[net.micro] dBASEII question

Wiedemann@RADC-MULTICS.ARPA (07/31/84)

I am currently rewriting a small business package.  The original,
written in 1977, used BASIC.  The files are random access and their
structure is known.  I can produce an ASCII file format from them in any
required format with any desirable delimeters between fields and
records.  I need to create ".DBF" files from these ASCII files to use in
the new software system.  Is there a technique or utility that will
allow me to create a ".DBF" file from an ASCII file??

ABN.COSCOM-CE@USC-ISID.ARPA (07/31/84)

I am looking at page 19 in part b of the DBase II ver. 2.4 manual.  The
title of the section is "6.0 interfacing with non-DBase processors".

In this section, the use of the append command with the sdf option used
will allow CPM 2.2 ASCII files to be appended to a DBase II DBF file.
Even delimiited formats such as those in Visicalc type programs are
mentioned to be appendable using the delimited option on the append
command.

I have not tried this but it is in the manual.

I hope this helps.

Kevin Rappold
1LT  GS
1st COSCOM
<ABN.COSCOM-CE>@ISID.ARPA

mlsmith@nadc.ARPA (07/31/84)

	The approach needed is to submit the ascii files to dBASEII as input.
Try a small test file and dBASE structure first. Some environments are
friendlier than others to do this. Another more obtuse method is to take a 
.DBF file and analyze it. Then create the ascii file to be carbon copy of the
.DBF file. Test the created file with dBASE for compatibility.

						mlsmith@NADC.ARPA