Maximizing IT Assets

Expanding Market Opportunities

> Opening I-4GL Applications to

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Mature, Robust, Scalable Feature Rich, Easily Adapted 10x Developer Productivity

So What’s The Problem?

4GL Business Applications

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Challenges

Rapidly changing infrastructure drives new deployment requirements

• First Windows (1980s)• Then Web (HTML – 1990s)• Then Java• Now Mobile (PDAs, WAP)• Then What?

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Challenges …

Not to mention• OS Support …

• First numerous Unix platforms• Then NT• And Linux finally appears here to stay

• And, of course, what we’re here to focus on• What Database has your IT organization or

customer decided on Today?

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Four J’s enables rapid, low cost evolution of business applications to support

Windows, the Internet, and Mobile DevicesAny Database

Across 18+ Operating Systems

Providing you with maximum ROI and competitive leverage of your business applications

4Js in a Nutshell

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Four J’s - Architecture

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Provide all the essential elements needed to easily migrate Informix 4GL applications to……

4J’s Development Tools

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Four J’s provides an Adaptation Guide and conversion tools specific to each of the major database engines.

The guides contain detailed technical information with compatibility issues and conversion rules.

We’ve done this before!

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•Prepare Oracle and the data schema

•Migrate the data

•Setup database connectivity

•Clean up proprietary SQL statements

•Re-compile and test 4GL programs

The process is straightforward

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SMALLINT NUMBER(5)

INTEGER NUMBER(10)

DECIMAL(p,s) NUMBER(p,s)

MONEY(p,s) NUMBER(p,s)

CHAR(n) CHAR(n) (max = 2000 c)

VARCHAR(n) VARCHAR2(n) (max = 4000 c)

DATE DATE (year to second)

DATETIME DATE (year to second)

FLOAT NUMBER

SMALLFLOAT NUMBER

Unsupported : INTERVAL, BYTE, TEXT, NCHAR, NVARCHAR

Type conversion is automatic

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Transactions commands and auto-commit mode (begin work,…)

Temporary tables (create temp table… &select… into temp)

Scroll cursors (declare c scroll cursor for select…)

Insert cursors (declare c cursor for insert…)

Cursors declared “with hold” (transaction independent)

Positioned updates and deletes (where current of)

The SERIAL data type (sqlca.sqlerrd[2] supported)

OUTER joins (select…from tab1, outer(tab2))

Column subscripts (colname[2,10])

MATCHES operator (…where custname matches “A*”)

Double quoted string are converted to single quoted strings

Some SQL functions (today, current,…)

Proprietary SQL is emulated

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SQL Blocks SQL Directives

4Js also supports database-specific SQL through new 4GL features:

4Js supports proprietary SQL

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SQL Blocks

•SQL syntax independent from the 4GL grammar

•Opens 4GL to any SQL Language

MAIN DATABASE stores DECLARE c1 CURSOR FOR SQL SELECT name, address, cdate FROM customer WHERE custid = $p_num END SQL OPEN c1 ...END MAIN

Blocks allow proprietary SQL

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..which SQL is used with which database

•Purpose: Control the SQL text sent to the database server

•Based on special comments {% …}

•Kind of Macros for SQL statements

•Customizable (defined externally in FGLPROFILE)

Syntax: {% <directive name> [ <param> …] }

Examples: {% IFDEF IFX “OUTER(order)” “order” } {% YEAR “order_date” }

SQL Directives control..

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..Dynamic SQL

PREPARE s1 FROM “SELECT … FROM order AND {% YEAR \”ord_date\” } = ?”

DECLARE c1 CURSOR FOR s1

OPEN c1 USING p_year

Some limitations:

•Not supported in Static SQL (=part of 4GL grammar)

•Cannot be nested ({% IFDEF IFX {% …} …})

SQL Directives are supported in..

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SQL Directives: Using SQL Blocks

DECLARE c1 CURSOR FOR SQL SELECT … FROM customer, {% IFDEF IFX “OUTER(order)” “order”} WHERE {% IFDEF IFX “cust_num = ord_num”} {% IFDEF MSV “cust_num *= ord_num”} {% IFDEF ORA “cust_num = ord_num(+)”} AND {% COLSUBSTR cust_type 2 3} = ‘CF’ AND {% YEAR ord_date} = $odate END SQL

The power of SQL Directives:

Make 4GL programs speak any SQL dialect.

As are Blocks

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The Value of 4Js

Rapidly Deploy your I4GL applications • On Oracle and other databases• On Windows, the Web, and Mobile Devices

Leverage your application’s mature, robust, feature rich code base

Save Millions in development and deployment• Millions less costly than re-engineering• Leverage existing staff and applications• It’s a predictable, safe upgrade path• With lower deployment costs

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SUNGARD/Pentamation

The Application:The Application: Government and School

Administration The Business Need:The Business Need: Competitive requirement to move

to Windows and NT Must retain their product’s

mature, feature rich capabilities Could not require their customers

to upgrade client or network infrastructure

The Solution:The Solution: Four Js BDL allowed

Pentamation to predictably move 1000s of users to windows in less than one year

It would have taken many years to rewrite our complete suite of applications and get them to market, and that would have equated to many millions of dollars in lost revenues. We managed the transition to Four J's in a physical year.

Jack Stork, VP Customer ServicesPentamation

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Versaterm

The Application:The Application: Police Records and

Emergency Response The Business Need:The Business Need: Competitive requirement to

support Windows and mobile devices

Wanted cross platform capabilities

Clients requesting other databases

The Solution:The Solution: Four Js BDL allowed

Versaterm to provide support for multiple platforms, databases and client interfaces

What's great about Four J's is that their tools give us cross-platform database compatibility and allow us to provide our customers with a mixed environment. We can support Informix, Oracle, and other database environments, as well as text-based and GUI desktops, so we don't have to force clients to upgrade.

Sue Langlois, Technical Configuration Manager

Versaterm

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European Headquarters Privately held, Profitable company “Organic” growth rate Authors of “D-4GL 100+ Employees World Wide

Research & DevelopmentMarketing & SalesTechnical SupportGeneral Administration

Corporate Overview

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Four J’s Today - A Success Story

1,000,000+ users 5,000+ developers 1,000+ VARs Enterprise

• North America: Domino’s Pizza, JC Penney, Kmart, Vacances Air Canada

• UK : Q8 Petroleum, Northcliffe Newspapers (Daily Mirror), Redland Lafarge, OCS

• F: La Societe Generale, Vinci, Centres E. Leclerc• ROW: DHL, Kemper Insurance, Nintendo

Government• 20 US Police Departments, State education, (GSA WIP)• German Frontier Police, Brussels Police Force,• Spanish Airforce, University of Spain• French Ministry of Employment, French State Printing Press

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Sales Office Sales Office SeattleSeattle

Sales Office Sales Office CincinnatiCincinnati

Sales Office Sales Office MexicoMexico

Sales Office LondonSales Office London

Corporate HQ ParisCorporate HQ Paris

Sales Office BonnSales Office Bonn

Development IDevelopment IIII I MontpellierMontpellier

Development I ErfurtDevelopment I Erfurt

Technical Support and Technical Support and Development II StrasbourgDevelopment II Strasbourg

Administrative HQ BathAdministrative HQ Bath

Sales Office SydneySales Office Sydney

11 Offices11 Offices 25+ Distributors25+ Distributors 1000+ VAR Network1000+ VAR Network

Our Presence Today

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In Summary

4Js Enables the Evolution of Your Business Applications

While Saving Millions in Development Costs and Years in Time To Market