There are several ways to access data in the DataWindow Designer development environment:
Through one of the standard database interfaces such as ODBC, ADO.NET, or OLE DB
Through one of the native database interfaces
A standard database interface communicates with a database through a standard-compliant driver (in the case of ODBC) or data provider (in the case of OLE DB and ADO.NET). The standard-compliant driver or data provider translates the abstract function calls defined by the standard’s API into calls that are understood by a specific database. To use a standard interface, you need to install the standard’s API and a suitable driver or data provider. Then, install the standard database interface you want to use to access your DBMS by selecting the interface in the DataWindow Designer Setup program.
DataWindow Designer currently supports the following standard interfaces:
Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)
Microsoft’s Universal Data Access Component OLE DB
Microsoft’s ADO.NET
A native database interface communicates with a database through a direct connection. It communicates to a database using that database’s native API.
To access data through one of the native database interfaces, you must first install the appropriate database software on the server and client workstations at your site. Then, install the native database interface that accesses your DBMS by selecting the interface in the DataWindow Designer Setup program.
For example, if you have the appropriate Sybase Adaptive Server® Enterprise server and client software installed, you can access the database by installing the Adaptive Server Enterprise database interface.
When you use DataWindow Designer to define or edit a DataWindow object, make sure you specify the same connection parameters for the data source in both DataWindow Designer and DataWindow .NET. Otherwise, you will be unable to use the DataWindow® object in your application.
