proper url for mssql 7 server? (newbie question)

[Garann Means]

Hi,
I've found some good examples of connecting to a database using a jdbc-odbc bridge, and I got it to work on a little access database. Now I need to connect to my real database, which is ms sql server 7. I see where to specify the dns, and I know I specify the table in the query, but where do I specify which database on the server I'm calling? Do I add it to the url with a semi-colon, or do I preface my table name with the database in the query, or.. ?
(I'd just start messing with it, but the dba will kill me if I break anything.)
Thanks for any help anyone can give!
g.

[Dave Vick]

Garann
If your using the JDBC-ODBC bridge and a DSN then the db administrator should have set up and you would just use that one. If your not using a dsn then you'll connect directly to the DB with type a type 4 driver (probably).
here is microsofts driver. Then it would be up to the driver to specify the url that you'd use to connect.
hope that helps

[Garann Means]

Thanks, Dave.
Is there a type 4 driver I can use that will work for both mssql and db2? Or are they database-specific?

[Dave Vick]

Type 4 drivers would be database specific, but you can load multiple drivers into your code if you like:

Class.forName("SQL&Driver");
Class.forName("DB2Driver");
Class.forName("someOtherDriver");

Then at run time the DriverManager willpick the correct driver from among those loaded. That's the beauty of it all - same code written by you, multiple drivers, multiple DBs.
About the only thing you can do to get one driver to work with both would be to use the JDBC-ODBC bridge but then you adding a couple of layers to your connection. And you'd have to have DSN set up on everyones machne that would be running the code.
hope that helps