Skip to main content

Glad we spent all that time on OLE DB


As the SQL Team notes:
"The next release of Microsoft SQL Server, Code Name “Denali,” will be the last release to support OLE DB. OLE DB will be supported for 7 years from launch, the life of SQL Server Code Name “Denali” support, to allow you a large window of opportunity for change before deprecation. We encourage you to adopt ODBC in any future version or new application development.

Making this move to ODBC also drives more clarity for our C/C++ programmers who can now focus their efforts on one API."

They forgot to mention "and make all of their efforts over the past few years wasted on supporting a technology that we would eventually kill"

Microsoft's promotion of OLE DB over ODBC is similar to their enthusiasm behind WPF and Silverlight.

WPF's Browser implementation reminds me of the old ActiveX Document technology - it looks like a Browser but it downloads a WPF core to the client - technology that has its roots over 10 years ago.

When it comes to frustrating developers, Microsoft's actions in the past few years is fast becoming the gold standard.

When WPF was promoted as the upcoming technology, I asked a number of developers if new .Net programmers should skip learning WinForms and move right to that technology. "No" - I was told. Yet, with the exception of the code behind work, WPF is so different that WinForm developers face a steep learning curve - so much so that many keep on building these solutions.

WPF leans into Silverlight, which is on as slippery a slope as OLE DB (in my opinion). WPF's saving grace is XAML, which hopefully Microsoft keeps around for 10 years, 3 years longer than OLEDB.

One of the big pushing points for developers moving to VFP 9 was OLE DB, which fits into Visual Studio and .Net.

What was the point?

Imagine what would have happened if those developer resources had been moved to other benefits from the FoxPro platform. Politics win, developers lose.

Comments

Ted Roche said…
They forgot to mention "and make all of their efforts over the past few years wasted on supporting a technology that we would eventually kill"

And when was that not the case? OS/2? DDE? BizTalk? FoxPro? Visual Fred?

It's their MO, not an exception to the rule.
September 7, 2011 at 3:14 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Merry Christmas

Whether you celebrate now, have already celebrated your past holiday, are planning to, or not, I hope you find yourself surrounded by family and those you love during this holiday season and are able to remember fondly those who are not with you. We often find ourselves buried in work, or too distracted by other problems, to share and remember a few moments with those closest to us. So many of us are separated by huge distances, we often find it easier to focus on those who are out of arm's reach yet so easy to connect with online, instead of those who are right beside us. So do yourself a favour, put down the keyboard (stylus, mouse, etc) and spend that time. I know I will. Merry Christmas. Powered by ScribeFire .
4 comments
Read more

Programmers vs. Developers vs. Architects

I received an email this morning from Brandon Savage 's newsletter. Brandon's a PHP guru (works at Mozilla) but his newsletter and books have some great overall perspectives for developers of all languages. However, this last one (What's the difference between developers and architects?) kind of rubs me the wrong way. Either that, or I've just missed the natural inflation of job descriptions. (maybe, it's like the change in terminology between Garbage man and Waste Engineer or Secretary and Office Administrator) So maybe it's just me - but I think there's still a big difference between Programmer, Developer and then of course, architect. The key thing here is that every role has a different perspective and every one of those perspectives has value. The original MSF create roles like Product Manager, Program Manager, Developer, Tester, etc - so every concept may pigeon hole people into different roles. But the statements Brandon makes are often distinction...
11 comments
Read more

From Writing to AI: the pattern repeats itself

When I was ten years old, my dad bought a computer and, thanks to an advertising supplement in a Superman comic I read, it was a TRS-80. A month later, he dragged the entire family (my mom and brother were not the most enthusiastic) to a class at Radio Shack teaching how to use microcomputers. At the time, I understood why my mom wasn’t that excited: the computer was yet another gadget in the house. But today I find it fascinating. My mother went to Vassar in the 50s. She learned how to type — not a common skill at the time — but it opened doors. Her ability to communicate effectively led her to a career in adult education and later communications work with the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). This isn’t a nostalgia post. Today, the ability to use artificial intelligence, be it through Copilot or simply writing the right prompt, is becoming a critical skill. But is it really that novel? In the 1500s and 1600s, the printing press gradually made reading accessible beyond cler...
Post a Comment
Read more