This tutorial's goal is to introduce
creating a database as a new feature in HanDBase Desktop for Mac 4.0.This feature's main function is to allow
users the option of converting external data on the desktop computer to
HanDBase
format.This extends functionality by
allowing data to be taken directly from comma seperated value (CSV)
files into
the handheld HanDBase format, saving in many cases a great deal of time
inputting data on the handheld.In this
tutorial, the necessary steps to configure HanDBase on the desktop to
take
advantage of this new feature will be detailed.Then, the results of proper configuration will be examined.Finally, additional resources will be
provided should any further information be needed.
To take advantage of the ability to
create databases on the desktop, HanDBase Desktop for Mac 4 first needs
to be
configured.The first step in doing so
is to launch HanDBase Desktop by finding the application in the Finder
and
double-clicking the icon.Be default,
the application is installed to the following directory:
- Macintosh HD / Applications /
HanDBase /
Once running, the steps necessary to
importare:
Step #1:
a)Set
HanDBase’s preferences to match the type of CSV file
that will be imported.
b)To
do this, select the menu item “HanDBase
4/Preferences”.
c)In
the resulting dialog, configure the preferences as
illustrated below, for the purpose of this tutorial:
d)As
illustrated, the user can define the date and time format
as well as the decimal separator for numbers.It is best practice to leave the decimal separator set to a “.”,
otherwise changing it to a “,” comma may cause interference with the
default
delimited.
e)Since
most typically CSV files are delimited by a comma,
leave the bottom option set as it.In
the case that a file happens to be delimited by a tab, this option can
be
changed.
Step #2:
a)After
defining HanDBase’s formats preferences, the next step
is to import a CSV file into a HanDBase database.
b)To
do this, select the menu option “File/Import/Into New
Database/Import from comma separated text file”.
c)The
next dialog allows for the selection of the CSV file to
import.In doing so, the user will be
allowed to browse to the file on the computer’s hard drive, assign it a
handheld
database name and define whether the first row of the data contains
field
names.
d)To
choose the file, select the “Browse” button.The
standard OS X file selection dialog will
appear, as illustrated below.Please
note that only files ending with the “.csv” extension will be available
for
selection.
e)The
next step is to enter a name for the database.Be
sure to append a “.pdb” extension to the
name so that the file is recognized properly.
f)It
is common for CSV files to contain the names of the
fields in the first line of data.This
option needs to be checked, otherwise the field names will show as a
record in
the database.See the screenshot of the
file below.The first row of data
contains the field names.
g)When
finished configuring the dialog with the above
information, click the “OK” button.A
standard Mac OS X file browser dialog will appear.Choose a directory to save the database to
and assign a file name.Be certain to
append a “.pdb” extension.
h)After
clicking the “save” button, HanDBase Desktop will
display a window showing the contents of the database, as illustrated
in the
screenshot below.
To summarize, this tutorial has
introduced the ability to create a database by importing a CSV file as
one of
the many new features in HanDBase Desktop for Mac.Additional resources, if needed, can be found
at:
