>Always try some "what if projects". New ideas
>and concepts have to be used. Try different
>development tools. Enjoy yourself!

There are some things a man must do on principle.

I don't know if you know this or not, but since July 12, 2012, I have been actively developing Visual FreePro, a copyleft software project designed to offer high compatibility with Visual FoxPro, but to add many of the "more modern features" to its design. www.visual-freepro.org.

Microsoft killed VFP for one reason, and one reason only: they could not control the developer ecosystem as they could with other tools that have been pushed since.

Microsoft has a goal for its future: to have all software, programs and data, running on their servers, with users paying them regularly for access and usage. But their true goals there relate more to ultimate control than money, but there are stages to go through. It will take time.

Visual FreePro was designed to combat that attack. By design, it has a new, from the ground up, virtual machine, codenamed Obed. It has a new executable format currently called RXML, which allows program debug info, source code, and executable code and external DLL references to be defined in the one file. It has its own assembler, disassembler, multi-instance local/remote debugger, is fully multi-threaded, able to save the running machine state to disk, suspend on Windows, and resume on Linux, FreeBSD, Android or Windows. It is a robust design, with some features developers don't currently have today.

I have the skills, and the knowledge to complete this project. What I don't have is the time. I have a regular day job, plus family, and this is the third thing on my list. Even so, from mid-September to Thanksgiving, I wrote 13,000 lines of code, or thereabouts, excluding comments, blank lines, and braces. I have published videos of some of my coding sessions. The source code is on Github (RickCHodgin).

The things I look at are base. I have a background in x86 assembly and I understand what it means to process data at the close-to-metal level (ISA), which also gives me an inherent understanding of why certain designs exist in higher level languages. It also gives me a philosophical perspective on why things are moving in a particular way when, from the hardware angle, there's no valid (or driving) reason to do so.

What's going on with Microsoft's movement in developer spaces is entirely agenda. It was evident as far back as netbooks, when Microsoft limited the specs for what hardware netbooks could support. I reported on this many times writing for geek.com, and tgdaily.com in the 2000s.

Microsoft, or some other company like Google or Apple with Microsoft-esque goals, cannot be stopped. People will follow them to the very end. It's been prophesied (the mark of the beast one world system that's coming), a consolidation of control to the one system.

My goal is to give men and companies of principle an alternative to that agenda-driven future of domination and forced acquiescence, and long before it becomes forced, where people can continue to do their peculiar business with focus on their business rather than on upgrading their software to the new platform every ten years.

I only pray I am successful. With my limited time, plus various illnesses since Thanksgiving, I am about five weeks behind my previous optimistic goals, and three weeks behind more conservative ones.

There must be purpose behind our actions beyond just wanting to survive. Principled discipline, focused on Jesus Christ, standing up for what's right, for the sake of standing up for Him ... it is far more important, even if while speaking the truth your voice shakes, even if while doing the right thing for the right reasons you make mistakes, or are deprived of whatever necessity or possession, including your life, by people with evil intents.

It has already been foretold in Revelation that many, many saints (followers of Jesus Christ) will be killed for their testimony. And this will be in every industry, and in every people, in every walk of life, and in every way.

There are reasons why we move as we do. They either have personal or corporate (group) goals. To be a servant of Jesus Christ, in all things you focus on the latter. If you're a farmer, you treat your land and animals properly, avoiding governmental regulatory abuse, such as forced use of certain medical or feed products which are unethical. You do this even if you wind up losing your farm, or life, or animals, for non-compliance with the harmful law. You stand up for what's right.

If you're a software developer, you proceed likewise, avoiding agendas designed to mislead and ultimately control people, peoples, nations, the world, by pursuing proper courses, and to the same ends ... if you die, you die. If you lose property or whatever, then that's what happens. You stand up for what's right.

We do what is right for the testimony of Jesus Christ, for the sake of THE truth, and not for other reasons. We do it because it's right. And this foundation must be laid in the entirety of our life from ... today. It must proceed forward without reserve until we are called Home.

A hard pill for most to swallow. But absolutely essential if you desire to be with Him in eternity.

It helps to remember, the entirety sum total, the entire lot of evil, wicked, and false things going on around us is only this: a test, a refinement, a series of choices given to see where we stand, what we believe, if we will hold to the truth, or if we will cave in and go with the evil, wicked, and false things, which often times seem easier. The believer must stand up for truth alone continually. There is no other way.

He who remains faithful ... to the end (of their life, even if standing up for that testimony means your life will end when you say, "Yes, I stand for Jesus. Yes, I stand for truth.") will be saved.

A right set of principles come from Christ alone. They require a diligent effort to find, but they are there for all who are willing to hear the truth. The great mystery and miracle of God is that as we are found to be willing to hear the truth, and begin to pursue it, He also teaches what truth is, what it means to pursue truth, and He empowers every believer to do so. A great mystery and miracle of God ... like water into wine.

Jesus has accomplished everything. Everyone can have His promise of eternity if only they'll pursue it with all they have, and remain faithful until the end.

It begins today ... for all of us.