>> Right now, our MIS tries to resolve a problem: there is VB app using Access report writer. When some users moved to Office97 they lost this application (it was Access95 report writer), so the dilemma is either rewrite the app and buy Office97 for rest of users or write separate app or something else, shortly speaking 'money' issue
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>I think you can actually have Access 97 and Access 95 both installed. I know you can do that with Word 95 and Word 97 anyway.
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>I don't know if I really buy that. This sounds more like the exception than the norm to me, since most VB developers that I know use Crystal Reports. It sounds like just another excuse for VFP to me. VFP apps that use OLE Automation with Office can generate office sales in the same way. Office really drives MS and is probably their most profitable product line, but what do you get with office? VBA, which further justifies more investment in VB.
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>I think the math on # of units sold speaks for itself, a couple hundred thousand vs. a million or so at the same price create a huge difference in revenue. VS really muddies this situation though and I've got no idea how they'll posibly be able to track who's using what with it all in one box.
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>I'm not jumping ship now, or in the near future, but I do think it's clear that VFP will never get the resources devoted to it that the other development tools do and that the reasons to switch to something else - from a technical standpoint - will continue to get more and more compelling with each release of VS ( and Delphi, PB, etc. ) as well. Whether they market it as such or not, I think MS still refuses to look at VFP as anything other than an XBase product and they don't see significant growth in the XBase market in the years to come, so they're not going to invest in it. The best thing that could happen to us is for something like XBase++ to come out with full VFP compatability. There are a lot of companies that would be happy with 150,000 - 500,000 customers that could make a handsome profit from them and use those profits to continue to invest in the product, make more money and build the market. MS is not one of them.

I'm not so pessimistic. Foxpro gets better with every new release, and VFP5/6 is uncomparable with let say 2.0, right? So, we just do our job, make money and keep sound attitude. You know, my personal background probably enables me to look at this easier.