Transcript Slide 1

Visual DataFlex and Windows 8
Stephen W. Meeley
Development Team
Data Access Worldwide
www.dataaccess.com
The Room 111 View of Windows 8
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Visual DataFlex 17.1 will be officially supported on the various
Windows 8 platforms (but not Windows RT)
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No, older revisions of Visual DataFlex are not officially supported,
but the word on the street is that they “mostly work”
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As long as you don’t use WinPrint
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No, you can’t just copy the WinPrint from 17.1 and use it with
older revisions
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Questions?
The Kübler-Ross View of Windows 8
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Shock or Disbelief *
Denial
Anger
Bargaining
Guilt *
Depression
Acceptance and Hope
Windows 8
• What are we really talking about here?
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Windows 8? Windows RT?
Touch (Windows and/or Web)?
Tablets?
Surface? (Pro and/or RT)
Metro, er, Windows Store, er, excuse me, Modern UI apps?
Apple envy?
Internet Explorer 10 (Modern UI and/or Desktop)?
“Just” running Visual DataFlex on Windows 8?
Editions
• Windows 8
• Windows 8 Enterprise adds
• Windows 8 Pro adds
• Windows RT
– Install on any PC
– Runs Windows Store apps
and Desktop apps
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BitLocker (data protection)
Host RDC
Domain join (networks)
Hyper-V
Virtual Hard Disk Boot
– Features for corporate IT
support
– Windows To Go
– Only pre-installed
– Only Windows Store apps
Interesting things about Windows 8
• The split-interface is a double-edged sword
• Live Syncing (using Microsoft Account and not Local
Account)
• Search
• Task Manager
• Faster booting
• Windows To Go
• Pausing file transfers
• Windows key combination – especially Windows+Print
Screen (saves directly to Pictures folder)
Loves the screen…
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But is still very infatuated with the keyboard!
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Windows Key + C: Displays Charms menu.
Windows Key + X: Brings up a menu of advanced system options,
including Windows Control Panel, Command Prompt, Task Manager and File
Explorer.
Windows Key + I: Displays the Settings menu for the current app.
Windows Key + Q: Brings up the apps search menu that allows you to
search your list of installed programs.
Windows Key + D: Activates desktop mode.
Windows Key + Tab: Brings up the Task Switcher and toggles between
Windows 8-style apps.
Windows Key + H: Brings up Share menu for the current app.
Windows Key + M: Opens desktop mode and minimizes all windows.
Loves the screen…
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But is still very infatuated with the keyboard!
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Windows Key + W: Opens universal search menu and sets it to search
settings.
Windows Key + F: Opens universal search menu and sets it to search files.
Windows Key + R: Opens Run menu where you can launch programs by typing
in their executable file names.
Windows Key + E: Opens File Explorer to the “My Computer” view which shows
all your drives.
Windows Key +Number Key (1-9): Switch to desktop mode and make the
Nth application on the task bar active where N is the number key you hit and 1 is
the furthest taskbar icon to the left.
Windows Key + . (period key): Docks the current Windows 8-style application
to the right or left, depending on how many times you hit it.
Windows Key + Z: Brings up app menu, which shows contextual options for the
active app.
Windows 8 Market Share
• Growing, but at a very slow pace
• Still running in 4th place (behind Windows 7, XP
and Vista) at 3.17%
• NetMarketShare
What about Visual DataFlex?
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Visual DataFlex 17.1 adds official support for Windows 8
Prior versions have known problems with WinPrint
The Modern UI version of Internet Explorer 10 provides a “plug-in-free
browsing experience”
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Touch can be funky in Windows applications (but that’s not specific to
Windows 8)
Touch has issues in Web applications
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Translation = no PDF support
But it will switch to the Desktop version if you have a plug-in installed
Eg. Menus are “hover”, not “click” so they don’t stay open
We’ll be addressing these, but not necessarily in 17.1
We’ll be adding an option to reduce the number of Start Menu items
Tidbits
• Check out Stardoc Corporation
 Start 8
 ModernMix
• Check application compatibility
 Even Microsoft
• Hot Corners are kinda important and they don’t work well
when running Windows 8 in virtual machines
 This can be very frustrating if you didn’t know this and thought
you just didn’t “get it”
• Not all updates can be “in-place”
It’s a learning experience…
• Give yourself time to play
• Personally, I’m still at stage four