>>>thanks,
>>>
>>>I want to use fgets to read a .prg and get all of the labels and textboxes but this helps me remember how to set the props (brain lapse).
>>
>>I would also suggest the visual design - in the long run. The automatic conversion may be more convenient for a quick start, though.
>
>I agree, I think that I'm going to build a template doc and populate it to see what we are up against. We haven't seen the app yet but we have 15 weeks to convert about 600 prgs. No telling how many forms. I've seen a couple that are pretty complex (40+ fields) but no telling what the others are like.

First Step: shoot the person responsible of accepting/giving you a task with fixed time budget without any knowledge on how to convert and probably the scope of the application.

Second Step: find out what the scope of the problem is: count the number of screens created with the screen tools of FPD, count the number of screens created without those tools just programmatically, count the number of programs, program lines, program contiuation lines, empty lines, comment lines. Watch out for accessing HW only accessible in DOS ot other dirty DOS tricks. Count the reports done via report writer and the programmatic ones.

Third step: Let a savy user show you all the hidden tricks/gems and so on of the program to be ported. Get to know the previous test team or arrange one to be build of people KNOWING the app. You will need them.

Fourth step: find out how the contract defines porting to vfp. Reserve time to shoot the person responsible for the contract *again*, possibly adding a few of his higher ups to the process.

Fifth step: think about how to proceed, which level of automated conversion to aim for.

Speaking from expirience of having ported more than a few programs from FPD/FPW to various vfp-versions, also with different strategies and sometimes self written tools for it and finishing the job successfully. AND from expirience of having not accepted 4 such jobs: one of them ended with a budget overdrawn five-fold but with a running program, one ended with a 2 fold-overdraw and a resulting dog - and the two others did not finish.

regards

thomas