Tutorial Chapters
Each chapter illustrates Genero Business Development Language (BDL) concepts with program examples.
| Chapter | Description |
|---|---|
| Tutorial Chapter 1: Overview | This chapter provides an overview of the Tutorial and a description of the database schema and sample data used for the example programs. |
| Tutorial Chapter 2: Using Genero BDL | The topics in this chapter illustrate the structure of a BDL program and some of the BDL statements that perform some common tasks - display a text message to the screen, connect to a database and retrieve data, define variables, and pass variables between functions. |
| Tutorial Chapter 3: Displaying Data | This chapter illustrates opening a window that contains a form to display information to the user. An SQL statement is used to retrieve the data from a database table. A form specification file is defined to display the values retrieved. The actions that are available to the user are defined in the source code, tied to buttons that display on the form. |
| Tutorial Chapter 4: Query by Example | The program in this chapter allows the user to search a database by
entering criteria in a form. The search criteria is used to build an SQL SELECT
statement to retrieve the desired database rows. A cursor is defined in the program, to allow the
user to scroll back and forth between the rows of the result set. Testing the success of the SQL
statements and handling errors is illustrated. |
| Tutorial Chapter 5: Enhancing the UI | Program forms can be displayed in a variety of ways. This chapter illustrates adding a toolbar or a topmenu (pull-down menu) by modifying the form specification file, changing the window's appearance, and disabling/enabling actions. The example programs in this chapter use some of the action defaults defined by Genero BDL to standardize the presentation of common actions to the user. |
| Tutorial Chapter 6: Append, Update, Delete | This program allows the user to create, modify and remove rows in
the customer database table. Embedded SQL statements
(UPDATE/INSERT/DELETE) are used to modify the SQL
table, based on the values stored in the program record. |
| Tutorial Chapter 7: Record list display | The example in this chapter displays multiple
customer records in a scrollable list view. The custlist program
defines a program array to hold the records, and uses a DISPLAY ARRAY instruction
to control the record list displayed in a form containing a TABLE
container. |
| Tutorial Chapter 8: Modifiable DISPLAY ARRAY | The program in this chapter allows the user to view and change a list of records displayed on a form. As each record in the program array is added, updated, or deleted, the program logic makes corresponding changes in the rows of the corresponding database table. |
| Tutorial Chapter 9: Record list with direct update | This program uses the INPUT ARRAY instruction,
that allows the user to edit a list of records quickly. |
| Tutorial Chapter 10: Multiple Dialogs | This chapter shows how to implement order and items input in a
DIALOG statement. The code makes both order and item input fields active at the
same time. |