At 01:25 PM 6/30/00 -0400, Dalton Calford wrote:

>Could we get the long and the short of it please?
>
>What SQL objects can we safely create and or modify by simply using DML
>statements against the system tables?
>

If you omit the word "safely" the answer is just about everything.
In my youth I thought active system tables were a great idea. I've
since changed by mind.

Touch RDB$FORMATS (or whatever) and the world will end. Stick bad BLR
into any number of system tables and gruesome things may happen.

>There are system triggers that don't have the source code included, is
>it possible for that source (as it is more of macro format vs C source)
>to be released before the rest of the Interbase code?
>

Ann's problem.

>Is there a simple reference guide to BLR (maybe the bnf or ebnf of the
>blr parser?)
>

We've got a copy of the TROFF BLR book. When Ann has a few spare
cycles (which ain't going to happen this week or even next) she's
promised to make a pass at it.

Alternatively, DEC used pendle a DSRI architecture book (authored
by our very own dear Dr. Depalma). Perhaps your local computing
archeology center might have a copy.

Jim Starkey