ProFox July 2019

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51 discussions

FoxBin2Prg Form.Property = "" becomes .F.
by Tracy Pearson 02 Apr '20

02 Apr '20

I have just recently started to use FoxBin2Prg to store my VCX and SCX files as text versions in Git. Some of my forms have properties set to a have nothing in it. VFP displays this as "(none)". When I use FoxBin2Prg to put this particular form in to the SC2 form, the back to the SCX form this property becomes a .F. Just putting this out there for those that might use this tool. Tracy

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Re: String Reference to Object
by Gene Wirchenko 25 Feb '20

25 Feb '20

At 11:07 2018-02-15, Gene Wirchenko <genew(a)telus.net> wrote: >At 10:57 2018-02-15, "Fernando D. Bozzo" <fdbozzo(a)gmail.com> wrote: >>To talk with an example, if you have this: >> >>oObj = createobject("custom") >>reference = "oObj" >> >>The you have at least 3 options: >> >>1) The way you know => &reference..referredto >> >>2) Using evaluate => =Evaluate(reference + ".referredto") >> >>3) My preferred: Caching the object and then using it: >> >>oRef = Evaluate(reference) >>? oRef.refered1 >>? oRef.refered2 >>... > > I was hoping to avoid evaluate(), but your third way makes > sense. I will check if it works in all the contexts I am thinking > of. (I was using "object" and "reference" rather loosely.) Unfortunately, it does not work in my usual use case: as an alias. Example: use ccli where=evaluate("ccli") && Nope ? where.clcode Sincerely, Gene Wirchenko

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A FoxPro Transition @ UCLA...
by Kurt at VR-FX 31 Oct '19

31 Oct '19

Hello there folks, I'm looking to get some feedback from the hive mind of this group. And, I will admit, I'm doing this kind of last minute. Too many things going on lately, and I have not had a chance to do my true due diligence! Such as thorough research via prior postings in this forum. So as some of you may already know, I had a first interview for a programmer job at UCLA. The second interview is coming up, it's supposed to be this Thursday, but I might try to postpone until Friday. Too much stuff going on in my life lately, including doing 2 different part time jobs and an extended relative who passed away recently, that's the reason I'm going down to LA for an in-person interview, since the last interview I did via Skype. It looks like UCLA really wants to move away from Foxpro, as they know it's a dead language. But, they want to move to something similar to VFP. I suspect its also because the 1 and only programmer there, who's been there for like 30 years and may be retiring soon - doesn't want to learn something Totally new. And, also wants to minimize the transition! They are asking me to propose what I think is the best option. They have mentioned several options such as Fox-in-Cloud, the Alpha software, and even Servoy. They did not bring up things like Lianja, XoJo, or X# the open source X-base language. I know that Fox-in-Cloud even offers a type of Conversion Assistant - which looks really Great! But, once its converted and running in the cloud - I'm assuming that making updates to the system actually means programming in something that is not actually FoxPro - as I think its Javascript & HTML. But, I could be wrong - and am sure Thierry will correct me. There was also some recent discussion on X# which looked like a potentially great option. But, I heard that via the last posting - the FoxPro version of the code wasn't really ready yet! They also told me that they have already been working with Alpha SW - and in discussions with them for several months. Which makes me think they are already leaning towards Alpha. A quick review of old postings in this forum did not show a lot of discussion or users of Alpha. It would really be great to hear from some Alpha users! Anyway - any and all input would be greatly appreciated. I've seen Numerous discussions about a number of these technologies here in the forum over the years. But, honestly - I never truly got involved with any of them - until NOW! Regards, Kurt

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[NF] SQL - search all fields in all records in all tables
by M Jarvis 29 Jul '19

29 Jul '19

I didn't write this, nor do I know it's source. But some of our devs are treating it like a new toy so I thought I would pass it along in case someone could find it useful. Probably old old news to a lot of you. One of our clients got a public records thing and wanted to search all fields in all tables for a particular string, in this case a name. I'd done this in VFP but never had a need for it in SQL. No one here is saying it doesn't work but YMMV. First two lines are the seed for the DB and the string to search for: USE DATABASE_NAME DECLARE @SearchStr nvarchar(100) = 'SEARCH_TEXT' DECLARE @Results TABLE (ColumnName nvarchar(370), ColumnValue nvarchar(3630)) SET NOCOUNT ON DECLARE @TableName nvarchar(256), @ColumnName nvarchar(128), @SearchStr2 nvarchar(110) SET @TableName = '' SET @SearchStr2 = QUOTENAME('%' + @SearchStr + '%','''') WHILE @TableName IS NOT NULL BEGIN SET @ColumnName = '' SET @TableName = ( SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)) FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE' AND QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) > @TableName AND OBJECTPROPERTY( OBJECT_ID( QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) ), 'IsMSShipped' ) = 0 ) WHILE (@TableName IS NOT NULL) AND (@ColumnName IS NOT NULL) BEGIN SET @ColumnName = ( SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME)) FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME(@TableName, 2) AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME(@TableName, 1) AND DATA_TYPE IN ('char', 'varchar', 'nchar', 'nvarchar', 'int', 'decimal') AND QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME) > @ColumnName ) IF @ColumnName IS NOT NULL BEGIN INSERT INTO @Results EXEC ( 'SELECT ''' + @TableName + '.' + @ColumnName + ''', LEFT(' + @ColumnName + ', 3630) FROM ' + @TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' + ' WHERE ' + @ColumnName + ' LIKE ' + @SearchStr2 ) END END END SELECT ColumnName, ColumnValue FROM @Results --- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts --- multipart/alternative text/plain (text body -- kept) text/html ---

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[NF] Migrating Skills From Foxpro to Xojo
by Paul H. Tarver 29 Jul '19

29 Jul '19

I hijacked the original thread with a reply changing the subject and adding an [NF] flag to the subject because a small comment Kevin made caused me chase a different rabbit for a little bit. I have reviewed Xojo on a couple of different occasions over the past few years and I have tried to work my way through the book that was written to teach people how to program it and I find myself drifting by the 3rd or 4th chapter every time. Not a fault of the author; just rather a fault of me wanting something a little more advanced. Anyway, I've run into a couple of hurdles with trying to learn Xojo and perhaps someone here has some suggestions to help me out. Try not to laugh at what may be very dumb questions! :) 1) I build a lot of similar but customized apps using a shared library of tools I've developed over the past 25 years. Every app I build contains a LOT of forms, reports and programs shared by all my applications as well as a lot of forms, reports and programs which are copied from previous projects and then customized for the current client. While I have seen multiple Xojo advocates confirm a similar process is possible, but I cannot find clear explanations of how to make that happen. 2) Every Foxpro application I build starts with a .PRG which reads a configuration .INI file and then setups up the environment, displays a splash screen, checks my version numbers, calls a database update process if a version change is detected and if all is good, it displays the main screen for the user. Once the user chooses to exit my application, a shutdown process is initiated and everything is closed in an orderly way. That having been said, I have been unable to find source code to a simple, complete Xojo application or instruction book that can walk me through the start to finish logic and firing order of all the start-up and shut-down events and allow me to compare that to the process I'm so familiar with in Foxpro. 3) Are there any good white-papers or books by Foxpro programmers that can provide insights into translating my Foxpro knowledge and skill directly into Xojo. I use Foxpro on a daily basis for my business because I cannot find a language that satisfies my clients' needs the way Foxpro does. I would love to be able to say I have a backup language like Xojo, but I get only so far before I give up and go back to what I know and love. So let's assume Kevin is correct when he states Xojo is " a viable language for VFP developers" because I do not want to go down the rabbit hole of considering all the other alternatives for this sake of this discussion and share with me any tips that can help me understand Xojo on a higher level beyond just creating a simple form. I want to understand Xojo at a Complete Deliverable Application level and talk about mimicking the features I depend upon in Foxpro to share a library of tools, forms and code across hundreds of similar custom applications. Paul H. Tarver -----Original Message----- From: ProfoxTech [mailto:profoxtech-bounces@leafe.com] On Behalf Of Kevin J Cully Sent: Friday, February 22, 2019 8:11 AM To: profoxtech(a)leafe.com Subject: RE: false news.... Well, a lot of that article is correct, even though I don't want it to be. VFP as a *language* is as secure as the programmer programmed it to be. VFP as a *database* isn't secure itself. You can encrypt fields. You can encrypt the directory that the data is stored in. But DBF data isn't secure. You wouldn't store social security numbers or credit card numbers in Excel spreadsheets, right? I've haven't recommended DBFs for storage for over a decade now. There are better storage mechanisms such as Postgres, MariaDB, and even SQLite which can be set up as an encrypted database. VFP as a language is still valid, although it will never be able to create 64bit applications but that is a different subject. [Insert Xojo plug here as a viable language for VFP developers.] I had a potential client where they based their primary keys based on employee Social Security Numbers. They didn't like it when I told them that they'd need a complete rewrite. Notice this would have been the case no matter what language/technology they were using. It was just piss poor design. It appears from the article, that when the vendor was notified of the situation, that they were able to quickly address it although the article didn't say what that solution was. Probably encrypted the field? Hash the field with an external secured table containing the sensitive data? Who knows. To me, that's a win. Hopefully the vendor contacts all customers notifying them that there is a vulnerability and that there is a solution available. As Ted Roche always says "Security is a process". -Kevin -----Original Message----- From: ProFox [mailto:profox-bounces@leafe.com] On Behalf Of Dave Crozier Sent: Friday, February 22, 2019 6:07 AM To: 'ProFox Email List' <profox(a)leafe.com> Subject: VFP: false news.... Ignorance and stupidity still runs in the so-called “expert consultant” fraternity. “An outdated software that is used by about 200 Vermont municipalities and the Vermont Tax Department has long contained flaws that exposed sensitive information including Social Security numbers, according to an IT consultant and the software company’s founder.” “You could make a strong case that Visual FoxPro shouldn’t be used on a government level,” Johnson said. https://vtdigger.org/2019/02/05/consultant-outdated-software-left-worker-in… Thankfully the software owners realise that it isn’t a fault in VFP, it is a fault in the designing of the infrastructure. Expert: Ex - Out of date Spurt – a drip under pressure!! Dave Crozier Software Development Manager Flexipol Packaging Ltd. ﴾⚆ᨎ⚆﴿ Flexipol® Packaging Ltd T 01706 222 792 E DCrozier(a)flexipol.co.uk W https://www.flexipol.co.uk/ Follow us: Unit 14 Bentwood Road, Carrs Industrial Estate, Haslingden, Lancashire, BB4 5HH This communication and the information it contains is intended for the person or organisation to whom it is addressed. Its contents are confidential and may be protected in law. If you have received this e-mail in error you must not copy, distribute or take any action in reliance on it. Unauthorised use, copying or disclosure of any of it may be unlawful. If you have received this message in error, please notify us immediately by telephone or email. Flexipol Packaging Ltd. has taken every reasonable precaution to minimise the risk of virus transmission through email and therefore any files sent via e-mail will have been checked for known viruses. 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Re: [NF] Inadvertent Movement of Documents Folder
by Frank Cazabon 25 Jul '19

25 Jul '19

I guess depending on the size of the files and the speed of the PC/drives involved you may get the notification window showing files being copied. Frank. Frank Cazabon On 22/07/2019 03:47 PM, Ken Dibble wrote: > Presumably, though, if you did that with a folder that contains, say, > a few hundred MB of data, you'd get the Windows copy/move dialog and a > progress bar, wouldn't you? > > Thanks. > > Ken > >> Nope, I can drag move my Downloads folder somewhere else (to another >> drive) and I don't get any warning. Note that dragging within the >> same drive does a move, dragging within the same drive while holding >> Ctrl down does a copy, dragging to a different drive holding Shift >> down does a move. (at leats I think those are the corresponding keys >> to move or copy) >> >> Frank. >> >> Frank Cazabon >> >> On 22/07/2019 03:33 PM, Ken Dibble wrote: >>> >>>> Hey Ken, >>>> >>>> you can move a folder using drag and drop if you hold down the Ctrl >>>> key while dragging and dropping. >>>> >>>> I have known experienced users to do this by mistake. I've even >>>> done it a couple times, thankfully I realised quite quickly that I >>>> had moved the wrong folder. >>> >>> Thanks Frank. >>> >>> If you try it with a Windows "special" folder like My Documents does >>> it warn you at all? >>> >>> Ken [excessive quoting removed by server]

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Re: vfp9 exe
by Ken McGinnis 24 Jul '19

24 Jul '19

Thanks Kurt, I don't post that often so I guess I was not paying attention. I use Thunderbird email client (recommended by someone on this list - long ago, I forget who). I think my original message was not clear enough. I have no issue keeping people out once the files are locked. There are several good ways to do that. My problem was: how to know if someone is logged into the same folder with the same data files. What I plan to do is use TRY/CATCH and trap the error and let the 2nd person logging in know that the program s/he wants to use to lock files is not available. I will warn her/him that someone else may be logged in. Alternatively, the Windows OS still has a file locked for no known reason like it does sometimes. On 7/24/2019 9:14 AM, Kurt @ Gmail wrote: > Hey Ken, > > I hear you about your woes of a user still in system. But, gotta say - > you should have posted this reply to the group instead of just me. > And, since I replied via Gmail - I don't actually get to see my own > reply. Its funny though - since Another person in the forum posted the > SAME Suggestion - about a single file/record as a semaphore. I think > it may have been Ted. I say - Great minds think alike. > > OF course, maybe it was ME who Blew it and Only put my reply to You > and NOT to the forum! If so - my bad... > > -K- > > On 7/23/2019 2:18 PM, Ken McGinnis wrote: >> I do have that and it does work to keep users out - if they come in >> after the 'lock' is set. >> >> The problem is: a user that is already in the system, but not doing >> anything. I can't figure a way to know that user is in the software. >> s/he has no files locked and is not accessing any data, just sitting >> at the menu (for example) >> >> On 7/23/2019 9:57 AM, Kurt @ Gmail wrote: >>> Why not create a single file - with a single record, a File Lock >>> Flag. So - when a user goes to reindex files - they MUST Lock that >>> one record 1st. Then, at the startup of your system - for regular >>> users - the system must check that flag & record to see if someone >>> locked it and is indexing files. >>> >>> It's a thought... >>> >>> -K- >>> >>> On 7/23/2019 10:36 AM, Ken McGinnis wrote: >>>> We have a vfp9 SP2 program that has been running nearly bug free >>>> for over 10 years. Only now we have a need to find out if anyone >>>> else is using the exe in a specific folder. We allow many users to >>>> have their own unique folder with their patient data files. >>>> >>>> So we log into folder 1 and another user is in folder 2. No problem. >>>> >>>> If we log into folder 1 and another user is in that same folder, >>>> again no problem. Our software is multi-user down to the individual >>>> record level. The problem is when the 2nd user comes in and needs >>>> to lock many or all files to reindex or other procedures. How can >>>> the 2nd user know that another user is there? Again it is not a >>>> problem until that 1st user starts to do something, almost anything >>>> that requires accessing files. All files are locked by the 2nd user >>>> so the 1st user starts getting errors. >>>> >>>> We could try to lock the exe and that would fail so we would know >>>> someone else is using the software. However, if that other user is >>>> working with data in a different folder, we don't care so we do not >>>> want to lock the exe. >>>> >>>> Hope that is clear >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> [excessive quoting removed by server]

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AW: [NF] How to Get Black Bars on Monitor
by juergen＠wondzinski.de 23 Jul '19

23 Jul '19

You need to change the settings on the monitor itself. It normally rescales automatically if you send him non-native resolutions, thus you need to set the monitor to "Do not scale". [excessive quoting removed by server]

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Re: [NF] Inadvertent Movement of Documents Folder
by Paul Hill 22 Jul '19

22 Jul '19

On Mon, 22 Jul 2019 at 18:45, Ken Dibble <krdibble(a)stny.rr.com> wrote: > >On Mon, 22 Jul 2019 at 15:20, Ken Dibble <krdibble(a)stny.rr.com> wrote: > > > The user's device is a Windows 7 Pro laptop. He moved the folder to a > > > share on a Windows 2012 server. The only other unusual thing about > > > this machine is that it's lost trust with the domain a couple of > > > times in the last few days. But his documents folder first appeared > > > on the network share weeks ago. > > > >Has a roaming profile been enabled on the domain? > >I forget where you do this as I never use this feature! > > Nope, we never use that feature either. What about the users home directory? Somewhere in the AD settings. -- Paul

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Re: [NF] Inadvertent Movement of Documents Folder
by Frank Cazabon 22 Jul '19

22 Jul '19

Nope, I can drag move my Downloads folder somewhere else (to another drive) and I don't get any warning. Note that dragging within the same drive does a move, dragging within the same drive while holding Ctrl down does a copy, dragging to a different drive holding Shift down does a move. (at leats I think those are the corresponding keys to move or copy) Frank. Frank Cazabon On 22/07/2019 03:33 PM, Ken Dibble wrote: > >> Hey Ken, >> >> you can move a folder using drag and drop if you hold down the Ctrl >> key while dragging and dropping. >> >> I have known experienced users to do this by mistake. I've even done >> it a couple times, thankfully I realised quite quickly that I had >> moved the wrong folder. > > Thanks Frank. > > If you try it with a Windows "special" folder like My Documents does > it warn you at all? > > Ken > [excessive quoting removed by server]

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