Luigi Sandon wrote:

>> targets all platforms. The idea is that it should be possible to write 
> 
> That's the Holy Grail noone ever found - and noone will. Every attempt ended up in GUIs that look so-so or bad on every supported platform, or look alien on every platfom. There are still too many differences in widgets, underlying APIs and standards to use the same code, the amount of compromises needed is large enough to undermine the same meaning of "native" applications. And given the resources available at Embarcadero, I really wonder if they can even get close to the Grail.

I've been thinking about that issue a lot lately. For instance, I have 
been trying to standardize on Open Office for the past several years. 
There are lots of quirks that make me wonder if it was simply a bad 
design, or if the code was written to be x-plat. One example is that 
when I click on the shortcut (on Vista 64-bit Ultimate) for Writer, it 
opens hidden. I have to go hunt for it on my task bar, to make sure it 
opened, and bring it to the front. All other word processors/text 
editors open ready to use when I start the program.


That is only one example (there are others), and as stated, I'm not sure 
I can blame x-plat, I only suspect it.


Most x-plat programs I have used make me run screaming to pay money for 
something that feels more natural to use. The usability issue comes 
quickly to the fore. What's $100-200 for something that will save you 
5-10 minutes per day, plus reduce your anxiety/extend your life span?


I very much doubt that I will ever have ANY code that will cross compile 
on Windows and Mac (not ruling it entirely, however). The jury is still 
out whether I will actually create lite versions for the Mac. To me, 
that is much more intriguing than creating Linux versions. AFAIK, there 
is no product out there that allows me to use Pascal on Windows to 
create an application that runs on the Mac.


Loren sZendre