REBOL for business apps?
[1/9] from: jennyw::dangerousideas::com at: 27-Sep-2003 4:00
I recently ran across REBOL and I'm a little confused as to what it's
for. It seems like it'd be a nice way to develop business apps at first
glance, but I'm not sure after looking at it. In particular, I'm
thinking of rewriting an order entry application written in Access.
Some questions about REBOL:
1. What support is there for printing? The application prints several
forms (e.g. invoices) and reports, using Access' report functions. Is
there anything in REBOL that could be used to do something similar?
2. How does database access work? I didn't seem many examples of
database applications. It seems like you typically use REBOL to write
client/server apps -- the applications are downloaded from a Web server,
but they communicate directly with the database server, and there's no
application server in between. Is this correct? Is there such a thing
as a REBOL application server?
3. Licensing fees. This would be a commercial application, so I'm
curious how much it would cost to distribute this. Aside from buying
REBOL Command/SDK for each developer, is there a fee for each user that
uses the application?
Thanks!
Jen
[2/9] from: maarten:vrijheid at: 27-Sep-2003 14:33
Hi,
> 1. What support is there for printing? The application prints several
> forms (e.g. invoices) and reports, using Access' report functions. Is
> there anything in REBOL that could be used to do something similar?
>
None, but you export to html and launch a browser that starts printing.
Works reasonably well.
> 2. How does database access work? I didn't seem many examples of
> database applications. It seems like you typically use REBOL to write
> client/server apps -- the applications are downloaded from a Web
server,
> but they communicate directly with the database server, and there's no
> application server in between. Is this correct? Is there such a thing
> as a REBOL application server?
You can use Rugby (a rpc broker) to turn *any* script into an app server
(REB service).
> 3. Licensing fees. This would be a commercial application, so I'm
> curious how much it would cost to distribute this. Aside from buying
> REBOL Command/SDK for each developer, is there a fee for each user
that
> uses the application?
No there isn't any licensing fee AFAIK. And the productivity boost (and
cross-platform clients!!) are a real win.
--Maarten
[3/9] from: greggirwin:mindspring at: 27-Sep-2003 9:39
Hi Jen,
Welcome to REBOL!
j> I recently ran across REBOL and I'm a little confused as to what
j> it's for.
REBOL is a "messaging" language, meaning it's designed "for the
semantic exchange of information between people and machines". It's not
a programming language in the same sense as most others, but it works
really well as one. :)
It can take a while for what's different about it to sink in, but at
some point you'll hear an audible 'click' in your head. ;)
j> 1. What support is there for printing? The application prints several
j> forms (e.g. invoices) and reports, using Access' report functions. Is
j> there anything in REBOL that could be used to do something similar?
You can export to HTML as Maarten said, and some people also use
Gabriele's PDF-maker dialect to create PDF files. There is no native
cross-platform printing system in REBOL at this time though. I have a
send-keys dialect for REBOL, so you may also decide that integrating
with another app that way would work for you.
j> 2. How does database access work? I didn't seem many examples of
j> database applications.
If you get /Command, you have ODBC access to any DB that supports it.
DocKimbel has also written a terrific MySQL driver that works with all
versions of REBOL. I've done some investigative work hooking REBOL up
to Kdb and VB/ISAM as well.
j> 3. Licensing fees. This would be a commercial application, so I'm
j> curious how much it would cost to distribute this. Aside from buying
j> REBOL Command/SDK for each developer, is there a fee for each user that
j> uses the application?
Contact RT for your specific needs. Their licensing has changed
recently (better for us; more relaxed), but only they can give you a
real answer.
HTH!
-- Gregg
[4/9] from: robert:muench:robertmuench at: 27-Sep-2003 17:56
On Sat, 27 Sep 2003 14:33:09 +0200, Maarten Koopmans
<[maarten--vrijheid--net]> wrote:
>> 1. What support is there for printing? The application prints several
>> forms (e.g. invoices) and reports, using Access' report functions. Is
>> there anything in REBOL that could be used to do something similar?
>>
>
> None, but you export to html and launch a browser that starts printing.
> Works reasonably well.
Hi (to the community), this printing stuff is showin up more and more. I'm
not an expert WRT printing on windows but shouldn't a good dialect do the
work for us? With /Pro Win32 printing functions should be available. What
do you think?
--
Robert M. Münch
Management & IT Freelancer
Mobile: +49 (177) 245 2802
http://www.robertmuench.de
[5/9] from: greggirwin:mindspring at: 28-Sep-2003 12:45
Hi Robert,
RMM> Hi (to the community), this printing stuff is showin up more and more. I'm
RMM> not an expert WRT printing on windows but shouldn't a good dialect do the
RMM> work for us? With /Pro Win32 printing functions should be available. What
RMM> do you think?
Yes, we can wrap up the printing APIs inside a dialect (at least
nothing comes to mind that strikes me as impossible). One reason *I*
haven't done this is that won't be cross-platform and I keep hoping
that RT has a plan in place for doing that. Wrapping the printing APIs
will be quite a bit of work and I'd hate to do it only to have RT
release something that makes it obsolete. Of course the amount of
effort will depend on the functionality we want. :) Another aspect is
the fact that people would have to have /pro in order to use it.
It should be possible, maybe even not *too* hard for someone who knows
what they're doing, to create a dialect that emits PostScript. The
next best thing (or maybe the better thing) is PDF.
I may need printing for a project coming up, so you never know. :)
-- Gregg
[6/9] from: ingo:2b1 at: 28-Sep-2003 22:56
Hi All,
Gregg Irwin wrote:
> Hi Robert,
> RMM> Hi (to the community), this printing stuff is showin up more and more. I'm
<<quoted lines omitted: 4>>
> nothing comes to mind that strikes me as impossible). One reason *I*
> haven't done this is that won't be cross-platform
<..>
> -- Gregg
I was just printing using cups, so there was this wild idea running
through my head ...
anyone had a look at IPP (Internet Printing Protocol)? AFAIK it is http
based, so it should be possible to make an ipp:// protocol in Rebol, which
would work cross platform with any IPP capable printing system ...
Just a thought - (at the moment I don't have the resources to make it a
project, but you are free to do it ;-)
Ingo
[7/9] from: greggirwin:mindspring at: 29-Sep-2003 0:10
Hi Ingo,
IH> anyone had a look at IPP (Internet Printing Protocol)? AFAIK it is http
IH> based, so it should be possible to make an ipp:// protocol in Rebol, which
IH> would work cross platform with any IPP capable printing system ...
I haven't. Could be good. Looks like a number of RFCs I have to find
time to read though. :)
-- Gregg
[8/9] from: AJMartin:orcon at: 29-Sep-2003 20:45
Hi, Ingo.
You wrote:
> anyone had a look at IPP (Internet Printing Protocol)? AFAIK it is http
based, so it should be possible to make an ipp:// protocol in Rebol, which
would work cross platform with any IPP capable printing system ...
There's example code here:
http://www.linuxgazette.com/issue68/jenkins.html
It's for emailing Brother printers (and for other printers) on Linux with
PERL and AWK, I believe.
Then there's The Printer Working Group at:
http://www.pwg.org
Which has a link to Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) at:
http://www.pwg.org/ipp/index.html
It looks like work stopped in Feb/March, 2001? There is links to a number of
RFCs which may be why the work stopped, because it was complete?
The Printer Working Group page at:
http://www.pwg.org
has a lot of links to other printing solutions, which seem to be about
specifications mostly.
Andrew J Martin
Exercising Google Fu!
ICQ: 26227169
http://www.rebol.it/Valley/
http://valley.orcon.net.nz/
http://Valley.150m.com/
[9/9] from: robert:muench:robertmuench at: 29-Sep-2003 20:59
On Sun, 28 Sep 2003 12:45:21 -0600, Gregg Irwin
<[greggirwin--mindspring--com]> wrote:
> One reason *I*
> haven't done this is that won't be cross-platform
Hi, I wouldn't care avout portability that much. First it's necessary to
get it work on Windows. It's the majority platform.
> and I keep hoping
> that RT has a plan in place for doing that.
I hope RT will spend their time on something else, where the community
really has no chance to do something.
> Wrapping the printing APIs
> will be quite a bit of work and I'd hate to do it only to have RT
> release something that makes it obsolete.
That's true. Such a step should be synced with RT.
> Of course the amount of
> effort will depend on the functionality we want. :) Another aspect is
> the fact that people would have to have /pro in order to use it.
People who need printing, and hence use Rebol for something more
sophisticated, shouldn't have a problem to pay for /Pro. Let's remember
that RT will only make money, if /Pro is used. From this point, I think we
need more /Pro scripts.
--
Robert M. Münch
Management & IT Freelancer
Mobile: +49 (177) 245 2802
http://www.robertmuench.de
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