>It seems that there is now a "canned" response (and not only from Robert Green)to our questions and complaints about VFP being represented in trade shows and the like. It goes something like this: [ We are giving the people what they want - they are not attending this event to learn about VFP, so it is not being represented ].

If this is the truth (and I believe it is), it's a perfectly legitimate "canned response."

>This is a classic "circular reference" or "self-fulfilling prophecy" type situation. It goes something like this:
>
>lack of VFP advertising -> people don't know about VFP -> people don't use VFP -> lack of VFP promotion

The implication is that all that's necessary to make VFP successful is to spend more money on ads people don't read, and hold more seminars that most people don't attend.

>Don't kid yourself. MS has the power and resources to "dictate" markets - they do it all the time.

I don't think so. People want browsers, so MS was able to "dictate" that market. They also want a GUI OS, so once again, MS was able to use its might (and technical skill) to "dicatate" that market. Many developers wanted an easier way to create Windows programs, so MS could "dictate" that market. However, the PC database market is small, and to try to "dictate" that would mean spending more resources (possibly) than would be worth it.

The bottom line is: how much money would Microsoft make if every PC database developer used VFP?