HP 3000 Manuals HP 3000 Manuals
Useful Tools
Several useful programming tools are available to facilitate tasks common
to system administrators, programmers, and general users. You can reduce
the tedious aspects of many repetitious tasks by using Hewlett-Packard
tools to expedite forms design, screen handling, report generation, and
system dictionaries, as described below.
Forms Design and Screen Handling Tools
VPLUS/V is a comprehensive software system that implements and controls
source data entry. It also provides an interface between a terminal and
any transaction processing program.
Source Data Entry.
As a source data entry system, VPLUS/V provides easy forms design with
data editing and validation built into the forms. It also provides a
ready-to-use data entry program called ENTRY that you can use to enter
data without any programming effort. ENTRY allows you to browse the
entered data and modify it as it is entered.
Thus, source data entry through VPLUS/V can be done without programming
by simply using ENTRY. However, if you need additional or different
capabilities, you can write your own application incorporating VPLUS/V
intrinsics.
Transaction Processing.
As an interface to transaction processing applications, VPLUS/V provides
a set of intrinsics that allows you to control forms and data on a
terminal from an application program. These intrinsics are available to
programs written in any of the supported programming languages.
VPLUS/V also provides a reformatting capability. You can enter
specifications to control how entered data is to be reformatted and then
run a program to actually reformat the data.
VPLUS/V intrinsics and the reformatting capability, either singly or in
combination, provide a "front end" to existing transaction processing
applications. Thus, VPLUS/V allows you to concentrate on processing
problems rather than on editing data or controlling the terminal.
VPLUS/V Features.
The main features of the VPLUS/V system are:
* Forms design program called FORMSPEC that allows quick and easy
forms design by using menus at a terminal.
* Batch mode management of forms files (through FORMSPEC) that
allows a forms file to be updated, compiled, and listed without
tying up a terminal.
* Advanced forms design (through FORMSPEC) that edits, formats,
moves, and computes data when the form is executed. It uses the
user's native language for alphabetic information and the local
customs for numeric and date information.
* Ready-to-run data entry program called ENTRY that provides
immediate data entry and modification with no programming effort.
* Flexible data reformatting design program called REFSPEC that
specifies reformatting of entered data.
* Batch program called REFORMAT that reformats the data according to
the REFSPEC formatting specifications and writes it to a file for
use by an application.
* Set of intrinsics that provides a powerful programming language
interface to terminals, using FORMSPEC definitions, from
applications written in any of the supported programming
languages.
Report Generation Tools
Several useful report generation tools are available. These are
described in the subsections below.
Business Report Writer/XL.
Business Report Writer/XL facilitates report development and execution.
It is a menu-driven report writing system designed to streamline the
development and maintenance of large production reports.
Its capabilities include on-line report formatting, rotational views of
data, multipass reporting, advanced calculations, and performance tuning.
It provides access to TurboIMAGE/XL, databases, MPE files, and KSAM
files. Business Report Writer/XL, together with System Dictionary/XL or
Dictionary/V transparently resolve data definitions, structures, and
access paths.
Business Report Writer/XL execution programs are part of the MPE XL
Fundamental Operating System (FOS). Reports developed on Business Report
Writer/XL can be run on other HP 3000 systems without access to
Business Report Writer/XL or a dictionary. By using intrinsics with
user-specified parameter values, you can run reports from applications
written in other languages. Business Report Writer/XL contains a
conversion utility to automatically translate Report/V programs into
Business Report Writer/XL. For detailed information, refer to Business
Report Writer/XL Reference Manual.
Report/V.
Report/V is a non-procedural report writing language operative only when
MPE/iX is in Compatibility Mode. It includes a high-level language that
creates reports, a compiler, and a processor to execute the reports. It
provides access to TurboIMAGE/XL databases, MPE files, and KSAM files.
More advanced reporting capabilities are available in Native Mode through
Business Report Writer/XL, which can automatically translate Report/V
programs. For detailed information, refer to Report V Reference Manual
(32245-90001).
HP Visor.
HP Visor is a terminal-based interface to HP SQL/V and ALLBASE/XL (HP
SQL) databases. It allows end users or database administrators to
perform queries and generate their own reports, without involving a
programmer. It provides facilities for programmers to use in
preconfiguring complex tasks or to improve productivity when working with
HP SQL databases.
HP Visor has a forms-based interface that allows the user to mark boxes
and press function keys to step through tasks such as queries or custom
report generation. It also provides additional capabilities for
experienced users to directly enter HP Visor or SQL commands.
Three modules are integrated with the HP Visor interface.
* EZAccess, which enables new or infrequent users of the database to
generate queries.
* SQLAccess, which enables users familiar with HP SQL to use a
screen-based editor to formulate SQL queries and perform many
other database operations.
* EZReport, which formats and displays query results from EZAccess
or SQLAccess and allows users to customize report formats and
calculate additional statistcs using the data retrieved by the
query.
System Dictionary/XL
System Dictionary/XL provides programmers and system administrators with
a single source for documenting all aspects of the system, including:
* Data definitions.
* Descriptions of databases, application systems, accounting
structures.
* Configuration information.
It ensures that the information is entered in a standard format, stored
in an organized structure, and easily available to users and programs.
This central source of information aids in developing and maintaining
applications and effectively managing system resources. System
Dictionary/XL has a programmatic interface for easy integration with
other software. You can customize it to meet your needs. Major System
Dictionary/XL features are:
* Entity-relationship model provides a documentation structure
closely matching the user's conceptual model.
* Extensibility allows customized documentation structure.
* Programmatic access for automatic access and update.
* Domains eliminate name conflicts.
* Separate test, production, and archival versions.
* Uses synonyms and aliases to provide alternative names in the
dictionary from those used by external systems.
* Interactive or batch mode interface.
* Accepts macros and include files.
* Reports on dictionary contents.
* Input, output, and all dictionary names can be converted to local
languages.
* Security provides restricted access to domains and dictionary
objects and defines user capabilities.
* Automates conversion from Dictionary/V to System Dictionary.
* Creates IMAGE schemas and root files from dictionary definitions
and produces dictionary definitions from an IMAGE root file.
* Loads information about VPLUS/V forms files into the dictionary.
* Generates definitions for HP COBOL II/XL COPY libraries from
System Dictionary definitions (this is part of a separate product
called COBOL II/XL Definition Extractor).
A data dictionary is not an alternative to a database management system
(DBMS). A dictionary manages information about data on the system, while
a DBMS manages the data itself. A DBMS schema may contain some
information on the format and usage of the data. However, dictionary
information is more extensive and easily usable.
In addition to documenting IMAGE databases, System Dictionary can
describe MPE files, KSAM files, VPLUS/V forms files, programs, network
device configurations, and other system components. It can also document
the relationships among components.
For detailed information, refer to one of the following manuals in the
Tools Series:
* HP System Dictionary/XL COBOL Definition Extractor Reference
Manual (32256-90001).
* HP System Dictionary/XL General Reference Manual (Volumes 1 and 2)
(32256-90004 and 32256-90005).
* HP System Dictionary/XL Intrinsics Reference Manual (32256-90002).
* HP System Dictionary/XL SDMAIN Reference Manual (32256-90001).
* HP System Dictionary/XL Utilities Reference Manual (32256-90003).