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''' Dabo: A Framework for developing data-driven business applications |
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by Paul McNett (p@ulmcnett.com) |
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Dabo is for developing multi-platform database business applications - |
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you know, applications that need to connect to a database server (MySQL, |
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Oracle, MS-SQL, whatever), get recordsets of data based on criteria |
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set by the user, provide easy ways to edit and commit changes to the |
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data, and to report on the data. |
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For basic, easy use that hopefully satisfies 80% of your needs, you |
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simply create/edit data definition files that Dabo uses to dynamically |
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create things like menus, edit forms, data browsing grids, etc. |
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So, the basic idea is that you have a functional, working, albeit basic |
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application up and running very quickly, and you can then spend time |
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getting all the fancy bells and whistles implemented. Keep things as |
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simple as possible though, while still fulfilling your customer's |
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specifications. Simplicity is the better part of elegance. |
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Dabo is fun to say, which is enough justification for its name, but |
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perhaps it could stand for: |
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Database Application Business Objects |
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Database Application Builder O (Just think, it could have been ActiveO... <g>) |
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Object oriented Business Application Development (but OBAD sounds so bad) |
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Dabo has a few parts. First, there is this package, the Dabo framework. Your |
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applications will be based on the classes and modules herein. There are several |
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Dabo packages available: |
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Dabo: This package, the base framework. Other packages require this |
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to be installed, but Dabo doesn't care whether the other packages |
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are installed. |
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DaboWiz: Wizards for common tasks, such as setting up directories for a |
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new project based on Dabo, and for setting up dynamic view |
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definitions, dynamic menu items, etc. The wizards take the |
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drudgery out of setting up your data definitions: they pretty |
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much do it for you! |
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DaboDemo: A demonstration application that you can run on your machine |
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to get a feel for Dabo's capabilities. You can then take a |
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look at the DaboDemo's source code, which is mostly made up |
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of data definition scripts instead of actual source code, to |
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see what makes it tick. You can experiment with a change here |
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or there, learning how to use Dabo in a hands-on way. |
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The Dabo framework will have to be distributed to your client's machine(s), |
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along with your project-specific data definitions and (if applicable), your |
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subclasses of the Dabo classes and additional Python scripts, if any. There |
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are ways to do runtime deployment via installers that take the complexity |
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out of this, but that is outside the scope of Dabo itself, and you'll use |
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a different method for each target platform. |
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To run Dabo, and apps based on Dabo, you need: |
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+ Python 2.3 or higher |
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+ wxPython 2.4.2.4 or higher, which has a dependency on: |
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+ wxWindows 2.4.2.4 or higher |
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+ Windows 98SE or higher |
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+ Macintosh OSX 10.2 or higher |
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+ Linux 2.4 with X11 running |
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+ Access to some sort of database server, along with the |
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appropriate Python driver(s) installed. For example, for |
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MySQL you'll need to have the MySQL client libraries |
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installed, as well as the MySQLDb Python module. (Dabo |
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does not use ODBC: it connects directly using the Python |
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DB API coupled with the individual database drivers. This |
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is, at the same time, less flexible, tougher to get started |
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with, but more capable, more multi-platform, and better |
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performing, than ODBC is.) |
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How you get started is pretty much up to you. Look at the demo. |
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Run a wizard. Hand-edit the data definition files. |
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ToDo: pointers to get started. |
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''' |
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