Hi Fernando!

Fascinating. Great post!

When you think about it, simplified or abstracted code to resources is a goal for most langauges. When we code in any language, we're at an abstraction level far above the binary instructions actually executed. Abstracting data manipulation does not necessarily mean using VFP constructs, just as abstracting FOR I loops does not mean BASIC or VB.Net for that matter.

If "Xen" is what I think it is, then I have seen it and it is highly cool. I can't comment beyond that. I will say that there's a lot of work going on in this area in a lot of diverse groups within MS.

>Hi John,
>
>In http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1441657,00.asp you can read:
>

>
• "The rectangle represents relational data, or data stored in tables in a database. Today's code tends to be riddled with verbose strings containing SQL and redundant ADO.Net API calls. According to Microsoft, Xen will incorporate relational data manipulation constructs directly into the language, solving that problem as well."

>

>Like many of us asked many times to incorporate access to SQL backends into VFP. Please, see BetterIntegrationOfVFPWithSQLServer, where it reads, for example:
>
>"[Ref #1]One thing I would like to have is the ability to access Oracle, SQL Server, Informix etc using VFP's native DML syntax thru the use of (maybe 3rd party supplied) add-on "driver DLLs" that could do the "durty job" between the program itself and the access routines of the DB - much like ODBC, SPT etc already do (even the DBC/DBF/... access could be a component DLL, just to make it generic). I don't like the idea of a better integration to SQL Server only. MS could implement a way to have this ability in other DM platforms too (Delphy guys told me something about BDE, is that the case?). This IMO would easy the access to other DBS to VFP programmers and make simple writing programs to them. I think this was the idea AlejandroSosa suggested."
>
>Further, in http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1441657,00.asp, you can also read:
>
>"The architects behind Xen believe that if an API is used frequently, it should be considered for incorporation into the primary language. The popularity of XML and relational data structures make them the most likely candidates for inclusion."
>
>It's still time :)
>
>Regards and thanks for the great job you all are doing!
>
>Fernando
>
>
>>Hi Al,
>>
>>*Not* VFP.Net - rather more like XML.Net ... cool regardless.
>>
>>>http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,1441657,00.asp