posted 05-01-2007 01:26 PM         

Option A: June 2007
Option B: March 2008

Option A:
Much of the work is completed. It is now technically possible to release the final beta in as little as one month from now. However, I will need a lot more feedback at this stage, than ever before, in order to pull this off. Please download the current beta, and submit feedback as to whether or not it works the way you'd expect it to. Your feedback will count as a vote for Option A.

This beta now comes complete with a help file, and demo programs for Visual Basic classic, Visual Basic .NET, Visual C++, PowerBASIC, Delphi, and Borland C++ Builder. What you see now is pretty much what the next version is likely to be like. This can be a good thing for customers who have verified that their 2.0 code will successfully migrate to the next version (based on the beta), and a not so good thing for the ones who wait until after the official release to discover some unexpected limitations impeding the transition of their code.

Option B:
Some clients have grown accustomed to version 2.0, and continue to request solutions for it. To vote for option B, please ask about patchwork solutions to help remedy some of 2.0’s limitations, so that the life of that version can be extended for some time. Please note that there are certain things that simply weren't part of the design of this 1999 version. Workaround solutions for 2.0 tend to be complicated, and are not always fully adequate. But still, patchwork solutions may be useful for customers who are content with 2.0 and don’t need any of the new features in the next version.

Another way to vote for Option B is to restrict your feedback to general questions about the next version, or to suggest new features for it, without actually downloading the beta to see what it can already do.

Perhaps the easiest way to vote for Option B is to hang low, and not submit any feedback at all.

DISCLAIMERS
- There is no guarantee as to the date of release for the next version.
- There is no guarantee as to the features of the next version.
- There is no guarantee as to the suitability of this version for purposes other than beta testing.
- All parts of the beta version are subject to change without notice, and without regard to compatibility from one beta version to the next.
- A license for the beta cannot be purchased. Until the next version is no longer in beta, only a license for version 2.0 can be purchased.