There are many file formats in use under the various operating systems. Most of them have been created specifically for their parent applications to provide competitive advantages over similar applications. A few have achieved the status of a "standard." This status symbol may be achieved by being the originator or popularizer of the application category, such as Visicalc, for spreadsheets; WordStar, for wordprocessing, DB2 for databases, Aldus PageMaker for document page formatting; Adobe PostScript, for laser printer page output, etc.
In time, competing products achieve the standards status by virtue of greater market share than the originators. Lotus 123™ did it; so did Microsoft Excel. As the market expands, multiple standards compete within an application category on a feature-by-feature basis.
Smart application publishers include the utilities to translate and import data created by both competing and complimentary applications. In multi-application, multi-platform work environments, this ability is a primary purchase consideration. For example, it is a rare for a currently-marketed wordprocessing application not to have the ability to import information from one of the "standard" databases, spreadsheets or graphics programs.
Utilities such as Tools & Techniques's Data Junction, convert application-specific file formats. Such utilities may be necessary when the applications themselves lack the conversion/translation capabilities. The most versatile utilities can handle filtering and converting of file data structures, editing converted data and entering new data.
Desired features may be: downloading files from online database; extracting data from reports and records by field logic or ranges; duplicating, deleting and moving fields, change field name, length, alignment, and data-type; redefining fields for fixed ASCII, Binary or EBCDIC; and, convert the data formats of popular databases.
Application-specific file format conversion utilities are product version-specific, like the applications themselves. The most popular application-specific file formats include the many designed specifically for: Accounting, Contact Management, Databases, Flat Files, Mail/Mergers, Mainframe and Minicomputer data, Records Managers, Spreadsheets, and Statistical Packages.
Examples of applications that have specific file formats:
Accounting formats include: ACCPAC 6.0, Champion, CYMA, Dac Easy, Great Plains, Macola, Peachtree, Platinum, SBT, SourceMate, and Solomon.
Contact Management formats include: ACT!, Action Plus, Gold Mine, Maximizer, Sales Ally, and TeleMagic.
Database formats include: Alpha Four, Arago, askSam, Clarion, Clipper, DataBoss, DataFlex, DataEase, DataPerfect, DB2, dBASE, DB Gateway, Enabler, Fox, Inf. SQL, Informix, Intel PB, IXF, Lotus Works, Magic PC, MS Works, Netware SQL, Q&A, Oracle, Raima, R:BASE, Paradox, Progress, SQL Server, SQL Base, SQL/DS, Sterling ZIM, VSAM, Xdb, and Xtrieve.
Flat File formats include: ASCII (Fixed, Delimited, and Report), BASIC files, DIF (SDF), MacOS ASCII, Print/Report data, and Real Estate/MLS.
Mail/Merger formats include: DisplayWrite, MS Word, WordPerfect, and WordStar.
Mainframe and Minicomputer data formats include: Decimal scaling, EBCDIC & Binary, Byte order reversals, IBM Floating point, IEEE Floating Point, MIPS binaries, Multi-punch, Packec Dicimal, Signed Overpunch, SPARC binaries, 360/370 Col. Binary, VAX binaries, and Zoned Decimal.
Records Manager formats include: Acucobol, Btrieve, C-ISAM, c-tree, c-tree+, Microsoft Cobol, Micro Focus, and Real World.
Spreadsheet formats include: Excel, Lotus 123, Multiplan, SuperCalc, Sylk, and Symphony.
Statistical Package formats include: S-Plus, SAS System, SPSS, and Systat.
Our publication: PC Whats The Problem? includes responses to file damage, format conversion, security problems, and a lot more.
References are samples only. Each one is presented in greater detail in the
Technical Research Assistant for 2001
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