What Java library or dll can be used to develop a WEB GUI in Xbase++?

[SlavkoDam]

Hello everybody,

I am the owner of company SD-SoftDesign and the author of PowerWeb library and other libraries for Xbase++: PowerXpp (Desktop), PowerSql (SQL), PowerCom (Client/Server) and PowerCrp (Criptography). I call them Power family libraries.

There are many talks here about PowerWeb library. If anybody has questions or doubts about PowerWeb library, please ask. Its better to ask than to assume. PowerWeb is developed in pure Xbase++, HTML/CSS and JavaScript. There are many modern web tools to use, but its the way I work. I like to develop my own software solutions in basic programming languages and to enhance my skills. I am an educated and professional programmer for Xbase++, C, C#, HTML/CSS, JavaScript and PHP, with experience of 38 years. I suggest you to visit my two web sites (in signature) and take a look at my products. There are many libraries, tools and applications, all together tons of program codes.

If you want to try PowerWeb library, download its demo from attachment. There is no install, just start PW.EXE and watch PowerWeb in action. Enjoy free PowerWeb presentation, you will like it. You can also read and learn the complete documentation of PowerWeb library, and check options of its functions. PowerWeb demo can be downloaded from my web site too.

My congratulations to the BOA team for their work on Xbase++ web support. I wish you many success with your product.

My respect to the host of this web site, Rodger.

[skiman]

Hi,

Last week I have seen the different products you have. It looks quite impressive. It looks as you have some products that helps developers the way eXPress++ does. Making it easier to create applications with Xbase++.

I like the idea of creating Graphs with the use of Excel, I see you also use RMChart. With Excel you added some extra possibilities.

Question about your Power Export. Is Excel needed to create the different export files?

By the way, I started my company in 1986 and was developing in Clipper, since 2000 I'm using Xbase++ after some years experimenting with FiveWin. So I suppose we are from the same generation.

I don't know how long Powerweb already exists? I think it was at that time the perfect product for Xbase++ developers to create a web application. Maybe it still is, but sorry it looks old fashioned. After looking to the source code of the samples, I suppose it should be possible to add a better look? Would implementing Bootstrap be possible?

On the website I see:

All HTML elements created by PowerWeb functions are fully configurable. Their positions, sizes, fonts, colors, types, aligns and other attributes can be defined by the user. The configuration parameters can be specified at the global level or in each function.

The problem with the above is that a lot of Xbase++ developers don't have this knowledge. With implementing a system to make this easier, it would help Powerweb.

[Diego Euri Almanzar]

Hello, Chris

the programs that I develop in Alaska Xbase are extremely ugly, Alaska Xbase++ does not have good aesthetics. I have stayed in Alaska because I understand that your compiler is reliable and robust. And, seeing your programs, I am amazed because they are very beautiful. I congratulate you. Although I already understood, that they were made with an HTML editor. Maybe that's what Alaska is looking for, to provide a good compiler, but to break your head learning HTML. I was unaware that HTML had its GUI, and its editor. Alaska should have been clearer with its users, should have made its recommendations.

1. Can you give me the name of the HTML editor you used to develop such aesthetic programs, please?

"They were fine in 2005, but I'm afraid this isn't what customers are looking for these days."

2. What are customers looking for today, better aesthetics?

What you have achieved with BOA is even better, it is impressive.

All the recommendations you have given me are very important to me. I am so clear with your recommendations, that even if you do not answer this message, since it is somewhat redundant, I will continue to be very grateful.

Best regards.

[Diego Euri Almanzar]

Hello, Tom

Thank you for all your help, recommendations, and suggestions.

[Diego Euri Almanzar]

Hello, SlavkoDam

The first time I bought Xbase++, 20 years ago, I went crazy because I didn't understand the whole thing about classes, objects, etc. Two years after the purchase, I found Roger's Express, and it has been my salvation.

A year ago, I was forced to buy Xbase++ 2.0 in search of a Web solution, and I found the dangerous CXP, and WAA, what a disaster, for an inexperienced like me. HTML, JSON, XML, WEBSERVER, etc., were concepts unknown to me, and if it is not for having found POWERWEB help, and the help of the members of this website, my ignorance and my worries, about not having a web solution I would be older today.

SlavkoDam, is a great gentleman, respectful, and very polite. His technical support is excellent. Today I have new hopes, new perspectives, thanks to all of you.

[skiman]

Hi Diego,

Now I think, you are confused.

the programs that I develop in Alaska Xbase are extremely ugly, Alaska Xbase++ does not have good aesthetics.

It is up to you to define the look of your application. See viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1452 for Xbase++ applications.

And, seeing your programs, I am amazed because they are very beautiful. I congratulate you. Although I already understood, that they were made with an HTML editor.

That screenshot is from my old web application. It is not a screenshot of my Xbase++ application. It are two different worlds. I don't remember which html-editor I used those days, but if you search in Google, you will find a lot of them. The html files were used as templates for my webapplication. I read them with memoread, and I replaced the data-content with the current content. The most difficult was the navigation. It looks as Powerweb will solve that problem for you.

BOA is completely different, it is made with Angular and combines the Akveo ngx admin theme, JQ-Widgets and Webdatarocks to have a complete system. I'm not the developer of it. I'm the architect of it and I told to the Angular developers what it had to do. They created the completely data-driven front-end I wanted. Now I can make web applications by developing the back-end, and BOA shows what I want. The back-end can be 100% Xbase++, or any other language.

With BOA you don't create grids or forms, you tell BOA what the content is, and it builds it by itself. I'm working on the documentation, you can see it on https://boa-platform.com/manual/index.htm.

[Diego Euri Almanzar]

Hello, Chris

Everything you have explained to me is extremely interesting. All the content of this topic, will be practically a consultation manual, for me.

Thank you very much.

[SlavkoDam]

Hi Cris,

I also worked in Clipper from 1990. to 2003., when I bought Xbase++. I suppose we are close age, I am 1960.

PowerXpp library is similar to eXPress++, with a difference that Power Xpp is function oriented, and eXPress++ more command oriented. But their purpose is the same, as you said, to easy Xbase++ programming.

I agree that Excel is much better for graphs, it has more versatile graphs types with more attributes especially for 3D graphs. But RMChart satisfy the most needs and its integrated into Win system. Excel graphs are slower than RMChart, but its started from Excel 2007 and above. In older Excels, graphs are much faster.

Regarding PowerXpp export, to export into Excel and Word format you must have Excel/Word min '98, to Export into PDF you must have Acrobat Reader min 5.0, to export into HTML you must have Internet browser min age IE5.

I have developed PowerWeb at the end of 2019. You are right, it looks old fashioned, as my web sites too, but its design is very similar to design of this forum and this web site, and I don't think that anybody here complains about that. As you well noticed in one of your post, in HPAGEBGN() function it can be improved with some modern web tool, JQuery, Bootstrap, Cloudflare etc. In one of its CXP example, Alaska showed a similar way how to do that in CXP with JQuery for grid (browser). Only you have to know how to use (program) that tool, and I don't think that its Xbase++ programmers want to do that. And its also pretty complicated, you should see files grid1.cxp and suppliers.cxp in Alaska CXP examples.

Its interesting to compare with PowerWeb how modern web tools work and how they achieve modern look. If anybody don't know that and want to learn, here is a brief description. They use a similar approach. In a HTML file, for objects which will have modern look, you have to define "empty" HTML tags, each having an id and/or several predefined classes, and no content at all. All attributes for objects you have to specify in CSS file, which for many pages and many objects will be very long. On each page load, web tool performs, with JavaScript code, an extensive search of a page for its objects and their associated ids/classes. Based on that it, on-the -fly, generates the contents of each object, which could be very complex. It creates buttons, images, row, columns, cells (for tables and browsers) etc. Some contents may have several other objects inside. Using the specification from CSS file, it set attributes for these new contents. And finally it sets necessary event controls for objects. All that process takes a pretty time to do, and its programmatically very complicated. Overall, HTML objects generation is performed dynamically on page load and its very time costly and web pages are displayed in the browser with delay. You also have to learn how to use these web tools and their predefined classes. Modern web tools often require new versions of Internet browsers. I am personally sick of seeing this famous alert: "Please, install the latest version of your Internet Browser".

PowerWeb don't do that way. It creates static web pages with all HTML objects finished when pages are sent to the browser. The contents of all objects are already created and their attributes are set. Regarding your comment of PowerWeb configuration, every PowerWeb H*() function for creating an object, have parameters to specify by the user in Xbase++ style, their positions, sizes, fonts, colors, types, aligns, event functions etc. This is a standard Xbase++ approach which Xbase++ programmers know, and they don't have to know HTML/CSS and JavaScript to do that. No CSS file is needed. Overall, PowerWeb objects are created very fast by your web app, and are sent to the browser ready-made, to be displayed in the browser immediately. The associated JavScript code is used for later changing of object contents and their controls. PowerWeb supports all Internet browsers from their age of IE7 and above, it don't require new browser versions.

I have knowledge and experience to upgrade PowerWeb with modern web tools approach described above, but I don't want to do that, since its slow in execution and very complicated. I don't think that the main goal of a web app/site is its outlook. The most important for a web app is to complete its task, and for a web site to present some info. The most important for Xbase++ programmers is that their web tool is simple, fast and user-friendly, and that they can use it in Xbase++ style which they know, and not to learn some new technology, because their are several of them to be learnt. PowerWeb can create very nice web outlook, it can be much better than in my demo program. Demo is just a demo to show some basic capabilities, but it still looks nice. Its up to the Xbase++ programmer to beautify it web app as he/she wishes. And PowerWeb will be improved in the future with new capabilities.

[SlavkoDam]

Hello Diego,

I am glad that you are pleased with PowerWeb. I am always opened to support my customers with any help. The most important is that you can achieve your goal, to develop a web application as you wish.

[skiman]

Hi Slavoljub,

Yes, we are about the same age, I'm from 1963.
I understand the goal of Powerweb, and I'm sure that it will fullfill the needs for its users, it does what it promises.
To close this posts, there is a French saying: 'Les gouts et les couleurs ont ne discute pas'.

Have a nice weekend,