Kevin, Can you get the data into a file accessible to GT.M or Perl? Do you have access to the source code or documentation on the data layout? If you're up for a little programming challenge then it might be surprisingly easy to read the data directly out of the COBOL data files. At most, you would have to learn about COBOL data formats and perhaps EBCDIC to ASCII conversion.
Kevin wrote: >OK, OK, I know this is a M list. But hear me out. > >The December our Mysis contract will expire, which is our old EMR. >The company says that it will be $5,000+ to get the old progress notes >exported. Recently our group voted not to do that, and to just go >forward with our paper printouts of that data (which are already in >our paper charts). > >But I can't help but wonder if I could get the data out myself. I >know that I can do it through printing to a disk instead of printer, >then running it all through a conversion program. But it is certainly >lacking. > >The underlying code is written in cobol -- either RM COBOL or >MicroFocus Cobol (or both). I don't know Cobol, but I gues I could go >learn it... > >So my question, does anyone know enough about cobol to tell me to give >it up now, its too hard. Or that it's just sitting there for easy >picking. Would the cobol be acting as the database itself (as M >does), or would it likely be using some other method of storing. This >technology is circa 1990. > >Thanks >Kevin --------------------------------------- Jim Self Systems Architect, Lead Developer VMTH Computer Services, UC Davis (http://www.vmth.ucdavis.edu/us/jaself) ------------------------------------------------------- SF.Net email is Sponsored by the Better Software Conference & EXPO September 19-22, 2005 * San Francisco, CA * Development Lifecycle Practices Agile & Plan-Driven Development * Managing Projects & Teams * Testing & QA Security * Process Improvement & Measurement * http://www.sqe.com/bsce5sf _______________________________________________ Hardhats-members mailing list Hardhats-members@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/hardhats-members
