DrDialog: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 17:08, 2 October 2017

Doctor Dialog, more commonly referred to as just DrDialog, is a REXX graphical user interface builder that allows you to create simple interfaces for REXX programs based on dialog boxes. It was written by David Morrill when he was working for IBM and was included for free with the IBM Developer Connection. It allows developers to build windowed 32-bit applications using the Classic REXX language and with some modifications can be made to work with Object REXX as well.

DrDialog is a very good tool to develop PM applications in REXX. You can use DrDialog to develop event driven REXX programs with PM GUI.

Version

Latest version: Version v3.27, 10.04.1994

Prerequisites

Older version of IBM's resource editor - Needed if you want to ship DrDialog programs as .exe's or use the ResToRexx tool.

Add on packages

CWHelp Class - Adds a simple help system.
DrDialog Control - Add on for DrDialog that makes the dialogs more flexible and adds flyover help.

Issues

The slider controls of DrDialog are known to be buggy, as a workaround you can use the scrollbars instead. Thanks to Klaus Staedtler for this information.

Object REXX

"There is a problem running DrDialog programs under Object REXX if they use DrsAide (as shipped) controls. Because Object REXX parses the entire file before running, many times syntax errors which would go undetected under "Classic" REXX are in fact detected. There is just such a syntax error in the DrsAide utility.

To fix the problem, open the DRSAIDE.RES file from the DrDialog File Menu option. Double-Click the ICONBUTTON (the only control visible other than the DIALOG). The DrRexx Code editor should appear with the ICONBUTTON section open. Click the "Drop-" tab and use the spin-button under the edit window to bring up the Class code. At the very end, on its own line, type END. Save the file. And now everything should work."

Source: Thos Davis

Fix for Object REXX

Fix for DrDialog and Object Rexx - Corrects a problem with the DrsAide tool and Object REXX.

Articles

Douglas Clark: RAD Development with DrDialog

Tutorial

DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX by Thomas Klein
- Part 1 (Sep 2002)
- Part 2 (Oct 2002)
- Part 3 (Nov 2002)
- Part 4 (Dec 2002)
- Part 5 (Jan 2003)
- Part 6 (Mar 2003)
- Part 7 (Apr 2003)
- Part 8 (May 2003)
- Part 9 (Jul 2003)
- Part 10 (Sep 2003)
- Part 11 (Jan 2004)
- Part 12 (Apr 2004)
- Part 13 (Jun 2004)
- Part 14 (Jun 2005)

Review

Dr. Dialog Review by Paul Floyd (January 1998)

License

Discontinued freeware. Author David C. Morrill indicated that the source code of this program had been lost over time (2012-11-13). DrDialog was written in a system called IBM Oberon-2 that never got distributed outside of IBM anyway so would be of a limited use.

Author

David C. Morrill

Links

DrDialog
The DrDialog documentation in PDF format.

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 * Latest version:  [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/drdialog.zip Version v3.27, 10.04.1994]
-;Preresiquites
+;Prerequisites
-* [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/DrDlgRc.zip Older version of IBM's recource editor] -  Needed if you want to ship DrDialog programs as .exe's or use the ResToRexx tool.
+* [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/DrDlgRc.zip Older version of IBM's resource editor] -  Needed if you want to ship DrDialog programs as .exe's or use the ResToRexx tool.
 ;Add on packages
@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 * [[DrDialog Control]] - Add on for DrDialog that makes the dialogs more flexible and adds flyover help.
-====Known issues====
+==Issues==
 * The slider controls of DrDialog are known to be buggy, as a workaround you can use the scrollbars instead. Thanks to [[Klaus Staedtler]] for this information.
-====Object REXX====
+===Object REXX===
 "There is a problem running DrDialog programs under Object REXX if they use DrsAide (as shipped) controls. Because Object REXX parses the entire file before running, many times syntax errors which would go undetected under "Classic" REXX are in fact detected. There is just such a syntax error in the DrsAide utility.
@@ Line 26: / Line 26: @@
 * [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/DrDlgFix.zip Fix for DrDialog and Object Rexx] - Corrects a problem with the DrsAide tool and Object REXX.
-==Links==
+==Articles==
-* [http://www.ecsoft2.org/node/1321 Dr. Dialog info and install instructions] - from Ecosoft/2.
+* [[Douglas Clark]]: [[RAD Development with DrDialog]]
-* [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/DrDialog-Reference-Book-printable-version.zip The DrDialog documentation] in [[PDF]] format.
-==Publications==
-====Local articles====
+;Tutorial
-;Tutorials
 * DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX by [[Thomas Klein]]
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 1|Part 1]] (September 2002)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 1|Part 1]] (Sep 2002)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 2|Part 2]] (October 2002)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 2|Part 2]] (Oct 2002)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 3|Part 3]] (November 2002)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 3|Part 3]] (Nov 2002)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 4|Part 4]] (December 2002)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 4|Part 4]] (Dec 2002)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 5|Part 5]] (January 2003)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 5|Part 5]] (Jan 2003)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 6|Part 6]] (March 2003)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 6|Part 6]] (Mar 2003)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 7|Part 7]] (April 2003)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 7|Part 7]] (Apr 2003)
 ** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 8|Part 8]] (May 2003)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 9|Part 9]] (July 2003)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 9|Part 9]] (Jul 2003)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 10|Part 10]] (September 2003)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 10|Part 10]] (Sep 2003)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 11|Part 11]] (January 2004)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 11|Part 11]] (Jan 2004)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 12|Part 12]] (April 2004)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 12|Part 12]] (Apr 2004)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 13|Part 13]] (June 2004)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 13|Part 13]] (Jun 2004)
-** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 14|Part 14]] (June 2005)
+** [[DrDialog, or: How I learned to stop worrying and love REXX - Part 14|Part 14]] (Jun 2005)
-* [[Douglas Clark]]: [[RAD Development with DrDialog]]
 ;Review
@@ Line 59: / Line 54: @@
 ==Author==
 * [[David C. Morrill]]
+==Links==
+* [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/drdialog.zip DrDialog]
+* [http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/dev/rexx/DrDialog-Reference-Book-printable-version.zip The DrDialog documentation] in [[PDF]] format.
 [[Category:DrDialog]][[Category:IBM EWS]]
 [[Category:Software written in Oberon]]