ID: Q108173
2.50 2.50a 2.50b WINDOWS kbreadme
The information in this article applies to:
Below is the complete FoxPro for Windows FOXDATA.TXT file found in the FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA subdirectory.
FoxData
FoxData is a sample application that shows how FoxPro can be used as a dynamic data exchange (DDE) server. You can use FoxData to paste or link the contents of a FoxPro table or query to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, for example, or to create a tab-delimited Microsoft Word document. Full source code is included with the application. FoxData is located in the FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA directory.
A copy of this FoxData help information is also available in the FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA directory and is named FOXDATA.TXT. You may want to print FOXDATA.TXT to the printer for easier viewing.
FoxData DDE Server Dialog
The FoxData DDE Server dialog contains these options:
Copy push button
Copies the selected table or query to the Clipboard, and puts
sufficient DDE link information on the Clipboard to support the
Paste or Paste Link options in the client application.
Choosing Paste from a client application pastes a one-time
snapshot of the copied FoxPro table or query into the client
application's active document or spreadsheet. Choosing Paste
Link creates a link between the client application and the
FoxPro table or query so that the linked information will be
refreshed at least as often as every time you open the linked
document or spreadsheet. Data may be updated even more
frequently, depending upon the client application.
Use the popup to select the type of file (Table/DBF or Query)
you want to copy. Select a file from the Copy Table or Query
list, then choose Copy.
Exits FoxData without taking any action.
Displays help information about FoxData.
Check this check box to include the names of table or query
fields in the data copied to the Clipboard.
Displays the Select Directory dialog so you can choose the
drive and/or directory on which the desired table or query
is located.
Displays the currently selected directory. To change the
directory, choose the Directory... push button.
Displays the number of active DDE connections, and includes
the following push button:
Show Log push button
Enabled only when an error occurs in copying the table or
query to the Clipboard. Choose this button to view a log
of the error(s).
Using the FoxData Application
To use the FoxData sample application, choose Do... from the FoxPro Program menu and select FOXDATA.APP from the FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA directory. The FoxData DDE Server dialog is displayed. Use this dialog to select a table or query and copy it to the Clipboard. Then access the client application and paste or link the copied data to the client application.
Copying from a FoxPro table to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet
To copy, for example, the contents of the Sales table from FoxPro
to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, select the Sales table from the
FoxData DDE Server dialog and choose Copy. The contents of the
Sales table are placed on the Clipboard. Click on cell A1 in a
blank spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel, then choose Paste, Paste
Special or Paste Link from the Edit menu in Excel. The contents of
the Sales table are now pasted into the appropriate cells in the
Excel spreadsheet.
To copy the contents of the table to Microsoft Word, you can choose
Paste Special from the Word Edit menu and then choose Paste Link
from the Paste Special dialog. The contents of the Sales table are
formatted as tab-delimited rows in Microsoft Word.
Editing a Link
To change the link between a FoxPro table or query and a client application, you can edit the link. The following illustrations refer to the links established in the "Using the FoxData Application" examples above.
Editing a link in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet
To remove field names from the displayed FoxPro table or query
information in a linked Excel spreadsheet, for example, select a
non-blank cell and choose F2 to edit the cell's contents. Change
the word "All" at the end of the command to "Data", then press
CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER. The linked fields in the spreadsheet are
redisplayed without field names.
To edit a link in a Microsoft Word document, choose Links... from
the Edit menu in Word. Select the link you want to edit, then
choose Change Link.... In the Change Link dialog, edit the
information in the Item text box. For example, change the word
"All" in the Item text box to "Data" and choose OK until you
return to the document. The linked data is redisplayed without
field names.
DDE Commands and FoxData
As a DDE server, FoxData responds to predetermined DDE commands. These commands are described in the following section. Normally you would build these commands into the application that is trying to access the data. The syntax used depends very much on the application that you're using. For example, Microsoft Excel has INITIATE, REQUEST and TERMINATE commands in its macro language. Microsoft Word uses DDEInitiate, DDERequest and DDETerminate from WordBasic. See your application's manual for how to use DDE with that application. (Note that sometimes you will need to find additional programming documentation to supplement the manuals that come with the product. Sometimes the information is in text files supplied on the application disks.)
Using FoxData as a DDE Server
FoxData supports dynamic data exchange (DDE) as a source (server).
This section describes the five topics that FoxData supports as a DDE server and the items that are valid for each topic. The five topics are <table name>, <query name>, "SQL <expr>", <directory> and "System".
<table name> Topic
When requesting the contents of a table, you may specify the
directory the object is in, followed by a semicolon, the key word
TABLE, and then the name of an existing table.
The syntax for this topic is:
[<path>;]TABLE <table name>
For example, to request the contents of the Sales table in the
FoxPro FOXDATA subdirectory, you can type just the name of the
table or its full path:
TABLE Sales
-or-
c:\FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA;TABLE Sales
NOTE: Do not enclose table name in brackets ([]).
The following table lists the items that are valid with the
<table name> topic.
Item Returns
-----------------------------------------------------------------
All All the data in the table, including field names.
Data All rows of data without field names.
NextRow The next row in the table or query. When you first
initiate a channel, NextRow returns the first row. If
the current row is the last record and you execute
NextRow, the request fails.
PrevRow The previous row in the table or query. If PrevRow is
the first request over a new channel, the last row of
the table or query is returned. If the current row is
the first record, the request for PrevRow fails.
FirstRow The data in the first row of the table or query.
LastRow The data in the last row of the table or query.
<fieldname> The value of field <fieldname> for the current row.
FieldCount The number of the fields in the table or query.
FieldNames A list of field names.
The <table name> topic also supports a DDE poke command from
another application. You can change the contents of a field by
supplying a field name and the new data value.
The <query name> topic supports the same items as the <table name>
topic. To copy a query using FoxData the query output must be
directed to a table or cursor. When requesting the results of
a query, you may specify the directory the object is in, followed
by a semicolon, the key word QUERY, and then the name of an
existing query.
The syntax for this topic is:
[<path>;]QUERY <query name>
For example, to request the results of the Westsale query in the
FoxPro FOXDATA subdirectory, you can type just the name of the
query or its full path:
QUERY Westsale
-or-
c:\FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA;QUERY Westsale
NOTE: Do not enclose query names in brackets ([]).
For a list of items that are valid with the <query name> topic,
refer to the table of items in the <table name> topic above.
The "SQL <expr>" topic returns the results of the specified SQL
expression. The syntax for this topic is:
[<path>;]SQL <sql SELECT statement>
For example, to select all fields from the Sales table in the
FoxPro FOXDATA directory, enter:
c:\FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA;SQL Select * from Sales;
To select only the values in the Fourthqtr field in the Sales
table, enter:
c:\FOXPROW\GOODIES\FOXDATA;SQL Select Fourthqtr from Sales;
NOTE: End each SQL statement with a semicolon (;).
The "SQL <expr>" topic supports the same items as the <table name>
and <query name> topics.
<directory> is the directory that contains tables, queries, screens
and other directory elements. This topic can be a fully qualified
path. After you initiate a DDE link with a directory, you can
request a listing of the objects in that directory. Initiating
this Topic has the effect of setting the default directory to the
one specified.
Item Returns
----------------------------------------------------------------
TableList A list of .DBF files in the path
QueryList A list of .QPR files in the path
MacroList A list of .FKY files in the path
ReportList A list of .FRX files in the path
ScreenList A list of .SPR files in the path
FormList Synonym for ScreenList
ModuleList A list of .APP and .PRG files in the path
"System" is a standard topic for all Windows applications.
It returns information about the topics FoxData supports.
The following table lists the valid items for the "System" topic.
Item Returns
-------------------------------------------------------------
SysItems A list of items supported by the topic "System"
Format A list of the formats FoxData can copy onto
the Clipboard
Status "Busy" or "Ready"
<command> Executes a FoxPro command
Note: To send a command to FoxData, use the DDEExecute
statement. Some commands may interfere with the
internal operation of FoxData. If you wish to send
extensive command sequences to FoxPro it is probably
better to write a server to specifically match
your needs.
Installing FoxData as a
Program Manager Icon
To install FoxData as an application in the Microsoft Windows Program Manager, click on your FoxPro program group window to make it active, then choose New... from the File menu in Program Manager. In the New Program Object dialog, choose the New Program Item radio button, then choose OK. Enter the following information in the Program Item Properties dialog:
Text Box Name Enter
-------------------------------------------------------
Description FoxData
Command Line c:\foxprow\foxprow.exe foxdata.app
Working Directory c:\foxprow\goodies\foxdata
More About FoxPro and DDE
For more information about using DDE with FoxPro, refer to the "Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)" chapter in the FoxPro "Developer's Guide."
Note that the commands outlined above are modeled on Microsoft Access's DDE Server functionality and are designed to be compatible. If you are careful to follow these command standards when you write programs that use FoxData, you'll be able to use either FoxPro or Microsoft Access to store your data.
Additional reference words: FoxWin 2.50 2.50a 2.50b KBCategory: kbreadme KBSubcategory: FxinteropDde
Keywords : FxinteropDde
Version : 2.50 2.50a 2.50b
Platform : WINDOWSLast Reviewed: April 30, 1996