Contents
Btrieve File Manager Help Index

Getting Help

Menu Options

Information Editor Window

Dialog Boxes

Common Operations


File Menu

The File Menu Options allow you to manage Btrieve and description files.

New	Sets the current contents of the Information Editor to the default values.
Open...	Opens and loads file information from a Btrieve or Description file.
Close	Closes the Information Editor Window.
Create	Creates a new file using the current file name and type.
Create As...	Creates a new file using a different file name and type.
Set / Clear Owner...	Set or drop an owner name on a Btrieve file.
Exit	Exits Btrieve File Manager

Related topics

Information Editor Window


Index Menu

Create / Drop	Allows you to create and drop indexes on an existing Btrieve file.
Related topics

Create / Drop Index Dialog


Data Menu

The Data Menu Options allow you to manipulate data between Btrieve and sequential files.

Load	Allows you to copy data from a sequential file to a Btrieve file.
Copy	Allows you to copy data from one Btrieve file to another Btrieve file.
Save	Allows you to copy data from a Btrieve file to a sequential file.


Help Menu

The Help Menu Options allow you to access the help system.

Getting Help	Explains how to access the help system.
Help Index	Displays the help index.
Using Microsoft Windows Help	Explains how to use the MS Windows help system.
About...	Displays the About Dialog .


Editor Window
Information Editor Window

The Information Editor Window allows the user to easily enter, edit, and view Btrieve file / key information.  Once complete, the information can be used to create Btrieve files, indexes, and description files. The information in the window is grouped into three sets of controls:

Miscellaneous File Information	Information about the Btrieve or description file not part of the file or key specifications.
File Specification	Attributes of a Btrieve file related to file and record structure, number of keys, data compression, etc...
Key Specification	Attributes of a Btrieve file related to a specific key or a segment within a key.

Much of the information in the editor is interrelated. These relationships are often indicated by enabling or disabling controls. This approach not only helps the user understand the relationships between the various Btrieve file and key attributes; it also helps to prevent him from entering inconsistent information.

Here are a few examples:

All  key and segment controls (except the create key button) are disabled if no key or key segment is selected.

The Blank Truncation control is disabled unless the Variable Records control is checked.

The ACS information  button is disabled unless the current segment's Use ACS control is checked.

Related topics

Description file comments dialog

Alternate Collating Sequence information dialog

Save report dialog


Open File Dialog

This dialog is a standard file browse dialog which allows the user to select an existing Btrieve or description file. The Btrieve File Manager then displays the file / key information for the selected file in the Information Editor. All files in the current directory with the extension of the last file opened are shown initially. Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Name	Specifies the file name to open
File List	Displays list of files in current directory corresponding to search pattern in file name control
Directories	Displays the current working directory
Directories List	Displays hierarchical view of directory structure
Drive List	Allows user to change current drive letter
Ok Button	The Btrieve File Manager attempts to open the specified file and display the file's file and key information in the Information Editor Window.
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog without opening a file.


CreateAs File Dialog
CreateAs Dialog

This dialog is a standard file browse dialog which allows the user to specify the name and type

of the  file being created.  The file name and type used to last open or create a file are shown initially along with all files in the current directory. Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Name	Specifies the name of the file to create
File List	Displays list of files in current directory corresponding to search pattern in file name control.
Directories	Displays the current working directory
Directories List	Displays a hierarchical view of the directory structure
Drive List	Allows user to change current drive letter
File Type	This group box allows you to select the type of file to be created by the Btrieve File Manager.
Btrieve	When selected, a Btrieve file will be created
Description	When selected, a description file will be created
Index Only	When checked, only the currently selected key specification from the Information Editor Window will be saved to the description file. This allows you to save information for a key which you may use later to create a new file or key.
Ok Button	Closes the dialog and returns the specified file name to the applications
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog without returning a file name


Save Report Dialog

This dialog is a standard file browse dialog which allows you to specify the name of the report file to create. You can also choose to view the report file after it has been created. All files in the current directory are shown initially. Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Name	Specifies the name of the report file to create
File List	Displays list of files in current directory corresponding to search pattern in file name control.
Directories	Displays the current working directory
Directories List	Displays a hierarchical view of the directory structure
Drive List	Allows user to change current drive letter
View File	When checked, the report file will be displayed in a window after it has been created.
Ok Button	Closes the dialog and returns the specified file name to the applications
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog without returning a file name


Create Drop Index Dialog
Create / Drop Index Dialog

This dialog allows the user to create and drop Btrieve indexes. Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Names

Btrieve File	Specifies the name of the existing Btrieve file to which you wish to add or drop indexes.
External Index File	Specifies the name of the external index file to create if you select the create external index file option. You can use an external index file when saving records via the Save Data Command
Operations

Create Index	This operation allows you to create either an internal or external index. The Internal Index option creates a new index within the specified Btrieve file.  The External Index option creates an external index file based upon the specified Btrieve file. For either option, the description of the new key will be taken from one of the the key specifications currently defined in the Information Editor
Drop Index	This operation allows you to drop a Btrieve index. Select the renumber option if you want Btrieve to decrement the number of each sequentially-numbered key greater than the key being dropped.
Key Lists

Editor	This list contains all key numbers currently specified in the Key Selection Controls  of the Information Editor. This list is enabled only on the create operations. The key specification number selected will be used when creating either an internal or an external index.
Btrieve Available	This list contains all key numbers which are not currently being used by the specified Btrieve file. This list is enabled only when creating an internal index. The key number selected will be used when creating the internal index.
Btrieve existing	This list contains all existing key numbers in the specified Btrieve file. This list is enabled only when dropping an index. The key number selected will be the one dropped.
Buttons

Refresh / Execute	Once the user has specified the name of an existing Btrieve file, the refresh lists button is used to update the Btrieve available and existing keys lists. The user can then select the operation and the appropriate key numbers from the list(s) and execute the operation.
Cancel / Close	Select this button to close the dialog. After the first create or drop index operation has occurred, the cancel changes to a close, signifying that you cannot undo any completed operations.
Related topics

Adding an index to a Btrieve file

Dropping an index from a Btrieve file

Creating an external index


Set  Clear Owner Dialog
Set / Clear Owner Dialog

This dialog allows the user to set or clear an owner name from an existing Btrieve file.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

Btrieve File Name	Specify the name of the Btrieve file here.
Clear Owner	Select this option to clear an owner name from the Btrieve file.
Current Owner	Used with the clear owner operation to specify the current owner name in the Btrieve file.
Set Owner	Select this option to set a new owner name for the Btrieve file.
New Owner	Used with the set owner operation to specify the new owner name ifor the Btrieve file.
Permit RO Access	When checked  with the set owner operation, Btrieve will allow users to access the file in read-only mode without specifying the owner name.
Encrypt Data	When checked with the set owner operation, Btrieve will encrypts all data in the file.
Cancel / Close	Select this button to close the dialog. After the first create or drop index operation has occurred, the cancel changes to a close, signifying that you cannot undo any completed operations.
Related topics

Setting an owner name

Clearing an owner name


Copy Data Dialog

This dialog allows the user to copy data from one Btrieve file to another Btrieve file.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

From Btrieve File	Specifies the name of the Btrieve file from which the data is to be copied.
To Btrieve File	Specifies the name of the Btrieve file to which the data is to be copied.
Browse Buttons	Displays a Browse File Dialog . The selected file name will be placed in the corresponding file name edit control.
Background	When checked, the data will be copied in the background while you can continue working within the Btrieve File Manager.
Ok Button	The dialog is closed and the copy operation is initiated.
Cancel Button	The dialog is closed and the copy operation is aborted
Related topics

Copying data from one file to another


Load Data Dialog

This dialog allows the user to load data from an unformatted sequential file to a Btrieve file.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

From Sequential File	Specifies the name of the unformatted sequential file from which the data is to be copied. Refer to the Btrieve for Windows Installation and Operation Manual for instructions on how to properly format a sequential file.
To Btrieve File	Specifies the name of the Btrieve file to which the data is to be copied.
Browse Buttons	Displays a Browse File Dialog . The selected file name will be placed in the corresponding file name edit control.
Background	When checked, the data will be loaded in the background while you can continue working within the Btrieve File Manager.
Ok Button	The dialog is closed and the load operation is initiated.
Cancel Button	The dialog is closed and the load operation is aborted
Related topics

Loading data into a Btrieve  file


Save Data Dialog
Save / Recover Data Dialog

This dialog allows the user to save data from a Btrieve file to an unformatted sequential file.   Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Names

Btrieve File	Specifies the name of an existing Btrieve file.
Sequential File	Specifies the name of the sequential file to create. Refer to the Btrieve for Windows Installation and Operation Manual for instructions on how to properly format a sequential file.
External Index File	Specifies the name of the external index file used to sort the records being saved from the Btrieve file. You can create an external index file using the Create Drop Index Command
Options

Use An Index	When checked, the Btrieve File Manager will save the data sorted by either an internal index or an external index file.
Internal	When selected, a list of all keys currently defined in the specified Btrieve file will be displayed.  Use the Refresh Button to update this list if you change the name of the Btrieve file. Select the key number to use when saving the records from this list.
External File	When selected, an edit control for specifying the name of the existing external index file will be displayed.
Don't Use An Index	When checked, the Btrieve File Manager will save the data unsorted as it is stored in the file. Use this option if you want to recover data from a file whose index(es) may be corrupted.
Background	When checked, the data will be saved in the background while you can continue working within the Btrieve File Manager.
Buttons

Execute	Once all required information has been entered, selecting this button will perform the specified save operation.
Cancel	Selecting this button will close the dialog.
Related topics

Saving data without an index

Saving data using an internal index

Saving data file using an external index


Browse File Dialog

This standard file browse dialog allows the user to select the name of an existing file.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

File Name	Specifies the selected file name.
File List	Displays list of files in current directory corresponding to search pattern in file name control.
Directories	Displays the current working directory.
Directories List	Displays hierarchical view of directory structure.
Drive List	Allows user to change current drive letter.
Ok Button	Closes dialog and returns the specified file name to the applications.
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog without returning a file name.


OwnerName Dialog
Get OwnerName Dialog

This dialog allows the user to enter the owner name of an existing Btrieve file. It is displayed whenever the Btrieve File Manager is unable to open a Btrieve file because it has an owner name. Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

Btrieve File Name	Displays the name of the Btrieve file being opened.
Owner Name	Specifies the owner name needed to open the file.
Ok Button	Closes the dialog and attempts to open the Btrieve file with the specified owner name. If the owner name is invalid, this dialog will be redisplayed.
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog and aborts the open operation.


ACS Info Dialog

This dialog allows the user to enter alternate collating sequence (ACS) information for a particular key specification.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

ACS / Country Code	When selected, Btrieve will use the specified country ID and code page when sorting this key.
Country ID	The country ID. A value of -1 indicates the system default.
Code Page	The code page. A value of -1 indicates the system default.
ACS File	When selected, Btrieve will use the ACS defined in the specified file when sorting this key.
ACS File Name	Specifies the ACS file name. The ACS file must be formatted in accordance with the specification defined in the Btrieve Programmer's Manual.
Browse Button	Displays a Browse File Dialog . The selected file name will be placed in the ACS File Name control.
Ok Button	Closes the dialog and saves any changes to the ACS information.
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog and does not save any changes.


Comments Dialog
Description File Comments Dialog

This dialog allows the user to enter, edit, or view description file comments.   Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

Description Edit Control	A standard multiline edit control. Enter the comment you wish to save to the top of the description file here.
Ok Button	Closes dialog and saves any changes.
Cancel Button	Closes the dialog and does not save any changes.


About Dialog

This dialog displays information regarding the current software versions loaded and system status.  Below is a description of each of the dialog's controls.

Btrieve File Manager Information	Version Copyright
Btrieve Status	Client engine status and version (if loaded) Requestor status and version (if loaded)
Windows System Status	Mode Available memory Math coprocessor Disk space
Ok Button	Closes the dialog


New Command

This command allows you to either open the Information Editor Window  with the default settings or to clear existing information in the editor to the default settings. If the information in the editor has changed since the last time it was saved, the Save Current Information dialog will appear, giving the user a chance to save the current information to a file before continuing.


Close Command

This command allows you to close the  Information Editor Window If the information in the editor has changed since the last time it was saved, the Save Current Information dialog will appear, giving the user a chance to save the current information to a file before continuing.


Open Command

This command allows you to load Btrieve file / key information into the Information Editor from an existing Btrieve or description file. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Open File Dialog


Create Command

This command allows you to create a new Btrieve or description file using the file / key information currently in the Information Editor.  If the Editor information includes a current file name and type, the Btrieve File Manager will attempt to create a new file using this name and type. If there is no current file name and type,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Create As Dialog


CreateAs Command

This command allows you to create a new Btrieve or description file using the file / key information currently in the Information Editor.  When you choose this command, the Btrieve File Manager displays the CreateAs File Dialog


Set / Clear Command

This command allows you set or clear an owner name from a Btrieve file. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Set / Clear Owner Name Dialog


Create/Drop Index Command
Create / Drop Command

This command allows you add or drop indexes from a Btrieve file or to create an external index.  When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Create / Drop Index Dialog


Copy Command

This command allows you to copy data from one Btrieve file to another Btrieve file. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Copy Data Dialog


Load Command

This command allows you to load data from an unformatted sequential file to a  Btrieve file. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Load Data Dialog


Save Command

This command allows you to save data from a Btrieve file to an unformatted sequential file. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the Save Data Dialog


Getting File Manager Help Command

This command brings up the the Windows Help system and displays the methods for getting context sensitive help.

Related topics

Getting Help


About  Command
About Help Command

This command allows you to see information related to the current software versions and the system status. When you choose this command,  the Btrieve File Manager displays the About Dialog


Menu Options

The Btrieve file manager provides the following menu options:

File Menu	Manipulate Btrieve and description files
Index Menu	Add and drop Btrieve indexes
Data Menu	Manipulate Btrieve data
Help Menu	Get help


Dialog Boxes

File Dialogs	Open File  Create As  Save Report  File Browse
Btrieve Operation Dialogs	Create / Drop Index  Set / Clear Owner Name
Data Manipulation Dialogs	Copy Data  Load Data  Save Data
Miscellaneous Dialogs	Get Owner Name  Alternate Collating Sequence Information  Description File Comments  About


Common Operations

This section describes a number of standard operations a user might want to perform with the Btrieve File Manager. The operations have been grouped into several categories.

Information Editor	Opening  Loading Information  Creating a file using the current editor information
Creating A Btrieve File	From scratch  With the same attributes as an existing Btrieve file   Similar to an existing Btrieve file  Using a description file
Creating Other Types of Files	Description file  Report file
Creating / Dropping Indexes	Adding an index to a Btrieve file  Dropping an index from a Btrieve file  Creating an external index
Manipulating Data	Loading data into a Btrieve  file  Saving data without an index  Saving data using an internal index  Saving data file using an external index  Copying data from one file to another
Owner Names	Setting an owner name  Clearing an owner name


Exit
Exit Command

This command exits the Btrieve File Manager. If the information in the editor has changed since the last time it was saved, the Save Current Information dialog will appear, giving the user a chance to save the current information to a file before continuing.


Save Current Information

This dialog is displayed whenever the the user attempts to perform an operation which will overwrite existing information in the Information Editor which has not yet been saved. The user will have three options when asked whether he wants to save the file before continuing with the operation.

Yes	The Create As Dialog  will be  displayed, allowing the user to create a new Btrieve or description file using the current information. After the new file is created, the operation will be processed.
No	The existing information will be destroyed and the operation will be processed.
Cancel	The operation will be aborted.


File Specification Controls
File Specification

Below is a description of each of the controls used to define the file specification of a Btrieve file.  These controls correspond to the various file attributes Btrieve supports when creating a Btrieve file.  For more information about these controls and their associated Btrieve attributes, refer to the Btrieve for Windows Installation and Operation Manual or the Btrieve Programmer's Manual.

Available Linked Keys	This specifies how many unused 8-byte key placeholders will be available at the end of each record for supplemental linked-duplicatable keys. These placeholders enable you to add new keys to a file that uses the linked-duplicatable method of storing duplicatable keys.
Balanced Indexing	When checked, Btrieve will look for available space in sibling index pages each time an index page becomes full and then rotates values from the full page onto th pages with space available.
Blank Truncation	When checked, Btrieve will perform blank truncation on variable-length records.
Data Compression	When checked, Btrieve compresses the file's records before inserting or updating them, and uncompresses the records when it retrieves them.
Key Only	When checked, Btrieve creates a key-only file. This type of file contains no data and includes only on key (index).
# Keys	This control indicates how many different key specifications are currently defined in the Information Editor.
# Segments	This control indicates how many different key segment specifications are currently defined in the Information Editor.
Page Size	This control specifies the page size Btrieve will use when creating a file.
Pre-allocation	Btrieve typically creates a new file with the minimum number of pages needed to support the various file and key attributes specified. When this control is checked, the user may specify up to 65,535 pages in the # Pages control.
# Pages	This control specifies how many pages Btrieve should preallocate when creating a new file.
% Free Space	This control specifies the percentage of space you want Btrieve to reserve on each variable page to allow for future expansion variable records. This allows the user to reduce the amount of fragmentation of variable records across several pages.
Record Length	This control specifies the logical length of the fixed portion of the data record.
Variable Records	When checked, Btrieve creates a file which allows variable records (records longer than the fixed length).
VATs	When checked, Btrieve includes Variable-tail Allocation Tables (VATs) in the file. VATs are used by Btrieve to accelerate random access to the variable-length portions of records, but also to limit the size of the compression buuffer used during data compression.


Key / Segment Specification Controls
Key Specification

The controls used to specify the the key attributes supported by Btrieve are located at the bottom of the Information Editor Window. The controls have been divided into three groups. For more information about these controls and their associated Btrieve attributes, refer to the Btrieve for Windows Installation and Operation Manual or the Btrieve Programmer's Manual.

Key Selection Lists	These lists are located at the center of the key specification area. They allow the user to add or delete key specifications from the Information Editor as well as change the current specification being viewed.
Key Group Box	This group box is located at the left of the key specification area. The group box's controls specify information common to ALL segments of the current key.
Key Segment Group Box	This group box is located at the right of the key specification area. The group box's controls specify information about a particular segment of the current key.


Key Selection Controls
Key Selection Lists

These lists allow the user to add or delete key specifications from the Information Editor as well as change the current specification being viewed.

Key Selection List	This list contains all key numbers currently defined in the Information Editor. As the user scrolls through this list, the key information corresponding to the key number is displayed in the editor. The three buttons beneath the control allow the user to manipulate the key numbers in the list.
Insert Key Button	This button inserts a new key number after the one currently selected. If there is key at this position already, that key (and all subsequent consecutive keys) will be incremented by one.
Delete Key Button	This button deletes the currently selected key. Subsequent keys are not renumbered. This button is shown only when a key is currently selected in the key selection list.
Compress Key Button	This button renumbers all key numbers in the list consecutively starting with 0. This button is shown only when there are holes in the list of key numbers.
Key Segment Selection List	This list contains all key segment numbers defined for the currently selected key. As the user scrolls through this list, the key segment information corresponding to the segment number is displayed in the editor. The two buttons beneath the control allow the user to manipulate the key segment numbers in the list.
Insert Segment Button	This button inserts a new key segment number after the one currently selected. If there is segment at this position already, that segment (and all subsequent segments) will be incremented by one.
Delete Segment Button	This button deletes the currently selected segment. If this is the last segment for the current key, the entire key is deleted. Subsequent keys are renumbered. This button is shown only when a segment is currently selected in the key segment selection list.


Key Group Box

The controls in this group box specify information common to ALL segments of the current key.

ACS Information	This button displays the ACS Information Dialog This dialog allows the user to specify an alternate collating sequence used in sorting the current key. Any segment of this key which uses an ACS will use the ACS specified here.This button is only enabled if the Use ACS control in the Segment Group Box is checked.
Duplicates	When checked, Btrieve allows more than one record in the file to contain the same value for this key field.
Modifiable	When checked, Btrieve allows a key value for this key field to be updated.
Null Key	This control specifies whether the key has a null value. You can use a null value in a key when the data for the key is unavailable or when you do not want Btrieve to include a record for that key in the index. Btrieve supports two methods for determining whether a particular key value is a null value. These methods vary only for multi-segment keys.
Any Segment	When selected, Btrieve treats a key value as null if ANY segment of the key contains a null value.
All Segments	When selected, Btrieve treats a key value as null only if ALL segments of the key contain a null value.
Repeating Duplicates	Btrieve supports two methods of storing duplicate values for a key,  repeating duplicates and linked duplicates. When checked, Btrieve uses the repeating duplicates method.
Unique Values	This is a read-only control specifying the number of unique key values contained by this key in a recently-opened Btrieve file. NA is displayed if the current editor information was not loaded from an existing Btrieve file.


Key Segment Group Box

The controls in this group box specify information about a particular segment of the current key.

Case Insensitive	When checked, Btrieve sorts this segment without regard to case. I.E., the characters 'a' and 'A' will be given the same ordinal values. This control is only enabled if the data type of the segment is string, zstring, or lstring.
Data Type	This control specifies the Btrieve data type for the key. The data type determines how Btrieve will sort the bytes specified for this key segment.
Descending	When checked, Btrieve will collate the key segment in descending sort order.
Key Length	This control specifies the length of the key segment field.
Key Position	This control specifies the starting offset (1 relative) of the current key segment.
Null Value (Hex)	This control specifies the null value Btrieve should use when determining whether a key value should be treated as null or not. This control is enabled only if the Null Key control was checked for this key.
Use ACS	When checked, Btrieve expects an ACS to be specified for this segment. Use the ACS Information Dialog  to specify the ACS for this key. All segments of a particular key do not need to use an ACS; however, all that do use an ACS must use the same one.


Creating a Btrieve file from scratch

Following are the steps needed to create a new Btrieve file without using an existing Btrieve or description file.

1.  Select the New command  from the File Menu. This will open the Information Editor Window if it is currently closed or refresh the editor contents if it is open.

2.  Enter the desired Btrieve file and key specification information in the editor.

3.  Create a new Btrieve file  using the information currently in the Information Editor.


Creating a Btrieve file using an existing Btrieve file
Creating a clone of an existing Btrieve file

Following are the steps needed to create a new Btrieve file with the same file and key attributes as an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Load the file and key information from an existing Btrieve file.

2.  Create a new Btrieve file  using the information currently in the Information Editor.


Creating a Btrieve file similar to an existing Btrieve file

Following are the steps needed to create a new Btrieve file whose file and key attributes are similar to those of an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Load the file and key information from an existing Btrieve file.

2.  Make the desired changes to the file and key information.

3.  Create a new Btrieve file  using the information currently in the Information Editor.


Creating a description file

Developers have often found it useful to store the file and key specifications for their Btrieve files in description files. While the user can still create and edit description files with a standard text editor, the Btrieve File Manager makes this process much easier. Following are the steps needed to create a description file.

1. 	Load the file and key information from an existing Btrieve or description file into the Information Editor.

2.  Create a new file  using the information currently in the Information Editor. Specify description as the file type in the CreateAs File Dialog


Creating a Btrieve file using a description file

Following are the steps needed to create a new Btrieve file using the file and key specifications defined in an existing description file.

1.  Load the file and key information from an existing description file.

2.  Create a new file  using the information currently in the Information Editor. Specify Btrieve as the file type in the CreateAs dialog


Creating a report file

Following are the steps needed to create a report file based upon the information in the Information Editor.

1.  Load the file and key information from an existing Btrieve or description file. You can also enter information into the editor using the defaults as a base.

2. Make the desired changes to the file and key information.

3. Select the Stat Report... button in the Information Editor. The Save Report Dialog will be displayed. Enter the name of the report file, select Ok, and a new report file with the current editor information will be created.


Adding an index to a Btrieve file

Following are the steps needed to add an index to an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Open the Information Editor

2.  Enter at least one key specification either manually or by Loading Information into the Information Editor

3.  Select the Create / Drop command from the Index menu. The Create / Drop Index Dialog will be displayed.

4.  Select the Create Index option. Then select the Internal Index option.

5.  Enter the Btrieve file name you want to add the index to. Update the Btrieve available and existing lists by selecting the Refresh button.

6.  Select the number from the editor list of the key specification you want to use to define the new index. Select the desired key number from the Btrieve available list.

7.  Select Execute. The new index will be added to the specified Btrieve file. The Btrieve available and existing lists will be updated.


Dropping an index from a Btrieve file

Following are the steps needed to drop an index from an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Select the Create / Drop command from the Index menu. The Create / Drop Index Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Select the Drop Index option. If you want Btrieve to renumber the keys after the key being dropped, select the Renumber option.

3.  Enter the Btrieve file name you want to drop the index from. Update the Btrieve available and existing lists by selecting the Refresh button.

4.  Select the number from the Btrieve existing list of the key you want to drop.

5.  Select Execute. The index will be dropped. The Btrieve available and existing lists will be updated.


Creating an external index

Following are the steps needed to create an index using an existing Btrieve file. Once created, an external index file can be used to save information using the Save command

1.  Open the Information Editor

2.  Enter at least one key specification either manually or by Loading Information into the Information Editor

3.  Select the Create / Drop command from the Index menu. The Create / Drop Index Dialog will be displayed.

4.  Select the Create Index option. Then select the External Index option.

5.  Enter the Btrieve file name you want to use to create the external index. Update the Btrieve available and existing lists by selecting the Refresh button.

6.  Enter the name of the external index file you want to create.

7.  Select the number from the editor list of the key specification you want to use to define the external index.

8.  Select Execute. The external index file will be created using the selected key specification.


Loading data into a Btrieve  file

Following are the steps needed to load data from an unformatted sequential file into an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Select the Load command from the Data menu. The Load Data Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the sequential file which contains the data to be loaded.

3.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file into which the data will be loaded.

4.  If you want to execute the load operation in the background, select the Background option.

5.  Select Execute. A dialog will be displayed showing the progress ( number and percentage of records processed ) of the operation.


Saving data without an index

Following are the steps needed to save data from an existing Btrieve file to an unformatted sequential file without using an index. The records will be saved in sequential order as they appear in the file.

1.  Select the Save command from the Data menu. The Save Data Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file which contains the records to be saved.

3.  Enter the name of the sequential file to which you want to save the data.

4.  Turn off the Use An Index option.

5.  If you want to execute the save operation in the background, select the Background option.

6.  Select Execute. A dialog will be displayed showing the progress ( number and percentage of records processed ) of the operation.


Saving data using an internal index

Following are the steps needed to save data from an existing Btrieve file to an unformatted sequential file using an internal index.

1.  Select the Save command from the Data menu. The Save Data Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file which contains the records to be saved.

3.  Enter the name of the sequential file to which you want to save the data.

4.  Select the Use An Index option.

5.  Select the Internal Index # option. A list box will be displayed showing all existing indexes in the Btrieve file (press the refresh button if the Btrieve file name is modified). Select the key number by which you want to save the records.

6.  If you want to execute the save operation in the background, select the Background option.

7.  Select Execute. A dialog will be displayed showing the progress ( number and percentage of records processed ) of the operation.


Saving data file using an external index

Following are the steps needed to save data from an existing Btrieve file to an unformatted sequential file using an existing external index file. External index files can be created using the Create / Drop Index command

1.  Select the Save command from the Data menu. The Save Data Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file which contains the records to be saved.

3.  Enter the name of the sequential file to which you want to save the data.

4.  Select the Use An Index option.

5.  Select the External Index option. An edit control will be displayed for entering the name of the existing external index file to use. Make sure that the Btrieve file has not been updated since this file was created.

6.  If you want to execute the save operation in the background, select the Background option.

7.  Select Execute. A dialog will be displayed showing the progress ( number and percentage of records processed ) of the operation.


Setting an owner name

Following are the steps needed to set the owner name of an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Select the Set / Clear Owner Name command from the Data menu. The Set / Clear Owner Name Dialog  will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file to which you want to set an owner name.

3.  Select the Set Owner Option.

4.  Enter the owner name (up to 8 characters) in the owner name control. The characters will be displayed as asterisks for security.

5.  Checking the permit read-only access option will cause Btrieve to allow users to open the file  in read only mode even if they haven't specified an owner name.

6.  Checking the encrypt data option will cause Btrieve to encrypt all data inserted into the file.

7.  Select Execute to complete the set owner operation.


Clearing an owner name

Following are the steps needed to drop the owner name of an existing Btrieve file.

1.  Select the Set / Clear Owner Name command from the Data menu. The Set / Clear Owner Name Dialog  will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file to which you want to clear the owner name.

3.  Select the Clear Owner Option.

4.  Enter the current owner name (up to 8 characters) in the owner name control. The characters will be displayed as asterisks for security.

5.  Select Execute to complete the set owner operation.


Loading Information into the Information Editor

When the Information Editor Window is first opened, default file and key information is displayed. The user may wish to start editing the information using these defaults as a base. In many cases, however, it may be easier to use the file and key specifications already defined in an existing Btrieve or description file as a starting point.

Following are the steps needed to load information from an existing file into the Information Editor.

1.  Select the Open command from the File Menu. This will display the Open File dialog.

1.  Select  the existing Btrieve or description file and press Ok. The Btrieve File Manager will open the Information Editor Window (if it is not currently open) and display all of the file's file and key specification information in the editor.


Creating a new file with the editor information

When the user is finished specifying file and key specifications in the Information Editor Window  he may save the information to either a Btrieve file or a description file. Following are the steps needed to save information from the Information Editor to a new file.

1.  Select the CreateAs command from the File Menu. The CreateAs Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve or description file you wish to create. Select either Btrieve or description as the file type. Select Ok.

3.  If a file by the given name already exists, the user will be asked if he wants to continue with the create, enter a new file name, or cancel the create operations. If the existing file is a Btrieve file, the user will also be informed of the number of records contained within the file. If the user continues with the operation, a new Btrieve or description file will be created using the current editor information.


Open the Information Editor
Opening the Information Editor

The Information Editor Window  can be opened in two ways. Selecting the New command  from the File menu will open the editor using default values. Selecting an existing Btrieve or description file using the Open command  from the File menu will open the editor and display the file and key information of that file.


Background option

The Btrieve File Manager supports performing potentially time-consuming tasks in the background. This allows the user to start one or more long operations and continue doing other tasks in the foreground uninterrupted. The operations which can be performed in the background include Create Index, Load Data, Copy Data, and Save Data. If the background option is selected a new task will be initiated to perform the operation. The user can switch to this task at any point and observe it's progress. When the operation is completed, the icon for the background task will blink.


Copying data from one file to another

Following are the steps needed to copy data from one Btrieve file to another.

1.  Select the Copy command from the Data menu. The Copy Data Dialog will be displayed.

2.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file which contains the records to be copied.

3.  Enter the name of the Btrieve file into which the data will be copied. Make sure that this file has a format compatible with that of the source Btrieve file.

4.  If you want to execute the load operation in the background, select the Background option.

5.  Select Execute. A dialog will displayed showing the progress ( number and percentage of records processed ) of the operation.


Miscellaneous File Information

Below is a description of each of the miscellaneous controls. For more information about these controls and their associated Btrieve attributes, refer to the Btrieve for Windows Installation and Operations Manual or the Btrieve Programmer's Manual.

File Type	This read-only control displays the file type (Btrieve or description) last opened or created.
Version	If the last file opened or created was a Btrieve file, this read-only control displays the file's version. The version does NOT always indicate the version of Btrieve used to create the file. Rather, it indicates the earliest version of Btrieve which supports all of the attributes of this file. For example, a file created by Btrieve version 6.1 which doesn't have any version 6.1 specific attributes will have a file version of 6.0 (Btrieve version 5.x does not support the new format of version 6.x). If the last file accessed was not a Btrieve file, NA is displayed.
Total Records	If the last file opened or created was a Btrieve file, this read-only control displays the number of records in the file. If the last file accessed was not a Btrieve file, NA is displayed.
Btrieve Owner Name	The user can enter up to 8 characters in this edit control. After creating a new Btrieve file using the current information in the editor, the Btrieve File Manager will set the owner of the file to this value.
Description Comments...	This button displays the Description Comments dialog This dialog is used to edit comments stored in description files.
Stat Report...	This button displays the Save Report Dialog  This dialog is used to save a statistics report based upon the current information in the editor.
Show 6.x Info	This button is only displayed after a pre-version 6.x Btrieve file has been loaded or created. In this case, all controls specific to version 6.0 and above are hidden. Pressing this button will re-display all of these controls.


Repeating Duplicates Method
Repeating Duplicates

Selecting this method of storing duplicate key values causes Btrieve to store every duplicate value for a key on both a data page and an index page.


Linked Duplicates Method
Linked Duplicates

This method of storing duplicate values causes Btrieve to store only unique key values for a key in the index pages. Duplicate values are stored as part of a linked list in the data pages. This method requires that space be reserved on the data pages at the time the file is created. Use the Available Linked Keys control in the File Specification section to specify how much space to reserve for future linked-duplicatable keys in the future.


Getting Help

For context-sensitive help at any time while you are running the Btrieve File Manager, you can use one of two methods:

Help Menu	Select the Help option from the menu bar at the top of the File Manager window.

Help Key	Press the F1 function key. This key produces help information about the highlighted menu command or current window or dialog box.


How to use MS Windows Help Command

This command brings up the MS Windows help system with an explanation of how to use the system's different features.


Help Index Command

This command brings up the MS Windows help system with an index to the Btrieve File Manager help file.

Related topics

Help Index