| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 8.1 | Cost and Printer Questions | TIGEMS::GIRARD | | Wed Sep 09 1987 11:11 | 5 |
| I looked at FOCCALC and I like the windowing and graphics capabilities.
What is the cost for this additional feature. And, since I do
not have a user guide, how do you print to a printer such as an
LA100 connected to a terminal (vt240)? I have used FOCCALC on the
IBM mainframe but it did not have graphic capabilities.
|
| 8.2 | <some commands are different from manual | DPD01::ALBURY | Gordon Albury - SCA DIS DSS | Fri Sep 11 1987 15:21 | 28 |
|
FOCCALC is indeed nice for graphics, and it drives an LVP16.
The price I believe is still being negotiated and the corporate
level, so you should ask your system manager to contact the corporate
IBI/FOCUS contact for the current status. The way we used it was
to output either the report or the plot to an external file. Then
we used a simple DCL utility to output the file to our attached
printer. We have run into one problem with FOCCALC however, we
haven't been able to encourage it to fetch data from FOCUS databases.
But we will keep trying.
We do have a FOCCALC manual, and it says:
enter /PRINT
FOCCALC prompts: File or Device:
enter file name or device name
The system will then ask questions about RANGE, page LENGTH,
page WIDTH, etc..
HOWEVER! What really happens is it asks for a QUEUE name.
It defaults to SYS$PRINT which would send it to your system printer.
We have a nearby mailroom queue that's handy. But to print to an
attached printer, the only way we use is to output to a file and
then dump the file from DCL level.
|
| 8.3 | alternatives | DPD01::ALBURY | Gordon Albury - SCA DIS DSS | Fri Sep 11 1987 15:23 | 4 |
| By the way, version 3.0 of DECALC is extremely nice as an alternative
to FOCCALC, and you can pass data from it to DECGRAPH. Version
3.0 has lots of new nice features.
|
| 8.4 | FOCCALC Graphics using Windows | TIGEMS::GIRARD | | Mon Sep 14 1987 12:28 | 12 |
| Thanks for the info. I certainly will take a look at DECALC. My
interest in FOCCALC is due to the fact that the system we are building
is in FOCUS and you can use existing FOCEXECs to populate a spreadsheet
but more importantly is the requirement of our system to use graphics.
More specifically, multiple graphs on the same screen or printout.
FOCCALC provides that capability with windows where one can have
two graphs and two 'tables' of information on the same screen or
printout. I have not been able to do multiple graphs with DECGRAPH.
If there is a way please let me know. I do use DECGRAPH for other
applications when I can. We will also be looking at other graphic packages
to satisfy our requirement. But, if any DEC product can satisfy
our needs, we certainly prefer to stay with DEC.
|
| 8.5 | Populating FOCCALC spreadsheet | TIGEMS::GIRARD | | Mon Sep 14 1987 14:07 | 27 |
| If you mean populating a FOCCALC spreadsheet via a FOCUS request
when you refer to fetching data from a FOCUS database, then I can
tell you two ways that I have done it.
1. execute a focexec - FOCUS report request at the FOCUS command
level (use table not tablef - table creates an internal matrix which
FOCCALC will use whereas tablef does not create an internal matrix).
Once you have seen the report and like it, at the command line type
'recalc' and your report will be put into a FOCCALC spreadsheet
in the first column and row. If you want it placed at another cell,
you specify that when you enter 'recalc' but at this moment I do
not remember.
2. Another way to populate a FOCCACL spreadsheet is to go into
FOCCALC and tab to a cell where you want the data to start. Then
type 'ex rpt1' where rpt1 is a focexec report request. Then press
/ and your cursor will be positioned on FOCUS. Press return and
now your cursor will be positioned on Current. Press return and
the request will start processing. If you do not want to see the
entire report, press pf3 once you are in the report and then the
spreadsheet should then become populated with the data from the
report. I FORGOT TO MENTION IN THIS SECOND METHOD THAT YOU MUST
PUT 'RECALC' AS THE LAST STATEMENT IN YOUR FOCEXEC.
A save file is really created and only one row of column headings
are saved. No other headings or footings are saved.
I hope this has been some help. I am using FOCCALC as when I used
it on an IBM mainframe and since I do not have a FOCCALC manual
for the VAX I am not aware of any differences at this time.
|
| 8.6 | Read this before using FOCCALC | FDCV18::RYAN | | Mon Sep 21 1987 17:35 | 109 |
| GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS DEPARTMENT:
FOCCALC is NOT included in the corporate use agreement; instead
you must pay for it at 55% off list price. That means that while
FOCCALC is included with the tape - it is up to you to be a nice
person and contact IBI and let them know that you are using it.
They will be happy to oblige and charge about $5,500.00 or so for
an 8600+ license (this includes the discount). Talk to Ken Morse,
DEC corporate purchasing agent for more details.
BUT - curriously, FOCCALC is nothing more than v1.0 of 20/20 from
Access Technologies in Natick..... and Digital has a corporate use
license for that product. 20/20 is now at version 2.0 and has several
advantages over FOCCALC, namely:
o More graph types, including scatter and overlays.
o More hardcopy devices, including REGIS support (for LCG01),
and LN03 support.
o Lotus-like cell naming conventions (e.g. A1..B20 instead of
the ghastly [0,0..1,20]. This is my favorite feature.
o Better cell pointing since 20/20 now uses the Lotus cell
conventions.
o Keyboard behaves better (backspace works correctly and arrow
keys are predictable).
o Documentation is excellent compared with the horrendous FOCCALC
manual.
o All-In-One integration, including folders, etc.
o Hotline in Natick - over talking with some IBI bozo who has
even used the product since FOCCALC isn't available on the
IBI mainframe - which is where IBI's expertise lies.
o Outstanding macro language
o Online tutorial (invoke $ t2020)
o 132 character mode upon invocation ( invoke $ s2020 and choose
VT240W over the default).
* * *
What FOCCALC offers over 20/20 are the following arguments:
o Use of TABLE statements as a formula (I admit this is crafty
but I've never really used this except in demos).
o True integration - no spawning.
Here's some more good news: You can use a combination of FOCUS with
20/20 very effectively. Here's how:
1) Create table requests exactly as you would for FOCCALC:
TABLE FILE XXX
SUM X Y Z
BY A
ON TABLE HOLD AS 2020 FORMAT CALC
END
2) Create a 20/20 macro file (like a profile.fex) that will
import the 2020.fex as an input command file. The macro
must be called 2020MACRO.C20
/SICQ2020.FEX#CR
Where /S Storage
I Import
C Command file
Q Quiet Mode
2020.FEX Name of the command file that FOCUS
generates
# (next command)
CR Carriage return
(You can also do this manually in 20/20)
3) From FOCUS, spawn 20/20 (the spreadsheet comes up exactly
as it does for FOCCALC):
>> VMS S2020
4) By the way, a useful trick to create a HOLD file after you
have exited HOTSCREEN is set a PF key to be a compound
statement:
>> LET !04 = HOLD AS 2020 FORMAT CALC # VMS S2020
Obviously I'm plugging 20/20. As good as FOCCALC is, 20/20 is better,
particularly if you are a graphics user. And the price is a
consideration. Don't think because you can invoke FOCCALC that you
have a license for it and therefore are immune from the corporate
responsibility of using the software illegally. Finally, if the
only drawback to my suggested scheme is that it involves a subprocess,
big deal: 20/20 and/or FOCCALC are both memory hogs. With 4GL you
take the added benefit with the greater resource drain - otherwise,
use assembler.
Regards,
RPR
|
| 8.7 | More on FOCCALC and 20/20 | FDCV19::RYAN | | Tue Oct 27 1987 17:11 | 12 |
| A few more tidbits:
FOCCALC v2.0 is on its way according to IBI - this should render
some of my arguments meaningless (but not all). A guy named Pete
Melroy from IBI is doing a preview in Burlington (10/30/87). Remember,
FOCCALC still cost $$$$ - but Pete indicated that if there is
sufficient interests from DEC, that the price may come down to what
I've been pushing all along: an incremental media charge.
FOCCALC, by the way, is a subprocess - not integrated into FOCUS
and you would think. This makes using 20/20 all the more attractive.
|
| 8.8 | Summary documentation for FOCCALC | ILO::MCKNIGHT | Mike Mcknight 890-2516 MIS ESDC | Mon Nov 16 1987 06:52 | 9 |
| Just wondering has anybody got and summary user documentation for
FOCCALC i.e if user wants to do a calculation he can look under
calculations e.t.c to do it ?. Also anybody know of any documentation
relating to creating applications in FOCCALC or 2020 ?
Thanks
Mike.
|