For the first time, the new QuickBooks 2006 uses the iAnywhere Sybase database:
“Underneath all these improved features is a whole new data structure (based on the iAnywhere database from Sybase). This more robust platform enables speedier transactions and up to 15 concurrent users. But existing QuickBooks shops needn’t worry: The new version will work with your current QuickBooks data, so the transition will be seemless.”
It sounds like this would be a very good time to develop a new Servoy to QuickBooks plug-in. To learn how to reach “millions of customers” check out the QuickBooks Software Development Kit (SDK) web site at: http://developer.intuit.com/QuickBooksSDK/Features
In most cases the following approach is used when connecting to accounting/ERP systems:
-To read data (eg display payment info from accounting system in Servoy) a direct database connection is used
-To insert data (eg create invoices in the accounting system) in general it is a good idea to use the API of the accounting system as that way you go through all it’s business rules (sequences, updates of related tables, etc, etc)
So particularly for the second item a plugin would be useful that offers straight forward functions, eg:
I just installed QuickBooks Pro Edition 2006 after carefully reading the information on the boxes for both the Pro and Premiere editions. Neither mentioned anything about Sybase iAnywhere.
Inside the QuickBooks 2006 folder there does not appear to be any Sybase files. The files in the data folder have a .dat extension. I opened Quickbooks and did a search on “database” in the help file. The only thing that came up was a reference to Sybase iAnywhere in the Enterprise Edition of QuickBooks. The article which the above link points to specifically refers to QuickBooks Premiere, not QuickBooks Enterprise. However, the article does refer to 15 users and I think the Enterpise version is needed for that many users.
Does anyone out there have the Premiere Edition of QuickBooks 2006? I would like to confirm whether or not it is using the Sybase iAnywhere database.
We are a company that writes plugins/components for major environments like Servoy. Someone here went to the world tour. I received positive feedback from the event. I had bought the $99 special back in 2003. I was impressed then.
We are planning a series of QB plugins. We have already spec’ed out and wrote a test plugin for another environment. We are considering Servoy.
Since this thread is here. What is the functionality are you specifically looking for? What kind of environment with Servoy are you planning deployment? Interfacing with QB online an issue?
I haven’t checked it against a working version of QuickBooks yet but it doesn’t seem to be very complicated to get it working. I even think that no wrapping is necessary!
As far as I can see it is based upon a Java-to-COM bridge.
Another approach is more or less simple import/export which can be written in javascript/Servoy or I can add this functionality to the data plugin which is already prepared for this job…
Another approach is writing a special QB Servoy plugin. I guess the plugin would also be based on a Java-to-COM bridge. Maybe even on the above mentioned bean.
The SDK is based on programming standards such as XML (eXtensible Markup Language) and COM (Component Object Module). It works with most common programming languages.
The SDK is based on programming standards such as XML (eXtensible Markup Language) and COM (Component Object Module). It works with most common programming languages.
No. if you read the documentation, the COM generates the XML. The COM is provided for ease of use.
The SDK is based on programming standards such as XML (eXtensible Markup Language) and COM (Component Object Module). It works with most common programming languages.
No. if you read the documentation, the COM generates the XML. The COM is provided for ease of use.
This not to say you cant use both or one exclusively. Or create your own xml wrapper.
The qbXML Request Processor, which requires you to create and parse documents written in qbXML, or
The QuickBooks Foundation Class (QBFC) Library, a library of COM objects that implement the qbXML specification. This API eliminates the need to create and parse qbXML directly in your code.
Can’t log into the developer section to download the stuff
The qbXML Request Processor, which requires you to create and parse documents written in qbXML, or
The QuickBooks Foundation Class (QBFC) Library, a library of COM objects that implement the qbXML specification. This API eliminates the need to create and parse qbXML directly in your code.
Can’t log into the developer section to download the stuff
Right 2 APIs out of the box but the xml is the only way to communicate with QB.
You can create your own API around the xml like intuit did as well. But there is NO COM invocation performed on the actual QB software.
just wanted to say that you may have to adjust your sybase/servoy settings if you install another copy of Sybase (QuickBooks) on the same server… One of my client had software from FedEx installed and Servoy got confused…
There is a post about it somewhere if you search the forum…
I’m running the updated Enterprise version of Quickbooks, all versions now do use a sql underpinning, which I gather from the above is iAnywhere – but Intuit does not allow any direct access to the db. You have to go through the SDK.
They ship a third-party read-only ODBC driver ( for which there is a read-write version available ), but it works through the SDK also.
Which is probably for the best, because Intuit does some incredibly screwy things behind the scenes. It’s data forms are about the most non-normalized I’ve seen in a commercial app, and it does thing like delete and replace a transaction when you edit it, rather than updating the original verison.
Nope, although I have created import/export methods for vendors and customers for the data plugin last week and the IIF format will follow later this month…