>>>I have to roll my eyes when people argue that big bad Microsoft killed it off and meant to all along.
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>Started out great with Dr Dave taking a leadership role in the MS hierarchy. Future looked bright. Then in an unreasonably short time he was stepping aside to become a violin collector. Not his style- he liked his customers with whom he'd bantered on Compuserve for years and would have come to the boards to let everybody know how he'd passed the baton into safe hands etc etc. Some of us worried about that.
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>My first overt white-anting experience came when VB3 was released and the local VFP rep urged me to swap to VB and the Jet Engine that represented MS's future direction. That was in 1993.

I imagine it was part of the sale agreement that Dr. Dave stay around for a period of time. That is a typical arrangement so others in the acquired company don't panic or follow the leader out the door.