Introduction to ENFORM

Introducing ENFORM
Overview of ENFORM
1–4 058051 Tandem Computers Incorporated
Figure 1-3. Relation Information in a Relational Database
Parts
Fromsup
partnum
4102
4103
. . . .
Fromsup
suppnum
15
6
partcost
8000.00
14500.00
You Can Work with Combined Files or Each Individual File
partnum
4102
4103
. . . .
partname
DISC10MB
DISC50MB
inventory
14
9
location
K87
K45
. . . .
partnum
4102
4103
. . . .
suppnum
15
6
PARTS-FROMSUP FILE
price
8000.00
14500.00
partcost
8000.00
14500.00
partnum
4102
4103
. . . .
partname
DISC10MB
DISC50MB
Parts
inventory
14
9
location
K87
K45
partcost
8000.00
14500.00
Powerful—Definition Powerful has two meanings with regard to ENFORM: (1) you can do a lot with a little
and (2) the same language (ENFORM) is flexible enough to support a wide variety of
users’ needs and levels of sophistication.
ENFORM features a number of functions built into the language, including: averages,
totals, subtotals, titles, column headings, sorting, and qualifications for selecting
information. These functions allow you to select data and to customize your reports
with a minimal number of ENFORM specifications.
Anybody can use ENFORM. No programming background is required. Instead the
only requirements are: (1) you must know how the information in the relational
database is named and related and (2) you must learn how to write and enter the
queries. The complexity of the queries under your control: simple queries require
minimal understanding of ENFORM and of the database; more complex queries with
sophisticated report formatting require more knowledge.