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Web Code is a solved Problem: How about fixing Web UI next?

Apple has supported the "sms:" URL scheme on iOS for years now. Here's a site with a how-to from 2013.

Doesn't that kill one of the main advantages of .NET over platforms like Python, or even Java, which is the availability of the .NET runtime in every Windows box?

If you have to dispatch your version of the runtime with your app, it will be a major pain for the users, not only in download size (the 3.5 already weights almost 200MB), but also in security updates, etc.

Besides, the one of the mottos was that the domain code written for a desktop app could be easily used in a web app, in ASP.NET, because the languages and APIs are the same (except for particular cases like the interface). If forks start to appear, you may build you desktop app for NETRTM_XYC and then when you want to move it for a web server or mobile app you find out that that specific fork doesn't support those platforms, and now you have to basically go through all you app and rebuild it targeting another runtime.

Quicklaunch is disabled by default but you can display the QuickLaunch folder as a taskbar toolbar using very old features, which is almost identical.

http://www.paulspoerry.com/2009/08/07/enable-quick-launch-in-windows-7/
http://www.west-wind.com/Weblog/posts/866080.aspx

You will, however, lose the Windows key shortcuts, which go to the taskbar.

Your pinned items shouldn't slide around unless you specifically move them to the right, or specifically moved something else form its right to its left, or you just pinned them and then you start closing items to the left of them. Also, you can drag them around even before launching. If you have to wait until after launching, then it isn't pinned.

(all directions assuming you're on an LTR system with the taskbar at the bottom; apply your brain if you like vertical taskbars).

Service Pack 1 won't exactly make Vista more desirable as an OS; but it is a psychological landmark that says "we worked most of the bugs out and we're finally done with it". Businesses may bite; but I'm not 100% convinced that Vista is better than XP quite yet.

This SP full of patches still probably won't prevent people from deleting their Recycle Bin, end the UAC nazi tyranny and let admins do admin things with computers. Once MS figures-out a way to make Vista useful without all those annoyances and brick walls, then I may give it another look.

I know I'm going to -1 Flamebait hell for this; but if a Windows box has to be insecure in order to be useful, then so be it.

I've had a lot of success over the last 3 years developing in Visual FoxPro and West Wind Web Connection. I've created large web apps for everyone from Real Estate to Medical Clinics to Publishing. It allows me to have multiple apps running on the same server and scales very well. I've used my share of php/mysql, but this has been my dominate language for the last year or so.

Duh, Visual FoxPro of course. Where would Egghead.com be without it today?

here is what it looks like

I've been lobbying for a couple of months now for us to use a SQL/XML web based solution that does the same thing. It will lower our costs (one server and no software expenses - we could just use a browser as the interface).

Anybody have any ideas as to what might be better?

Yes - Visual FoxPro and Web Connection.

It's only for Windows, but if you use a browser as the interface, only the fileserver and webserver have to be Windows - the people accessing it can use any browser on any platform. This works out really well for our foreign clients, because there is no application to be installed anywhere. Their users just have to have a browser and an internet connection.

They can log in, enter orders, update information, view reports - all the pages are generated on-the-fly from the live database running at the client's office, served up by our Web Connection apps.

However, this is not for everyone - you definitely need to be a database programmer who understands stateless access, HTML, etc.

How about Visual FoxPro?

There's a great framework called WebConnection from West Wind Technologies. Except for the little dll (written in C++) that handles the interaction between the webserver and your app, the whole framework is written in FoxPro (and the source code is included).

It's written specifically for performance and stability. There's a very active support board, and features are constantly being added. The site has a lot of information and documentation, and a downloadable demo and sample code.

WebConnection has support for XML, DHTML, email, FTP, SQL and stored procedures, PDF generation, session management, client side apps with HTTP data transfer, remote COM calls, and on and on.

Sorry for the blantant ad plug here, but I work with this every day, and have for the last couple of years. It really works and it works well. The performance and reliability are great.

If you are working with databases and the web, (and you are a database programmer), you really need to check out it's features. Of course, as with any programming, you still have to write efficient code.

How about Visual FoxPro?

There's a great framework called WebConnection from West Wind Technologies. Except for the little dll (written in C++) that handles the interaction between the webserver and your app, the whole framework is written in FoxPro (and the source code is included).

It's written specifically for performance and stability. There's a very active support board, and features are constantly being added. The site has a lot of information and documentation, and a downloadable demo and sample code.

WebConnection has support for XML, DHTML, email, FTP, SQL and stored procedures, PDF generation, session management, client side apps with HTTP data transfer, remote COM calls, and on and on.

Sorry for the blantant ad plug here, but I work with this every day, and have for the last couple of years. It really works and it works well. The performance and reliability are great.

If you are working with databases and the web, (and you are a database programmer), you really need to check out it's features. Of course, as with any programming, you still have to write efficient code.

How about Visual FoxPro?

There's a great framework called WebConnection from West Wind Technologies. Except for the little dll (written in C++) that handles the interaction between the webserver and your app, the whole framework is written in FoxPro (and the source code is included).

It's written specifically for performance and stability. There's a very active support board, and features are constantly being added. The site has a lot of information and documentation, and a downloadable demo and sample code.

WebConnection has support for XML, DHTML, email, FTP, SQL and stored procedures, PDF generation, session management, client side apps with HTTP data transfer, remote COM calls, and on and on.

Sorry for the blantant ad plug here, but I work with this every day, and have for the last couple of years. It really works and it works well. The performance and reliability are great.

If you are working with databases and the web, (and you are a database programmer), you really need to check out it's features. Of course, as with any programming, you still have to write efficient code.

If you are going to do anything involving both Visual FoxPro and the internet, you should really check out Web Connection. It's a framework that allows you to create HTML pages on the fly directly from VFP code. It's really fast and the toolkit is highly scalable and very well supported.

Visual FoxPro doesn't get much press from Microsoft because they want to push SQL and seat licenses. But people who use it know that VFP is very fast and reliable. If you are going to mess with databases, you should be coding with a database language.

WebConnection runs Egghead's SurplusDirect site (among others), which gets up to 55,000 hits an hour during peak bidding times. VFP can handle it, as long as you're not writing crappy and inefficient code.

There is support for XML, MSMQ, COM, sending data using HTTP (with a VFP app on the client side), email generation, PDF doc creation, etc. You can also access other databases from within FoxPro using ODBC.

At work, I developed an e-commerce project that does all the online work for several clients that we support, all running from one base class, all coding done in FoxPro. One of the best things is that you can debug it just like a regular VFP app.

I'm not associated with this company but I have used the products and can tell you it's very powerful. The price is way cheap and a shareware version is available for downloading. Check it out. Note: This is for Windows only, but you are not tied to IIS.

If you are going to do anything involving both Visual FoxPro and the internet, you should really check out Web Connection. It's a framework that allows you to create HTML pages on the fly directly from VFP code. It's really fast and the toolkit is highly scalable and very well supported.

Visual FoxPro doesn't get much press from Microsoft because they want to push SQL and seat licenses. But people who use it know that VFP is very fast and reliable. If you are going to mess with databases, you should be coding with a database language.

WebConnection runs Egghead's SurplusDirect site (among others), which gets up to 55,000 hits an hour during peak bidding times. VFP can handle it, as long as you're not writing crappy and inefficient code.

There is support for XML, MSMQ, COM, sending data using HTTP (with a VFP app on the client side), email generation, PDF doc creation, etc. You can also access other databases from within FoxPro using ODBC.

At work, I developed an e-commerce project that does all the online work for several clients that we support, all running from one base class, all coding done in FoxPro. One of the best things is that you can debug it just like a regular VFP app.

I'm not associated with this company but I have used the products and can tell you it's very powerful. The price is way cheap and a shareware version is available for downloading. Check it out. Note: This is for Windows only, but you are not tied to IIS.