[thelist] IE / Excel / VB.Net / Word

[Luther, Ron]

Rob Smith noted:

>>Guys I appreciate you business side responses about how the money 
>>all works out, (driving this topic back on course) what technical 
>>strategies can we explore that will accomplish this goal: from 
>>excel/word -> more secure distributable solution?


Sorry Rob,

I disagree. This looks to be a 'business side' issue.  

[I have friends who have written and sold these "MS-Macro" 
thingie applications in the banking and automobile sales 
industries ... Their approach (and, I believe, the "correct" 
answer) ... was to treat this as a service or as a consulting 
contract ... Not as an application sale.  (They tried that - 
it didn't work. Too many irate service issues when customers 
upgrade software and/or buy new machines that the macros 
won't 'play nice' with.) This also allows additional revenue 
through 'customization' for each client and/or industry.  
It _is_ a better approach.]


Techie solution? 

Fine - Have him rewrite it as a stable standalone compiled 
executeable application in a "real" language that is 
independent of upgrades, changes, and modifications to 
software not under his direct control. 

Tick. Tick. Tick.  Is he done yet?

Poof!  It is now an 'application sale'.


Trying to help,

RonL.