FAQ - SQLA

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of questions can I ask here?

SQL Anywhere questions, of course!

Right now, that includes questions about all the software that comes in the box: SQL Anywhere, UltraLite[J], MobiLink, SQL Remote, Qanywhere. It includes all the platforms: Windows, Linux, Solaris, OS X, and [too many to list here].

You can also ask questions about your application programming environment: .Net, Java, C, Perl, Python, PHP, Ruby, PowerBuilder and so on. If your question has something to do with SQL Anywhere, that is. Or even if it doesn't... but in that case don't be surprised if you don't get an answer, or if the answer is just a pointer somewhere else.

Here's a suggestion: Start each question with

"How do I [do some specific task or solve some specific problem]?"

Some people skip messages that don't start with a question. Put your life history, er, supporting information AFTER the initial question.

Another suggestion: Tell us what version and build you are using...

SELECT @@VERSION;

@@VERSION
'9.0.2.3575'

You can also get the version and build from the engine console window...

Discussions are ok. See How do I carry on a discussion?

Product suggestions are ok, too. So are help-wanted ads.

If you are familiar with the original StackOverflow.com site, you've probably noticed that SQLA is different. The software's the same, the rules for content are different.

Do I have to log in to SQLA, or create an account?

No, you can ask and answer questions as an anonymous user.

However, there are some things you won't be able to do on SQLA without registering and logging in.

If you start out as an anonymous user, and then register, you can ask the administrator to "merge" your reputation points into your new identity... the administrator will grumble a bit so it's probably better to register first.

Can I ask a stupid question?

Yes, yes, yes... go ahead. For every one person asking a simple question, there are ten others who are too afraid to ask, to afraid to "look stupid" in public.

So when YOU ask the simple question, you are doing a service to ten other people. And people who know the answer should be HAPPY to help.

...and sometimes, a question you might think is simple, turns out to be profoundly interesting... and folks who call it "stupid" get the answer wrong :)

Can I post sample code?

Yes, please do. Just put it between <pre> and </pre> tags.

If you're asking a question about your code, don't edit it, just copy and paste the real thing. When you edit or re-type code, two bad things can happen: (1) you might introduce new errors that will confuse the reader, and (2) you might remove the real problem without knowing it.

If you're posting code for others to use, make sure you test the version you're posting... use the "edit-test-post" development life cycle, not "test-edit-post".

If the sample code is the whole point of your posting, and you aren't asking a question about your code, then tag it "sample-code" and use the "Sample Code: ..." prefix in the title. Also, put these three lines at the top:
--------------------------------------------------------------------
If this sample was helpful to you, vote it up.

If you have an improved version, or a closely related sample, post it as an answer.

If you have a question or complaint, post it as a comment (or an answer, if you have a lot to say :)
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is SQLA a replacement for CodeXchange?

Sure, why not? ...let's try it for that, see how it works.

Two "Sample code:" entries have been posted in SQLA, which AFAIK is two more than have been added to CodeXchange in the past year or so.

Please be aware of one thing, though: SQLA has a completely different set of Terms and Conditions from the CodeXchange Terms of Service.

It's really too early to tell, but there's nothing in the SQLA software preventing it from becoming the whole "developers network" thing, at least for SQL Anywhere.

It all depends on you, the community of SQL Anywhere enthusiasts. SQLA is what you want it to be.

What if my English isn't very good?

It doesn't matter.

Your English is probably a lot better than other people's Spanish, Latvian or Mandarin.

Also, there is probably no real need for anyone to edit for spelling or grammar ...unless nobody else can figure it out, and if that's true, how can anyone else fix it? :)

How do I pick tags?

Tags are classifications, not search words... we have Google for searching. Start by looking for tags that have already been defined.

There are some Big Important tags: product-suggestion, poll, faq, sample-code, etc.

The "faq" tag means it's about SQLA the website, not SQL Anywhere the product... EVERYTHING is about SQL Anywhere.

Anything used as a prefix should also appear as a tag: vendor-announcement, poll, sample-code.

Don't use "sqla" as a tag, nobody knows whether you're talking about SQL Anywhere or this website. Don't use sql-anywhere either, that's redundant.

What is a "prefix"?

For some questions-that-aren't-really-questions, it's important to put a big warning sign in the title to let folks know what's coming:

"Vendor Announcement:" for any kind of Sybase or third-party commercial announcement.
"Poll:" for a question that's expecting answers from everyone.
"Sample Code:" for a question that really contains code you think other folks will find useful.
"SQLA Announcement:" is mostly used by the administrator to tell you about what's happening on this website.

However... prefixes take up a lot of space in the titles so don't overuse them.

In particular, "Product Suggestion:" should NOT be used as a prefix... it really takes up too much space, and it will be obvious from the question ... and product-suggestion is used as a tag.

Here's another one: don't use "Employment Opportunity:" as a prefix, but please DO use employment-opportunity as a tag when you post a job.

Why can’t I ask "subjective questions"?

You can. This is SQLA, not StackOverflow. Nobody is going to close anything just because it is "subjective" (no Nanny Moderators here).

So just ignore this warning message "The question you're asking appears subjective and is likely to be closed."

What if I have more than one question?

Unless your questions are all related, all about exactly the same topic, put them in separate SQLA questions.

Some people skip messages with more than one question.

What can I put in an answer?

Pretty much anything you want, but if it's a "How do I ...?" question then the answer should be ...an actual answer.

Anything else, like a request for more information, should go in a comment.

Is it OK to answer my own question?

Yes, yes, YES, a thousand times Yes!

Even if you post the answer right away, without waiting for someone else to try answering. And you can take the points, you don't have to mark it "Community Wiki".

Why would someone post a question-and-answer together? To help make SQLA better... there are thousands of questions with answers on the NNTP forums, for example, and if anyone wants to copy and paste them over here, that would be a wonderful thing!

Or if you have just worked through a difficult problem and you want to share it with others, post it here as a question with answer.

This is one of the ways SQLA is different from the original StackOverflow.com. Over there, the official rule is exactly the same BUT the user community behaves differently: People who answer their own questions are called "reputation whores" and accused of posting questions-with-answers just to get points.

Unlike StackOverflow, SQLA is moderated, and the moderator says it is OK to accumulate wealth (points) by dint of hard work... and you get to keep what you earn, until you decide to spend it.

Or you can mark everything Community Wiki, it's your choice.

Another thing: If you forget and put both the question and answer into the SQLA "question" part, that's ok, we'll cope :)

How should I behave?

Be nice, and be honest.

Treat others with the same respect you'd want them to treat you. We're all here to learn together. Be tolerant of others who may not know everything you know. Bring your sense of humor.

Above all, be honest. If you see misinformation, vote it down. Insert comments indicating what, specifically, is wrong. Even better edit and improve the information! Provide stronger, faster, superior answers of your own!

What makes SQLA different from the newsgroups?

SQLA doesn't have nested threads... but it does have something better: comments... see How do I carry on a discussion?
SQLA is a web server, it runs on good old port 80... no more arguing with the boss about newsgroup access, or asking network security to punch a hole in the firewall for NNTP port 119, or trying to pick the least-cheesy NNTP browser.
SQLA is Google-searchable. Real Google search, not that unreliable Google Groups search.
You can classify your questions with "tags", and display all the messages with the same tag... say, display all messages tagged as "sample-code"... you can even define new tags.
You can type real text, with fonts, and bold and italics, and wide lines that don't wrap.
You can enter code so it looks like code, indented by 4 or inside <pre> </pre> blocks, and if you enter a lot of code it scrolls up and down, left and right.
You can embed images so they look like images, no more "attachments" that other people don't look at; see How do I post images and other files?
You can embed links to other questions, other answers.
You can edit your questions, fix your speling misteaks, add more information. You can edit your answers. You can even edit the titles. And you can (sort of) edit your comments... well, you can delete and re-add them; see How do I edit a comment?
You can vote on everything... vote on questions, vote on answers, even vote on comments.
...oh, and just wait until you ask a question... it shows you all the similar questions after you type your title, before you start typing the body... if someone else has asked the same question, you will see it right away! You ain't NEVER gonna get that in the newsgroups :)

How do I carry on a discussion?

SQLA doesn't have nested threads like the NNTP newsgroups.

What SQLA does have is a lot better: newsgroups just have posts and responses, whereas SQLA has questions and answers AND something else called comments.

Here's the problem with newsgroups (well, it's not the only problem, but it's a big one): Many threads are all cluttered up with "responses" that are non-answers:

requests for more information,
"what's the build number?",
exhortations that "you shouldn't do it that way in the first place",
off-topic thread drift,
and the always lovable "Me too! I want to know that too!".

All of those non-answers are PERFECTLY OK, and in SQLA you can put them all in comments... all those side-conversations go in comments. Now answers stand out as answers, the other stuff is all there but you don't HAVE TO wade through it to find the answers.

You can add an unlimited number of comments to a question, and to each answer. You can use the @username: notation to direct a comment at some other specific comment... no nesting, but you won't miss it.

Here's another problem that comments solve: In the newsgroups (and eventually, here too) busy people will practice "cyberspace triage". They will ONLY READ questions that don't already have answers. That is very common in busy newsgroups, I practice it all the time in the SQL Anywhere newsgroups when I'm busy, or, when I really want to do something else like go swimming.

In the newsgroups, the first person to post ANY response OWNS that question, as far as answering it is concerned, if everyone else who COULD answer the question is practicing cyberspace triage.

What that means (are you still with me here?) that someone who is not 100% sure of the answer will often not post ANY response, just so their non-perfect response doesn't drive away other people who really DO know the answer.

No such problem with SQLA... all the non-perfect responses go in comments. In the newsgroups, you can't tell a response from an answer.

Is it OK for vendors to post questions?

Yes, vendors should be welcome to post announcements, conduct polls, and whatever else they would like to do... within reason.

This includes iAnywhere Solutions, third-party product vendors, professional services consulting companies, user groups, anyone who offers products and/or services related to SQL Anywhere.

These posts should be tagged "vendor-announcement" and have the prefix "Vendor announcement: ..." in the title. They will either start out that way, or they will get edited that way. Or "vendor-poll" / "Vendor poll: ...", etcetera.

Here's the "within reason" part: If it looks like an advertisement for something that's been around for a while, it might get deleted. If it looks like a press release, it might get deleted. If it's really boring... and so on.

And it has to be related to the stuff that ships in the box labeled "SQL Anywhere". That raises the question, what about products like PowerDesigner and InfoMaker? Yes, as long as the posting has something to do with SQL Anywhere specifically, not just in a general sense because the product happens to work with SQL Anywhere. I'm thinking about all the architectural astronaut stuff that PowerDesigner does... nope, no posts about that unless it specifically relates to SQL Anywhere.

Now, in case anyone thinks that this website should be entirely non-commercial, that's not going to happen. This is a community website, and communities include businesses. If money makes you uncomfortable, then this community may not be for you.

Can I post a product suggestion?

Yes, please do! This is the place to do it! You might not get an answer, but rest assured that decision-makers at iAnywhere Solutions ( or at least, decision-influencers :) will read what you say. This is how things like INSERT ... ON EXISTING made their way into SQL Anywhere, and, as far as I know, only SQL Anywhere.

You can increase the chances your suggestion will be accepted by including a "business case": why your suggestion will benefit other SQL Anywhere users.

Use the tag "product-suggestion", but there's no need to prefix the title with "Product Suggestion:".

Can I post a help-wanted ad?

Yes, please do! Use the tag "employment-opportunity". You do NOT have to prefix the title with "Employment Opportunity:" but please make sure the title is clear and specific about what you're posting.

Can I talk about the Innsbruck beta?

No.

This site is dedicated to all GA (generally available) versions up to 11.0.1, plus earlier out-of-support versions back to 5.5.

This site is public, you don't even need to register to use it. That means people in the Version 12 [cough] Innsbruck beta program should **not** reveal any details that are only available through the beta program itself.

This site is dedicated to SQL Anywhere and anything else that has any relationship whatsoever with SQL Anywhere, where "SQL Anywhere" means "everything that comes in the box" and that is quite a lot.

Can I ask about PowerBuilder?

Yes, if it's somehow related to PowerBuilder using a SQL Anywhere database, or SQL Remote, or UltraLite, or MobiLink, or something else that "comes in the box" labeled SQL Anywhere.

The same applies to Delphi, Java, C#, Python, whatever.

How come other people can edit my stuff?

Like they say in StackOverflow, "...this site is collaboratively edited. If you are not comfortable with the idea of your questions and answers being edited by other trusted users, this may not be the site for you."

Editing is the main strength and the main weakness of sites like StackOverflow, Wikipedia, etc. Unlike those other sites, however, SQLA is moderated.

How does moderation work?

Right now, the administrator and one other person work as moderators, and all they're really doing is watching for offensive material... and none has yet been found. There has been a little bit of editing going on, mostly to change tags, but you don't need to be a moderator to do that.

Two points: First, no arrogance will be tolerated, by experts or amateurs or anyone in between, no matter how many reputation points someone amasses. In particular, there will be no "anti-expert bias" permitted... no pomposity from the experts, either.

Second, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" will be the default; i.e., unless there is a good reason to do something differently from the way it's done on the original StackOverflow site, that's the way it will be done here.

Another way to put it is, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Still another way, it's like changing the defaults in SQL Anywhere: never ever change a default unless you have a good reason, because the SQL Anywhere engineers have worked very hard at making the thing work well "out of the box".

What is anti-expert bias?

An expert is person who has special skill or knowledge in some particular field, like, say, SQL Anywhere.

Bias is a particular tendency or inclination, especially one that prevents unprejudiced consideration of a question; in other words, bias is prejudice.

Anti-expert bias is prejudice against someone simply because they are an expert, and it is revealed by rude behavior towards experts. It doesn't matter whether the experts are right or wrong, their contributions are viewed with disdain by someone with anti-expert bias.

Everyone using SQLA is encouraged to question everything, including everything said by experts. But bias-driven rudeness will not be tolerated.

What are reputation points?

Reputation points were invented to control behavior on the original StackOverflow site.

Here's the theory...

Reputation is completely optional. Normal use - that is, asking and answering questions - does not require any reputation whatsoever.

Remember, this site is run by you! If you want to help us run the site, you'll need reputation first. Reputation is a (very) rough measurement of how much the community trusts you. Reputation is never given, it is earned by convincing other users that you know what you're talking about.

Here's how it works: if you post a good question or helpful answer, it will be voted up by your peers: you gain 10 reputation points. If you post something that's off topic or incorrect, it will be voted down: you lose 2 reputation points. You can earn up to 200 reputation per day, but no more. (Note that votes for any posts marked "community wiki" do not generate reputation.)

Amass enough reputation points and this site will allow you to go beyond simply asking and answering questions:

Vote up

Flag offensive

Leave comments

Vote down (costs 1 rep), edit community wiki posts

Reduced advertising

Vote to close or reopen your questions, create new tags

Retag questions

Edit other people's posts

Vote to close or reopen any questions

Delete closed questions, access to moderation tools

At the high end of this reputation spectrum there is little difference between users with high reputation and moderators.

In practice, the SQLA community consists of professional people who behave professionally, and they don't need to have their behavior controlled.

In particular, SQLA is operating under "relaxed rules" (also called "bootstrap mode") which means that all users can:

Vote up
Leave comments
Create tags
Retag questions

And that part about "reputation is never given"? Not quite true, bounties have been given by the administrator to individual users just for the purpose of letting people get more things done. FWIW those are real bounties, using real earned points, there is no magic supply of points only available to the administrator.

What is a bounty?

If you don't get a good answer to your question after two days, you can offer a bounty. A bounty is a few of your own reputation points -- anywhere from 50 to 500, plus 50 points added by the software -- that you attach to your question as a bounty.

The bountied question will appear with a special icon in all question lists, and it will also be visible on the Featured tab.

Once initiated, the bounty period lasts seven days. If you mark an accepted answer, your bounty is awarded to the answerer (do note that accepted bounty answers are permanent and cannot be changed). If you do not accept an answer in seven days, the top voted answer will automatically become the accepted answer, and half your bounty will be awarded to that answer. You will always give up the amount of reputation specified in the bounty, so if you start a bounty, be sure to follow up and accept the best answer!

Bounty awards, like accepted answers, are immune to the daily reputation cap and community wiki mode.

How do I get back to the list of "Recent Questions"?

You click on the red SQLA logo at the top of the page.

How do I edit a comment?

You can use copy-and-paste to delete and re-add your comment; an "X" for "delete" appears if you hover the mouse over your comment.

The re-added comment then goes to the bottom of the comment list, so if you see something you want to change, do it right away.

What HTML tags are allowed?

The StackExchange software used to run SQLA supports something called "markdown" tags, which are like HTML "markup" tags only different ( markdown, markup, get it? No, I don't get it either :)

These tags work in questions and answers, but comments? not so much... feel free to poke around, see what works, what doesn't, and what crashes StackExchange (seriously, you can't actually crash StackExchange but you sometimes do get an error).

Anyway, here's what it says on the SQLA page where you type in a question...

Formatting Reference

indent code by 4 spaces

don't want colorization? Use <pre>

to linebreak use 2 spaces at end

> blockquote

backtick escapes `like _this_`

<http://foo.com>
[foo](http://foo.com)
<a href="http://foo.com">foo</a>

For more information, here's the StackExchange Markdown Editing Help.

Here is the StackOverflow answer to "What HTML tags are allowed?"

Here's where you can learn more than you ever wanted to know about the markdown syntax.

How do I upload an image?

Upload your file to a hosting service first, like ImageShack, then paste the link into your question or answer. Use SQLA's "image" button to embed the image in your text.

Here's how to use ImageShack:
- Click on Browse to pick your file (do ONE FILE at a time),
- then click on UPLOAD NOW,

- then copy and paste the Direct Link into SQLA.

Is this site just like StackOverflow, except for being dedicated to SQL Anywhere?

Yes and no.

Yes, the interface will look like StackOverflow, and work like StackOverflow, for the most part.

No, the people will be different.

In short, this site will be just like StackOverflow, minus the jerks. In particular, anti-expert bias will not be tolerated.

Is SQLA owned by Sybase?

No, it is independently owned and operated. Sybase and iAnywhere Solutions employees are more than welcome to participate, as they have for many years on the NNTP forums, and they shall be treated with the same high level of respect that everyone will receive on this site.

But they don't run SQLA.

Who pays for SQLA?

Nobody, yet. StackExchange is in free beta now, and when it goes live there will be a 45-day free trial.

Why is SQLA still in beta?

Because the underlying software (StackExchange) is still in beta. Otherwise, SQLA is ready for prime time.

When will SQLA go live?

Some time after StackExchange goes live.

Best guess? a month or two.

Oops! Something Bad Happened!

If you see this, click the Back button and try again:

Where is SQLA data stored? Is there a backup?

SQLA data is stored in "the cloud"... at Fog Creek, actually. They take backups for the purposes of short-term operational recovery.

The SQLA administrator uses the StackExchange "Database Export" feature to take backups for the purposes of long-term disaster recovery.

The Carbonite automatic offsite backup service is then used to back up the database export zip files (to back up the backup, as it were).

And soon, the database export zip files will be made available for anyone to download, probably via SkyDrive. If you're in a hurry, contact the administrator at breck dot carter at gmail dot com.

Why is it called "SQLA" instead of "SQLAnywhere"?

SQL Anywhere is a trademark of Sybase, Inc. and, as always, Sybase Trademarks are in effect.

What are the Terms and Conditions for posting on SQLA?

SQLA content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

What if I don't like the way SQLA is being run?

You can try to convince the administrator you are right.

If that doesn't work, you can try to convince other SQLA users that you are right, and get them to work on the administrator.

If that doesn't work, you can start your own StackExchange website.

What if I get a wrong answer?

There is a money-back guarantee on every answer posted on SQLA... keep your receipts!

Welcome ...
... Visiting Newsgroup Users! See "What makes SQLA different from the newsgroups?" in the FAQ.