Hi.
I am trying to build an app that: (1) gets the longitude/latitude of the current working machine of the user, (2) compares these coordinates to six different locations to find the closest option, (3) display that closest option to another group of people in the app.
I have done the first step, but I do not know how to store the six different locations as a CDT. I know that the data store can do the trick, but I don't really want to go through a long chain of access steps in my company to try and setup and connect an external DB to this system if it is only for 6 different instances.Is there a way to store these locations as CDTs without the external DB?
As a follow up, I was thinking of displaying the result as a report, but this requires an interface. Do I actually need an interface here, or can I just display the result of a decision table or something?
Thanks
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When talking about storing without using a DB, I guess the first thing I'd need to ask is how persistent you need the data to be. Can you give a little more detail on your use case, particularly surrounding what you're hoping to use this data for?
When you say "without external DB", does that mean you can't use Appian's DB via a Data Store? I'm unclear what the "external" distinction means in this case.
In general I'd guess that if you want data to persist longer than one instance of a SAIL form, or at a stretch one instance of a running process model, the DB would be the easiest option by far. However there are certain workarounds you could think about: generating a text file that stores JSON data, stored in Appian's filesystem and then read back later; or just storing data in a CDT PV in a process instance that you leave alive for some period of time. It all depends on, like, how long you need this data accessible for, for how many users, etc.
As far as displaying results: an interface would be by far the most visually pleasing solution for an end user. I'm not sure what you have in mind when you say "result of a decision table" but for technical users, a more bare data readout might be acceptable too, but again it all depends on, like, how you plan to have them access this - if they're end users inside Appian, then probably an interface is your best bet. If you're planning to email them some data, then raw data sent in an email node (or an Excel export attached to said email) would possibly work too.
After reading the tutorial, I was under the impression that an external database was needed as a backend to the data store object. When creating a Data Store object, a required field is a "Data Source". Is that field not prompting you to connect an external database?
By external, I mean a relational database running on a separate server than Appian
What type of installation will your primary usage be on? If it's an Appian Cloud, then the mySQL database is included, which you will use for all such use cases typically. If it's an on premise / local install, then you would use whatever database Appian is hooked into, you'd just use a different DB Schema from the one Appian's engines use.