re: Version Number

The version number is going to be some variation of 10 I believe so that's not really going to change anything.

As it is we always had to check the system version numbers anyway to get anything remotely reliable in FoxPro since the compatibilty hasn't been updated since FoxPro went EOL.

Re: Windows 11 user Account

Apparently you can still install with a local account if you disconnect the network. Also you can create a local user after the fact and associate with the online account so that domain accounts work correctly. This is nothing new - Windows 10 already works like this, except they've been making it harder and harder to opt out of the Microsoft account.

32 bit

No way will that get disabled in any near future version. There is way too much 32 bit software still out there - including current version applications. I cannot see a scenario where Microsoft would intend on breaking their backwards compatibility story that's been so carefully maintained over 40 years.

Open up task manager go to the Details tab and add `Platform` then sort by that. On my machine it looks like about 40% of the running processes on my machine - including quite a few Windows internal bits - are running 32 bit.

32 bit is baked closely into Windows and it's not a problem in the way that 16bit was (because that had very real memory constraints which 32 bit doesn't really have (unless you're Visual Studio) ) and while it's a good idea to use 64 bit if you can (say in .NET), it's not something I would ever worry about much. Heck, as long as Windows Server supports the 32 bit subsystem (and it does) there's no chance that desktop will stop supporting it. Server is always the canary in the coal mine for OS features.

The sky's not falling... at least not today.



The one thing I would be much more concerned about though is look and feel. Since Windows 11 uses rounded Windows and borders etc. it's going to make FoxPro internal Windows (ie. non-desktop Windows) look even more clunky than they look today. Controls loaded into it will also be interesting whether they will inherit some of the visual characteristics or not. VFP is still stuck in XP mode so I think it probably won't inherit things like rounded buttons and controls.

+++ Rick ---


>Oh boy, this is going to be fun once Windows 11 launches.
>- if your software queries the OS for version information, we will probably eventually have to update the manifest to add the "supportedOS" entry for Windows 11 to make sure we get back the right version. This becomes a potential big deal if the OS version is displayed anywhere in your application (we have it in certain places that are used primarily for tech support use) -- i.e. a software that misidentifies OS version would appear to the user as having a bug (or at the very least may have appearance of not being compatible).
>- will probably run into a spate of problems due to new computers not authenticating on the network when Home edition of OS is used (Up through Windows 10 you could create a local username w/o a Microsoft account. Apparently in Windows 11 Home the Microsoft account becomes *required*. Not a problem with stand-alone computer, but could be potential headache unless you make sure your networking id is the same as the e-mail id you're registering as your Microsoft account).
>- Windows 11 will only come in 64-bit flavour. perhaps not a problem in of itself, as 32-bit applications will still be supported (for now at least -- but it may be a matter of time where sysadmins may start disabling 32-bit subsystem due to security concerns much in the same manner when 16-bit subsystem got disabled on some installations of 32-bit Windows due to security concerns over "legacy" applications).