DataLoad Development
DataLoad is continually being developed to ensure
it offers the best functionality for loading data into applications. This
page shows the history of recent developments.
DataLoad Feature History
This section lists the new features and fixes included in each version of
DataLoad.
Version 4.3.9.0 (21 August 2007)
New Features
- Oracle E-Business R12 compatability.
Bug Fixes
- When a StepMode load was canceled no further StepMode loads ran beyond the first cell.
- AutoTab didn't send a TAB when the DataLoad data cell was blank.
Version 4.3.8.0 (13 Jan 2007)
New Features
- Users can select row numbers X to Y to load in macro loads.
- Macro load progress window now includes current command plus row & column counters.
- Forms Playback WINDOW numbers can now be incremented by different amounts for different forms in the same load. This is required for certain Oracle E-Business Suite Forms.
Bug Fixes
- Macro load progress bar was not always updated during loads.
- HTML message window didn't aways appear when DataLoad opened.
- Exceptions could be raised when opening DataLoad if the user did not have appropriate permissions to read/write registry.
- Username/password in FLD file could still be lower case after changes made in V4.3.7.0. Now always uppercase.
Version 4.3.7.0 (11 Feb 2006)
New Features
- {PRNTSCRN} command added to control Print Screen key in macro loads.
- HTML message panel added to main DataLoad form.
Bug Fixes
- Pasting more columns than exist in DataLoad caused the paste to fail rather than the spreadsheet to expand.
- Sorting data didn't cause the Save button to become enabled.
- When a cell containing a comment was copied to the clipboard the comment would remain on the clipboard and could be pasted with later copy & paste actions.
- Radio buttons & check boxes selected as editable in forms playback loads would not appear after the first record in DataLoad.
- Buttons & list fields with names containing spaces would not be handled correctly in forms playback loads.
- An issue writing to droplists.dat when opening a forms playback file caused a generic error to be displayed. The problem is not handled properly.
- If a username/password is contained in an FLD file it must be in uppercase but DataLoad did not enforce this.
- A user reported MS Office's multi-clipboard functionality could interfere with DataLoad's macro loads. This could not be replicated but clipboard handling has been updated to avoid any such issue.
Version 4.3.6.0 (1 March 2005)
New Features
- Added \{NUMLOCK} keystroke to support pressing the NUMLOCK key in macro loads.
- AutoStart macro loads no longer display a DataLoad window in DL Prof.
Version 4.3.5.0 (3 Nov 2004)
New Features
- Support added for Forms Playback extensions in Inventory Master Items load and other forms that exhibit the same sub-form behaviour.
- Made the file type options in the File Open dialog more intuitive.
Version 4.3.4.0 (2 Oct 2004)
New Features
- Support added for forms to be closed and re-opened multiple times within a DataLoad record rather than just between records. Increases flexibility of DataLoad loads and resolves an issue with Date Track in Oracle HR. (Forms Playback).
- Support added for closing Oracle by closing the Navigator with a keystroke. (Forms Playback).
Bug Fixes
- An erroneous error could occur when opening Forms 4.5 fld files.
Version 4.3.3.1
New Features
- DataLoad Professional users will be warned when their support period is due to expire.
- The installer prevents users from attempting to install a version of DataLoad Professional not covered by their DataLoad Professional license. (This previously could happen and DataLoad reverted to Classic. Users can still install Classic but cannot unwittingly revert to Classic by selecting a version of Professional for which they are not licensed.)
Bug Fixes
- Thai, Arabic, Greek and other characters would not always paste correctly into Oracle, and other target applications, in Macro loads.
- The automatic download mechanism didn't always initiate the install when the download was complete.
- "Failed to get data for ProxyEnable" could occur at startup.
Version 4.3.3.0
New Features
- Improved language support and Unicode UTF-8 compatibility:
- Increased range of languages supported without changes to PC setup required
- EG Japanese & other multi byte languages
- Read & write Unicode UTF-8 files for compatibility with UTF-8 databases
- Font type and size can now be changed.
- New installer:
- Smaller distribution file
- DataLoad Professional registration possible during the install
- Fixes an issue where non-admin users may not be able to access DataLoad if it was installed by an admin user
- Sort function added to allow grid data to be sorted (Professional Only)
Bug Fixes
- Forms playback loads could fail where a sub window is repeatedly opened and closed.
- When the "Wait while hourglass" option was used data may not be sent to the target.
- Loads couldn't be terminated if "Wait while hourglass" option was used and DataLoad was waiting for the hourglass to disappear.
- Data imported into a forms playback load could cause a "Grid index out of range" error.
- Forms playback loads where data contained new lines would not work on playback.
- The '%' in macro loads may not activate the Alt key or could cause the Alt Gr (right Alt) to be used.
- If a click field, e.g. check box or radio button, in forms playback was editable and used multiple times in each record then the data would not display correctly.
- If the form was closed at the end of a forms playback recording and the user clicked on a Navigator item the load may not work when edited and played back.
Version 4.3.2.1
- DataLoad can now open incomplete forms playback files, which is useful
for opening recorded logs of playbacks.
- After V4.3.2.0 there could be a "shadow" to some text in cells.
- A number of changes were made to help with usability.
Version 4.3.2.0
New Features
- New Macro commands (Professional only):
- PROMPT() - Prompts the user and pauses the load waiting for user action.
- *DL() - Issue a double click with the left mouse button at the location
specified.
- Progress Bar is now always visible during a load if it is activated.
- Improved support for mouse wheels.
Bug Fixes
- Forms Playback - A load containing editable "Clicks" would
become corrupt if such a click was blank in the first record.
- Double clicking on the header row didn't open the Titles window.
- The Command Group drop list was not always populated in the Run Load window.
- Sending ESC from a DataLoad Macro load stopped the load.
- When data was pasted into row 1 in a Macro load the column titles were
not updated.
- When the contents of a cell were accepted using the ENTER key the contents
may not be visible until the user moved into another cell.
- More error handling and meaningful error messages added to the Excel Import
functionality.
- AutoInsert no longer inserts data after the last row of data in the grid.
- "Select All" would always select everything in the main grid
even if another control had focus.
Version 4.3.1.1
- Opening Forms 4.5 forms recordings could result in an error.
Version 4.3.1.0
- The Installer could crash on Windows NT after V4.3.0.
- DataLoad could create forms playback files with incorrect record numbers
on button clicks.
- Sub forms can now be closed and re-opened in forms playback records (previously
forms had to be left open).
- Where 'clicks' were marked as editable the load could stop working (Forms
Playback).
- Some Forms Playback loads wouldn't work when the user clicked into the
next record in multi line blocks during recording.
- On some versions of Applications the Responsibility name wasn't picked
up in the Forms Playback section of the Options form.
- The installer now adds DataLoad to the Windows Add/Remove Programs list.
- In V4.3.0.0 the Options form had the wrong tab page active when first
opened
- Changed the "Forms Event" tab in Options form to be called "Forms
Playback".
Version 4.3.0.0
Version 4.3.0.0 contains a large number of enhancements and new features.
Please click here for a full list.
Version 4.2.5.6
- The DataLoad grid was restricted to 200 rows after V4.2.5.5.
Version 4.2.5.5
- Some "basic" PC users wouldn't have enough security to open
the registry key containing the DataLoad Professional license key. Therefore,
Professional reverted to Classic for such users.
Version 4.2.5.4
- Various issues with Lists of Values in Forms Playback are fixed.
- Double clicking on the right edge of the final column in the header row
didn't always cause the column to resize.
- When the target window is activated in Copy & Paste loads the DataLoad
window could stay on top. The data was sent to the target window, since
that is now active, but the user couldn’t see this because the DL
window is on top. Fixed by hiding the DL window during loads.
- Target windows that were already maximised could have their size and position
changed when DataLoad activated the window.
- When DataLoad automatically downloaded updates it did not always overwrite
the previous update.
- Forms playback documentation updated.
Version 4.2.5.3
- The News form was updated to support extra functionality that will be
used at a later date.
- Changes were made to the Installer to ensure install errors are better
handled and reported.
Version 4.2.5.2
- DataLoad Professional registration could fail on PCs where the decimal
character is a ',' rather than a '.'.
- Load Control not working correctly after a previous update.
Version 4.2.5.1
- " and \ characters weren't properly handled in forms playback files.
- A proper solution rather than a workaround was put in place for issues
with the *PB, *NB and *ST commands.
- Selecting Edit->Titles from the popup menu would cause an exception.
Version 4.2.5.0
New Features
- Text data can be imported into existing DataLoad spreadsheets.
- Text data with any delimiter can be imported into, or opened in, DataLoad.
Previously only tab delimited data was supported.
- Data can be pasted into the target application using Shift+Insert instead
of Ctrl+V.
Bug Fixes
- Opening the Edit Titles form could cause an exception.
- The command group list on the Selection form wasn't populated if the
command group drop list on the main form hadn't been used.
- If no command group had been selected from the main drop list and 11i
was selected from the Selections drop list the NCA command group was used.
- *PB, *NB and *ST may not work on Windows 2000 and above. A workaround
has been put in place.
Version 4.2.4.1
- Num Lock could be incorrectly turned off, meaning some numeric keystrokes
would not be sent correctly.
Version 4.2.4.0
New Features
- Column heading and width information is now saved for the header grid.
- Comments are supported in header grid cells.
- The status of the Caps Lock & Num Lock keys no longer affects keystrokes
sent by Copy & Paste loads.
Bug Fixes
- The shift key may not have always been pressed when required when keystrokes
are sent in Copy & Paste loads.
- Cell comments would sometimes be displayed when forms playback source
code was being viewed.
Version 4.2.3.3
New Features
- DataLoad Installer added to make installing and maintaining DataLoad
easier.
Bug Fixes
- LOV commands used in the header section of forms playback loads could
cause errors.
- Proxy Enable error could occur when starting DataLoad.
Version 4.2.3.2
USER_EXIT commands could cause an error when a file is saved.
Version 4.2.3.1
- Fixes compatability issues with registry data types in some versions
of Windows.
- The DataLoad News information could be downloaded more often than necessary.
Version 4.2.3.0
Version 4.2.3 contains a large number of enhancements and new features.
Please click here for a full list.
Version 4.2.2.0
New Features
- List of value commands are supported and not converted to value commands.
- Validation for List of value commands added.
- Improved error checking and handling in forms playback files.
- Unlimited number of command groups now supported.
- Description field added to command definitions.
- Playback equivalent information added to command records (required for
future functionality).
Bug Fixes
- '&' couldn't be sent using Copy & Paste if it is the first character
in a cell.
- Forms playback detail blocks were not always correctly identified.
Version 4.2.1.0
- Registration functionality for DataLoad Professional added.
Version 4.2
Version 4.2 contains a large number of enhancements and new features. Please
click here for a full list.
Version 4.1.0.1
- Delays failed when used with decimal values.
- *SB command was incorrectly defined.
Version 4.1
Version 4.1 contains a large number of enhancements and new features. Please
click here for a full list.
Version 4.0.2
New Features
- Automatically colour grid cells according to their contents:
- Data Cells
- Keystroke Cells
- Command Cells
- New load commands
- *FI Find
- *FA Find all
- *CW(window) Change active window to window
- *QE Query enter
- *QR Query run
- *CL Clear field
- *IR Insert record
- Fill command (right, left, up, down), like Excel.
- Columns can be automatically sized to fit the cell text.
- Column widths are now saved in the .dld file.
Bug Fixes
- DataLoad failed to open .dld files which used a decimal point separator
different to the current system default.
- TprogressBar property out of range error occasionally occurred at the
start of a load.
- Couldn’t copy & Paste to Window Name box.
- There were a number of problems when selecting cells using the keyboard,
especially when adjusting a selection made using the mouse.
- Deleting, inserting or clearing rows or columns didn't always turn on
saving.
Version 4.0.1.1
- A file name passed on the command line to DataLoad didn't open and caused
an error.
- Hourglass option wasn't saved in the .dld file.
- The "NEW" command didn't reset any changes in the Delays and
Options forms.
- The "NEW" command didn't reset columns & rows to their default
sizes.
Version 4.0.1
New Features
- Mobile progress bar indicates load progress.
- Title form changed to allow editing of all titles in one go.
- Double clicking on header row opens title editing.
- DataLoad can wait for a user defined duration while the cursor is hourglass.
- File save icon & menu item greyed out when there is nothing to save.
- DataLoad prompts to save spreadsheet if it has changed and you are closing
the spreadsheet.
- Function to clear single, multiple or all titles.
- Full Windows 98 compatability.
Bug Fixes
- Paste sometimes caused divide by zero errors.
- Double clicking on the fixed row or column caused problems.
- On NT the grid selection was lost after the load completed.
- The load duration did not display correctly on all PCs.
- Security rules demo spreadsheet failed to set include/exclude properly.
- Multiple line pastes occasionally lost the final line.
- Copy added an extranious carriage return to the end of text copied to
clipboard.
Version 4.0
- DataLoad implemented as a standalone Windows 32 bit application.
- Improved performance, reliability and stability.
- Dedicated DataLoad interface.
- No dependancy on Excel.
- Vastly increased scope of potential future functionality.
- Control of delays increased and improved, including access to low level
delays.
- DataLoad file format introduced to save setup information as well as
data.
- Documentation re-written as Windows help file.
- Control of keystrokes made easier and the keys available to the user
increased.
DataLoad versions prior to V4.0 were all Excel macros.