for the next
data entry session.  You will also want to PACK or RELOAD to clean up your
database, because you deleted rows and removed a table.


===========================================================================
Figure 2.  Using Rules With Variable Forms
===========================================================================
*(initialize)
NEW;SET MESS OFF;SET ERR MESS ON;SET BELL ON;SET NULL " "
COMPUTE NEWTOT AS ROWS FROM tblname

*(start here if last form entered did not violate rules)
LABEL ADDREC
    NEW
    SET VAR OLD TO .NEWTOT
    CLEAR var1 ; CLEAR var2 ; CLEAR var3
    WRITE "Press [Esc] to add; [PgDn] to quit" at 2,1

*(redo this section if rule was violated - this code allows 4 retrys only
  because of the limit of 5 DRAWs before a NEWPAGE)
LABEL TRYAGAIN
    DRAW varform AT 5
      EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGDN

*( next block of code will end the data entry session if operator chooses)
      IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN
        QUIT
      ENDIF

*( next block of code attempts to add a row if no rules are violated )
      IF #RETURN = ESC THEN
        SET NULL -0-
          LOAD tblname ; CHECK
           .var1 .var2 .var3
          END
        SET NULL " "

*( next block determines if rule was violated.  If OLD = .NEWROWS then rule
   was violated, else a row was added and ready to add another row)
        COMPUTE NEWTOT AS ROWS FROM tblname
        IF OLD EQ .NEWTOT THEN
          GOTO TRYAGAIN
        ELSE
          GOTO ADDREC
        ENDIF
      ENDIF
===========================================================================

You can also use your rules when editing using a variable form.  You would
need to make the following modifications to the code in Figure 2.

o  Add the FILLIN, SET POINTER, and SET VAR commands (see the "Basics...
   article) and other modifications necessary when editing existing data
   using a variable form.
o  Use the CHANGE command to load the data rather than a LOAD block.
   It is while the CHANGEs are being executed that the error messages will
   be printed on the screen.  Issue a NEWPAGE right before the CHANGE
   command and DRAW the variable form enough lines down the screen to
   accomodate all the possible error messages.




*******************************
LOADING MANY ROWS FROM ONE FORM
*******************************
Product: R:base 5000 all ver


Before attempting this article, review the "Varform Basics & Two-Page
Forms" and the "Using Rules With Varforms" articles in this Technical
Edtorial.

Several customers have asked for the ability to load several rows at once
from one form.  For example, you may want to enter all the invoices for
customer number 234 onto one form.  You know that no more than three
invoices would be entered at once, but sometimes you have only one or two
to enter for a customer and you do not want NULL rows going into the table
for the lines on the form that have no data.

The method presented here is also very useful in applications like order
entry where there may be several items ordered on one physical order form
and you need each line to go into a separate row in the table.

Using this method will save time.  You do not need to wait for each invoice
to be loaded into the table before entering the next one for the same
customer.

STEP ONE:
--------
First determine the maximum number of lines to be entered at one time and
create a variable form with a different variable for each "cell" (line /
column combination) in your form.  If you have a large number of variables,
you may run out of memory and get an "Out of Dynamic Space" error message
when trying to run your application.  If this happens, and you already have
384K of memory available (the maximum R:base 5000 currently uses) you will
need to abandon this method and go back to the "one line at a time method".

If, however, you have 384K bytes of memory, you will not have any problem
with an average number of variables.  For example, the following scenario
would be fine:

o  Basic Order Entry Application where each order can have a maximum of
   five parts ordered at once, but sometimes fewer parts are ordered.
o  If only two parts are ordered, for example, only two rows are to be
   added to the ORDERS table.  We need to prevent NULL rows from being
   entered.
o  Variable form that has one master header line (to enter VCUST# and
   VORDDATE) and five transaction lines with three integer and dollar
   variables on each line.  Each of the transaction lines will be loaded to
   a different row in the ORDERS table.
o  ORDERS table has five columns:  CUST#, ORDDATE, PART#, QUANT, and  COST.

The variable form for this example would need to have the following 17
variables located in it:

VCUST#  VORDDATE
VPART#1  VQUANT1  VCOST1
VPART#2  VQUANT2  VCOST2
VPART#3  VQUANT3  VCOST3
VPART#4  VQUANT4  VCOST4
VPART#5  VQUANT5  VCOST5

STEP TWO:
--------
Create a rule that requires an entry in the PART# column of ORDERS.  This
rule will be used to prevent NULL rows from being added to the table if
less than the maximum number of transaction records are included on a
particular data entry form.


STEP THREE:
----------
Put all the variables into the load block (the 1s on line one, the 2s on
line two etc.) and include the VCUST# and VORDDATE on each of the lines.
Each line will be loaded into a different row of the database.  The
complete code is listed in Figure 3.  Do all of this with rule checking on
and at the top of the load block enter the command:

OUTPUT TRASHCAN

this command will print all the error messages from the rules being broken
into a file named TRASHCAN.  At the bottom of the load block command file
enter the following two commands to clear everything.

OUTPUT TERMINAL
ERASE TRASHCAN

Now, if a rule is broken (meaning that nothing was entered on that line of
the form) that particular row will NOT be added to the table.  You will
also want to have SET BELL OFF at the top of the command file.

===========================================================================
Figure 3.  Loading Many Rows From One Variable Form
===========================================================================
NEW;SET MESS OFF;SET ERR MESS ON;SET BELL OFF;SET NULL " "

LABEL TOP
NEWPAGE
WRITE "Press [Esc] to add; [PgDn] to quit" at 1 1
DRAW varform AT 2
EDIT VAR RETURN ESC PGDN

IF #RETURN = PGDN THEN
  QUIT
ENDIF

IF #RETURN = ESC THEN
  SET NULL -0-
    OUTPUT TRASHCAN
      LOAD tblname ; CHECK
        .VCUST#  .VORDDATE  .VPART#1  .VQUANT1  .VCOST1
        .VCUST#  .VORDDATE  .VPART#2  .VQUANT2  .VCOST2
        .VCUST#  .VORDDATE  .VPART#3  .VQUANT3  .VCOST3
        .VCUST#  .VORDDATE  .VPART#4  .VQUANT4  .VCOST4
        .VCUST#  .VORDDATE  .VPART#5  .VQUANT5  .VCOST5
      END
    OUTPUT TERMINAL
    ERASE TRASHCAN
  SET NULL " "
ENDIF

GOTO TOP
===========================================================================