>>Matt
>
>Yes, you are self-taught, and me too... but companies are not, they are dreaming about uniformed propgrammers packing uniformed code written in uniformed language. We know that is nonsense in real programming world, but again who cares what we are thinking about. Open some software (not only MS) ads and you will get sure that you shouldn't understand DBMS logics to get system ready.

Edward, et. al.,

Part of the problem is that VB and Delphi are general purpose and VFP is specific. If I had to write an application that had an iteration structure of, say, 10 million as part of its principle operating mechanism, it would be silly to try it in VFP. Same could be said with trying to write a PLC controller. So for general use, I can understand why VB would be more popular. But for data...?

Another part is the idea that some companies have (and have had in the past) that you can send someone off to say Problem...er Powebuilder training, and have them come back a "programmer". Nope, it doesn't work that way. Part of the "charm" of PowerBuilder is the DataWindow. Almost anyone, with very little training, can sit down and design one for data input. But, of course, it's principally a two pass reporting tool, so it takes awhile for the "form" to appear, and there are some other problems, but hey, it's so easy.

Then again CRUDBALL, er, COBOL, was designed so that businesses could almost take drunks off the streets and make them programmers. Yeah, right.

Of course, I haven't mentioned the PowerBuilder command set. By comparison to VFPs, the phrase "command set" is an oxymoronism.

This might all change when (and if) business wakes up to the reality that the bulk of the cost of a system is not in development, but rather maintenance and modificaiton.

What can we do? First, take MS up on its offer to let them know when we see VFP getting undeserved bad press. Second, by developing high quality, "kick butt, drop dead, let's see ya do this in..." apps. Given the expertise I find here, that second item will come to pass in due course.

Of course, this is just my opinion. I could be wrong.

George