Final Data

Note: I've used -- to indicate a dash, and - to indicate a hypen
so you can do a quick search and replace.


From the people who brought us Final Writer... John Kennedy
investigates.

What do you do when you've spent a lot of time and money developing an excellent new user interface? All those windows, menus and pop-up requestors take some programming, so it kind of seems a shame to only use them on one program, doesn't it?

Softwood Inc certainly thought so. They spent a lot of time getting Final Writer to look just right, and they weren't going to sit and watch a lot of code go to waste on only Word Processing programs. In case you missed the December issue by the way, Final Writer is the best Amiga page-processor there is -- and an important part of that is due to the user interface.

The possibility of an entire suite of professional quality Amiga software from the authors of Final Writer certainly seems an interesting prospect, it if wasn't for the fact that no one really gets excited by business programs. Database programs have been around since the dawn of the home computer, but they are hardly very exciting. 

Well, that used to be the case before some of the rather nice examples of "user-friendly" programs came our way. Suddenly every database was a video-recorder rip-off, with little push buttons and the ability to display pictures or play sound samples. 

Yes, a new exciting age of Database Management had arrived, and when I heard that the Final Writer team had produced their own program I have to admit that even I was more than a little keen to see it. It wasn't quite what I expected...


Datasheets? Spreadbase?


Softwood must have got their definitions mixed up, because Final Data certainly looks a lot more like a spreadsheet program than a database. Most database systems use a card file analogy, and every record (for example, a name and address) in the system is kept on an individual card which can then be sorted, listed, saved, edited or printed.

Bucking the trend, Final Writer creates a grid of rows and columns. Where they intersect is a "cell", and into this cell you enter your data: be it a name and address, date or sum of money.

In fact, it's all quaintly reminiscent of a Sinclair Z88 with its Pipedream combination word processor/database/spreadsheet program, but don't hold that against it as it's actually quite good.

You create your database by choosing labels for the columns, as these will define the categories of the information you'll be entering. You can "type" each cell to be made up of text, a time, a date or a number and there are further sub-divisions to each. The advantage to setting the type so accurately is that it ensures any data enter or loaded from file will be checked as it arrives.

Keeping with the spreadsheet way of doing things, its also possible to enter a simple calculation into a cell, or provide an updated total for a particular column containing numeric values.


Search and Sort

As you would expect there are plenty of sorting and searching options to keep you busy once all the data has been entered. The sorting is comprehensive (allowing for sorts on categories, and also sorts within the categories), but the searching option lacks a few features: basically it's a "find and replace" requestor more at home in a Word Processor.

It's not possible to include boolean operators ("Find records with the name 'John' AND a bank balance in the red" is totally out for example), which is quite a limit, especially if you want to generate a print-out of specific
records. 

Getting general hardcopy is easy: you can have a report printed (the contents entire database in cell format) or a set of labels printed with many different options to suit your applications: everything from printing envelopes to listing your expenses for the Inland Revenue (shudder).
However, as indicated with the Find option, selective printing isn't possible. It's all or nothing, unless you print the labels or report to a disk file and edit yourself. 

The only way around this limitation is delve into the fully-functional ARexx port, in which case you could customise your database to your hearts content. ARexx is also used to provide a link between Final Data and Final
Writer, as until Final Writer 3 appears there is are direct data-swapping features. It is understandable that Softwood want to find a balance between an easy-to-use program, and a powerful system with it's own macro-language, but more ARexx examples would have been useful.


Conclusion

Final Data has several important features in it's favour. For a start it's very easy to use, thanks to the Final Writer interface which is clean and efficient, allowing multiple windows to be open at once. There are no floating toolbars, because there aren't that many options.

It also looks great and it's certainly not expensive. If you want to do something sad like cataloging your CD collection, it's ideal. If you want to do something more useful, such as creating a list of members for your local club, again it's perfect. You'll be able to print out envelopes and form letters -- although until Final Writer 3 comes along, mail merging is tricky (but not impossible). I certainly plan on using this program to help with my tax returns, and to keep my general accounts up-to-date.

For larger projects, then I'm afraid this isn't quite the program for you. The spreadsheet approach and lack of advanced searching facilities will mean that unless you want to roll up your sleeves and get to know ARexx inside out, don't expect a fourth-generation relational database. 

That said, the majority of Amiga users sitting at home wondering what practical use they can put their computers to, should rush out and get Final Data immediately. 


Final Data £39.95
(£34.95 to registered UK users of other Softwood Products)

Softwood Products Europe
New Street
Alfreton
Derbyshire
DE55 7BP
Tel: 01773 836781 Fax: 01773831040


Works with any Amiga

Ease of Use: 93%
The familiar (to Final Writer users) and friendly
user-interface means the excellent manual is optional.


Value for money: 90%
Budget price, but not budget quality.


Effectiveness: 85%
Sorting is fast, printing options comprehensive.


Flexibility: 81%
Lacks a few niceties, although ARexx makes all things
possible. Could do with more example scripts.

Innovation: 70%
There's nothing new under the sun, and a database program is
really quite old. Good ones for the Amiga however, are rare.


"Put your Amiga to work for a change"


Overall:84%


data.iff

You have to admit it does look more like a spreadsheet than
a database -- not the figure at the bottom of the column
which keeps the total up to date.



Box out:Six Steps to Creating a Database

Step 1

Starting with a blank database, you will need to enter the
names of the columns. This determines the information you
will be entering.

Step 2

You can give each column a category to make sure it only
gets the information it requires, and always in the same
way. This reduces typing errors when entering data.

Step 3

The hard bit -- entering all the data line by line. Final
Data moves to the next box automatically which makes things
easier, and if your data is already on disk you'll be able
to load it in.

Step 4

Check your data by printing a report of the entire database.
You can specify if you want totals displayed, or lines to
separate the rows and columns.

Step 5

Now for printing labels. You can select only the fields
(e.g. only name and address) you want printer, as well as
how many per page and where they are positioned. Perfect for
envelopes or sticky labels.

Step 6

The finished sheet of labels. Think of the fun you could
have printing individual labels for your newly sorted and
classified CD collection...