Jim,

As was discussed here already, you really should go to an MSDN roadshow, or dotnet user group, and ask around.

People are doing these apps, quite successfully. It's the people here who say it can't be done. But I guarantee you that there are many who are doing what you currently believe can't be done.

>>I'm sure that someone *can* do just about anything they need to do using .NET. But to many of us it still looks like it would be like using s chisel to build a whole house and we want to wait until it adds a hammer and a saw. Why is it so hard for you to accept that?
>>
>>The answer resides in your own words...."it still looks like it would be like using a chisel" (emphasis mine)
>>
>>.NET is a huge product. It can appear that way in the beginning, and it takes a considerable effort to learn. That is *part* of the reason I started writing articles and started getting involved in community events like MSDN CodeCamp - to help people through the learning curve.
>>
>>Again, I'm happy about the capabilities in LINQ. It will make things easier. But I don't agree with the mindset of waiting to learn the technology until LINQ comes out. It places one at a disadvantage down the road, and is (IMO) poor advice to give to others.
>
>But guess what... the day after I start getting seriously into .NET, some other people will. And the day after that, some more. And so on.
>
>I don't feel any pressing NEED to get into the platform until it has a decent chance at doing data straightforwardly.
>
>cheers
>
>
>>
>>Kevin