[DUG] Delphi Specials

[Jolyon Smith]

The "upgrading at zero cost as long as you have the source" approach get's
(potentially) sticky when going from a version pre-2009 (non-Unicode) to
2009 or later (Unicode).


> Cost of upgrading

NZ$700 to upgrade software that earns you nothing is a lot of money of to
spend every year (remember - we are discussing hobby users, and
professionals wishing to use a personal license for their own private
interests in addition to a license they use professionally).

Yes, I spend as much and more on other hobbies.  Just one example:  My
digital SLR cost me more than that (not much more tho - $1K). But that was 4
years ago and when I want to upgrade I can go and buy a 2nd hand example of
a later model.  Sure, I don't get a discount when buying the latest model,
but I can buy a latER model (upgrade) 2nd hand anytime I like, without
having to "qualify" for the privilege.

Buying into Delphi now involves committing to spending at least NZ$350 per
annum (on average if you buy every other upgrade.  More if you sign up for
"Revenue Assurance".  Sorry, I mean: "Software" Assurance) in order to
retain even the right to *stay* current.

And for me, for example, who last upgraded my own license at Delphi 7, I am
faced with an initial outlay not of hundreds of dollars, but THOUSANDS,
because having bought and paid for Delphi 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 counts for
nothing anymore.


Over time, my interest in doing things in my own time using Delphi is going
to wane.  I already do far less now than I used to, since I can pursue the
same interest (software development) using other tools that cost me nothing.



> Time to install a new and get used to a new IDE

For someone coming from a pre-2005/6 IDE, the idea that you could be
familiar with it in 40 mins is a joke.

And frankly, whilst many of the new tools and features CAN be useful, the
IDE is also far more intrusive these days than it used to be, and can be a
positive hindrance in the process.  Error insight for example is more often
misleading than helpful, and the new Project Options and IDE settings
dialogs are an absolutely unusable mess.

Anything other than the simplest of "refactorings" often don't work, leave
changes incomplete or have undesirable side effects, meaning that you end up
having to do a great deal of donkey work anyway.  Except where-as before you
knew what you needed to do and just got on and did it, now you have to find
your way through the mess that the refactoring tool has left you to clear
up.

The menus are now awash with items that I never use and have no interest in,
but I can't get rid of the damn things, I just have to put up with the noise
they add to the IDE (HAMPERING productivity in the process).

And simple things have been broken in terms of how easy they were to use ...
I recently had to spend time Googling to find out why "Goto Address..."
didn't appear to EVER be enabled in my projects anymore, after having wasted
even more time poking and prodding compiler and debugger options in a
fruitless attempt to activate that menu item.

It turns out that these days you first have to run your code to a breakpoint
before you can "Goto Address" - something that you didn't previously have to
do; you could simply "Goto Address" anytime your debugged process was
running.



> I reckon it might be worth while having a discussion about whether its
> better to avoid 3rd party components altogether and use just VCL to make 
> it really easy to upgrade.

I tend to think it is the preferred approach, yes.


> the standard Datetime picker on Windows 7 is a stunner!   it scrolls and 
> zooms and slides really nicely.  Free with Delphi
>
> (* note - Windows 7 required as separate purchase!)

:)