RB 5.2.4 ready for prime time?

Hi all. I have to build a moderately complex CRM application to run on both
Mac and Windows. Right now we are evaluating such tools that can do the
crossplatform work and come with little to no runtimes. What peaked my
intrest in RB is that it has a built-in database and the pro version will
compile to Windows and Mac OS X.

What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and crashing
periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB. Any truth to this before
I sink $450 into the Pro version?

Thanks

In article <LBKCb.40668$HH.13974@fe1.texas.rr.com>,
"Ed \"Buster\" Timms" <no@spam.com> wrote:

> Hi all. I have to build a moderately complex CRM application to run on both
> Mac and Windows. Right now we are evaluating such tools that can do the
> crossplatform work and come with little to no runtimes. What peaked my
> intrest in RB is that it has a built-in database and the pro version will
> compile to Windows and Mac OS X.
>
> What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and crashing
> periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB. Any truth to this before
> I sink $450 into the Pro version?
>
> Thanks

I dont use databases so I can't vouch for them but as for the rest
I've never found unexplained crashes. The IDE sometimes, yes (though not
more recent versions) but all crashes I've ever found turned out to be
my own work. Part of the problem IMHO is that RB is so easy to use that
you get lots of relatively inexperienced people making stuff then
wondering why it occasionally crashes - I bet its almost always their
fault. Just yesterday I had a really mysterious crash that took a long
time to find but sure enough the prob was my fault, not RB's.


Peter

I definitely second that. RB has been very solid and stable for me. I
think the whole time I've run it, the IDE has only crashed a couple
time at most. And, ever app that has crashed that I made, turned out
to be my own programming, not RBs. I think it's a very stable
language, which depends on the programmer, as do all languages.

Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.com> wrote:

> What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and crashing
> periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB.

If RB crashes and you have a Realdatabase open, the database file is
corrupted.

With RB 5.5 a new database format is coming which will fix that.

But a better idea is to use Valentina as a database in Realbasic as it's
much faster, much safer and it can do better SQL.

Mfg
Christian

--
Six thousand functions in one REALbasic plug-in. The MBS Plugin.
<http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/realbasic/plugins.html>

in article 1g5zd2p.1ytmh4ns4c2weN%support@monkeybreadsoftware .de, Christian
Schmitz at support@monkeybreadsoftware.de wrote on 12/14/03 5:27 PM:

> Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.com> wrote:
>
>> What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and crashing
>> periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB.
>
> If RB crashes and you have a Realdatabase open, the database file is
> corrupted.
>
> With RB 5.5 a new database format is coming which will fix that.
>
> But a better idea is to use Valentina as a database in Realbasic as it's
> much faster, much safer and it can do better SQL.


I second that idea. I dropped RealBasic database after I had to build my
database for the fourth time, because of a crash. Valentina is faster and
more stable.

If you are looking for a database server I would look at OpenBase. I moved
to that when I needed a database server instead of a built in database.

Steve


> Mfg
> Christian

"Christian Schmitz" <support@monkeybreadsoftware.de> wrote in message
news:1g5zd2p.1ytmh4ns4c2weN%support@monkeybreadsof tware.de...
> But a better idea is to use Valentina as a database in Realbasic as it's
> much faster, much safer and it can do better SQL.
>
> Mfg
> Christian


Does Valentina require DB drivers? I want to distribute the RB app easily,
so does that mean I need to install Valentina first on the end system?

Thanks.

Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.com> wrote:

> Does Valentina require DB drivers?

No.
It's a 2 MB plugin file which is included into your application.

Mfg
Chirstian

--
Six thousand functions in one REALbasic plug-in. The MBS Plugin.
<http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/realbasic/plugins.html>

RB is a fine tool on the Mac, but if you're going to do any developing on
Windows, make sure they've fixed the bug that makes the debugger blow
through breakpoints. I started on a big project for a client in Windows, but
I had to revert to the Mac for basic development. The Mac environment is
fine, but it's a big added burden when I want to test and debug things for
Windows. The Windows version was supposed to make it possible to debug on
Windows, but so far that hasn't worked for me. As soon as a project of mine
gets past a certain level of complexity (not sure what that is) the debugger
ceases to debug. You have to create your own ad hoc debugging system with
message boxes, the way you'd use alerts, say, in JavaScript. This is
painful, tedious, annoying in the extreme, and just plain not right.

Rob


"Ed "Buster" Timms" <no@spam.com> wrote in message
news:LBKCb.40668$HH.13974@fe1.texas.rr.com...
> Hi all. I have to build a moderately complex CRM application to run on
both
> Mac and Windows. Right now we are evaluating such tools that can do the
> crossplatform work and come with little to no runtimes. What peaked my
> intrest in RB is that it has a built-in database and the pro version will
> compile to Windows and Mac OS X.
>
> What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and
crashing
> periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB. Any truth to this
before
> I sink $450 into the Pro version?
>
> Thanks
>
>

Second that again. On Windows, the ide is real buggy. The built-in database
gets corrupted easily if the ide crashes.

"Christian Schmitz" <support@monkeybreadsoftware.de> wrote in message
news:1g5zd2p.1ytmh4ns4c2weN%support@monkeybreadsof tware.de...
> Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.com> wrote:
>
> > What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and
crashing
> > periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB.
>
> If RB crashes and you have a Realdatabase open, the database file is
> corrupted.
>
> With RB 5.5 a new database format is coming which will fix that.
>
> But a better idea is to use Valentina as a database in Realbasic as it's
> much faster, much safer and it can do better SQL.
>
> Mfg
> Christian
>
> --
> Six thousand functions in one REALbasic plug-in. The MBS Plugin.
> <http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/realbasic/plugins.html>

"Christian Schmitz" <support@monkeybreadsoftware.de> wrote in message
news:1g60ecw.zeq91m1dqsk1sN%support@monkeybreadsof tware.de...
> Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.com> wrote:
>
> > Does Valentina require DB drivers?
>
> No.
> It's a 2 MB plugin file which is included into your application.

One last question please. If it is a plug-in, than does that mean I can
just use RB Standard with Valentina vs. having to purchase Pro?

Thanks

Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.net> wrote:

> One last question please. If it is a plug-in, than does that mean I can
> just use RB Standard with Valentina vs. having to purchase Pro?

Yes. No need for RB Pro.

Mfg
Christian

--
Six thousand functions in one REALbasic plug-in. The MBS Plugin.
<http://www.monkeybreadsoftware.de/realbasic/plugins.html>

"Christian Schmitz" <support@monkeybreadsoftware.de> wrote in message
news:1g60w07.2akcehp0xdlmN%support@monkeybreadsoft ware.de...
> Ed "Buster" Timms <no@spam.net> wrote:
>
> > One last question please. If it is a plug-in, than does that mean I can
> > just use RB Standard with Valentina vs. having to purchase Pro?
>
> Yes. No need for RB Pro.


Thanks, you've been a great help!

"Ed \"Buster\" Timms" <no@spam.com> wrote in message news:<LBKCb.40668$HH.13974@fe1.texas.rr.com>...
> Hi all. I have to build a moderately complex CRM application to run on both
> Mac and Windows. Right now we are evaluating such tools that can do the
> crossplatform work and come with little to no runtimes. What peaked my
> intrest in RB is that it has a built-in database and the pro version will
> compile to Windows and Mac OS X.
>
> What bothers me is I've read a lot about RB apps being unstable and crashing
> periodically, as well as RB corrupting its own DB. Any truth to this before
> I sink $450 into the Pro version?
>
> Thanks


The database engine in v5 and earlier has had problems where the
database files would be corrupted if you crashed while one was open.
REALbasic v5.5 has an all new database engine that is very stable and
difficult to corrupt. It's also far more powerful than the old engine.
You can drop tables, drop columns and change column types. It supports
indices and has SELECT statement support that is 99% SQL 92 compliant.
It's a huge improvement over the database engine in v5 are earlier.
I'd give it a try.

Geoff Perlman
President and CEO
REAL Software, Inc.