| The most exciting feature of MaxBase, for the developer, is that you can actually incorporate the MaxBase Java classes into your favorite Java developing environment Bean Palette, because several of those classes are also Java Beans! Note: The next few sections will be useful to you even if you don't have access to a visual developing environment. They are similar to javadoc-generated pages (but with far more explanations in them). There are several Java IDEs on the market, so it wouldn't be possible to cover them all; instead, I'll show you how to import (and use) MaxBase in one of them: IBM VisualAge for Java. The procedure required to use these beans with other products (such as Borland JBuilder or Symantec Visual Café) shouldn't be very different, however. Please note that, since these beans are fairly complex in their nature, they shouldn't be used in simple bean IDEs like the Sun BDK which basically let you attach events to simple methods/events/properties. Finally, these beans don't make use of serialization as a way to store their internal state: they simply are initialized and customized with method calls and properties setup (but I think most IDEs can do this). Importing MaxBase, JRXDBClient and JRXDbase (as Java Bean s) into VisualAge for Java for Win32 Start VisualAge for Java, and create a new project (or use an existing one if you need MaxBase there). Select the project and choose "import" from the File menu. A SmartGuide will appear. Choose "import from JAR file (including resources)" from the radio button list, and browse your way to the MBASE.JAR file you found in the original MaxBase distribution file. Click on "finish" when you are done. Visual Age for Java will then start importing the classes and resources inside the JAR, and it will take a while. When the import process will be completed, a new dialog window will pop up, asking where to store the nrio.MaxBase, nrio.JRXDBClient, nrio.reports.LineViewMockup nrio.JRXDbase and nrio.reports.PageLayout beans. Choose a category, or create one, and click on 'Ok'. Your MaxBase Java Beans are ready for use! Congrats! Importing MaxBase, JRXDBClient and JRXDbase (as Java Bean s) into VisualAge for Java for OS/2 (subtitle: the OS/2 version of VAge Java doesn't like JAR files) Create a directory, and unzip mbase.jar there (InfoZip's freeware Unzip is just fine for the task). Start VisualAge for Java, and create a new project (or use an existing one if you need MaxBase there). Select the project and choose "import" from the File menu. A SmartGuide will appear. Choose "Entire directory (including resources)" and browse into the directory where you unzipped mbase.jar into. Click on "Next". Uncheck "skip .class files" checkbox and press "Finish". After several minutes (the import takes a looong time to execute) you'll have the entire suite imported into VA for Java. Now you need to go into Visual Composition editor and add to the palette (via the "Options" menu, "Modify palette" submenu, "Add category" and "Add new bean" menu items) the following beans: nrio.MaxBase nrio.JRXDBase nrio.JRXDBClient nrio.reports.LineViewMockup nrio.reports.PageLayout After you've done this, it's exactly as you imported mbase.jar, only it takes more time and some messing around. Hope that IBM will fix its .jar import routines in the near future.. NOTE: A number of packages will be added to the chosen project, such as COM.Taligent.widget, nrio, netrexx etc: this is normal, since MaxBase is a fairly complex Java Bean, and uses other JavaBeans. Using the MaxBase Bean with VisualAge for Java MaxBase is a complete editor for databases (every MaxBase instance is a new java.awt.Frame): it allows for record editing/insert/deleting and even DB maintenance (adding/modifying/deleting fields, import/export from/to DBF). Thus, you use it in projects that require a visual manipulation of data when you don't want to implement such an object yourself. Take it as an editor for DBs. Using the JRXDbase Bean with VisualAge for Java JRXDbase is a non-visual object, a bean that lets you read/write data organized in records on the local storage device. Every feature of MaxBase has a correspondent mapping in RXDbase. Using the JRXDBClient Bean with VisualAge for Java JRXDBClient is similar to RXDbase: a non-visual bean that lets you read/write data organized in records. The main differences are that: The data is not stored locally, but instead in a remote computer (that must be running the Java program RXDBServer -- also provided in this package). You can't create or delete databases with JRXDBClient. Every other feature is there, however (changing/adding/deleting indexes, records, requesting information, etc). Using the PageLayout Bean with VisualAge for Java The PageLayout bean allows you to draw blank pages with header, footer, watermark (aka wallpaper) that you will later paint on using LineViewMockup. Using the LineViewMockup Bean with VisualAge for Java LineViewMockup is the bean that allows you to draw your reports into paper, screen or HTML reports. Every feature of Line Mode reports from MERGe is exploitable from this bean, even load/save of .lmr files!

Max Marsiglietti © 1997
Layout and artwork Andrea Resmini 1997