1. Sometimes learning a new language is easier when you’ve decoded some of the
acronyms used to shorten the names of tools and features in a product. Let’s
demystify some of the acronyms used in Genero and discuss the important terms
they represent.
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2. BDL is Business Development Language and refers to the language used to write
Genero programs. Some refer to BDL as just the Genero Language.
DVM stands for Dynamic Virtual Machine. The Dynamic Virtual Machine is a highly
efficient application server that executes your application and manages database
interaction and communications with client platforms. The DVM is the hub through
which your program runs on any supported platform. You’ll hear us at Four J’s
claim, “Compile once, deploy anywhere!” The DVM is why this is possible.
GDC is the Genero Desktop Client. The GDC is a required, thin piece of software
that resides on the front end. It renders the application for each client and
communicates with the Runtime System on the DVM. There are lots of flavors of
GDC whether your front ends are Windows, Mac, or X11. You can also deploy the
y y
GDC through an active X plug-in (we call that GDC/AX)
GWC is the Genero Web Client which renders your application in a Web Browser
and allows you to fully customize your Genero application for web deployment.
GWS is Genero Web Services or the Web Services E t
iG W bS i th W b S i Extension. It allows you t
i ll to
exchange data with other applications using standard protocols. Genero supports
both producing and consuming Web Services.
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4. XML is tagged text. It stands for eXtensible Markup Language and is a specification
for creating custom markup languages. Genero has specific tags or elements used
to represent data important to Genero.
DOM - Stands for Document Object Model. DOM is also a standard from the W3
Consortium that allows for manipulation of XML in memory. XML that is read into a
Genero program becomes part of a DOM document. A DOM document is
hierarchical like a tree with branches. Each branch represents a “node”. The nodes
each have attributes or characteristics that can be modified during runtime by using
methods available in the Genero language. For example, if you wanted a part of
your form to be hidden, you could call a method that would set the attribute of a
particular node’s hidden attribute to true.
AUI is the Abstract User Interface, sometimes referred to as the Abstract
Presentation Layer. This is simply the Genero DOM document representing the user
interface. Because it is represented as a DOM document, it can be interpreted by
any Genero client and rendered in that operating system. It’s the full definition of the
user interface that your program can work with to add, delete, and modify parts of.
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5. For example, forms when compiled are simply XML files and if you open a compiled
form, you’ll find the full form represented with tags such as FORMFIELD and LABEL
and attributes like NAME and TEXT.
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6. Here is a representation of the Abstract User Interface. Notice that each part of the
UI is represented in the tree and that each node has attributes associated with it.
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7. The last two terms to decode are SQL and ODI.
SQL stands for Structured Query Language and is used to send and receive data to
a relational database. When writing a Genero program, you’ll write standard SQL
within your program functions to request data from the database and to send new,
update or delete requests to it.
ODI stands for Open Database Interface and represents Genero’s use of native
drivers to provide support for simultaneous access to multiple databases including
Oracle, DB2, mySQL, Informix, Generodb among others.
This concludes our video on Demystifying Genero Terms.
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