I would like to say that we are quite sensitive to the concern in the community, but I would like to assure that Microsoft and the VFP team is committed to shipping a solid release.

This is true that we have never shipped a beta for a service pack. I think this is a very good step towards a philosophy of transparency. Ken, in his monthly newsletters, has highlighed the shift towards a more open process. This, incidentally, is not limited to VFP. We have released "Community Technology Previews" of Visual Studio 2005 and SQL Server 2005. These are interim builds that we have released to the community. It not only gives the product a broader test spectrum, but it also gives users better visibility into where things are.

I do apprciate your concern and passion for the product and it's future. The team continues to value that just as it always has.

Best regards.