It is late spring and that means one thing around Geek Gatherings LLC, time to get the registration opened for the Southwest Fox and Southwest Xbase++ 2015 conferences. Super-Saver Registration, which saves you $125, is available only through June 30th, so don’t wait.
As Doug, Tamar and I have explained before, putting on a conference is a risky endeavor. Conference centers require a guaranteed minimum income to block the dates of a conference; for a conference like Southwest Fox and Southwest Xbase++, that minimum is in the tens of thousands of dollars. We have to confirm our commitment to the conference center by July 2nd and need your support by July 1st to make that commitment.
We won’t be charging credit cards or deposit checks until some time after we make the “go” decision. So there is no reason to hesitate to get registered immediately.
In addition, as we recently said, if Southwest Fox Super-Saver registration is strong enough, we’ll add some speakers and topics.
Here is what you can expect from Southwest Fox and Southwest Xbase++:
- Two simultaneous conferences for the price of one.
- Terrific selection of sessions from great presenters.
- A total of 25 regular conference topics between the two conferences, 5 pre-conference sessions to choose from, and a keynote to pack your days with learning opportunities and inspiration.
- White papers from every session (mandated by the organizers) so you can read about sessions you can’t fit into your schedule, or review material you saw at the conference when you return home.
- Lunch Thursday if you register for two pre-conference sessions. (You can also purchase lunch Thursday at our cost.)
- Lunch Friday and Saturday for all attendees.
- Dinner Friday night.
- A free pre-conference session if you register by June 30th.
Only 136 days until we gather in Gilbert! I hope to see everyone there.
Geek Gatherings LLC posted the speakers and the sessions they are assembling for your learning pleasure this October. Head over to Speakers, Southwest Fox sessions and Southwest Xbase++ sessions for all the details. A terrific line up of top notch presenters and some outstanding topics. Registration will open June 1st with the same prices as last year. We are meeting at the same conference center and hotel as last year too.
I am giving my usual and timely updated VFPX.Edition(“2015″) session and a brand new productivity session called Your Developer Life Improved By Thor, which I am very psyched about.
White Light Computing is a Platinum Sponsor again, our 12th straight sponsorship of Southwest Fox. White Light Computing is also doing two $150 scholarships to two lucky attendees that register before the July 1st deadline (get the Super-Saver rate for sure).
There are ways to help promote the conference, and please send any testimonials you might take time to write to: info [AT] geekgatherings.com. Please get the word out at your office, at user groups, on the various community forums, and any other place developers get together. We appreciate all the help and support you can offer.
Already looking forward to the conference this year as there are some terrific offerings and fun planned. Only 161 days until we gather in Gilbert.
Back in March of 2008 I wrote a white paper to help Visual FoxPro developers install Visual FoxPro 9 Release to Manufacturing (RTM), Service Pack 1 (SP1), and Service Pack 2 (SP2) all on the same computer. At the time I hoped the readers found the information presented in the white paper a useful guide in getting the different versions of Visual FoxPro 9 installed and working on their development machine. The main reason I wrote it was to encourage developers who were hesitant to install Visual FoxPro 9 Service Pack 2 to get it installed and begin the testing process with their apps. The reputation of VFP 9 SP2 was not all that positive as there were some bugs that made it challenging when released.
Over the years I have updated the white paper to include the VFP 9 SP2 hotfixes, the Fox Community supported VFP 9 Help file on VFPX, highlight some issues with the Virtual Store when upgrading VFP 9 to the latest Service packs, and corrected some bad Web links along the way. Several people have contributed feedback and suggestions along the way.
In the past few months I have talked with several developers who are still running the original VFP 9 SP2 release, building apps, and deploying them without the VFP 9 SP2 hotfixes. I wanted to refer them to the white paper on the White Light Computing Web site, but I knew recently that the white paper became inaccurate. So I took some time this evening to update it and get it posted.
The reason for the update is that the VFP 9 SP2 hotfix downloads hosted on Microsoft’s Code Gallery Web site disappeared when Microsoft killed the Web site. All the hosted files were removed. The Fox Community jumped into action as soon as this became known and started a new project on VFPX to host this very important VFP 9 SP2 Hotfix download. Additionally, I reviewed the entire white paper, added download information for the VFP 9 Reporting Applications (also a VFPX project) to fix some user interface nits and an important hi-resolution monitor bug fix, fixed a couple bad links, and updated some figures and folder names to make it more current from the original writing in 2008. I also adding some marketing materials for the books I have written over the last 15 years.
This white paper has become more than a guide to set up different folders for the different VFP 9 versions. It also is current documentation on where to find all the core Visual FoxPro 9 download files.
I certainly hope some of you have found this white paper useful over the years (hard to believe it has been 7 years since I originally wrote it). If you have not had a chance to get the latest hotfixes for VFP 9, make sure you follow the links in this blog and go get them installed. I personally have seen the nasty reporting bug fixed in this build. With this bug fixed and all the improvements from VFPX over the years, I find VFP 9 SP2 very reliable and stable.
Southwest FoxFebruary 19th, 2015Rick Schummer
The call has gone out!
We’re inviting anyone interesting in speaking at this year’s conferences to submit topics. You’ll find the Call for Speakers at http://www.swfox.net/callforspeakers.aspx. Please read the complete Call for Speakers document (linked from that page), and use our proposal submission application at https://geekgatherings.com/Submission. Session proposals are due by March 9. (Yes, this is earlier than in prior years. We have some publicity plans that require us to have a little more lead time than in the past.)
As in the past few years, we plan to offer a good selection of topics in core VFP development, extending VFP, using VFP with other technologies, and VFPX, as well as technology sessions to help VFP developers become better developers, not just more expert at VFP. We are looking for a few sessions on paths forward for VFP developers and we’re looking for a few deep-dive post-conference sessions. The Call for Speakers also lists some topics last year’s attendees specifically requested.
Please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions. We’re looking forward to seeing your proposals. We expect that, as usual, choosing among them will be one of the hardest things we do all year.
And don’t forget, we will be opening registration in mid-May.
White Light Computing is a sponsor again, our 12th straight year.
Only 238 days until we gather in Gilbert.
Visual FoxProJanuary 4th, 2015Rick Schummer
I see this question pop up on the forums from time-to-time and get personal emails asking: where can I get a license to Visual FoxPro 9??
Most answers point developers to look on Ebay or check CDW, but the fact is Microsoft is not selling them anymore. If you have an MSDN license you also might have a license to Visual FoxPro. Short of that, legal copies are harder to uncover these days.
Good news and bad news. First the good news, the German FoxPro User Group still has a license to sell copies of Visual FoxPro 9 with their Visual Extend framework. The bad news is that license expires on January 12, 2015 (8 days from now!). So, if you still need licenses for Visual FoxPro, it may be a good idea to grab as many as you think you might need in case you need them in the future.
See Rainer’s post for all the details.
UncategorizedSeptember 10th, 2014Rick Schummer
Alaska Software is offering special discounts on Xbase++ 2.0 for Southwest Fox and Southwest Xbase++ 2014 attendees, as follows:
- Xbase++ 2.0 is available and shipping September 30, 2014.
- Prerequisite for this offer is registration to Southwest Xbase++ or Southwest Fox conference 2014.
- Get a 30% discount for all new customers purchasing Foundation Edition 2.0 (regular price USD $1,199) or Professional Edition 2.0 (regular price USD $1,999).
- Get an additional 10% Competitive Upgrade, if you provide proof of purchase of VFP 9 or Clipper.
- All attending Southwest Xbase++ who have a subscription (purchased in last 12 months) get 3 months extension for their current subscription.
How does this offer work? Simple: you contact Alaska Software at their booth during the conference, place your order, and get the boxed Xbase++ 2.0 DVD on the spot. This is also true for the active Xbase++ users who stop in at the Alaska Software booth.
Regardless of which edition of Xbase++ 2.0 you purchase, your savings goes a long way towards paying for the conference ticket.
Geek Gatherings wants to make Alaska’s offer even more attractive, so we’re extending our early-bird pricing for Southwest Fox/Xbase++ right up until Xbase++ 2.0’s September 30 ship date. Register for either conference before midnight September 30 and get a $50 discount; pay only $745.
UncategorizedAugust 28th, 2014Rick Schummer
So does Xbase++ 2.0!
We have some very exciting news as we approach the early-bird registration deadline this Sunday, August 31st.
Alaska plans to ship Xbase++ 2.0 in September, so this will be the first conference where developers can learn all about the newly released Xbase++ v2.0. In addition, Alaska has deep discounts to offer conference attendees whether you’re upgrading from a prior version of Xbase++ or doing a competitive upgrade from Visual FoxPro or Clipper. So whether you are coming from an Xbase++, Clipper, or Visual FoxPro background, Alaska has a product you can learn about at the conference, buy at the conference, and start using immediately when you get home!
Southwest Fox and Southwest Xbase++ is the place to be in October. Please sign up now to get the conferences’ $50 early-bird discount (http://geekgatherings.com/registration), which expires on September 1st. More details on the Xbase++ discounts coming soon.
Every registered attendee gets admission and white papers to all regular conference sessions. Don’t miss this chance to learn from the best and mix with your peers.
Southwest FoxJuly 29th, 2014Rick Schummer
Listen to Andrew MacNeill interview myself with Tamar Granor and Doug Hennig about Southwest Fox/Xbase++ 2014 on the FoxShow #79. If you haven’t registered yet, be sure to listen for a special offer in the show.
