OOFILE exists to make life easy for c++ programmers who want to embed a fast database and particularly those using an application framework, or hooking up to the World Wide Web.
We are selling ‘comfort’.
If you don’t like anything, tell us and we’ll (probably) change it or give you an alternative.
If you need to do something and you can’t see how to do it in OOFILE (or our competitors) then please ask us.
If there’s something you don't like about framework-based c++ development, tell us even if it has nothing to do with databases. One of the key ideas in OOFILE is ‘human interface design for programmers.’ Maybe we can help make other frameworks easier to program (you never know until you lobby).
The current (c-tree Plus) backend of OOFILE gives you royalty-free portability to Mac, Windows, OS/2 Windows NT and more Unix versions than I can count. We picked Faircom’s c-tree Plus because it is scalable to client-server and has a world-wide reputation for portability, speed and reliability. Faircom are very happy with our arrival — it gives a c-oriented company somewhere to send all those c++ programmers.
What's in this Demo Release
You get a complete copy of OOFILE from beta 1.04, tested with CW7.
Instead of the normal source release of the c-tree backend, this has been compiled into a binary library.
You also get single-user demo libraries of c-tree Plus. These are limited to 2 tables and 10 indexes per table and can only be used with this OOFILE demo. However, you can have as many records as you like. This should let you test writing some big databases.
These demo libraries are licensed from Faircom for testing purposes only and must not be used for commercial development. Please don’t abuse our trust (and my negotiations). It wasn’t easy getting permission to release a demo without limits on number of records or a use-by date!
The ‘docs’ folder contains the text-based documentation. Expect to see rapid improvement here, and a few articles on OOFILE and related issues around popular magazines (no, I can't say who until they print).
OOF DEMO.µ should let you build the first test program. Simply replace ‘ooftest1.cpp’ with any of the other test programs. The test suite serves two purposes:
1) it provides a stable set of regression tests. Each beta release has been tested inhouse on CodeWarrior, Borland and g++ (SunOS) at least, before release.
2) each program illustrates usually just one feature of OOFILE (eg: editing related values). Keeping the programs small lets you focus on just one feature at a time.
PowerPlant Integration and Demo Application
This release includes a set of classes for integrating OOFILE into PowerPlant applications.
They are documented in pplant.txt (in the ‘docs’ folder).
Some of the things provided by these classes are:
- handling stepping through records, within a dialog (First, Prev, Next, Last buttons)
- populating a list control from the database, allowing double-clicking to edit a record
- very easy linking of edit fields to the database.
Note: a non-List Manager browser is under development. Editable tables, such as the embedded Locations table, are awaiting either further LNTable development or our own efforts — we are waiting to see if LNTable will add in-cell editing.
The OOFILE AppMaker folder contains:
- the AppMaker document used as a starting point
- an "OOFILE AppMaker ReadMe" to explain more.
- the source of FileAndFind, generated by our 2.0b2 templates
- A compiled copy of FileAndFind, just to show you what it should work like if anything goes wrong in your build process.
Thrashing the database
The ‘Test Lots of Objects’ folder contains a program that shows a more complex database schema, and uses our inbuilt random test data generator. This lets you experiment building big databases. (It came from a proposal to write a CD-based food industry directory. Unforunately the client decided that not enough of the market had installed CD’s so postponed things a year.)
Debugging Note
OOFILE includes a lot of debugging tests. To try out debugging just use the project OOF Debug DEMO.µ.
You shouldn't notice any difference other than speed. However, this checks internal state, ranges on numerics (dbShort etc.) and in particular does some runtime checks on related expressions. See debug.txt for more info.
If you have MicroQuill’s SmartHeap, OOFILE includes a lot of extra calls to SmartHeap’s error checking.
What’s Happened by the time You read this
OOFILE should have been released for retail sales (check the Contacts below for immediate status). Many of the following features will be completed by the end of September (some just missed the CW7 CD closing date). At the very least, the first retail release will add:
√ HTML report-writer
√ Simple WWW integration
√ Simple database importing and merge-importing (this release imports only into dbChar fields)
Since the CW7 release, we've decided to move some features into v1.2, to let us release v1.1 to retail. In development are:
√ Keyword and phonetic keyword indexing (yes, lots better than Soundex)
√ Index by method
√ Filtered indexing
√ Index by related values
√ Index by current selection
Honesty & Geography
A.D. Software is a small company, chasing the ‘virtual corporation’ dream.
We're also ‘hemispherically challenged’. Yes, home base is in Perth, Western Australia.
These two factors are responsible for the lower pricing of OOFILE, in comparison with established OODBMS products such as POET™.
Negotiations are underway to provide sales and support in the USA through several parties. Bear with us. There’s also been a lot of interest from European users — about 30% of OOFILE beta testers are in Germany. Recommendations for suitable local partners would be very gratefully received.
OOFILE is very much a child of the Internet, with ideas and features refined by international testers from an early stage. We offer sales and support via the Internet, eWorld and CompuServe. If you can make a case for joining another service, we’ll talk to them.
By the way, the A.D. bit stands for Associated Developers. If you have a really cool idea for using OOFILE and you think it’s sellable, try us! We are eager to cut deals on a royalty or negotiated basis. For example, one Windows programmer has expressed keen interest in writing a GIS layer.
The CGI interface and HTML Report Writer were developed on a 3rd party royalty basis.
(They didn't quite make the CD).
OOFILE is a rapidly changing product, and we're pushing it out the door as soon as it’s useful. Glossy manuals are coming but not until we’ve finished adding cool features.
Metrowerks showed us that a company can release a product in an ‘early stage’ and win hearts and minds by providing rapid support and frequent updates. OOFILE has had over 8 months of international ‘feature betas’ with solid releases, adding new features, on at least 10 compilers/operating systems.
Contact Details
Andy Dent BSc MACS
President and OOFILE Product Architect
A.D. Software
94 Bermuda Drive
Ballajura, Western Australia 6066
Phone/Fax +61-9-249-2719
eWorld: DentA
CompuServe: 100033,3241
Internet: dent@highway1.com.au
ftp://ftp.highway1.com.au/pub/adsoftware/
http://www.highway1.com.au/adsoftware/
OOFILE - “the cross-platform OODBMS that speaks c++"
