Preface<br >Background<br >With the introduction of the Clipper dBASE compiler in 1985， PC database<br >programming took a new direction. Serious developers started using Clipper to<br >~ake dBASE applications run much faster.<br >As the number of Clipper developers increased， add-on libraries began appear-<br >ing. They provided programmers with pre-written and pre-tested User Defined<br >Functions (UDF s).<br >Clipper s current success is-the result of its unique combination of powerful<br >development features， along with the availability of sophisticated add-on prod-<br >ucts.<br >Contents of this Book<br >This book provides an extensive library of general purpose UDF s. Detailed<br >instructions， along with commented source code and typical examples， help you<br >use it immediately.<br >The library consists of functions drawn from working Clipper applications. The<br >introduction shows how to link it to your own programs.<br >Where possible， library functions are written entirely in Clipper. Assembl3<br >lang， uage is used for ones that require low-level features not othe~Jse accessi.<br >ble. You will need Microsoft s Macro Assembler (MASM) or Borland s Turbo<br >Assembler to modify assembly language functions.<br >All library functions are based on Clipper Version 5. Users of the Summer 87<br >version must modify them to eliminate Version 5 specific features.<br >The library contains complete source code for each function along with a standardized description.Demonstration programs and coding examples are included for some complex functions.Many examples come from actual<br ><br >XV<br ><br >