Work with: Text, XML, Excel, Access, DBF, Foxpro, Paradox, ODBC, BDE, OLE DB, MS Sql Server, Oracle, MySql, PostgreSQL, Firebird, Interbase, SQLite, POP3, SMTP, File System, FTP, SSL, Unicode, RSS, Windows Event Log, Google Spreadsheets, SalesForce, BrightPearl and QlikView.

Working with BDE databases

All our ETL Products support BDE now

About BDE

Borland Database Engine (BDE) is the Windows-based core database engine and connectivity software behind Borland Delphi, C++Builder, IntraBuilder, Paradox for Windows, and Visual dBASE for Windows.

History

Borland’s Turbo Pascal included a "database" Toolbox, it was the beginning of the Borland compiler add-ons that facilitated database connectivity. Then came the Paradox Engine for Windows – PXENGWIN – which could be compiled into a program to facilitate connectivity to Paradox tables.

The first DLL-based connectivity engine was ODAPI (Open Database API). It represented Borland’s attempt to centralise connectivity in its suite of applications which included the brand-new Paradox for Windows 4 and Quattro. With version 4.5 / 5.0 of Paradox for Windows, this database engine was crystallised as IDAPI.

The included set of database drivers enables consistent access to standard data sources: Paradox, dBASE, FoxPro, Access, and text databases. You can add Microsoft ODBC drivers as needed to the built-in ODBC socket. Optionally, Borland's SQL Links product provides access to a range of database management systems (DBMS), including Informix, DB2, InterBase, Oracle, and Sybase.

BDE is object-oriented in design. At runtime, application developers interact with BDE by creating various BDE objects. These runtime objects are then used to manipulate database entities, such as tables and queries. BDE's application program interface (API) provides direct C and C++ optimized access to the database engine, as well as BDE's built-in drivers for dBASE, Paradox, FoxPro, Access, and text databases.

The core database engine files consist of a set of DLLs that are fully re-entrant and thread-safe. Included with BDE are a set of supplemental tools and examples with sample code.

BDE system is configured using the BDE Administrator (BDEADMIN.EXE).

Included with BDE is Borland's Local SQL, a subset of ANSI-92 SQL enhanced to support Paradox and dBASE (standard) naming conventions for tables and fields (called "columns" in SQL). Local SQL lets you use SQL to query "local" standard database tables that do not reside on a database server as well as "remote" DBMS servers. Local SQL is also essential to make multi-table queries across both local standard tables and those on remote SQL servers.

The older name for the BDE API is the "Integrated Database Application Program Interface" or "IDAPI".

Source: Wikipedia

Recommended settings for BDE:

Note: Although it is possible to work with industrial data bases like Oracle or SQL server using BDE it is not recommended. BDE is no longer supported by Embacadero.

Feedback from the customer

Uploading our product catalog information from SQL Server to Postgres using SSIS was taking over 45 minutes.  With Advanced ETL Processor we were able to reduce that time to under 3 minutes.  We love this software!

QlikView Data Quality Management

Addressing Data Qualtity Issues can be split into three simple steps:

1. Define Data Qualtity Rules
2. Perform data validation and transformation
3. Report on found issues

Advanced ETL Processor can be used to perform first two, It has 300+ validation/tranformation functions plus it works with 27 datasources. For the third one you can use QlikView.

Everyone who performs data transformation knows the importance of data quality and how much time is required to find what went wrong and correct the problem

In the latest version of Advanced ETL Processor we introduced new object called "Log"

The idea is very simple: to redirect log messages into different data flow so this data can used later for reporting.

Plus comparing to standard text log it provides much more information to the user.

It allows to answer the following questions:

What was wrong with the data?
Which actions were taken to correct the data?
Initial value of the field
Value after correction
Source file/table
Record number
Date
Computer name
User name
Customer Name
Person responsible
Date
And much more

QlikView Data Quality Dashboard

We would like to thank Adrian Parker from Differentia Consulting Ltd for giving us usefull feedback