Hi Shawn,

Recently we upgraded the application to VFP version 9. One of the new features I had fun finding out about was the use of .APP files for reporting. Without them, there was no printing.

There's a really comprehensive section in the 9.0 help file on what's new in reporting, and it's definitely worth reading. *grin, duck and run*

So the problem was solved by the development team by taking the files that make up the .APP and compiling them into our EXE. My question is about that approach. I look at it and say "if there was no good reason to keep it external, Microsoft would have put it in the runtime themselves and avoided all this". So my development team compiling them into our application seems to me, (and let's keep this between us) short sighted. I'm wondering what other opinions are out there. Is compiling it in a good idea?

It's a perfectly valid option. You can either distribute the Report*.App files with your application, as separate components; or you can compile the source code into your application's EXE or APP. Most people, I think, seem to opt to install the Report*.App files separately with the runtime files - there are MSM modules that you can use with InstallShield Express to ensure that they are included and install in the right location.

Of course, where the "right location" actually is can be up for debate. It's very configurable, depending on your requirements.

If you keep them external, then there is always a possibility that newer, updated versions will come out from Microsoft and you may (after testing of course) decide that you would like to pass these improved versions out to your users without requiring an update of your application's EXE or APP. This may not be important - it depends on how often you update your user's application.

Another reason for keeping them separate is that, if you decide that you really prefer some third-party's Report*App implementation, you might not have the source code available to be compiled in. There is no requirement on a third-party developer to supply source code. Originally, I am sure it was Microsoft's intention that the base Report*App components would be replaced by more sophisticated versions from other developers. In practice, however, the default Reporting Apps ended up pretty d*mn sophisticated themselves and represent a tremendous development investment.

Other useful information would be any examples of how people are leveraging these external files (and why they are external). In my reading so far, I haven't gotten a clear idea of why this was done.

The reporting apps are external because they are implemented in FoxPro code rather than C/C++. I know this is "begging the question" but if you think about it you can probably come up with several reasons as to why this was done.

I hope this helps.
- Colin