>We won't be behind in versions,

With the CLR feature we will be.

> VFP with all the same features as VB would be VB, so what would be the point?

The same would go for VC++, VB, C#. Even under the CLR they will be different. Same with VFP.

All I want is the option to compile to the CLR. It would go something like this. I get full VFP with backwards compatibility with a normal compile otherwise I can compile to the CLR which will have some restrictions (and some benefits)

The failure of the VFP community to insist and the MS Foxteam to develop to this standard may be as significant as WordPerfect deciding that Windows was a passing fad. Was DOS more stable, yes. Did a DOS wordprocessor run faster on a modest computer, yes. Was everyone else moving to Windows, yes.

>Anyone care to point of the practical advantages gained by the end-user here?

True the direct gains would be for the developer. Oh.. here's one. What if someone could download your tiny VFP exe and run it right away without having to download a 12meg runtime.