Accession Number:

ADA193375

Title:

A Simple Computer Data Base System for UNIX.

Descriptive Note:

Final rept. for 1985-1986,

Corporate Author:

ARMY ENGINEER TOPOGRAPHIC LABS FORT BELVOIR VA

Personal Author(s):

• McDonnell, Michael M.

Report Date:

1988-03-01

Pagination or Media Count:

22.0

Abstract:

This computer program that allows users to maintain and access a file containing addresses, inventory items, or other units of text information grouped in blocks separated by blank lines. Any string within a file may be used to find and print the blocks of text containing the string. A file is created, maintained, and accessed by a group of UNIX programs which have been designed for speed and simplicity. Besides being useful in themselves, these programs illustrate cooperative use of C programs and shell command files. A history of the development will also be given since this is of general interest to programmers. This program uses standard UNIX techniques, except for the Boyer-Moore string matching algorithm. It offers a simple and extensible approach to the type of database represented by the rolodex file found in many offices. This simple flat-file database has proven valuable as a way of maintaining and accessing an inventory file and an address file. The data file is a plain text file containing no control characters aside from new lines. The file is therefore easy to create and maintain using ordinary text editors, though a program is provided to facilitate item entry for users. On an unloaded VAX 780 it takes about 1.5 seconds to search a data file of 150,000 characters. On a system which is about 10 users, this time is about 3 seconds.

Descriptors:

• *COMPUTER PROGRAMS
• *DATA BASES
• FILES(RECORDS)
• HISTORY
• INVENTORY
• PROGRAMMERS
• ALGORITHMS
• TEXT PROCESSING
• COMPUTER FILES
• COMPUTER PROGRAMMING

Subject Categories:

• Computer Programming and Software

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE