From: Coey_Minear@...
Date: 2009-10-28T01:31:05+09:00
Subject: Re: SQL Shell for MS Access


> -----Original Message-----
> From: paulsmithenator@gmail.com [mailto:paulsmithenator@gmail.com]
> On Behalf Of Paul Smith
> Sent: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 8:18 AM
> To: ruby-talk ML
> Subject: Re: SQL Shell for MS Access
> 
> On Tue, Oct 27, 2009 at 1:01 PM, Robert Klemme
> <shortcutter@googlemail.com> wrote:
> > 2009/10/27 Paul Smith <paul@pollyandpaul.co.uk>:
> >> What I want is an SQL command prompt allowing me to run SQL
> queries
> >> against an Access .mdb.
> >>
> >> I thought that Ruby/DBI included a sqlsh.rb script that
> essentially
> >> did this, but no matter how I install Ruby/DBI I can't find the
> SQL
> >> shell that I want.
> >>
> >> So - does Ruby/DBI even include an SQL shell anymore?  Is there
> >> another way to get an SQL prompt for MS Access in a similar way
> to
> >> what you can do with mysql for example?
> >
> > I doubt Ruby/DBI ever included what you need.  In order to be
> able to
> > directly run SQL against an mdb file you need any DB engine.
>  Ruby/DBI
> > is just an interfacing layer and does not include anything like a
> > complete DB engine.
> 
> Well, to be more complete, Ruby/DBI using a ruby-odbc DBD to
> connect
> out to an access database.
> 
> This cached page
> http://209.85.229.132/search?q=cache:oks0dAPyNbQJ:doc.gnu-
> darwin.org/dbi/html/+ruby/dbi+sql+command+line&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&g
> l=uk&client=firefox-a
> suggests that sqlsh.rb did indeed once exist.
> 
> Page 137, Chapter 3 of "Accessing Databases with Ruby" also
> describes
> what I want -
> http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=SvTuCXEKBvkC&pg=PA137&lpg=PA137&
> dq=ruby+ms+access+interactive+sql+client&source=bl&ots=SPgHkn7a76&s
> ig=-Vk-Jpfm0f_LlS5z-
> AaCKw67NGU&hl=en&ei=8MzmSpmeLZXSjAediLW1CA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=r
> esult&resnum=1&ved=0CA4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=&f=false
> 

According to this page: http://ruby-dbi.rubyforge.org/git?p=ruby-dbi.git;a=commit;h=556e08726d9716e5b06d558b8250eb9f0d06df9e
'sqlsh.rb' was renamed to 'dbi'.  You should find a 'dbi' file in the same directory where 'ruby' is installed.  Of course, there have been changes to 'dbi' since this change was made, but it's a place to start.

> >
> > Having said that, you can use OpenOffice to open mdb files and
> also
> > execute queries against it.
> 
> Maybe this is the right way to go, I just really like the command
> line, as I'm used to working with mysql, and there you can just
> fire
> up mysql-client, get a mysql> prompt, and start typing things like
> show tables to list all the tables in the db, desc table to
> describe
> the layout of a given table.
> 
> I'm just trying to make working with MS Access feel more like
> working
> with mysql :)
> --
> Paul Smith
> http://www.nomadicfun.co.uk
> 
> paul@pollyandpaul.co.uk

Coey Minear