[Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes] Today I was fortunate to be present in Auckland at the World Premier of the launch event for RAD Studio XE2. There is so much good to report that I really don’t know where to begin, so apologies if this post is a bit of a disorganised ramble. But here goes.
[Estimated Reading Time: < 1 minutes] As it turns out, simply importing all old 32-bit key values into the Wow6432Node isn’t the complete answer.
[Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes] Just a short post to share something I learned the hard way today when moving a FinalBuilder installation from a 32-bit Windows server to a shiny new 64-bit Windows 2008 server on our even shinier new HyperV platform: The 64-bit registry can catch you out.
[Estimated Reading Time: < 1 minutes] Some people often complain loudly and passionately that Delphi needs a garbage collector and that reference counting is not good enough, but if I read this correctly, in the new OS X release – ‘Lion’ – Apple seem to think that reference counting is an improvement over more sophisticated garbage collection techniques.
[Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes] A tenuous link to Delphi I accept, but a Google+ suggestion occurred to me, arising from my Delphi-oriented use of it. A potential problem I am seeing already on Google+ is where I get a notification that “So-And-So” has added me to their circles. In some cases I don’t know this person, but they have added me because *they* know they share a common interest with me. I cannot see that they have this interest, because I am not told which of their circles they added me to or why – and I should not see this. I appreciate the privacy this affords me when on the other side of the equation.
[Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes] After an initial welcome (and purchase!) I find myself having to curb my initial enthusiasm. Most of the omissions from the Starter Edition, as compared to the Professional and higher editions, make perfect sense and are in fact pretty much what I myself described as appropriate for a “Community Edition” some time ago (tho I still think that the attitude toward database access is from a bygone age – DBExpress should be included). Other omissions were a little questionable, and others downright bizarre. But I have now learned of a single, crucial omission (not advertised) that renders the entire “Starter” moniker meaningless: No RTL/VCL Source Code!
[Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes] The most important lesson I ever learned in this business… Be cautious or even suspicious when a specification/question is provided in the form of a request for a specific technical solution.
[Estimated Reading Time: < 1 minutes] Lars Fosdal responded to my previous post suggesting a way of implementing string support in a case-like construct (but not actually a case statement) using generics and anonymous methods. All very clever, but way, way too complicated and – if you don’t mind me saying so – as ugly as sin into the bargain (imho – ymmv). For simple cases [sic], it is actually relatively straightforward to uses strings in a case statement.
[Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes] Eric Grange (resurrector of the increasingly interesting looking DWS project) recently posted about a new idea he has had for the DWS engine, which in turn gave me an idea, or rather, prompted me to come up with what I think may be a new spin on an old one.
[Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes] As far as I can tell, as of Delphi 2010 at least it is impossible to deploy a DBExpress application without also deploying at least one dbxdrivers.ini. Furthermore, deciding where this ini file has to go is a minefield, and the DBExpress architecture smells very badly in this area.
