Database software
You must have Interbase installed on the machine running CARDS.
See Borland for a discussion on the technical aspects of Interbase.
CARDS is developed and tested using Interbase Version 7.1
The alternative and recommended database software is the open source version available from Firebird. See Firebird for more details. If your machine has Windows XP installed then it is essential that you use Interbase 7.1 or the open source Firebird 1.5. The performance of earlier versions are very poor in Windows XP.
Make sure you install both CLIENT and SERVER
If you already have Interbase installed on your machine you will not be asked to install it. The setup program will automatically skip this step and proceed to the CARDS installation.
Make a choice between the original product from Borland and the free open source version "Firebird". The availability of these products will vary with time. Generally you get a lot more with the Interbase from Borland but this is only more useful if you are a developer or intend to get into database management in a bigger way.
Using the Firebird product is simple and cheap and as far as the CARDS is concerned is all you really need. To install Firebird select the first button and follow the prompts.
Once the database software is installed you will no longer need to install it in any later updates of the CARDS.
