Frequently Asked Questions About Guidelines - 26th April 1994 ----------------------------------------------------------------- This document aims to answer some of the more commonly asked questions regarding the Guidelines product from JBA. - What is Guidelines? - Who are JBA? - What has changed since Version 2.0G? - What else do I need to generate OS/2 PM Applications? - Can I create non-GUI applications - and how about multi-threading? - Why JOT ? - How good is the generated code? - What if I find I need to accomplish tasks which are not possible within the JOT language? - Is there an associated runtime module, and do I have to pay a per copy licence fee ? And what about sources? - How do I report problems and get technical support ? - How do I obtain fixes? - What Guidelines products are currently available from JBA? - What other extensions and controls are planned, and when? - Does Guidelines support the User Interface Class Library provided with CSet++? - What about cross platform development? - How do I contact JBA? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What is Guidelines? Guidelines is a 32 bit OS/2 hosted development tool which provides developers with a powerful way to interactively design and implement applications. The Graphical User Interface (GUI) portion of the application is created visually by direct manipulation of the various controls. In other words, the mouse is used to select the various windows and controls from a supported set, and position them on the screen. A number of functions allow for easy alignment and scaling of the controls to easily achieve a professional effect. Guidelines supports the event driven architecture of modern GUIs. The developer writes the code to respond to these events in a platform neutral high level language named JOT. Guidelines provides an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), providing access to all aspects of application development via a common menu. An editor is provided for entry and modification of the supporting JOT code. When an application has been written, Guidelines will generate native C++ Presentation Manager or Windows code and all the other supporting files (Makefiles, Resource files, IPF files etc) which make up that application. It will then invoke the developer's C++ compiler and other tools appropriately to create the final executable (EXE) or dynamic linked library (DLL) and any supporting help (HLP) files. Guidelines is a part of JBA's systems solutions strategy. It can be used to generate standalone OS/2 and Windows applications, or integrated with JBA's AS/400 extensions to generate large Client/Server applications. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Who are JBA? JBA are one of the world's largest software developers for IBM's midrange market. They have direct and affiliate representation in many countries worldwide, including Canada, United States, Britain, Asia and Australia, and have been operating on this global basis for over 12 years. Guidelines is their first major product for the PC marketplace, forming an integral part of their overall Client/Server solutions strategy. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What has changed since Version 2.0G? A separate document which describes the changes is available as NEWFEAT.INF. It is installed as part of the base pack, and available as part of GUIDOC.ZIP. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What else do I need to generate applications? Guidelines generates the C++ code and supporting files for an application, but you will still need to have a supported C++ compiler and the toolkit for the platform for which you are targeting. Currently supported compilers include IBM's CSet++ 2.1A, Borland C++ for OS/2 V1.01, Watcom C++ V9.5 (for OS/2 targets) and Borland C++ for DOS/Win V3.1 (for Windows Targets). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Can I create non-GUI applications - and how about multi-threading? Yes - Guidelines can generate straight character mode applications which do not have a PM message queue if needed. Multithreading support is also provided within JOT; this is true under both OS/2 and Windows. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Why JOT ? We decided to choose a new language for two main reasons. 1. The language needs to be platform neutral, or well supported on all platforms to be targeted by Guidelines. 2. The syntax of the language should be easy to grasp by those coming from midrange and mainframe backgrounds, yet still provide some of the benefits of an object oriented language. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - How good is the generated code? The C++ code generated by Guidelines is readable and commented throughout. It is similar to code created by a professional coder, so your investment is protected (it could easily be maintained outside the Guidelines environment if necessary). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What if I find I need to accomplish tasks which are not possible within the JOT language? The JOT language allows you several alternative ways to use C++ code in your design if this is more suitable, or isthe only way to solve a particular problem. Our aim, however, is to increase functionality of the language until this is a truly rare occurrence, so if you find this is the case, please let us know. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Is there an associated runtime module, and do I have to pay a per copy licence fee ? Commonly used 'runtime' code is provided, to which generated code is linked. NO additional licence fees are required. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - How do I report problems and get technical support ? Support is primarily provided via CompuServe, in the "Other Vendors" section (section 1) of OS2AVEN. Address support enquiries to "Guidelines Support" at Id 100316,3353 either as private email, or as a general message on the forum. A general message will allow others to see your question, and any answers, so this is the preferred option. On Internet, you can post enquiries to the Guidelines support staff on Compuserve by mailing to 100316.3353@compuserve.com. Officially, support is only provided to users who have purchased the product. However, we will endeavour to answer all questions, even on the base version obtained FOC. The file GPROB.TXT contains a problem reporting sheet which can be mailed directly to the above Id. Giving us this information will allow us to narrow down problems more quickly. We expect to acknowledge, via email, any submitted reports within 2 working days, although resolution of the problem may take longer. Any Guidelines files demonstrating the problem should be compressed using PKZIP or a compatible utility and sent to the above ID as mail, not uploaded to the (public) forum libraries. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - How do I obtain fixes? As fixes become available, these will be downloadable from the CompuServe libraries (currently section 1 library of OS2AVEN), and other electronic channels (FidoNet, Internet etc). Major fix releases will be available on other media via the JBA sales channels. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What Guidelines products are currently available from JBA? To allow developers to choose a configuration of Guidelines which best suits their development needs, a number of packs are available in addition to the base product. These contain additional controls and functionality. * GUIDELINES BASE PACK This contains the basic Guidelines tool, providing full function design and code generation facilities. Support for the following CUA '89 controls is also provided. Frame/Dialogs List Box Combo Box Entry Field Multiple-line Entry Field Scroll Bars Static Controls - Text - Icon - Bitmap - Rectangle - Group Box Button Controls - Push button - Radio Button - Check Box - 3-state Button Also included is the picture control, which provides for enhancing the appearance of your application. This supports animated bitmaps and icons in pushbuttons and static panels. Picture Control - Picture Button - Multi-state Button - Animated Button - Toggle Button - Set Button - Picture Panel Profile File support - a set of functions to read and write to INI files * EXTENDED CONTROL PACK The extended controls pack extends the range of controls supported by Guidelines to include all of those supported under OS/2 2.1 to the CUA '91 standard. In particular, these include: Container Value Set Notebook Spin Button Slider In addition, extensions are provided which add to the functionality of JOT: DDE - provides access to OS/2's Dynamic Data Exchange facilities File I/O - provides file and directory manipulation functions Standard Dialogs - support for OS/2's standard font and file selection dialogs, Timer - provides timers plus extensive date and time formatting routines. * ADVANTAGE CONTROL PACK The Advantage Pack supplies additional visual controls specially written for Guidelines (not natively supported by OS/2). Status Bars - provides a number of status fields, usually across the bottom of a dialog or frame window. Button Bar - Similar to the toolbar, this control is usually used to to contain picture buttons. Tool Bar - provides horizontal and vertical toolbars, on which other controls may be placed for rapid access. Color Wheel - allows selection of a color in a similar manner to the system color wheel (including shade bar). Gauge - three types of gauge are provided, a bar, a rotary needle gauge and a 'thermometer' type gauge. * DOCUMENTATION PACK This pack contains full hard-copy documentation for Guidelines, including all the additional control packs. * AS/400 EXTENSIONS A number of connectivity solutions are available from JBA to provide interoperability with IBMs AS/400 midrange. Please contact JBA to discuss your requirements. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What other extensions and controls are planned, and when? The BUSINESS CONTROL PACK will include the following controls: - Business Graphics - Q+E Database Library support - ODBC Support - Extended Entry Field Control ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Does Guidelines support the User Interface Class Library provided with CSet++? Currently Guidelines neither requires, nor supports this library. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Can I add my own extensions and controls to Guidelines? Guidelines was developed with this in mind, and all language extensions and controls are registered externally with the base product. Currently the API to support this is not exposed, but we expect to document and publish it in an upcoming release. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - What about cross platform development? Guidelines supports the generation of programs to run under Windows 3.1 and WinOS/2 as well as OS/2. Guidelines itself will still only run under OS/2 but will generate code for a Windows target environment and use a DOS/Windows compiler to generate executables. Other possible targets are being investigated at this time. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - How do I contact JBA? *PHONE JBA may be contacted by telephone for Guidelines enquiries at the following offices: Africa: +27 11 804 5062 Australasia: To be advised Europe (UK): 081 899 5600 North America; 416 940 2442 * FAX To purchase Guidelines, send a FAX to "Guidelines Purchase" on: Birmingham, UK: +44 (0)21 753 1559 * COMPUSERVE Address orders and order enquiries to: "Guidelines Purchase" at 73022,35 (73022.35@compuserve.com) Address technical enquiries to: "Guidelines Tech Support" at 100316,3353 (100316.3353@compuserve.com) 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴� * IBM, C Set++, Operating System/2, OS/2 and Presentation Manager are trademarks or registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation. Borland C++ is a trademark of Borland International, inc, and Watcom is a trademerk of Watcom International Corporation.