DBEXform
Quite often desktop applications will be made using compiled source code with VB, C#, Delphi, C++ or Java for example. Solution will be delivered to customers as compiled executable. Usually there is very easy interface tools for form design. They are excellent tools, when there is an attempt to reproduce software for multiple customers. But if there are many customized versions it causes problems for traditional compiled projects. How to keep tracking all source codes for certain executable? Which is right combination of source files and could it be compiled with a newer version of compilers and libraries?
DBEXform is the development environment for desktop interfaces in .NET framework for databases of Microsoft. It has made to solve some problems with customization of database applications. Form designer works very same way than most other application development interfaces and there is Basic script language to make expressions and logical decisions coding. Most common operations for databases are built internally to reduce a need for raw programming. Database definitions, forms and executable scripts are saved and distributed in standard XML object format. This gives possibility to reverse engineering to full source by opening solution in designer.
Programmer has the easy visual designer with drag and drop functionality for adding elements like standard components, fields and tables to the window. He can change options of components in the standard property editor with help of wizards. Value assigned to properties could be a static constant or result of evaluation statement. Recalculations of expressions will be made when a source variables of statement has changed, just like in a calculation sheet. For example the sum of all selected fields could be calculated in real time with just single line statement. Script language could be easily extended using any .Net executable library.
Open solutions are very useful in cases when there is a need for interfaces with large changes or they are actually quite unique. In many other environments, it may not be easy to make changes to original sources by other than original programmer and after some period of time it could be time consuming also to them. DBEXform designer interface will easy this by many ways. Property editor itself helps and use of Basic scripts as statement evaluation will help to locate right line of code to examine and modify. It can just be found from behind the property opposite of event driven programs..
All versions of DBEXform that has been published are backward compatible. It's should be easy to upgrade application to new versions now and future. To keep in mind the idea of Open Solution may required to consider critically use of external libraries. It's obvious that every compiled library will increase possibility that maintaining software may be harder in future. Keeping an end user applications simple and gathering new features to main module will help to use DBEXform for Open Solution.
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