ODBC / SQL - Requests

[Frank Beister]

On serach of making external SQL-requests to my plan-files I was reading a bit about the ODBC-drivers for win. I just made a simple connect to a plan from a 'open office' shedule, but had not time to get it completely working.

I am wondering if there's a way to get similar connection to my plan on MacOS X platform? Or is there actualy a way to get it out of GDL? Something like a SQL-AddOn for GDL?

To get a bit into the stuff I would like to analyze the database of a projectfile to get a list of the layernames with the additional affiliation to the layer groups. Quasi to merge the group lists to one sorted by the layer name and/or their extensions.

Any hints for doing this on win/mac (without programming an API)?

[Karl Ottenstein]

Hi Frank,

As far as I know, there is no option on the Mac to access information within ArchiCAD project files. The ODBC driver is Windows-only. It works quite well, but you only have access to the tables/fields that are shown in the Calculate Menu SQL area, and all is read-only.

There is no GDL access, unless GS has an in-house GDL add-on for that.

The API does allow SQL queries to be issued, with the results saved to an XML file. With the GDL development kit (available upon special request to GS), someone could write a GDL In-Out library that would permit GDL to issue SQL queries.

For your specific question, I think the answer is in a tip/post that I made a year ago:
http://archicad-talk.graphisoft.com/viewtopic.php?p=6914#6914

Hope that helps,
Karl

[Frank Beister]

Hello Karl,

thanks for the competent reply. This is the confirmation of that, what I have read in my run over the available stuff.

In your linked posting I read also, that the odbc driver is not working quiet well or stable. This was my first impression in the quick try. Is that your appraisement too?

Yesterday I found the ODBC Administrator in my Application folder of MacOS X. Useless to ask, if GS is working on a Mac version of the driver, isn't it? 😉

Do you know why GS is not offering the SQL GDL-Expansion to the users? Have not enough developers asked for it? Or is it a cross platform problem?

And last: As for Eric your SQL-Request didn't work in my AC9 (Mac). Do you have an idea why? No Windows by the hand to proof the code.

[Karl Ottenstein]

F. wrote:
In your linked posting I read also, that the odbc driver is not working quiet well or stable. This was my first impression in the quick try. Is that your appraisement too?

The 9.0 ODBC driver seemed fine when I tested it; it seems like the past issues were resolved.

Yesterday I found the ODBC Administrator in my Application folder of MacOS X. Useless to ask, if GS is working on a Mac version of the driver, isn't it? 😉

Well, I wondered the same thing. ODBC is supposed to be a cross-platform technology. But, I think the Windows ODBC driver was perhaps developed for some other purposes and was then given to developers as a gift. Just a guess. It would take someone's resources ($$) to port a Mac version.

Do you know why GS is not offering the SQL GDL-Expansion to the users? Have not enough developers asked for it? Or is it a cross platform problem?

And last: As for Eric your SQL-Request didn't work in my AC9 (Mac). Do you have an idea why? No Windows by the hand to proof the code.

I did not have a Mac available to me back then. Testing now, this seems to be a bug. See:
http://archicad-talk.graphisoft.com/viewtopic.php?p=28618#28618

Happy New Year to you,

Karl

[Anonymous]

Hi to all
I do suppose that the problem, announced in the early post, (by F. Beister) as:
>>Do you know why GS is not offering the SQL GDL-Expansion to the >>users? Have not enough developers asked for it? Or is it a cross >>platform problem?
cant be solved only by announsing.
If user/programmer while in GDL script will have an opportunity to control the prosesses in databases for input/output data, it will concider many problems in creating list schemes and reports. The supreme happiness I will feel at the moment when GS will allow the result of the query (SQL-instruction) to be placed on the plan or section as an object.
A few word about syntax of SQL-instructions. In 10th version we can use a cutted syntax that announced in Calc Giude. Only Select phrase. :cry: Why it so? Is there nobody who can create a table or send data to a needed table for further use using SQL? I do consider it to be a ritoric question for hardly GS developers reads our discussion. Thanks a lot.