Re: When will MS Stop supporting VB?

Tech-Archive recommends: Repair Windows Errors & Optimize Windows Performance

From: Jim Carlock (anonymous_at_127.0.0.1)
Date: 09/03/04 

Date: Fri, 3 Sep 2004 18:59:43 -0400

Just adding something... I think you're probably aware of
it but it fits in with the discussion and probably shouldn't
be left out.

If an app runs on NT4 it should run on Win2K. The big
difference between NT and Win9x is the hardware layer.
What was taken out of NT was the ability to directly
manipulate/program the hardware. It's called the HAL
("Hardware Abstraction Layer").

Unless you're writing/programming device drivers the
HAL gets in the way. Thus, you'd have to use some API
to communicate through the HAL to the hardware on an
NT based system.

I'm not 100% sure how device drivers operate through
the HAL or exactly how it works, but I know I'm fairly
close. The HAL represents a list of commands that can
be sent to the hardware, and a list of responses the hw
is allowed to provide back.

One example that I can provide, goes back to 1996. I tried
to update the BIOS on an NT system via the DOS prompt
inside of NT and the system blue-screened. I ended up having
to reboot the system with a DOS disk and do the BIOS update
in that manner. Windows NT 4.0 didn't handle it too well. <g>

I guess most games these days do not do any kind of direct
access with the hardware, all must rely upon the Windows
API, DirectX and such.

DOS console apps on the other hand seem to rely upon
DOS Interrupts (the DOS API ?). 

-- 
Jim Carlock
http://www.microcosmotalk.com/
Post replies to the newsgroup.
"MikeD" wrote:
"Rick Rothstein" wrote:
> > The question for me is: Will executables written in VB 6.0
> > even RUN on future versions of Windows?
>
> While there can't be any guarantees, they should. Consider that, within
> the business world, millions of VB programs have been written to support
> various operations in thousands upon thousands of companies. Microsoft
> needs to sell any new Windows operating systems to these businesses and
> I would be willing to bet most of them would be quite unhappy to find
> programs that make their companies operational suddenly stop working. If
> VB programs were not supported on some future Windows operating system,
> these companies would be faced with two decisions... adopt the new
> operating system and waste money and manpower rewriting all of their
> home-brewed applications no matter how long that would take OR simply
> stick with the current operating system where everything works. My guess
> is these companies would not adopt the new version of Windows... and I
> think Microsoft realizes this. So, to repeat, while there can't be any
> guarantees, current VB programs should continue to work on future
> versions of Windows for sometime to come (but let's be realistic, not
> forever).
Also, keep in mind that DOS apps still run under WinXP. Now I can't vouch
for how well they still work under WinXP, but I've got a number of DOS apps
(even some old games) that work fine (or nearly fine) under Win2000 (if you
boot to a command prompt, load the necessary DOS drivers for sound and
whatnot, and do some other things; yes, it's a hassle, not easy to do, and
even hardware plays a factor, but it's doable).  If MS is still supporting
DOS apps to any extent at all, VB apps (which are true Windows apps) should
continue to run under Windows for quite some time. You wouldn't even have to
go all the way back to DOS apps.  Win3.x apps still run fairly well, for the
most part, under recent versions of Windows.
As Rick said, considering the number of computers in the world, the number
of apps written for those computer, the fact that many of these programs are
still DOS and Win3.x, VB6 programs being 32 bit apps, should run under
Windows for quite a few years to come.  You're just not going to get any
support from MS for running them after a couple more years. 2008? Isn't that
when virtually all support from MS for VB6 is "officially" over and done
with?  Even that's somewhat misleading.  You can still get help for VB-DOS,
BASIC 7.1, etc. from KB articles, newsgroups, and a few other sources.
Mike

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