Help. I need to write some simple QuickBasic 4.5 programs for a project at work, but I need a licensed copy of the compiler and linker due to strict licensing rules at the company. I don't mind having to pay for it. What I need is some form of "proof of purchase".
Thanks.
*****
The only thing I can suggest is... try on eBay. I read somewhere about someone who tried to purchase it from Microsoft, and just couldn't. But you can try and email them, just for the sake of it.
Well, there's always
EMSPS.
Why use qb to write the programs for work?
I bought my legal version of QBv4.5, off e-bay a few years back.
(I think I payed 80$ for it.)
Cya.
Nemesis
I have a legal copy...purchaced in about 1990. The disks croaked in ~1996, and I wrote Microsoft and they sent me (gratis) new disks. However, I don't think I could give it to you without erasing all traces from my computer...which I'm not prepared to do. Can I help you in any way?
Nathan, Plasma, Nemesis: Thanks, I'll check out your suggestions.
Barok: Why use QB? Because I fully understand it and can whip out the required programs very quickly. Besides, the only other software development is done in ASP by outsourcing programmers. ASP is no good to me for a few standalone, PC-based programs.
Mango: Thanks for the offer, but I also doubt that you have the original license.
*****
Maybe in a future you could use freeBASIC for DOS.
And about QB and licensing... Are you a legitimate owner of QB 4.5? If so, you can produce EXE files and do with them whatever you want. The QB license guarantees your programs to be royalty free, so what's wrong if you code your stuff and compile it with your licensed QB 4.5? Or you need to license it for your business so more people in there can use it?
Nathan,
The problem is that I can't install my version of 4.5 in the office. That would constitute duplicating it and violating the license. This also means that when I'm done developing, I can't leave my 4.5 version at the office. Therefore, although I leave them the source, they won't be able to compile any changes they might need after I'm gone.
I see two solutions:
1) Compile at home and take the executables to work. If they need later changes, I will have to do them --- they might not be willing to do this.
2) Tell them that they have to purchase 4.5 for me to use at the office, which might be difficult to acquire.
What do you think?
The FreeBasic option is good, except we're still talking about a beta version which could cause problems. If you were IT management, would you allow a beta version of a development software for a project that you want to put in production in the next 2 months?
*****
Exactly my thoughts, that's why I said "in the future". Although fB is awesome taking in account the little amount of time it's been being developed, it's still a beta. I won't do any "professional" work with it yet. But this thing is evolving fast and maybe in some months we have the first stable, official version.
Meanwhile you could try to contact microsoft. Maybe you can purchase a license to install QB45 in your office, or something like that. Have you tried yet?
Another option is go for PowerBASIC. It is almost 99% compatible with QB if you take away graphics and game development stuff, it is faster and produces better code, and it is also easily "purchaseable" from its website:
http://www.powerbasic.com/products/pbdos/
Here you can check out the additions and the things that are different, improved, or just better:
http://www.powerbasic.com/support/technote/features.asp
Note that almost every QB command is compatible with PB. PB is some kind of "superset" of QB.