From: "Dan Wellisch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > I want to develop a conduit application that can sync .pdb files on the > Palm with Visual FoxPro .dbf files. > I haven't done this, but I worked with complex integration with an Access app some years ago and have some alternatives you could consider.
> 1) Hotsync from PDA to Desktop > 2) Run a .pdb to .dbf converter (avail. from a 3rd party) > 3) Write a Java app to read the converted .pdb in 2) and process that > one against the .dbf > in the Visual FoxPro application. In essence, I would be creating > the "hotsync" to happen > using the .dbf format (via ODBC). I know this works. > > 4) Run a .dbf to .pdb converter (avail. from a 3rd party) and replace > the .pdb in the Desktop Hotsync dir > with the updated .pdb from process in 3) > There is a commercial app called PDBGo that could handle 2), 3) and 4) from one application. It's a COM component that comes with sample code in multiple languages to read and write pdb files. It's also worth remembering that record-based Hotsync isn't the only way data comes off a device. We found it easier to work with the database backups HotSync stored in the user backup folder. We picked these up intact, carried out a data import to the Access database using PDBGo and then created new databases for installation to the device. In our case the app was a data collection app using Access- -generated lookup tables so the downloaded database was a complete replacement for the device database. If you want to syncronise the device database it's a little more complex. Another approach I've used successfully with other projects is to build throw-away update pdbs. By that I mean a small pdb with new records in it. On startup the app looks for databases having the 'update' naming pattern (and, of course, the correct CRID). If one is found it uses the contents to update it's primary database and deletes the update pdb. Certainly a strong driver in developing these solutions were deficiencies in the earlier HotSync and conduit solutions available and things have changed significantly in the conduit area since then. As an example I've seen examples in this group of Delphi-based conduits that seemed to do a great deal of work fairly easily. So I'm not suggesting that these ideas are the best way to do things, just some alternatives you might keep in mind. Chris Tutty -- For information on using the PalmSource Developer Forums, or to unsubscribe, please see http://www.palmos.com/dev/support/forums/
