Migration from DFD

If you are successfully running an application in DFD today and are considering migrating it to DataEase 7.2 then think again...

One of the strengths of DataEase is its speed of development. This is the same for both DataEase 7.2 and for DFD, but they don't use the same approach and way of doing stuff.


We find that people that are good DFD developers take quickly to developing in DFW and can rapidly recreate a much better application than the one they had in DFD.


What we see less success with is the automatic migration of DFD applications to DFW. This is partly due to the limited support for this in the product and partly because the solutions in DFW are different and don’t correspond with the “ancient” way things are done in DFD.


Our recommendation for now is, please try DataEase 7.2 and develop a new application with it, but don’t waste your time and become frustrated by trying to migrate an application that you can recreate in a matter of hours.


Another reason you should not do it, is that we in version 8 we will enable you to run you DFD application in both Windows and on the Web without any need for any modification or redesign. You will also be able to run it in a distributed environment and integrate your existing application with both windows and web forms.

By: Ulrik Jacob Hoegh - Krohn posted: 30th June 2009 - 13:42


Comments

teddy sutio at 2nd July 2009 - 05:43 says:

Hi Ulrik,

I have in DFD 4.53 150 Forms and 526 DQL's all working fine.

It has been running for a long time with no stable DFW that I feel sure to convert into.

We are not into a look good windows screen because we are using DFD for a robust Data-Entry terminal and DFD suit us fine.

Of course we want to go to windows eventually and I can see that ver 7.2 is looking like a stable system (using the trial version), but to convert the whole system (150 Forms and 526 DQL's) is not a matter of hours if not months (the Forms and the DQL's have to be done one by one) and it will be so much less workload even if the migration can create a similar look of the Forms and uncompile DQL's.

Anyway I just want to ask you if we better convert to 7.2 now or should we wait for 8 (when is it ?) ?

regards,
Teddy

Ulrik Jacob Hoegh - Krohn at 3rd July 2009 - 14:51 says:

You hit the nail on the head.

Migrating a DFD application to a window environment is just a lot of work for what? You are happy with the application the way it is, and I guess that the problem is not the application itself but the fact that you have to run it in a DOS environment in an old and unsupported version of DataEase.

We think that the Migration idea has been a flawed one, because what has been attempted is to convert apples into pears.

I love my old DFD applications and I simply want to continue to use them the way they are. A lot of effort has gone into making them and they all have their own quirkyness that one expect and have got used to.

At the same time one want to move forward and maybe get stuff on the web and have parts of the application look more enticing (especially if it is customer facing).

In 8 you will simply be able to run you DFD applicaton in a Windows environment exactly as it is. No migration or conversion. Will look and feel the same, but you finally get rid of the old DFD program. You can than build Windows or Web form on the tables you want to and progress your application in the direction you want.

 

 

Timothy Hartigan at 9th July 2009 - 20:21 says:

8 sounds great. How long? and will we finallly have an odbc connector to dfd tables that works/

Tim Hartigan
St. Paul MN

Ulrik Jacob Hoegh - Krohn at 13th July 2009 - 22:54 says:

Hi Tim.


You will not get a ODBC connectior to DFD tables in 8 simply because you don't need it. All tables will be directly accesible in Windows as well as on the web or for datapumping. We will also implement data replication with third party data sources. This means that you will be able to have a DataEase copy of a third party table. This will radically increase performance especially if you are going to run DQL etc on it. DataEase will maintain data integrity with the third party source.

 

rwayda mohamed at 14th January 2010 - 11:27 says:

tesst

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