.PN=123 .OO=15 .EO=7 .OF=//II-# .EF=II-# .OH=Working with Superbase E„x„t„e„r„n„a„l„ „F„i„l„e„s„ .EH=E„x„t„e„r„n„a„l„ „F„i„l„e„s„ Working with Superbase E‚X‚T‚E‚R‚N‚A‚L‚ ‚F‚I‚L‚E‚ ‚M‚A‚N‚A‚G‚E‚M‚E‚N‚T‚ ‚S‚Y‚S‚T‚E‚M‚ This unique feature allows you to store the names of external files in a Superbase database file, and display both the database records and the external files themselves using the database's indexing and searching facilities.The external files can be created with almost any of the popular Amiga graphics programs, and must be in IFF format. They may reside in the same directory as the main database file, or in a separate directory, or even on a separate disk. The applications for the External File Management System are unlimited. Whether you are storing digitized video images of houses for a real estate business, CAD drawings, or just your own paint program creations, a powerful cross-referencing and display manager is a valuable aid to efficiency. We have included a demonstration file on your Superbase disk, called Pictures. Open it now, if you want to be able to refer to it while reading this section. Ensure that you have sufficient contiguous memory before you view the external file pictures. This should be at least 40K for a low resolution image. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ EXTERNAL FILE FIELDS In the File Definition, there is an External File Field type. External File fields are like Text fields, except that Superbase can use their contents as path names for external files. A path name is simply a path through the AmigaDOS directory structure to the file itself. The contents of an external File field can be: * A file name. * A path name that includes a file name. * A disk volume name that includes a path name and a file name. F„i„l„e„ „N„a„m„e„:„ „S„a„m„e„ „D„i„s„k„,„ „S„a„m„e„ „D„i„r„e„c„t„o„r„y„ At its simplest, an External File field refers to a picture in the same directory as the database file: Copperstate This is the name given to a picture created with a paint program. F„i„l„e„ „N„a„m„e„:„ „S„a„m„e„ „D„i„s„k„,„ „D„i„f„f„e„r„e„n„t„ „D„i„r„e„c„t„o„r„y„ If you want to access a picture file in another directory you must include the name of that directory in the External File field. Superbase can then go to that directory, open the file and read the data. Suppose you had some pictures on your Superbase disk in a directory called Artwork. The External File field contents would have to look like this: Artwork/Copperstate F„i„l„e„ „N„a„m„e„:„ „D„i„f„f„e„r„e„n„t„ „D„i„s„k„ If your external file was on another disk, you would have to start your Path with the name of the disk, or "volume name". Continuing with the last example, suppose the Artwork directory was on a disk called Picture Library. The External File field would have to hold the following path name: Picture Library:Artwork/Copperstate The colon at the end of Picture Library tells Superbase that Picture Library is a disk volume name. Superbase will therefore expect to find the disk with that volume name in one of the Amiga's disk drives. If the disk is not present, Superbase will ask for it with a system requester. T‚h‚i‚s‚ ‚f‚e‚a‚t‚u‚r‚e‚ ‚a‚l‚l‚o‚w‚s‚ ‚y‚o‚u‚ ‚t‚o‚ ‚c‚o‚n‚s‚t‚r‚u‚c‚t‚ ‚m‚u‚l‚t‚i‚-‚v‚o‚l‚u‚m‚e‚ ‚p‚i‚c‚t‚u‚r‚e‚ ‚l‚i‚b‚r‚a‚r‚i‚e‚s‚ ‚w‚i‚t‚h‚ ‚a‚l‚l‚ ‚t‚h‚e‚ ‚d‚a‚t‚a‚b‚a‚s‚e‚ ‚i‚n‚f‚o‚r‚m‚a‚t‚i‚o‚n‚ ‚h‚e‚l‚d‚ ‚i‚n‚ ‚a‚ ‚f‚i‚l‚e‚ ‚o‚n‚ ‚o‚n‚e‚ ‚d‚i‚s‚k‚,‚ ‚w‚h‚i‚l‚e‚ ‚t‚h‚e‚ ‚p‚i‚c‚t‚u‚r‚e‚s‚ ‚t‚h‚e‚m‚s‚e‚l‚v‚e‚s‚ ‚a‚r‚e‚ ‚h‚e‚l‚d‚ ‚i‚n‚d‚e‚p‚e‚n‚d‚e‚n‚t‚l‚y‚ ‚o‚n‚ ‚o‚t‚h‚e‚r‚ ‚d‚i‚s‚k‚s‚.‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ VIEWING EXTERNAL FILES Ensure that the Pictures demonstration file on your disk is open. It should look like this when Form View is set and the first record is selected: You can see that the file is indexed on Picture Number, and that there are three pictures for this record. These are Picture 1, 2, and 3. Think of these pictures being on three different levels, with Picture 1 being on the highest level. These "levels" become important when you start to move around from record to record using the External File System Menus. E„x„t„e„r„n„a„l„ „F„i„l„e„ „B„u„t„t„o„n„ Now that you have opened the Pictures file and the first record is on the screen, you can look at the first picture. To do this you have to click on the External File button at the right-hand end of the Control Panel. Click on it now. Superbase displays the external file named in the first External File field for the current record. It's called Copperstate. T„h„e„ „E„x„t„e„r„n„a„l„ „F„i„l„e„ „b„u„t„t„o„n„ „a„l„w„a„y„s„ „s„h„o„w„s„ „a„ „p„i„c„t„u„r„e„ „i„f„ „i„t„ „c„a„n„ „f„i„n„d„ „o„n„e„.„ „Y„o„u„ „d„o„ „n„o„t„ „c„l„i„c„k„ „o„n„ „t„h„i„s„ „b„u„t„t„o„n„ „t„o„ „c„l„o„s„e„ „d„o„w„n„ „t„h„e„ „E„x„t„e„r„n„a„l„ „F„i„l„e„ „s„c„r„e„e„n„;„ „f„o„r„ „t„h„a„t„ „y„o„u„ „u„s„e„ „t„h„e„ „C„l„o„s„e„ o„p„t„i„o„n„ „f„r„o„m„ „t„h„e„ „c„o„n„t„r„o„l„ „M„e„n„u„,„ „d„e„s„c„r„i„b„e„d„ „b„e„l„o„w„.„ If you look at the top of the screen you will see the title of the picture. To the right are the depth gadgets, which will be explained later. The External File System uses its own screen and window, and has a separate set of menus for controlling the pictures. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ P‚R‚O‚B‚L‚E‚M‚:‚ ‚M‚E‚N‚U‚S‚ ‚W‚O‚N‚'‚T‚ ‚D‚I‚S‚P‚L‚A‚Y‚ I†f† †y†o†u† †c†a†n†'†t† †d†i†s†p†l†a†y† †t†h†e† †E†x†t†e†r†n†a†l† †F†i†l†e† †S†y†s†t†e†m† †m†e†n†u†s† †w†h†e†n† †y†o†u† †p†r†e†s†s† †t†h†e† †r†i†g†h†t†-†h†a†n†d† †m†o†u†s†e† †b†u†t†t†o†n†,† †t†h†i†s† †i†s† †b†e†c†a†u†s†e† †t†h†e† †w†i†n†d†o†w† †i†s† †i†n†a†c†t†i†v†e†.† †Y†o†u† †m†u†s†t† †c†l†i†c†k† †w†i†t†h† †t†h†e† †l†e†f†t†-†h†a†n†d† †b†u†t†t†o†n† †o†n†c†e† †t†o† †a†c†t†i†v†a†t†e† †t†h†e† †w†i†n†d†o†w†.† †T†h†i†s† †i†s† †a† †f†e†a†t†u†r†e† †o†f† †t†h†e† †A†m†i†g†a†'†s† †I†n†t†u†i†t†i†o†n† †w†i†n†d†o†w†i†n†g† †s†y†s†t†e†m†.† ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ IMAGE MENU This menu provides three options for selecting pictures individually, w„i„t„h„i„n„ „a„ „s„i„n„g„l„e„ „r„e„c„o„r„d„. N„e„x„t„ Copperstate is the external file named in the first External File field. If you want to see the picture for the next External File field, you must select Image Next. We refer to this as selecting the next "level" in the External File system. Select Image Next in the usual way, by holding down the right-hand mouse button while moving the pointer to highlight the item you want, then releasing the mouse button. Try this now. Superbase displays the picture named in the second External File field in the first record in the Pictures file. Whenever Superbase displays the message "No External Data", this indicates that the selected record has no file name in the External File field. P„r„e„v„i„o„u„s„ This option is the opposite of Next. If you want to go up a "level" and view the picture named in the first External File field in the current record, you must select Previous from the Image Menu. A„d„v„a„n„c„e„ Some IFF files may have more than one "frame" in them. In such cases, you can display the next frame by selecting Advance from the Image menu. There is no option to display the previous frame. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ RECORD MENU The options on this menu are like those on the Main Display Control Panel. They allow you to select records within the database file. When Superbase selects a record, it uses the External File field a„t„ „t„h„e„ „c„u„r„r„e„n„t„ „"„l„e„v„e„l„"„ to find and display a picture. The message "No External Data" indicates that the selected record has no file name in the External File field at that level. If you have a Filter in use in the Main Display, Superbase will only select records that match the Filter. F„i„r„s„t„,„ „L„a„s„t„,„ „N„e„x„t„,„ „P„r„e„v„i„o„u„s„ Each of these option selects a single record in the database file, and uses the External File field at the current "level" to find and display an external file. F„o„r„w„a„r„d„ This option finds and displays the external files -- at the current "level" -- for all records from the current record to the end of the file. This gives you a "slide show" capability. * If a Filter is active, Superbase will use it. * The duration of the display can be varied from the Set Options requester. * You can interrupt the display by selecting Pause or Stop from the Control Menu, or clicking on the Pause or Stop buttons on the Control Panel, if you've made it visible. R„e„w„i„n„d This option is the opposite of Forward. It causes Superbase to go backwards through the file and display one image after another until you reach the beginning of the file. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ CONTROL MENU This menu provides some simple control options. P„a„u„s„e While Superbase is displaying in either Forward or Rewind mode, you may want to pause and look at one of the pictures. You can do this by selecting Pause from the Control Menu. Superbase completes the current display and stops. If you look at the Control menu you'll see that this option is highlighted to show it's active. Once you've selected this option from the Menu, Superbase will leave the current picture on the screen until you select Rewind or any other Menu option. S„t„o„p„ If you want to stop during Forward or Rewind, use Stop. Superbase completes the current display and stops. You can use any other menu option. H„i„d„e„ „a„n„d„ „S„h„o„w„ „T„i„t„l„e„ „B„a„r„ The purpose of these options is to allow you to remove the title bar from the External File window, so that a Screen Dump doesn't reproduce it. The title bar normally shows the name of the picture being displayed -- or "No External Data" if Superbase can't find an external file. S„c„r„e„e„n„ „D„u„m„p„ The Screen Dump option allows you to reproduce the External File window, provided you have a printer capable of high resolution graphics. The parameters for graphics printing are set from the Preferences system utility. C„l„o„s„e„ U‚s‚e‚ ‚t‚h‚i‚s‚ ‚o‚p‚t‚i‚o‚n‚ ‚t‚o‚ ‚c‚l‚o‚s‚e‚ ‚d‚o‚w‚n‚ ‚t‚h‚e‚ ‚E‚x‚t‚e‚r‚n‚a‚l‚ ‚F‚i‚l‚e‚ ‚s‚c‚r‚e‚e‚n‚ ‚a‚n‚d‚ ‚r‚e‚t‚u‚r‚n‚ ‚t‚o‚ ‚t‚h‚e‚ ‚S‚u‚p‚e‚r‚b‚a‚s‚e‚ ‚M‚a‚i‚n‚ ‚D‚i‚s‚p‚l‚a‚y‚.‚ When you,re selecting records from the Main Display and the External File button is highlighted, Superbase automatically finds and reads external files. This slows the system down. If you want to stop Superbase reading external files, enter the External File screen, and select this Close option. (See also Querying External Files, below.) ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ COMBINED DATABASE RECORD AND EXTERNAL FILE DISPLAY It's possible to resize windows and drag windows and screens so that both data and picture are visible on the same physical screen. This allows you to provide a caption or other relevant information for the picture, or to use the Control Panel buttons instead of the Record and Control Menus. M„o„v„i„n„g„ „S„c„r„e„e„n„s„ In the External File screen, move the pointer to the title bar, press and hold down the left-hand button of the mouse, then drag the pointer down to the bottom of the screen. The picture moves down the screen and reveals the Superbase Main Display behind. You can release the mouse button at any point, so that any proportion of the picture remains visible. S„i„z„i„n„g„ „t„h„e„ „S„u„p„e„r„b„a„s„e„ „S„c„r„e„e„n„ If you drop the External File screen right down, you can move the pointer into the Superbase screen and use it's gadgets. * Use the resizing gadget to make the Main Display window smaller. * Drag it down the screen a bit. * Drag the Control Panel window up to the top of the screen, above the Main Display. * Re-enter the External File screen, c„l„i„c„k„ „o„n„c„e„ „t„o„ a„c„t„i„v„a„t„e„ „i„t„, and drag the screen up to the bottom of the Main Display window. Your screen should look something like this: C„o„n„t„r„o„l„ „P„a„n„e„l„ You can now use the Control Panel in the same way as you normally would with Superbase files. But having the screen arranged as it is means you can see both the current record and the picture for the current "level" of External File field. D„e„p„t„h„ „G„a„d„g„e„t„ In the External File screen, you can flip the current image behind the Superbase screen by clicking on the depth gadget on the Title bar of the picture. To get the picture back again you simply click on the External File button on the Control Panel. Don't try to redisplay the External File screen with the Superbase Main Display depth gadget. Use the External File button. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ QUERYING EXTERNAL FILES You can use the facilities of the Query option on the Process Menu to produce picture output in conjunction with data output. Two steps are necessary to achieve this: 1. Select the External File Query button in the Options requester on the Set Menu. 2. Name the External File field or fields that you want to view in the Query Fields line.