The following compilers are supported:

• Delphi 4 – 7.
• C++ Builder 4 – 6.
• Kylix 1 – 3.

ZeosDBO supports direct connectivity to the following databases using the vendor provided, native interface:

• MySQL 3.20 – 4.1
• PostgreSQL 6.5 – 7.3
• Firebird 1.0 – 1.5
• Interbase 5.0 – 7.5
• Microsoft SQL Server 7, 2000
• Sybase ASE 12.0, 12.5

For other databases we propose to use implemented Active Data Objects (ADO) Bridge.

Advantages of using ZeosDBO:

• Platform independence. The ZeosDBO is highly generic. Applications written in ZeosDBO can be migrated across databases without major changes.

• ZeosDBO is open source, written for usability and extensibility.

• ZeosDBO leverages the amazing power of the Delphi development environment without relying on a performance killing middleware.

• ZeosDBO is an extremely thin abstraction layer, unlike ‘thick’ layered protocols like ADO and BDE.

Package contents:

1. ZCore – Core classes and interfaces. Contains Java style objects and collections as well as compatibility types and functions.

2. ZParseSql – SQL specific for syntax and lexical analysis.

3. ZPlain – Native plain API to supported SQL servers.

4. ZDbc – Port of Java Database Connectivity API (JDBC 2.0). DBC API acts as intermediate layer between Plain API and highlevel TDataset or DBExpress components.

5. ZComponent – visual components descended from TDataset.

Installed components:

1. TZConnection: This component encapsulates the database connection and transaction management.

2. TZReadOnlyQuery: TDataset component to execute SQL queries and process data in read-only mode.

3. TZQuery: TDataset component which allows data modifications in regular and cached mode.

4. TZUpdateSQL: Analog of standard TUpdateSQL component to explicite definition of Insert/Update/Delete SQL statements for TDataset modifications.

5. TZStoredProc: The component to execute SQL stored procedures.

6. TZSQLProcessor: The component to execute SQL scripts for different SQL and various delimiter types.

7. TZSQLMonitor: The component to monitor all outgoing SQL queries and other logging information.

8. TZSQLMetadata: Specialized TDataset component which provides an access to database metadata such as tables, columns, indices, etc.

The project home page is here (for news, links and other project info): http://www.zeoslib.net

Have you ever asked yourself where are those applications that seem to be executed when Windows start, you cannot find in the Start – StartUp Windows menu? Or, how a virus can start itself each time you reboot? Or, who started all those applications you see in the System Tray?

As you might guess, you can automatically start programs whenever Windows launches. If you have programs automatically starting that you have not loaded (do not want) then you can remove them using the Windows StartUp Manager Application we will build in this article.

Here’s how to manually specify an application to be run at Windows startup:

1. Open your registry (Start – Run – regedit) and locate the key HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionRun.
2. For each program you want to start automatically create a new string value using a descriptive name, and set the value of the string to the program executable. For example, to automatically start MyApplication.exe, add a new entry of “MyApp“=”c:MyAppsMyApplication.exe“.

Download Source Code

Once the component package is created, you need to install it in the IDE for the components to appear on the Tool Palette.

Note:

• This tutorial covers installing a component package in Delphi 2005.

To begin, start Delphi 2005. Then point to Component – Install Packages in IDE menu item.

A list of available packages appears in the Design packages list box. To add a package to the list, click the Add button.

Note:

• To uninstall a package, uncheck its check box.
• To remove a package from the list, select the package and click Remove.

Browse the Add Design Package dialog for the directory where the .bpl file resides.

The selected package appears in the Design packages list box and is ready to be used in applications.

To see a list of components included in an installed package, select the package and click Components.

This would be useful for programs that are left running for long periods of time with no user interaction (background tasks you typically keep running on your PC all day long).

What you can do is to make your Delphi applications look as they are minimizing to the Tray (instead to the Task Bar – right to the Win Start button) by placing an icon in the tray and simultaneously making your form(s) invisible.

Fortunately, creating an application that runs in the system tray is pretty easy – only one (API) function, Shell_NotifyIcon, is needed to accomplish the task.

The function is defined in the ShellAPI unit and requires two parameters. The first is a flag indicating whether the icon is being added, modified, or removed, and the second is a pointer to a TNotifyIconData structure holding the information about the icon. That includes the handle of the icon to show, the text to show as tool tip when the mouse is over the icon, the handle of the window that will receive the messages of the icon and the message type the icon will send to this window.

First, in your main form’s Private section put the line:

TrayIconData: TNotifyIconData;

type

TMainForm = class(TForm)

procedure FormCreate(Sender: TObject);

private

TrayIconData: TNotifyIconData;

{ Private declarations }

public

{ Public declarations }

end;

Then, in your main form’s OnCreate method, initialize the TrayIconData data structure and call the Shell_NotifyIcon function:

procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);

begin

with TrayIconData do

begin

cbSize := SizeOf(TrayIconData);

Wnd := Handle;

uID := 0;

uFlags := NIF_MESSAGE + NIF_ICON + NIF_TIP;

uCallbackMessage := WM_ICONTRAY;

hIcon := Application.Icon.Handle;

StrPCopy(szTip, Application.Title);

end;

Shell_NotifyIcon(NIM_ADD, @TrayIconData);

end;

The Wnd parameter of the TrayIconData structure points to the window that receives notification messages associated with an icon.

The hIcon points to the icon we want to ad to the Tray – in this case Applications main icon is used.

The szTip holds the Tooltip text to display for the icon – in our case the title of the application. The szTip can hold up to 64 characters.

The uFlags parameter is set to tell the icon to process application messages, use the application’s icon and its tip. The uCallbackMessage points to the application defined message identifier. The system uses the specified identifier for notification messages that it sends to the window identified by Wnd whenever a mouse event occurs in the bounding rectangle of the icon. This parameter is set to WM_ICONTRAY constant defined in the interface section of the forms unit and equals: WM_USER + 1;

You add the icon to the Tray by calling the Shell_NotifyIcon API function. The first parameter NIM_ADD adds an icon to the Tray area. The other two possible values, NIM_DELETE and NIM_MODIFY are used to delete or modify an icon in the Tray – we’ll see how later in this article. The second parameter we send to the Shell_NotifyIcon is the initialized TrayIconData structure.

If you RUN your project now you’ll see an icon near the Clock in the Tray. Note three things.

• First, nothing happens when you click (or do anything else with the mouse) on the icon placed in the Tray – we haven’t created a procedure (message handler), yet.
• Second, there is a button on the Task Bar (we obviously don’t want it there).
• Third, when you close your application, the icon remains in the Tray.

Let’s solve this backward. To have the icon removed from the Tray when you exit the application, you have to call the Shell_NotifyIcon again, but with the NIM_DELETE as the first parameter. You do this in the OnDestroy event handler for the Main form.

To hide the application from the Task Bar we’ll use a simple trick. In the Projects source code adds the following line: Application.ShowMainForm := False; before the Application.CreateForm(TMainForm, MainForm); in Project1.bdsproj E.g. let it look like:

program Project1;

uses

Forms,

Unit1 in ‘Unit1.pas’ {Form1};

{$R *.res}

begin

Application.Initialize;

Application.ShowMainForm := False;

Application.CreateForm(TForm1, Form1);

Application.Run;

end.

And finally to have our Tray icon respond to mouse events we need to create a message handling procedure. First we declare a message handling procedure in the public part of the form declaration: procedure TrayMessage(var Msg: TMessage); and message WM_ICONTRAY; Second the definition of this procedure looks like:

procedure TForm1.TrayMessage(var Msg: TMessage);

begin

case Msg.lParam of

WM_LBUTTONDOWN:

begin

ShowMessage(‘Left button clicked – let”s SHOW the Form!’);

Form1.Show;

end;

WM_RBUTTONDOWN:

begin

ShowMessage(‘Right button clicked – let”s HIDE the Form!’);

Form1.Hide;

end;

end;

end;

This procedure is designed to handle only our message, the WM_ICONTRAY. It takes the LParam value from the message structure which can give us the state of the mouse upon the activation of the procedure. For the sake of simplicity we’ll handle only left mouse down (WM_LBUTTONDOWN) and right mouse down (WM_RBUTTONDOWN). When the left mouse button is down on the icon we show the main form, when the right button is pressed we hide it. Of course there are other mouse inputs messages you can handle in the procedure, like, button up, button double click etc.

That’s it. In the next article you’ll see how to animate the icon in the Tray and how to have that icon reflect the state of your application. Even more, you’ll see how to display a pop up menu near the icon. Check the entire code, to make sure you haven’t missed something from this part.

Download Source Code

Drop a ZConnection.

• Set your User, Password, Host, Port and Protocol (and any other parameters if needed).
• Set Connected to True.

Drop a ZQuery (do not mistake with ZReadOnlyQuery).

• Set the Connection to your active ZConnection.
• Set the Sql property to something like SELECT * FROM MyTable.
• Set Active to True.

Drop a DataSource from the Data Access tab.

• Set the DataSet to your active ZQuery.
• Drop a DBGrid from the Data Controls tab.
• Set the Datasource to your DataSource.

If all is ok you should now be able to see the records from your table.

I suggest usage the zeosdbo component. It’s free component, powerful and easier to use.

This step by step for you:

1. Download here
2. Extract and copy in drive, I usually copy in c:zeoslib. Up to you want copy where.
3. Find directory packagesdelphi7 in your zeos directory, example your zeos directory are zeoslib in the drive c so c:zeoslib and find packagesdelphi7.
4. Install ZCore.dpk, ZDbc.dpk, ZParseSql.dpk, ZPlain.dpk, ZComponent.dpk and ZComponentDesign.dpk.
5. Run your Delphi and find and chose the menu tools -> Environment Options then chose library tab
6. In the Library tab path click button. Click add button then click ok button.
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5src
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5src
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5srccomponent
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5srccore
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5srcdbc
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5srcparsesql
   • zeosdbo-6.1.5srcplain

Install just finish, good luck dude!