WebBOL© FAQS

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How much is this software ? The initial software fee varies with the type of license. There are no runtimes fees. After the 1st year, an enhancement and support fee is charged.

What are the system requirements ? The system runs on Microsoft's Internet Information Server commonly know as IIs. It is a web server. As of this writing no LINUX version is offered. A small PERL program is provided that handles the interface to COBOL or C programs. PERL is one of the most common programming languages of the internet. Like LINUX, PERL is a free product for the internet. You do not have to learn PERL to use WebBOL. A typical development environment would have:
- Microsoft Internet Information Server
- PERL runtime (Free)
- A COBOL or C compiler (We use CA Realia COBOL 3.3, any that can create a Standard DLL should do)
- A web browser (We have tested extensively with Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Mozilla FireFox and Apple Safari)
- WebBOL
A more extensive description and web links are contained in the DownLoad menu item above.
How does it work ? The web browser calls a PERL script and passes parameters as to what to do. Such as program to execute, HTML form to generate and such. The browser web address may look like WWW.YourWebsite.com/WebBOL-Execute.cgi?@form=LG-menu where WebBOL-Execute.cgi is a PERL program that interfaces to the COBOL or C program you wrote. LG-menu is the form you created which will be displayed. WebBOL sets up the form requested, calls your program (a DLL) to initialize any data, creates the necessary HTML (internet code) to present the form to the user. The process starts over when the user clicks a significant event (e.g. a button). Your client never keys this web address. It is hidden behind menus, buttons and other controls.

How do my clients/users get into my system ? A internet standard can be used: If no webpage or program is specified then it will use index.htm. What it is saying is that if WWW.YourWebsite.com is keyed in, then it is the same as keying WWW.YourWebsite.com/index.htm So here is the HTML code for an index.htm that will call the full address above.
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" />
<meta http-equiv="REFRESH" content="0;url=WebBOL-Execute.cgi?@form=yourWebBOLformnamehere">
<title>Startup Page</title>
<base target="_self">
</head>
<body>
</body>
</html>
What is the most difficult thing to learn about WebBOL ? That is a multiple answer question because it depends on where your expertise lies. If you are not experienced in using the internet with browsers, then setting up your development system could seem difficult. If you are not experienced in graphical user interfaces, then controls like buttons, listboxes and such will seem foreign for awhile. Probably the most common difficulty is programming technique. COBOL and C programmers have generally come up thru the ranks with great stress on efficiency. Such as only opening a file once till the user is finished. This type of programming doesn't work well. The internet is the truest form of a distributed system. You won't know when your users gets off the system. They will click the "X" in the browser and poof. They are gone. Trying to program a system that controls the user is futile. You must learn to program a request (such as update employee address) by opening the file, updating the data, closing the file. Your are done until the next request. Your program is over. WebBOL helps you with this technique by clearly relating events, demonstration system, and programming samples. The web is a true client/server relationship that is event driven. An event might be a button click, a listbox selection, or such. Your program has to receive these events, process it accordingly, then exit out. The full sequence is circular, like this:
- Client Browser has control and creates an event (button click) which calls the WebBOL PERL program
- WebBOL PERL program analyzes and formats all the events and data from the Client Browser then calls your DLL program
- Your DLL process this data (updates addresses, etc.) then exits back the WebBOL PERL program
- WebBOL PERL program makes any screen/webpage changes specified per your DLL, redraws the screen and returns back to the client browser
- Client Browser has control.
This is a complete circle of events.
Do you offer consulting services to help us, at our location ? Yes, we can travel to your location if needed. A flat rate per day would be quoted. This often done by corporations whose employee time is spread so thin.
Is WebBOL efficient ? Yes. The average WebBOL execution is 3/10's of a second.

How do I distribute the system to the internet ? The runtime system can be distributed by licensed users free of charge. The runtime files are in a separate folder. We use an FTP program called FileZilla. It can be found for free at this website. http://filezilla-project.org If you are part of a large corporate environment, you may not be allowed to FTP to the website. Your web manager or web group may do this for you.

I keep getting a background image that says "Evaluation Copy", How do I remove that ? This can appear for 2 reasons. One, your are running, developing and executing via the evaluation system. If this is the case, you need a license file to eliminate this background image. You can get a license file by contacting us and securing customer status. Two, you are a customer and have moved the system to another machine, website, or folder. No problem, just contact us for another license file at no charge.

What do you mean by "Standard DLL" ? A DLL that can be called by the windows operating system. It will have a standard entry point name that can be viewed by Microsoft DLL content viewer. In C it would be created by an export statement. In COBOL by an ENTRY statement or an export statement during link time. For example, Realia COBOL dll's cannot be called by Microsoft windows.

Does this mean I can't use a Realia Compiler ? You can if you create your DLL's using Realia 3.3 since the WebBOL system was written in 3.3, However, Realia does not create standard DLL's. Realia 3.3 cannot call a Realia 3.2 DLL. It is not supported.