Pastel Partner V 11 And MS Access Integration (1 Viewer)

[bjsteyn]

Hi

I am wanting build a MS Access application that can integrate closely with Pastel. I know there is SDK that can be purchased, but it is quite expensive. What i want to know is it possible to insert data directly intto the Pervasive database from within ms access and is it possible to create linked tables to other data sources.

Any idees for integrating my MS Access Application closely with Pastel will be appreciated.

Thanks
BJ

 

[Pat Hartman]

Welcome Aboard
I have a client that uses Timberline by Sage. I have developed many Access applications that link to the underlying Pervasive database. You just need the ODBC driver. Some of the tables are updateable and some are not. It depends on their definition in Pervasive.

I don't know if Pervasive sells the ODBC driver separately or if you have to buy what they are calling the SDK

 

[bjsteyn]

Hi Pat

Thanx, i am not a newby, but it has been a while since I posted, more than a year. My problem is the following. I designed a full Order Processing system for Distributors. I have just been so busy with rugby etc. to finish the system and license it out. A franchise in my city has been using the software for the last 4 years. There are 30 odd franchises that would have used my system, but due to a a corporate guy that insists on Pastel it looks like I am going to loose out on my system being used. As there are many more Distributors out there and i know my system has alot of potential, and could still swing the franchise my way, I am wanting to create a second version of the software that will implement what i have learn t over the last few years about Distribution, as-well as fixing a few short comings of the first version, mainly accounting. I am wanting to develop the second version of the software that will be a stand alone application and it will have a general ledger etc. that can be exported to Pastel or Quickbooks. As I have not really worked in Pastel i do not know what it requires, and am only starting to work on it a bit know. That would be my first choice. My second option would be to purchase the SDK ( money i don't have ) and try and implement things from my first version and new ideas i have for the second version as a standalone User Interface for the general function of Distribution and not the accounting, which will be done by the Pastel User Interface.

I hoping to find someone that is familiar with Pastel and MS Access that could assist me in completing this software.

As for Timberline, do you have a link for me were I can find out more about it.

Thanx Again!!!!!
BJ

 

[Pat Hartman]

I wasn't suggesting Timberline, I merely mentioned it because it uses Pervasive and that is the database you asked about. You don't want to replicate the functionality of Pastel, you want to add on functionality in areas where it is weak. You need to contact Pervasive and see how to get an ODBC driver. I don't have their contact information.

 

[bjsteyn]

Sorry misread your post, was coding while I was reading , not as good with multitasking as I thought, thanks for the help. Is it possible to create a linked table in code to pervasive table or will all data handling have to be in code.

Thanx again as my experience with pervasive is zero, mainly been working in vba and php.

Bj

 

[Pat Hartman]

Pervasuve is the same as any other ODBC data source. You can link to the tables and/or use DAO and/or ADO.

The only problem I ran into was with the definition of the CustomerCode. This is a text field and they defined it as right-justified. This made the two-digit codes sort ahead of all the three-digit codes which all preceeded the four-digit codes, etc. This caused my combos to not function correctly with type ahead because that assumes that the list will be in alphabetical order. I ended up creating a function that fixed the problem by left justifiying the code so it would sort properly - A's together, B's together, etc.

 

[bjsteyn]

Interesting, didn't even know it is possible to justify a field in a database. Do you have any idee where I can download the ODBC driver and if it is free or not.

Thanx
BJ

 

[Pat Hartman]

I don't have any links. I don't know what the driver costs if anything.

 

[Giby]

Hi Bj & Pat

I have read your chats regarding Pastel and Accesss.

I am going to be building my own data base soon. Before I get going I would like to know from Bj did you get the two programs reading each other the interface between them. I will need to be doing this myself and how did you resolve it?

Thanks
Giby

 

[Pat Hartman]

As I said, linking to a Pervasive database is the same as linking to any other ODBC data base. Each has quirks and Pervasive is more quirky than most given that it is old technology. I don't know where to get an ODBC driver. You need to contact the Pervasive people.

 

[gemma-the-husky]

Interesting, didn't even know it is possible to justify a field in a database. Do you have any idee where I can download the ODBC driver and if it is free or not.

Thanx
BJ

I suppose in technical terms, right justifying is done by padding the field to a fixed size with LEADING spaces.

i find that a strange choice, but heigh-ho.

when i did some work on accounting systems, i used left justified text fields for account codes (even where they were only numeric) for various technical reasons.

 

[Pat Hartman]

I have no idea why they decided to right justify the Customer ID. They may have done it to make numeric values sort logically. But, in doing it, they made variable length alpha values sort strangely.

That wasn't Pervasive BTW, it was Timberline that made the decision. I have never seen that option in any other database though.

 

[gemma-the-husky]

I have no idea why they decided to right justify the Customer ID. They may have done it to make numeric values sort logically. But, in doing it, they made variable length alpha values sort strangely.

That wasn't Pervasive BTW, it was Timberline that made the decision. I have never seen that option in any other database though.

of course you can avoid any problems with justified data, by ensuring you use a standard length of customer id.

 

[Pat Hartman]

You could if the users hadn't been using the system for 10 years and were willing to change their customer codes to fixed length.

Since they don't use numeric customer codes, I don't have to worry, in this case about a mix of text and numeric codes so I just left justified the field in the query. The users didn't notice the different and now it sorts correctly.

I simply mentioned it as a potential problem area with Pervasive that I have never encountered with any other RDBMS.