askSam SDK

askSam was designed to deal with unstructured and structured information. A single database can contain data with multiple structures. The askSam Engine is a great met repository for applications that gather different types of information. Save text, data, and information without pre defining structure or tables. The askSam Engine can automatically use structure inherent in your data as fields. For example, the words Subject:, Date:, To:, and From: in email messages can be used as fields in an askSam database. Similarly, Web Forms can post directly to an askSam database with tags for the information. No predefined field lengths and no limits to field size. Support for repeating fields (for example multiple fields for a contact history). Import API supports importing different data types text, RTF, HTML, Word, Delimited, and more. Sort and Output fields or output document fragments from your data (for example hit context).

Import and publish the askSam Engine is ideal for database-driven Web sites. It can import a variety of common formats into the database and natively return data in HTML format. Flexibility leads to simplicity. Because askSam does not require structure, field lengths, or tables, you'll find that many applications are quick and easy to get up and running. They are also easy to maintain and modify. Native support for outputting data in Text, HTML, or RTF format. Simple, but powerful reporting features are built into askSam.

Extremely fast full text searches. Full text indexing of entire database askSam can search in specific fields or through any field or text in the entire database. Support for Text, Date, Numeric, Proximity, Wildcard, Fuzzy, & Boolean Searches. Search in Remembered Document Sets.

• Database engine size - approximately 1.3 MB
• Low memory requirements for server connections
• Supports a large number of users and many databases on a single server.

• 16 MB of RAM
• 130 MB of disk space (plus the space required by your documents and databases)
• Windows 95, 98, NT, ME, 2000, XP, 2003

• IIS Web server running Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000, XP, or 2003 (We recommend Windows NT, Windows 2000, XP Professional or Windows 2003 running NTFS)
• IDE (Integrated Development Environment) such as VisualStudio.NET, Visual Interdev or Notepad (ASP applications)

• IDE such as VisualStudio, Visual Studio.NET, or Borland C++

• Visual Basic, ASP
• .NET, C#
• C++

Features

The askSam engine is feature rich.

• Entering & Editing Data
  askSam is extremely flexible in dealing with data. Information is stored in documents rather than in tables, and the database can return specific fields, document fragments, or all data from a document. askSam can return data as text, HTML, or RTF.
   
• Ideal for Unstructured Data and Multi-Structured Data
  askSam has features to simplify working with unstructured data. Structure inherent in documents (for example words like "To:", "From:", and "Subject:" in an email message) can be used as fields by askSam. askSam allows documents with different structures to be stored in a database.
   
• Fast, Powerful Searches
  AskSam uses a powerful and efficient indexing routine to make all information in a database instantly accessible. AskSam searches through huge databases instantly. In addition, askSam offers a wide variety of searches: full-text, date, numeric, proximity, fuzzy, and more.
   
• Flexible Search Results
  Search results can include document names, specific fields, hit content, and fragments from a document. The results can be sorted by relevancy, date, or by any other field.
   
• Report Features
  Powerful reporting features are built into askSam. askSam can group and sort data, total fields, and more.
   
• Security / Encryption
  AskSam allows you to password protect and encrypt your databases. AskSam supports 128 bit encryption.
   
• Email Applications
  askSam supports features that make it an ideal tool for applications to organize and manage email. Special filters for importing email, capabilities to recognize To:, From:, Subject: and Date: as fields in email messages. In addition, askSam properly interprets the date format used in email messages and can search and sort using this date format.
   
• Bibliographic and Library Applications
  Bibliographic and library applications often require flexibility not found in standard databases. The ability to easily handle multiple data types (books, journals, reports, articles, etc.), capabilities to support multiple authors, long titles, and more. askSam provides features to handle bibliographical information.
   
• Hypertext
  askSam supports hypertext links. You can include links in document that help navigate through your databases. You can also include links to Web pages.
   
• Return Data as Text, HTML, or RTF
  You can return data from askSam in several different formats: Text, HTML, and RTF. askSam's Export API allows you to export an individual document, selected documents, a remembered subset of documents, or an entire database.
   
• Self-maintaining databases - No DBA
  askSam databases do not need to tuned or optimized by a DBA (database administrator). Indexes automatically update, and an optimization routine can automatically pack and optimize databases.
   
• Graphics / Images
  You can include graphics and images in your databases. askSam supports a variety of graphic formats as well as OLE.
   
• Attachments / BLOBs
  You can attach files to your askSam documents. This attachments are handled as blobs and askSam can return them in their
   
• Support for Large Databases
  askSam can support databases up to 16 terabytes in size.
   
• Multi-user support
  The askSam database supports multiple users.
   
• Web-Ready
  Easily create Web applications with the askSam database. Since askSam can return data in HTML format, it's quick and easy to Web-enable your askSam applications.