Heard it through the Bit-vine - Notes and News about the products you use

by Tom Hebenstreit, Review Editor

Published 1998-08-01    Printer-friendly version

Put another candle on the monitor

Wow, here we go with year two of Clarion Online! I'd really like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy, my second grade teacher Mrs. Wheeler (loved those SST-swept-wing-white-pointy glasses) and most of all, you our loyal readers.

In all seriousness, though, we do appreciate you, and want to thank you again for your patience during last month's move. Also, we love your feedback - write us!

Catching Up

Last month I talked a bit about the beta of J & S Software's new product, InBack. Well, a new beta is out (v8a) and my guess is it is about the last one. That means that the killer introductory-only-during-the-beta price of $29.95 will be ending soon. Don't be the last one on your planet to look into this. This really is a useful utility (yep, I'm using it myself right now).

Oh, yeah... Jeff Slarve (ruler supreme of J&S Software) gently reminded me with a 2x4 that I neglected to put the web site address in my comments last month. (IT WAS AN ACCIDENT! REALLY!) So, do thyself a favor and hie thee to yon site at http://www.jssoftware.com for a look-see.

Off to see the Wizard(s)

Following on the demise of Toolcraft (discussed in Tom Moseley's article in the previous issue of Clarion Online) came this press release (only a small portion shown here):

All rights to Query Wizard, a well-respected and popular Clarion add-on tool, were purchased by Nice Touch Solutions, Inc. (NTS) from ToolCraft Development Corporation (TDC). Effective Thursday, July 16, 1998, NTS will provide technical support, development, marketing, and sales of Query Wizard to Clarion developers.

As a long time Query Wizard fan myself, I was sure glad to see this! Even more interesting, NTS is creating an entire line of 'Wizard' products. They have announced a Report Wizard, a Spreadsheet Wizard, a CrossTab Wizard, and a View Wizard. Details, sample screen shots and more info on these products can be found at the NTS web site http://www.nicetouch.com/clarion. Go check it out - these could be killer products from the look of it. As to when the products will be available, they say they anticipate a Q3 release time frame. By the way, Steve Stockstill (the original developer of QW) works for NTS, so QW is obviously in good hands.

Super News

Mike Hanson of BoxSoft is going to be releasing a new product called the Super Solutions Templates for sale through the TopSpeed Accessories program (800-354-5444). It includes scaled down versions of SuperTagging, SuperQBE, SuperSecurity and SuperBrowse, with a total cost of $199. Sounds like a good way to try out the Super Templates at a very reasonable price. Mitten Software (see below) is still the distributor for all other BoxSoft products and will handle the support for Super Solutions as well. An upgrade path will be available to full versions of the included products (call Mitten for details).

Mitten Software has moved

Here is part of a notice posted mid-July by Mitten Software, distributors of the BoxSoft Super Templates and many other fine products:

MITTEN SOFTWARE has moved:

New Address:

1865 West Wayzata Blvd.
Suite 218
Long Lake, MN. 55356

Our local phone company has had a difficult time (being kind here) installing the ISDN lines we were promised 2 weeks ago. For now, please continue to use the old 612-593-5019. Eventually, our main phone line and fax will change to 612-745-4941 and 612-745-4944 respectively. We hope this happens within the next week. Our Sales number, 800-825-5461 still works.

Here's hoping their travails with the phone company have been solved by now! In other Mitten news, Jim Morgan posted the following:

"The Clarion Companion is at the printer! This is the best book available to answer your programming questions. (OK, it's the only current book available.<g>) We expect to have it bound and ready to ship no later than August 10, 1998."

For more info on the new book, go to http://www.mittensoftware.com. Note: They are offering the book at a discounted price of $59 prior to publication, after which it will be $75. So if you want the lower price - TIME IS RUNNING OUT!

TopSpeed News

Beta 2 of C5 Enterprise Edition has been released. Word is that Beta 2 also has the newer Pervasive.SQL on it rather than the Scalable SQL that was included with C4. No Wizatrons yet, but the more details I see on them, the more interesting they sound. TopSpeed is also indicating that EE will be available in time for DevCon (Sept 28 - 30).

Interesting bit of news I got from someone who had just attended the C5 EE Roadshow (the free traveling dog and pony show for EE): "As of 9/1/98 the credits off the EE price for prior purchase of components like Data Modeler, TDK, Biz Math Lib, Team Developer, etc, will no longer be allowed. Also the price of all Clarion and its upgrades will go up 30%. So the EE upgrade will go from $999 to $1299 and the full blown EE will list for $2000." Please note: I have not verified this myself, but if true it sounds like one ought to get their upgrade before September 1!

Also, TopSpeed just announced that the Certified Clarion Developer exam, Level 1 will be offered at DevCon 98 in Ft. Lauderdale (this is the same exam as was offered at the recent Mitten Software Clarion Certification Conference). The two-hour exam will be held Monday evening Sept 28, and will cost $100. Does having the certificate mean anything? Beats me, but there you go.

On the rumor front, there are whisperings of a 'c' release of C4 working its way through the pipeline. I'll keep you posted!

Finally, the TopSpeed web site has undergone a very nice facelift. Go check it out (http://www.topspeed.com). A big pat on the back to whoever did the redesign. They have also posted additional locations for the free C5 EE Roadshow, so be sure to check for a location near you. It may be your best (and maybe only) chance to see the new Wizatron stuff before EE is actually released, and also includes a mini-seminar on OOP tips and tricks that you can use NOW in C4.

A Tornado Web Site

If you have followed my articles in Clarion Online regarding using the Tornado OCX with Clarion to build web sites, you should be aware that I have now created a web site where you can download Tornado, read up on tips and tricks for using it and more. You can also download just the documentation to see if Tornado will do the job for your site. Remember, Tornado is now free, all it takes is time to try it. Check out http://members.aol.com/TornadoOCX.

Other News...

Here are some tidbits and announcements gleaned from the TopSpeed forum and elsewhere over the last couple of weeks. If you see any products here that you would like to see scheduled for a full review in Clarion Online, let us know!

• Ragnar Hellspong released ForKeeps 3.6, which he terms a "substantial new version". It includes many enhancements to its already powerful exporting, printing, message classification, toolbars, and more. If you are trying to manage e-mail, newsgroups, CompuServe forums, etc., I'd highly recommend that you download the 30-day trial and check it out. http://www.fkeeps.com
• Eric Jacobowitz posted a message about a spell checker he found called Spell-It that costs only $5 (actually, the author says send him whatever you want). It works by checking the contents of the clipboard whenever it is called, and popping up a window if it finds a misspelling. Corrected words are placed back on the clipboard. Sounds simple and easy to use with the CW Clipboard() and SetClipBoard() functions. Note: It is not written in or specifically for CW. Go to http://www.donet.com/drb/software.htm for more info or to download it.
• Linder Software has posted Beta-1 of their LS-Zip libraries for testing. Note that this test is mainly of the libraries. It is not the full product, etc. To download, go to http://www.lindersoftware.com. You will need to contact Friedrich Linder at ceo@lindersoftware.com for a password. In other Linder news, Friedrich has posted messages that their LS_Pack libraries are already compatible with C5EE Beta 2.
• Phil Will of ProDomus has posted a C4 PDLookup Template fix. There was a problem with refreshing screen entries in C4 in cases where only the lookup id value was being saved. A revised install has been uploaded to their web site at http:// www.tiac.net/users/prodomus.
• Dalby Data announced that the Dalby Source Printer version 2.11 is now available. To quote the release: "All known bugs have been fixed and it is now 100% C4 compatible, existing features improved and a lot of new functionality. Actually version 2.11 is a completely different product than version 2.00." More info at http://home3.inet.tele.dk/dalbydat
  Note: Look for a review of DSP in the next issue of Clarion Online!

Can't beat that price...

One of the really nice things about using Clarion is the overall generosity of the user community. (Go ahead, all of you give yourselves a pat on the back!) Often, this manifests itself in truly useful templates or tools that the authors have made available to the rest of us for that most favorite of prices: FREE! Each month, this column features a handy free template or tool that you might want to add to your bag of Clarion tricks.

Note: If you decide to download and try out any free items mentioned here, please remember that you get what you pay for - don't expect support from the author like you would from a commercial product. While most of them are generous to a fault (as witnessed by their giving away the template), they are NOT obligated in any way, shape or form to you because you want to use the template. Be nice to them!

This month's jewel (or tool) is:

The CapeSoft Object Writer 1.1

To quote: "Object Writer allows you to write Objects in Clarion, while using Clarion as a 4GL rather than a 3GL. It maintains all the syntax and different files required. In short it makes writing, and re-using, objects in Clarion simple."

And boy, was it needed! In case you hadn't noticed, while C4 made objects the basis of all of the new templates and libraries, you were back to the Stone Age if you wanted to create your own objects. This combination of templates really is a great tool if you want to develop objects in C4 without having to resort to pure handcode and a major juggling act to keep track of the various file and includes that need to be created.

It is furnished as a self-contained Windows installation file, and includes six pages of documentation. All in all, a very professional looking package. A big Bit-vine "THANK YOU!" to CapeSoft.

Object Writer can be downloaded from http://www.capesoft.com. Note: Sometimes their site is hard to reach - just keep trying and you'll get there!

Next month: Who knows? Have you seen (or do you have) a good template or tool to share? Let me know!

About the Bit-vine

Each month, this column will provide you with the latest in Clarion news, tips, rumors, freebies, and basically anything else that seems interesting about the goings on in the Clarion world.

So, who determines what's most interesting? YOU DO!!

Are you a vendor? Let me know about new releases, updates, betas, product plans or anything else you think Clarion Online readers might want to know about.

Are you a user (and who isn't)? Drop me a line about any cool nuggets of information you come across, free templates or examples worth sharing, or anything else that other readers might find useful.

What do you get for contributing? Well, you'll see your name up in lights (phosphor, to be accurate) here in the Bit-vine credits. For especially useful bits, you may even win an autographed GIF of an official Clarion Online shirt or other similarly valuable prize. Come on, how can you resist?

Let me hear from you! The magic address is TomH@ClarionOnline.com

The disclaimer

Everything in this column is the sole opinion of me, the author, and does not necessarily reflect the views of this magazine, its publisher or even my pet frog Carmine. Don't bet the farm on anything you read here: consider it a starting point for your own inquiries and research. The point here is that this column is intended to both enlighten and entertain, and that in the fast-moving world of software development this month's truth (or product release date) is often next month's "oops, did I say that...?". To sum up, have you ever tried Yak? It really is quite tasty. (Just seeing if you're paying attention!)

'Nuff said!

Printer-friendly version

Copyright © 1999-2008 by CoveComm Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in any form without the express written consent of CoveComm Inc., except as described in the subscription agreement, is prohibited.

Clarion Magazine ISSN 1718-9942