I still use VB6 for the development of three commercial applications, and several "in-house" utilities. I'm not a full-time developer, and have to be involved in many aspects of the business, I prefer to stick with what I know and feel comfortable with, instead of spending a lot of time to learn a new language. VB6 still does the job, and even if there is an "old-fashioned" toolbar instead of a flash ribbon, the majority of my clients are happy with the KISS approach.

The primary commercial app allows the user to replicate an in-store environment, visualizing products on shelves, a so-called planogram. This can be schematic, using colored blocks, or using actual product images, as in the attached screenshot. The software shows a simplified "flat front view", but actually calculates the whole setting in 3D. Beyond the visualization, there is a statistical module, that takes historical sales data, trend information, and combines that with a basic modelling of supply (logistics) and demand (consumers) to predict the performance of the shelf layout. Various analytical features allow the user to optimize the layout for inventory levels, financial results, etc.

Attachment 180222

As some of you have seen from recent posts, I'm currently improving the Unicode support, which comes with some challenges.