Re: INFORMIX 4GL/RDS FOR

Please check your premises: > Sally Woolrich <Sally@excelsis.demon.co.uk> writes: > In article <3r07ej$sks@cssun.mathcs.emory.edu> > timothy.hood@sltrib.com "Timothy Hood" writes: > > <snip> > > I'm sorry, but after having dealt with Windoze crap for far too long, I > > must respond. Stating that Windoze will make everyone happier is a patent > > phrase that is summarily incorrect. > <snip> > > I agree very strongly! Our product is still character-based (UNIX not DOS) > and for people like repairs clerks (clarks?) basing in lots of info all > day long, it's ideal. Pushing evryone into a Windows or Windows-like > environment regardless of need strikes me as a stratagy invented by a > PC manufacturer! PCs may be getting cheaper - but show me the 200-pound > PC which can run Windows! > >>>> You should please check your premises, or mine, before you flame this much. I didn't say most of the things you claim. Here is my original statement: >Please, forget about DOS. Get your customers/users to use Windows. It will make >them (and you) so much more happy! Development is substansially simpler and >faster with better tools and the results for users is easier and better to use. This was in reply to someone who wanted 4GL for DOS. The premises: 1. The users have PCs (IBM compatible, not a Mac). 2. They want to run single user applications *on these machines*! The options are: a. Applications in character mode under DOS (in 4GL for DOS or some other application development system). b. GUI applications under MS Windows. c. GUI/character applications under OS/2. d. Forgetting about PCs Option d is out. That is a premise. Option a is not where the market is. c may be an option for some people but b (MS Windows) is the large market. My only claim is that in this case Windows is a good option. I have developed several comercial applications using Visual Basic and Microsoft Access. It is easy and the users are happy (no mouse needed where it shouldn't be, fast data entry, lots of usefull information presented in an easy to access, understand and use fashion). The programs simply keep runing without a hitch (no crashing or rebooting of the PCs!). We would like to use NewEra for this though. One language for all applications is easier than two or more. In a far flung, mission critical environement with one or more databases on server type machines, there are several other issues. One of which is the price of a charater terminal. Another is the stability of Windows in such an environement, although my feeling is that this is somewhat overrated. I do however not have enough experience yet to have strong opinions here. I also am among those who hope Windows 95 may be helpfull. As to prices, for those who allready have a PC on their desk it is hard to find a cheaper place to put your user interface. As the majority of these use MS Windows, and most actually want to continue to do that, you don't have much of an option. X-Windows/Motif is an option for only a few users. So it seems OS/2 is, although it is no bad choice if you can find the right tools to develop your applications. Although you can use a terminal emulator under Windows (as we do for several applications written in Informix 4GL, and it works very well), a significant part of applications can be made better in several ways using a GUI interface (MS Windows or another one). Bashing Windows doesn't help to much (only a little). Finding solutions that work does. Nils.Myklebust@ccmail.telemax.no NM-data, Dalsbergstien 7, N-0170 Oslo, Norway My opinions are those of my company