The BASIS Advantage Fourth Quarter 1999 (Volume 3, Number 4)

December 31, 1999, came and went, and your company's computer systems ticked right along into the new century. Now that Y2K is over, what's next?

BASIS answers the question in this issue. E-business is not looming on the horizon; it's here now. But for many Business Basic developers, concerns over plunging into GUI are holding them back from priming the enterprise for e-business. This issue features a two-part article about what we see happening in e-business as it relates to the Business Basic community. A different approach to going GUI is also presented, as well as discussion of costs and GUI standardization issues. BASIS' new GUI tool, the Grid Management Library, is explained. Included are two articles about a European company, Aucon BV, that is migrating a complex, character-based application to GUI.

Also in this issue is a discussion of starting a Web site, the first step in e-business, and our efforts in putting BASIS documentation online. Our initial forays in computer-based training are presented, as well as the announcement of PRO/5 3.0, making true 64-bit support available. Two new columns are introduced, the Road Scholar Journals and What's Brewing With Java. In the Tech Resource Zone, remote installation and licensing are detailed.

Demo CD Available!

This issue shipped with a special Visual PRO/5 GUI Tools demo CD that shows the kind of Windows look and feel that you and BASIS can give your customers. The CD works through April 30, 2000. You can request a copy of the demo CD for a limited time only, so don't delay!

Features THANKS FOR A GREAT YEAR! BASIS President George Hight wraps up 1999. BEYOND Y2K: E-BUSINESS & ENTERPRISE COMPUTING by Win Quigley In this two-part article, BASIS Product Marketing Manager Win Quigley discusses electronic business-to-business interaction and the direction of data access technologies. THE ECONOMICS OF MIGRATING TO GUI by Pancho LaPaz and Greg Grisham Here we present a discussion of the cost considerations in going GUI by rewriting your application or by migrating with Visual PRO/5™. GOING GUI ONE WINDOW AT A TIME by Greg Grisham Hunkering down to migrate an entire application to GUI all at once isn't the only or even the best way to make the change. Often, a phased approach can yield rave reviews from end users and save a developer's sanity. GUI MIGRATION CASE STUDY: AUCON BV by Peter Sholz This software development company in the Netherlands took a popular and highly complex character-based application for the European car dealership market and gave it GUI. A GROUND SWELL FOR AUCON'S GUI by Elizabeth Barnett When Jos Schier set out to salvage a legacy Nixdorf Basic application for the European car dealership market, he knew it had a chance of success. What he didn't expect was the overwhelming excitement it generated. A UTILITY FOR GRID CONTROL by Greg Grisham BASIS' latest GUI tool, the Grid Management Library, provides developers with a fast, easy way to control grids in their GUI applications. DESIGNING A GUI LOOK by Sam Vulopas Get all the details for standardizing your graphical interfaces. THE BASICS OF DEVELOPING A WEB SITE by Greg Smith So you want to be a Webmaster? There's a lot more to it than knowing HTML. Find out more, surf some online resources and, if you're not going to do it yourself, learn what to look for in a candidate Webmaster. PUTTING BASIS DOCUMENTATION ONLINE by Paul Hughes Two years in the doing, all BASIS product documentation and manuals went online this year. And they went online better organized and available in different formats. Why we did it, how we did it and what advantages you gain from it are answered. BASIS TECHCON99 REVISITED This is simply shameless promotion about how great our conference was. If you missed it, here's some pix and Don't Make the Same Mistake Next Year!

NEWS MULTIMEDIA CLASSROOM by Elizabeth Barnett Keeping employees and customers up to date on the latest technologies is a challenge. BASIS is looking to meet part of that challenge with computer-based training. BASIS MAKES LARGE FILE FORMAT AVAILABLE BASIS International Ltd. is the only Business Basic developer that gives you virtually unlimited file sizes. Our true 64-bit file implementation is now available for PRO/5*, the PRO/5 Data Server™ and the BASIS ODBC Driver™ on those UNIX ports supporting the large file format. COLUMNS ROAD SCHOLAR JOURNALS In this new column, we share intelligence affecting Business Basic developers that we've gathered from our visits to shows, conferences, customers and industry leaders around the world. Briefs about GLOBEtrotter, makers of FLEXlm, and our attendance at two conferences in northern Europe are presented. WHAT'S BREWING WITH JAVA In anticipation of BBj™, the foundation of which is the Java™ language, we've begun another new column dedicated to tracking and analyzing Java developments. In this premiere column, BASIS Chief Technical Officer John Schroeder discusses why we chose Java for our next generation and the potential longevity of BBj. TECH RESOURCE ZONE Install a BASIS Product Remotely You're relaxing on the beach in Trinidad and your customer's calling from a 16th floor office in Toronto. How can you get her multiuser copy of Visual PRO/5 2.21 licensed and running and still catch that steel band concert in an hour? Masthead