MapForce Supports SQL Merge When It’s the Right Tool for the Job


Large database tables can easily contain a million, even hundreds of millions of rows of data. Database administrators and others charged with maintaining such large datasets are always concerned about execution time for ETL (Extract, Transform, and Load) operations, updates, and other SQL queries. To make these operations more efficient, some — but not all — database vendors implemented a SQL merge statement to insert or update rows of an existing table as a single bulk-insert statement rather than requiring individual statements for each row.

Altova MapForce automatically supports SQL merge when it is available for the target database. Let’s look at an example.

shutterstock_66084286

Read more…

Tags: , , ,

MapForce Offers Dynamic Access to Node Names


There are situations, especially when encountering loosely structured data, where you may want to map and transform structural components of a data stream along with content. MapForce 2017 includes a new feature to dynamically access node names of XML elements, attributes, or text file columns such as the contents of CSV files, to target components.

Dynamic access to node names allows creation on the fly of target elements and attributes whose names do not need to be known beforehand or specifically identified in the data mapping. This feature lets you create much more generic, flexible, and reusable mappings that require less manual intervention if data models evolve.

News about Dynamic Access to Node Names in MapForce 2017

Read more…

Tags: , , ,

XML Editor Text View Gets a Big Update


Starting with Version 2017, XMLSpy developers will have access to some new, time-saving productivity tools in their favorite XML editor, including a modernized  Find/Replace dialog, an easy way to select all occurrences of a particular string, and a shortcut for finding a parent element.

I was amazed how much time and effort these new tools saved me right away – let’s take a look, and I’ll show you how.

News about XML find / replace

Read more…

Tags: , ,

Audio and Video in Cross-Platform Mobile Apps


Altova MobileTogether combines UI design by visual drag and drop with functional programming using Actions and Action Trees to let developers quickly build mobile apps for iOS, Android, and Windows devices. MobileTogether 2.2 recently added support for multimedia features that will delight end users with sound effects, video, and audio recording functionality.

Add audio and video to delight mobile app users

Read more…

Tags: , , , , ,

Excel Add-in Generates XBRL WIP Data


The reach of the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) is rapidly expanding beyond financial reporting requirements to provide the advantages of standardized data submission across verticals. One recent development is the Work in Process XBRL Taxonomy created by XBRL.US for the surety industry.

The good news is that non-technical stakeholders can be completely shielded from the complexity of XBRL using software tools developed in concert with the taxonomy standards.

We’re excited to introduce the Altova Work in Process (WIP) XBRL add-in for Excel: a new product that lets contractors build their WIP reports directly in Excel, where they’re already comfortable working, and then export the reports in WIP XBRL for submission to sureties and underwriters.

Contractors writing WIP XBRL reports in Excel

Read more…

Tags: , ,

Scrolling Tables for Data-Driven Mobile Apps


Mobile device users always demand maximum information in the most convenient package, but small screen sizes can force a trade-off. Mobile app developers are challenged to fit data, navigation controls, and helper information all into a pleasing layout or risk frustrating end users who could be customers, colleagues, or c-level executives. MobileTogether 2.1 introduces scrolling tables and other cool new features to help developers create apps that present data elegantly and work the same way on all devices.

shutterstock_160560011

Read more…

Tags: , , , ,

What’s New in XML Schema 1.1?


Since the introduction of XML Schema 1.0, the standard has been widely adopted. Developers have requested several changes over the years, most notably the ability to specify and validate more granular business rules and also to allow flexible schema evolution. There are numerous changes and enhancements in the XML Schema 1.1 Recommendation aimed at addressing these issues.

Let’s take a look at the most notable new features and some resources for learning more or getting started right away with XML Schema 1.1.

shutterstock_137938508

Read more…

Tags: , , ,