How do you pull data from external sources

In years past, Pan “apps” were designed with the assumption that either the raw data would be entered directly (manually) or imported from a text file.

But I’d find myself in situations were “Big Data” was held in a MS SQL database and I’d have to pull it out (with something like Razor) to a text file, then import into Panorama for processing. Those extra steps impeded a “Launch and Go” process that could have resulted in a commercial product.

These days I see all this commerce happening on iPad type devices. In another thread, Jim mentioned that someday, Panorama might run on an iPad. If that happens, one could write a better mousetrap.

I’m wondering how those iPad apps transfer out their data - if they do. I see all kinds of situations that could benefit from better categorizations of data - a Resort knowing who rents what rooms, when and what side events the customer attends. Or reports on the most common coffee ordered on what days/day time.

My question - finally - is, for those who have Pan apps that get data from “the outside” - no manually keyed in - how do you do it? Or how do people get data out of iPad type devices if the devices are used just to collect it and that data passed to an analysis suite?

If you do pull data from SQL tables, what do you use for that that can be run/triggered from inside Panorama?

The commerce isn’t actually happening on an iPad, it’s happening on a server. The iPad software is simply accessing the server data over the internet, probably using JSON. Panorama X has all the tools necessary to access JSON data over the internet. Panorama’s primary tool for internet access is the url( function.

You would probably use the jsonimport( function or importjson statement to parse the data.

Jim, I see what you mean. When “smart” apps first appeared I thought I read somewhere that one of Apple’s restrictions was they couldn’t store data on the device. When I review my iPad apps, I see that many just report info streamed off the web or are a one purpose displays - like a calculator result.

I saw an add for a database app that “runs” on iPads and phones. It takes careful reading to see that for those devices you have to use a cloud of some sort.

No, there has never been such a restriction. An iOS app can store any amount of data (assuming there is space on the device), but it can’t easily share data with other applications.

You are correct that many iOS apps are basically just front ends for web sites, but not all of them. It simply is a decision that app developers make on a case by case basis.