Compiling and Running a Windows Application
The next step is to compile, then run your application.
Compilation
Compilation is the process of creating an executable program from source code. The source code for any DataFlex program needs to be compiled and linked into an executable (.exe) file before it can be executed (run).
- Click on the Compile Project button on the Studio's toolbar.
Compiling 64 vs 32 Bit Applications
Notice the combo form next to the compile button. This allows you to toggle compilation between 64 and 32 bit versions of your application. The toggle applies to both compiling and running the compiled application in the debugger.
You will see the embedded compiler display its progress in the Output window (if the Output window is not open, it will automatically open and move to the foreground when you compile).
The Compiler in Progress
You will see the Compiler including and compiling all the files specified in the source file being compiled. DataFlex automatically includes any predefined library files your project needs when you create a new program in the Studio. These library files are typically called packages or "package files" in DataFlex, since their extension is usually .pkg. See Package Filename Extensions for more information about packages.
Compiler Dependency Check
The compiler checks whether anything needs to be recompiled (dependency check — see compiler options). If it detects that nothing has changed since the last compilation, you will see "No changes detected, skipping compile" in the Output window. You can force the Studio to recompile by choosing "Rebuild" from the Project menu.
32 and 64 Bit Executable Suffixes
Notice that the compiled program is named "MyFirstWindowsApplication64.exe". By default, "64" will be appended to 64 bit applications. This ensures that you can differentiate between 32 and 64 bit versions of your application and that you can compile both without the two versions overwriting each other. By default, nothing is appended to 32 bit applications.
You can configure this on the Compiler tab of the Studio's Project Properties dialog, which you can access from the Project menu.
Once compiled without errors (you will see "----Compile Finished----" in the Output window), you can run your program.
- Click the Run toolbar button.
Your application will run and appear like this:
Tip
You have another option for compiling and running your application in one step. If you click on the Run button on the Studio's toolbar, it will save and compile the program if changes were made to the source code that require recompilation, and then run the program, or simply run the program if recompilation is not needed.
You have just created and executed your first Windows application with DataFlex. You can see that this application is a multiple-document interface (MDI) container with menus and toolbars, but it is currently missing any child windows (the View menu has no items listed under it).
Close the program.