Old Method

Is this bad? Not necessarily. One problem presented by this type of software is the difficulty in creating new reports or inquiries. To create new reports or inquiries, using a 3GL language, requires several hundred lines of manually typed program code. There can also be considerable time involved with testing and debugging. If there is a change required, such as adding a new column of information or switching column information, this can require just as much effort as the time required to create the original program.

Resource Load

Another situation created is that when running the report or inquiry, all resources required to do so must be supplied by the main computer. Some reports may require that data is sorted before printing. This puts an additional resource requirement on the computer running the legacy code. This usually results in a longer time for the output to be generated.

So now the problem has been defined, what is a better solution?

Microsoft Access

Microsoft’s Access product is both a developing and user tool. It has become the most popular database software within the last few years. A user can quickly learn to create inquiries and reports without having a programming background. In fact, the user does not have to enter anything that even resembles program code. Most everything is done with the use of the mouse, i.e. click or click and drag procedures. Suppose you want to change the order of columns on a report. By clicking and dragging on column information you can visually see and make the change.

Accessing Current Data

Today, the one problem in using Access as a tool to create reports or inquiries from your legacy data is the ability to read the data. Most 3GL languages use a data structure that only allows reading the data by use of the 3GL language. So how do you get around that problem?

We have created programs that "export" selected data. Access already has a utility to "import" this data. Once the data is imported, Access is ready to use. The downside of this approach is that the information in Access is only as current as the last time you exported data. The customers that are already using this approach usually export data on a weekly or monthly basis. Because most reports or inquiries created in Access are analysis related, this does not become a problem.

Graphs & Formatting

Another benefit of using Access is the ability to easily use graphics or different font styles. Access already has the ability to create almost any style graph. Due to the development of "true type" fonts, you can select any font size and create more readable or presentable reports. If you have a color printer, you can also print selected data in color for emphasis.

Speadsheet Creation

Another side benefit with Access is the ability to directly and automatically create an Excel spreadsheet from your selected report or inquiry.

ODBC Driver

What the heck is an ODBC driver? This is a software utility that teaches or instructs a Windows database, such as Access, on how to read data that has been created in another format, such as a 3GL language. This tool will remove the requirement to have to "export and import" the data. It will use Access to read the actual data, thus providing current and up-to-date information. If your legacy application already has an available ODBC driver, the task just got easier.

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