Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!elroy!hacgate!ashtate!dbase!awd
From: awd@dbase.UUCP (Alastair Dallas)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: dBase IV Bug(s)?
Summary: fair is fair
Message-ID: <63@dbase.UUCP>
Date: 26 Apr 89 20:57:10 GMT
References: <1762@muvms1.bitnet> <Apr.17.10.39.48.1989.4291@surfers.rutgers.edu> <Apr.25.11.04.38.1989.3071@yes.rutgers.edu>
Organization: Ashton Tate Devlopment Center Glendale, Calif.
Lines: 32

In article <Apr.25.11.04.38.1989.3071@yes.rutgers.edu>, emuleomo@yes.rutgers.edu (Emuleomo) writes:
> 
> Alastair,
> We know you work for A-T, but come on now.
> However, I have a short quiz for you.
> If you had, a budget of $500 and you had to buy
> 	<dBASE-type products list omitted>
> AND YOU DID NOT WORK FOR A-T AND YOUR JOB WAS ON THE LINE
> 
> W H A T   W O U L D   Y O U  B U Y ???????
> 
> --Emuleomo. O.O.

I don't want to have to answer this, but fair is fair.  I'd probably buy
Clipper.  I don't need many of the user-friendly features of dBASE IV
(because I'm a C programmer, after all).  Clipper works like a C compiler,
producing linkable files.  I like that, but it's not for the average user.
Clipper has a lot of fine extensions to the dBASE language, as well--as
a systems programmer, I like things like FOPEN(), FREAD(), and so forth.
I'm not as infatuated with FoxBase+ as you and others seem to be.  I don't
agree with their design decisions in the few cases where they deviated
from dBASE III PLUS.  SCATTER/GATHER, parentheses for functions as well
as arrays.  Trivial things, but that's what I do for a living.

But, "What would you buy?" is a good question.  It puts me on the spot.
I think it also highlights why people with enough technical savvy to use
a net like this tend to disklike dBASE IV.  Some of dBASE IV's best 
features are like automatic transmission--"real" drivers don't use it.

/alastair/

Disclaimer: The usual. I'm speaking for me only.