Panopea Consulting - iMIS Blog

The world could end!

Well, it might seem like it if Blackberry has to shut down its US transmissions due to a patent fight.

More info here.

I don't actually have a Blackberry. Don't you think we're connected enough by now? I guess that's a sign of my age. :-)

CTRL+ALT+DEL when using Remote Desktop

I have wondered how to send a CTRL+ALT+DEL to the remote machine when using Remote Desktop. Finally bothered to look for it and found this answer: ctrl+alt+end   here.

Alter vs. Drop & Create

Tip: Anytime I'm working with custom objects in an iMIS database, such as a view or stored proc, if I need to make changes, I alway drop and then create it new, rather than using ALTER. I do that because Enterprise Manager shows you the date that an object was created, not modified. If I modify an object with ALTER, it's not obvious to anyone, including me, that the object changed, but using a DROP and then a CREATE, my change is more obvious.

One more related tip: I always script the DROP and CREATE statements into my .sql file that I save. I also include the GRANT EXECUTE or GRANT SELECT permissions as needed into that same file so that I don't have to try to remember to go back into Ent Mgr and grant the permissions back. The DROP / CREATE method means your permissions to that object are dropped too.

ASI Events This Week

ASI is holding some webcasts re: their new Analytics module and their partnership with Informz. Here's the info:

Wednesday, Nov. 30
1 pm: iMIS e-Mail Marketing
2 pm: iMIS Analytics
Registration: https://asievents.webex.com/asievents/onstage/tool/event/event_status.php?MK=668355466 

Thursday, Dec. 1
10 am: iMIS e-Mail Marketing
11 am: iMIS Analytics
Registration: https://asievents.webex.com/asievents/onstage/tool/event/event_status.php?MK=669482110 

You can join or leave the Webcast at any time. Once you register you will receive an e-mail with additional instructions.

First Hour: iMIS e-Mail Marketing
The first hour of this exclusive Webcast explains how you can create highly-targeted e-mail communications with Informz for iMIS. ASI has partnered with Informz software to bring integrated e-mail marketing to iMIS. Informz is the creative leader in permission based e-mail marketing, providing personal attention and superior deliverability with measurable results.

Second Hour: iMIS Analytics
The second hour showcases how you can turn data into knowledge with iMIS Analytics. iMIS Analytics provides a data warehouse to store and protect your iMIS data, ready-made data cubes to manipulate your iMIS data, and comes configured for use with ProClarity, a popular OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) viewer.

Space is limited, so register today!

Installing Sybase on Win 2003 Server

Earlier this month a client got a new server with Windows 2003 Server as the OS. Their network tech guy installed Sybase ASA. As you know iMIS uses a very old version of Sybase -- version 6, released long before Windows 2003! After the install of Sybase ASA onto a new Windows 2003 Server, the service could not be started. Within Service Central the error message said "Error 6 invalid service handle." It generated an error message in the Event Log of "invalid Win32 application".

What to do? I found some references on the Sybase site about other products which led me to believe the problem was about long file names. I found the following solution to be successful in getting the Sybase database service to run:

Step #1 - Make a change to the registry entry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ASANYs_MILLENNIUM

I changed the ImagePath to add double quote marks around the path for c:\Program Files\Sybase\Adaptive Server Anywhere 6.0\Win32\DBSRV6.EXE.

You can click on the image above to see a larger view of it.

Then here are screen shots of the actual edit I made:

   

STEP #2 - I also had to add the double quote marks in the Configuration settings of the MILLENNIUM service. The path to the Log file (the path that follows the –o switch) needs to have quote marks around it.

Hope that helps some of you out there in the iMIS world.

How do you like FREE?

I don't think enough iMIS users take advantage of the free resources that are available to them. So, just to remind or for the first time user, here are some free iMIS support resources for iMIS users, some of them only available to iMIS users that are current* with ASI:

• The NiUG Listserv. The NiUG listserv is a very active listserv for the iMIS users community. If you are an iMIS customer, you can join the listserv for free. Joining NiUG is only $100 per year per organization so I urge you to join if not already a member. See the NiUG website for more information on how to join the listserv. I read the listserv day because the contributors have such great knowledge and it often alerts me to issues I haven't yet seen among my clients.
• The iMIS HelpNET Community. If your organization is current with ASI, you can post items on the HelpNET Community. It is an unmoderated community and there is a lot of cross-over with NiUG but not 100%, subscribe to both.
• Ask ASI Tech Support. If your organization is current with ASI, you can submit questions directly via the ASI website. Note: They will only respond via email and won't get into issues that are really a consulting question. Asking why a dues special pricing formula is not working is the kind of question they can help you with. Asking what's the best way to set up your dues given your member types is a consulting question.
• iMIS Documentation. Ever heard of the acronym RTFM? When all else fails, you might consider actually reading the manual. Over the 10 years I've been an iMIS consultant, the documentation for iMIS has gone from non-existent to fair to pretty damn good. It's still a challenge to know what to look for if you don't know what it's called -- I think the indexing on the manuals is weak. But they're available in .pdf format which lets you use Adobe Reader's search capability. Look on that Resource CD that came with your iMIS installation software. The latest version at the time of the release are on that CD. Look on ASI's website for the very latest versions.

If you do try one of these options, please keep in mind that people can help you best if you follow these guidelines:

• Be sure to include your iMIS version number and it can be helpful, depending on the issue or question, to know what database platform you are using (Omnis LAN, Sybase ASA, MSDE or MS SQL Server).
• Be specific. It's pretty hard to know what the problem is if all you say is "it doesn't work." How doesn't it work? Are you getting an error message? If so, what does it say exactly? Describe the specific steps you took to get to the problem.
• At the same time, try to be brief. On the listserv and the HelpNet, responders are giving you their best advice for free. So don't expect those responders to read a lengthy post about your issue.

* "Current" iMIS users are those that are up to date on their annual software update fees paid to ASI.

Logging in as MANAGER!SA

For those of you who have been in the iMIS world for a while, you may have been on an iMIS 4.x version. Back then, when logging in as MANAGER!SA, you had to then enter the password like this:

<password for the MANAGER login>!<password for sa>

Logging in that long way became obsolete starting with version 10.0. It still works, but all you need to do for the password is to simply enter the sa password.

(By the way, if you're still on Sybase ASA, you still need to do the long password.)

Welcome

Greetings iMIS people!

I've been thinking about doing this for a long time and my friends over at VanDamme Associates beat me to it with their own blog. But what the heck, I'm not going to let that stop me.

If you like the information you're see here, let me know and do stop by often.