wales@valeria.cs.ucla.edu (Rich Wales) (11/14/89)
I am trying to decide on a data base program for general use on my home PC (8-MHz 286 with hard disk). Right now, I think it'll probably be a choice between the two Buttonware shareware products -- PC-FILE+ and PC-File:dB. I've glanced at a few other shareware and freeware data base programs on SIMTEL20 and a couple of other sources, but haven't really been impressed by anything else. What are the main differences between PC-FILE+ and PC-File:dB? Does one of these programs have important capabilities which are lacking in the other? Is my choice clear, or is it just a matter of taste? For that matter, is there some other package which beats the Buttonware stuff "hands down"? Should I even, perhaps, bite the bullet and con- clude that I'm indulging in false economy and will be sorry in the end unless I go all out and plunk down all my hard-earned $$$ for dBase-IV or R:BASE? One thing, in particular, that I would like to do is be able to specify customized validation conditions on data elements in a record. For example, I'm planning to set up a database to catalog my books (well over a thousand!) -- and it would be very nice to be able to input the ISBN numbers and have the data base system validate the check digit in each ISBN. Do the Buttonware packages provide for this? If not, is there a good data base package that does? Also, whatever I end up using has *got* to have a good user interface, with both screen- and batch-oriented data entry capabilities. -- Rich Wales <wales@CS.UCLA.EDU> // UCLA Computer Science Department 3531 Boelter Hall // Los Angeles, CA 90024-1596 // +1 (213) 825-5683 "I never lie when I've got sand in my shoes, Commodore."
nfs0294@dsac.UUCP (Glendell R. Midkiff) (11/16/89)
> What are the main differences between PC-FILE+ and PC-File:dB? Does > one of these programs have important capabilities which are lacking in > the other? Is my choice clear, or is it just a matter of taste? > I believe the main difference is that PC-File:dB uses the same file format that DBASE III+ uses, meaing that these dbIII files can be used directly into PC-File:DB. -- |-----------------------------------------------------------------------| |Glen Midkiff osu-cis!dsacg1!gmidkiff | |From the Internet: gmidkiff@dsac.dla.mil | |Phone: (614)-238-9643 @DLA, Systems Automation Center, Columbus, Oh. |