>We cant ride the VFP scooter forever, you got to get off some time, better slowly and at a control pace than to be thrown off by MS. - Just my opinion

Totally agree. Guessing that you cannot reveal much of your app without a NDA,
you can only get very broad answers in return. From my visualization of your probable state of things
my guess is that you should decide not only on the move away from vfp but more on the target to move to.
DotNet is the most logical move into "newer" paradigms from dev support.
But it also has inherent the restriction of Windoze, which is becoming more of a stumbling point as
xPads become common place. Yes, Win8 will also run on ARM (probably within 18 moth),
but will that make WinArmPads the thing your user base is asking for ? Will MonoDroid support every facet you need ?

From a pure HW-technological POV there is probably nothing that xPads cannot do when you have finished your port ;-)

So deciding on keeping a more local data oriented fat client (which also could be HTML5 based using local data store,
using some form of background syncing to achieve "permanent replication" - just to muddy theoretical waters even more than just mentioning Advantage) or moving to a C/S-SQL based version capable at least of a "light" HTML client for xPads is topmost - not saying anything about micro-managing Managment to fund the necessary dev steps leading to it. Also moving you biz logic and access into an AppServer-level tier might enable you to utilize smartphones and xPads, to offer argument from the "other side".

You appear to have most of the technolocical puzzle parts in view and also realize that it is better to step knowingly than to be driven. Perhaps focus more on the target to strive for in the long run, not just from the technological ease of development ? Couple that with cost estimates to reach those steps and you can decide your new route - if budget is sufficient.

The basic common steps are clear - seperation of tiers, documentation of existing projects and get perhaps outside experts to assess the "real" difficulty of moving to your targets. From your posts you are already on the first part ;-)

sounds like interesting times ahead for you - which is at least challenging.

regards

thomas