Introducing Jasper (SQL Anywhere 10 Beta) - Management Dashboard: Sybase Central
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Sybase Central is a dashboard for all database related activities, very much like the MS SQL 2005 server's Management Studio. It has some similarities to the earlier version, with a more modern look and a better arranged folder structure, which makes navigation easier. It also has a task menu item, listing all four key components. To compare with the earlier version read my previous article on the older version. Also review the four articles on the ASPFree site for usage of Sybase Central as well as Interactive SQL. Accessing Sybase Central uses the same trail, Start -> All Programs -> SQL Anywhere 10 ->Sybase Central. While you are at it, do not forget to cycle through the tips which provide capsules of information related to enhancements.

Graphical Interface: Interactive SQL
The Interactive SQL interface has not changed very much. In Sybase Central version 5.0, the present version, you can connect to both SQL Anywhere 10 and Ultralite databases, as shown in the next picture. Again I refer you to the aforementioned previous article. You can access the Interactive SQL user interface from the same trail, Start -> All Programs -> SQL Anywhere 10 ->Interactive SQL. The first screen you will face is the Connect screen, where you need to provide Username and Password, which are respectively dba and sql, and a server name or database file located under the Database tab. You may also provide an ODBC source name, or ODBC source file, if such a thing has been configured.

The next screen shows an attempt being made to connect to the demo10.db by providing the file name (you may browse to the location where it is installed). You can test the connectivity by clicking on the drop-down, Tools which shows only one item, Test Connection.

The test connection turns up a window as shown, where you can copy the file generated during connection. This can be very useful for trouble shooting connectivity problems.

Database Connectivity
The installation also installs the following for database connectivity related items:
For ODBC Connectivity:
SQL Anywhere 10, Ver.10.00.00.2117
UltraLite 10, Ver.10.00.00.2117
iAnywhere solutions 10 - Oracle, Ver.10.00.00.2117
For OLE DB:
SQL Anywhere OLE DB Provider 10
Summary
The installation of Jasper was uneventful and fast. The interface is rich in features; only a few of them were explored in this tutorial. Out of the box, it is integrated with Visual Studio 2003 and Visual Studio 2005, besides providing traditional ODBC, OLEDB, and other interfaces for database connectivity. The user interface is very much improved with new features. Jasper has many facets besides being a database server; it really is a one-stop solution for distributed database management. Some of the other features will be explored in future tutorials. The author would like to thank David Jonker, Product Manager at Sybase iAnywhere, for helpful suggestions in the preparation of this article.
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