Content area
Full Text
While we have been at work on this comparison, Microsoft has released a new version of one of the products we cover, and Borland has been working on an update to another. The current version of Access is 1.1. Borland expects Paradox for Windows, Version 1.1 to be ready later this summer or early in the fall.
ACCESS:
The latest version of Access fills in a number of holes in Version 1.0, adds a few new features, and improves the efficiency and flexibility of several operations. Access 1.1 adds Oracle and Sybase SQL Server Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) drivers; adds FoxPro 2.0 and 2.5 connectivity; includes a faster and more efficient ODBC driver for Microsoft SQL Server, the same driver used for Sybase SQL Server; provides improved import facilities, including easier import of Excel named ranges; provides improved support for Btrieve; adds the capability to export to Word for Windows mail merge format; offers more flexible Paradox and dBase data access; and increases the maximum database size to 1 gigabyte.
Microsoft has also released the Access Distribution Kit for Windows, allowing developers who purchase the kit to distribute Access run times royalty free. The kit also includes a variety of tools to make distribution easier. These include a setup Wizard for creating a custom setup program for an application, a book on developing custom Wizards, and the Windows Help compiler for creating custom help.
For Access 1.0 users, the price for a set of upgrade disks is $14.95.
PARADOX:
Borland's new version of Paradox for Windows will introduce or enhance a number of features. The company says it will access SQL databases through the Integrated Database Application Programming Interface (IDAPI) Engine, using Borland SQL Link for Oracle, Interbase, or SQL Server; enhance the ObjectPAL language including import and export commands and a command to send keystrokes to a running application; and improve performance.
Borland has announced Borland SQL Link drivers for the IDAPI Engine. The company expects them to be available at the same time as Paradox for Windows 1.1. These drivers will allow the new version of Paradox to be used in rightsizing applications that require the capability to switch an application's back-end data source without requiring significant changes to the front-end application itself.