At 01:05 AM 5/1/96 GMT, Gary Weeks wrote:
>Could someone humor me for a few moments on the differences of Image/3000,
>TurboImage, and Image/SQL? No detail answers, just a simple yes or no or even
>better, a source to find the answers:
 
I'll take a stab....
 
>
>What is the difference between the three?
 
IMAGE/3000 I believe was the original product name.  It is also associated
with the version of IMAGE prior to the 'Turbo' release.  The 'TurboIMAGE'
release in 1986 brought 3 major improvements:
 
           1) over-coming performance problems related to single threading
              access to the DBVD (DataBase Control Block).
           2) Increases in structures and capacities:
              - Increase in the number of sets (99 to 199)
              - Increase in the number of items (255 to 1023)
              - Increase in the number of fields per set (127 to 255)
              - Increase in the number of entries per set (2**23-1 to 2**31-1)
              - Increase in the number of entries per chain(2**16-1 to 2**31-1)
           3) Improved tools for logging and recovery.
 
More recently IMAGE/SQL is the name associated with the version of IMAGE
which provided a standard SQL interface to IMAGE databases.  This provided a
method for SQL-based tools to also be used on HP's proprietary IMAGE DBMS.
 
>
>Is there a conversion process that needs to be done to get from one to
>another?
 
There was a conversion program (DBCONV) which had to be run on all databases
after updating the operating system to the 'TurboIMAGE' release.  One could
not access IMAGE databases on a system which had been updated to TurboIMAGE.
There is no conversion necessary when going from TurboIMAGE to IMAGE/SQL as
there is no structural changes between these versions.
 
>
>Are programs which access them affected(ie. code changes)?
 
Unless one wanted to take advantage of the other new features, there were no
requirements for code changes.  HP and the IMAGE Lab team have done an
excellent job over the years to ensure forward compatibility as new
improvements and features are added to the IMAGE DBMS thereby protecting
users' application investments.  This sensitivity continues to be foremost
in everyone's thoughts as new features for the IMAGE DBMS are proposed and
investigated.
 
>
>We've just installed MPE/ix 5.0 and would like to take advantage of the
>dynamic dataset expansion with the latest product. Unfortunately, it seems the
>conversion has not been done(one of our applications abended from a full
>dataset).
 
Dynamic Detail Dataset Expansion, as with almost all new IMAGE features are
not automatically enabled without the users consent. There may be situations
whereby use of the feature is not desirable.  As such, users must be enabled
DDX on the particular datasets.  This can be done by:
 
     1)  Doing a database unload, purging the database, modifying the schema
         file to setup DDX, re-building the database and then re-loading the
         data.
     2)  Utilizing one of the 3rd party database tools to enable it for you
         (i.e. DBGeneral, Adager)
 
If you choose the first method, be sure and review this process as outlined
in the IMAGE manual.  You may also want to consult the MPE/iX 5.0
Communicator on DDX.
 
 
/plug-alert
 
If you are interested and want to learn more about what the 3rd party tools
can offer, contact us here at Bradmark Technologies (800-621-2808) and get a
demo copy of DBGeneral.  This will help you enable DDX as well as other
activities involved in managing your IMAGE databases.
 
/end-of-plug
 
------------
Jerry Fochtman, Director Of HP3000 R&D
Bradmark Technologies, Inc.