>The compiler can't catch them all.

I realize this is true now that Microsoft's stopped development on FoxPro, but I don't believe this is true in general. I believe compilers should be able to catch everything the execution engine would uncover. If it didn't catch everything, it's a definite error that needs fixed. It is, after all, the purpose of the compiler -- to report errors and convert source code to some compiled form. And when conditions are found in source code which reflect upon some previously unknown failure of the compiler, the failure should be quickly fixed, an apology issued, and possibly those responsible should be dragged behind a tractor for a country mile or two. If that happened to a few more developers out there when they released code that wasn't properly tested ... I believe we'd have a lot less buggy code out there. :-)