Hi Follow R:Base Developers, I would appreciate some expert R:Base and systems advice to help bring me up to date from my extended 5 year "vacation" from work. I was in the information/computer business (Programmer, System Designer and Developer, CIO in two major government agencies, President of three software/consultant businesses) from the 1960s to 1998. I decided to retire early and travel. I traveled in an RV seeing most of North America up close and personal. Had a wonderful time doing it. Still plan to do some more travel just not full time. I was an R:Base developer from the early 1980s until 1998. In the 1990s, my company specialized in developing software for operating multilevel marketing companies (sometimes pyramid schemes) throughout the USA. One time a Microrim R:Base employee told me that I was responsible for the largest number of licensed R:Base products to the organizations that I was associated with during this time. I now have decided to "semi-un-retire" at the "old" age of 59 and revive Hix & Associates. Recently, I purchased an upgrade to Windows RB65++ (from version 45++) thanks to R:Base�s long time generous upgrade policy and joined this forum. The quick and good responses on this forum appears to continue the same R:Base camaraderie I remember. Based on experience, I�ve always held the opinion that R:Base people are among the best in our profession. I'm looking forward to meeting as many of you and putting faces with names and opinions at the upcoming R:BASE conference. Also, I plan to share information and help with this list when I can. First so far, I have not yet changed my long held opinion that Windows is a problem with continual upgrades, "unacknowledged bugs", and changes and is NOT really reliable enough. One of the small reasons I retired rather than continue developing systems using R:Base was the continued insistence by (many) customers that we develop the systems using Windows and I just hated our spending more than 95 percent (it was Win95) of our support time dealing with Windows problems. Customers just did not understand how unreliable Windows was in those days. However, I have only used Win95 and Win98SE on portable computers and that was mostly for e-mail, web surfing, using a WP, running a GPS based mapping package for travel, etc., and occasionally developing or modifying apps using DOS R:Base 45++. Am I correct in my presumptions that the later versions of Windows are still having major problems for serious business operation in sustained business uses or not? How really reliable are the different later versions of Windows for R:Base use? Second, I would like to select (and purchase) a reliable, reasonable cost, and expandable (start with 2-4 and likely expand to 15-20 user) multi user R:Base platform (hardware, network and other software) to develop on and be able to honestly recommend to the startup companies I will develop for to buy and use similar equipment. Of course, this would also seriously simplify my problems and cost them less. Please give it to me with both barrels, what is your opinion of the direction I should take with this what optimal R:Base developer and implementation platform? In summary, if you were starting again to develop R:base applications on multi-user platforms and had a choice of what to purchase and use, what would you buy? What works, what doesn�t? What versions work, what doesn't? Third, if Windows is still a major problem, are there better alternatives? What? Thanks, B H (Bill) Hix, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lived and worked in the Atlanta Area for 20 years before retiring. Hix & Associates 5426 South Grundy Quarles Hwy PO Box 3 Bloomington Springs, TN 38545 931-858-8609
