[gui-talk] Fwd: Updated DbDialog package for Window-Eyes

[Steve Pattison]

From: Jamal Mazrui empower at smart.net
To: gw-scripting at gwmicro.com

Beta 0.8 strengthens error checking and dramatically enriches the 
feature
set.  It now exceeds that of the original, stand-alone DbDialog written 
in
AutoIt.  This is now not just a script package but a general purpose
database application based on the Window-Eyes scripting platform!

I have had little feedback so far, so would appreciate any testing and
reporting in preparation for a 1.0 release.  To help you assess whether 
it
is of interest, I am including revised documentation below, which is
considerably extended from the last version.

Jamal


Press Alt-Control-D to invoke DbDialog, a convenient yet sophisticated
dialog for managing a Microsoft Access database.  The database file,
DbDialog.mdb, is created in the Window-Eyes user profile folder.  Also
located there is a configuration file, DbDialog.cfg, which specifies how
fields of each table in the database are to be treated.  This file is in
ini format, so it can be manually edited with a text editor.  Once a 
table
is initially configured, a considerable amount of flexibility is 
available
within the dialog for affecting the display, ordering, and filtering of
records.

The main dialog contains a listbox, buttons, and status line.  The 
listbox
shows a selection of fields of each record.  Below it is a row of 
buttons
to perform various actions.  Below that is a status line that shows meta
data about the current record in the listbox -- typically the unique ID
number of the record, the date it was added, and the date it was last
modified.

The default table is for managing contact information.  Also provided 
for
illustration is a table about products and one about to do items.
Documentation here sometimes explains features using these tables as
concrete examples.

There are many action buttons, available either by tabbing or mnemonic,
Alt-Letter hotkeys.  They are summarized as follows:

Add = add a record

Browse = bring focus to the list of records and say the current item

Copy = add a record by starting with a copy of the current record

Export = transfer a copy of the current record to another table

Filter = set a filter to limit what records are displayed

Go To = go to another table in the database

Help = display this documentation

Index = pick fields that determine the sort order of records

Keywords = search for a record by a word or phrase it contains

List = save data in the listbox to a text file, which is then opened
automatically in the Window-Eyes script editor (Notepad by default but
configurable via Script Manager)

Modify = modify the current record

Next = search for the next match of keywords

Output = say non-blank field names and values of the current record, and
copy that text to the clipboard

Prior = search for the prior match of keywords

Remove = remove the current record

Select = pick what fields to display in the listbox

Tag = tag the current record

Untag = untag the current record

View = view the current record

Extra Tools = present a set of additional buttons for less frequent or
more advanced operations

Yield = say the number of records in the current filter and in the whole
table

Zoom = go to another table with related records , e.g., Product records
with the same Contact ID

Close = end the dialog (data is saved with each operation, not at the 
end)

Some commands invoke an input form for viewing or changing multiple 
fields
of data.  Each row of the form contains a field label to the left and a
field value to the right.  Tab moves from field to field.  The Contact
form has many fields, but each label has a unique Alt-Letter hotkey so 
you
can jump directly to it.  The last field, Extra Info (Alt-X), lets you
enter multiple lines of miscellaneous information not captured by other
fields.

A few buttons in the input form operate on the field with focus.  In 
order
not to conflict with Alt-Letter combinations for accessing fields
directly, these buttons use Alt-Symbol hotkeys.  The =Lookup button
(Alt-=) is for looking up the ID of a record to relate to the current 
one,
e.g., for filling in the Contact ID field in a Product record.  A 
minimal
version of the same DbDialog interface lets you navigate among Contact
records and choose one.  The Contact ID is then placed in the
corresponding field in the Product form and focused is moved to the next
field, Contact Look, which summarizes the Contact record in words (since
the ID is just a number).  The /Date button (Alt-/) enters the current
date in the field with focus.  The :Time button (Alt-Shift-;) enters the
current time.  If a longer form of the date or time is entered than you
prefer, you can delete unnecessary parts (e.g., the day of the week or
milliseconds).

The Extra Tools button in the main dialog presents another set of 
buttons
with additional choices.  Several of these use the same term as the main
dialog but apply to a larger entity than the current record:  Add, Copy,
Export, Go To, Modify, Output, Remove, Tag, and Untag.  They are 
explained
as follows.

Add New Table.  A wizard helps you define a new table.  You are 
presented
with a multiline edit box.  Each line defines the name of a field and 
its
data type (using terminology of Microsoft Access).  The Text data type
also specifies the maximum number of characters in parentheses.   Other
data types are DateTime for a date or time value, Long for an integer
value, Double for a floating point number, or Currency for a money 
value.
Twenty Text fields are presented by default.  Edit their names or types,
or delete some entries, and then submit the form.  The wizard
automatically adds the following fields:  Tagged Text(1), Added 
DateTime,
Modified DateTime, ID Counter, and Extra_Info Memo.  Once the table is
created, you can open it with the Go To command and fine tune the fields
used for display and ordering with the Select and Index commands.

Backup Database to Another Folder.  You are prompted for a folder to 
which
the files DbDialog.mdb and DbDialog.cfg are then copied.

Copy Structure to New Table.  You are prompted for the name of a new 
table
that will have the same structure as the current one.

Drop Table from Database.  You pick a table to delete completely from 
the
database.

Export All Records in Filter.  You pick a table to which copies of all
records in the current filter are copied.

Go to Different Database.  You are prompted for another Microsoft Access
.mdb file to open.  It is assumed that a configuration file exists in 
the
same folder, having the same name except a .cfg extension.

Import All Records from Another Table.  You pick a table from which 
copies
of all records are transferred into the current one.

Load database in Microsoft Access.  The current database is opened with
the application associated with .mdb files, generally Microsoft Access 
if
installed.  This lets you perform restructuring, querying, or reporting
options not available within the DbDialog program, itself.

Modify All Records in Filter.  An input form lets you specify new field
values that will be applied to all records in the current filter.

Output All Records to Text File.  The non-blank field names and values 
of
all records in the current filter are saved to a text file, which is 
then
opened automatically in the Window-Eyes script editor.

Produce Custom Report.  You pick a report defined for the current table.
Two examples are provided for the Contact table:  Address and 
PhoneEmail.
Their definitions are sections of the configuration file DbDialog.cfg.

Query with SQL Command.  You are prompted for an SQL (Structured Query
Language) command to submit to the current database.  The result of the
operation is shown in a message box.

Set Configuration Options in Text Editor.  The configuration file for 
the
current database, typically DbDialog.cfg, is opened in the Window-Eyes
script editor.  You can review or change settings that cannot be done
through the user interface of DbDialog.

Remove All Records in Filter.  All records in the current filter are
deleted.

Tag All Records in Filter.  The Tagged field of All records in the 
current
filter is set to an asterisk character (*).

Untag All Records in Filter.  The Tagged field of all records in the
current filter is set to a space character.

When a new version of DbDialog is installed, it does not replace the
database file DbDialog.mdb, so you will not lose data.  You should
periodically back up that file, however, as with any important document.
At present, the configuration file DbDialog.cfg is replaced with a 
script
update.  If you configure it manually, you should back it up and then 
copy
custom settings into the newly installed file.

This global script requires GW Toolkit and Homer Shared Object.

Regards Steve
Email:  srp at internode.on.net
Windows Live Messenger:  internetuser383 at hotmail.com
Skype:  steve1963