Getting the ball rolling. Which VB6 projects are you working on?

[VanGoghGaming]

Also, for reasons I don't understand, they're all bothered that there's not a 64-bit version.

That is because 64 is TWICE as good as 32, isn't it? It's your own fault you told them too much information that they didn't need to know! You should've said that you are able to produce applications written in Native Code designed to run on WoW64 (Windows on Windows 64). That would've blown them away!

[yereverluvinuncleber]

I always liked 8 bit computers and their programs, by the above calculation they are only a quarter as good as a 32bit VB6 program. I'd be happy with that if it were true. This seems to imply thomething thimilar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPmiC_Zt88I



With that in mind I am thinking about resuming my course in 8bit Z80 assembler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J4ahkWtNYw

[Elroy]

That is because 64 is TWICE as good as 32, isn't it? It's your own fault you told them too much information that they didn't need to know! You should've said that you are able to produce applications written in Native Code designed to run on WoW64 (Windows on Windows 64). That would've blown them away!

hahaha, well, I didn't tell them. It's been several years now, but I don't remember what all the hubbub was initially about.

[SearchingDataOnly]

We hated your bragging but never willing to release your Grid control. I am afraid it is copycat.

You're right. My Spread is a 100% copycat, it's a complete copycat of FarPoint-Spread (fpSpread8).

I used fpSpread for many years and purchased licenses for fpSpread. But fpSpread was no longer updated after FarPoint was acquired by GrapeCity, and GrapeCity focused more on another spread, ComponentOne-Spread(ComponentOne-Suits), which was also acquired by GrapeCity from another company, so I used pure VB6 copycat a 100% fpSpread8-compatible spread, except that the performance and capacity can only reach 80% of fpSpread8, other properties and features are exactly the same as fpSpread8.

My spread is indeed a copycat, but my spread is only used internally, so I don't think I'm infringing intellectual property rights.

Bragging is one of my hobbies and it brings me joy. I just don't understand why my bragging in this virtual world hurts a lot of people.

[baka]

when I tell people Im coding in VB6 they either:
- dont know anything about languages, so they just say: ok.
- they know some, and they are not impressed. they think its crap. VB is bad. they assume the best is c++ or any of the latest 3D-engines such as unreal.

I also, sometimes feel a bit "ashamed" to reveal the engine. I rather want to show the product.
and if so, they don't understand when I say, this is made in VB6.

one dude that is a "programmer" himself, told me he did use it 20 years ago. so he didnt understand how I could use it to create games.

this is not 1999 anymore. but I think people still think we are.
it all depends what your end goal is. a AAA game in 3D thats for sure u need the latest engine and the best coding language.
maybe the best 3D-cad/graphical tool/real time movie-editor, or something that need fast and lost of memory, sure, VB6 is not the language to use.
but everything else VB6 can handle quite well. a 2D game as well.

TwinBasic, when done, I think it will boost Basic to be close to c#/.net and even c++
but surely it will not compete with AAA games and something really heavy. why? because it need first to enter those companies and they will not accept TwinBasic. smaller company I think it could, and if we give good PR it will spread.
I will give it for my game. dont know the count, but 100k+ people have downloaded it so far, so a bit of spreading around when I compile it in TB.

[SearchingDataOnly]

That is because 64 is TWICE as good as 32, isn't it? It's your own fault you told them too much information that they didn't need to know! You should've said that you are able to produce applications written in Native Code designed to run on WoW64 (Windows on Windows 64). That would've blown them away!

hahaha, well, I didn't tell them. It's been several years now, but I don't remember what all the hubbub was initially about.

Some time ago, the retired commander of the Taiwan Air Force said on a TV program in Taiwan: Taiwan's anti-aircraft missiles have a hit rate of 70%, and if three salvos are fired, they can reach a hit rate of 210%, which is enough to intercept all missiles from the Chinese mainland. The host and other interviewees on the TV show were very satisfied.

[SearchingDataOnly]

If you have time prepare a VB6 code to do this:

// modern style, using high order functions
module generic_iterator {
    do_while = lambda (f, p)->{
        {
            if p(f()) then loop
        }
    }
    funcA=lambda (start_from, do_what) -> {
        =lambda i=start_from, do_what ->{
            call do_what(i)
            =i        
            i++
        }
    }
    funcPrint=lambda ->{
        print number
    }
    call do_while(funcA(1, funcPrint), lambda->number mod 6 <>0)
}
 generic_iterator 

These things I do with M2000, but I would like to see the same at the new Twin Basic/ Rad Basic/ Olaf's Basic.
See all the code for the Rosetta task here:

https://rosettacode.org/wiki/Loops/D...00_Interpreter

Also can run old style BASIC like this:

module Old_Style {
    10 REM Loops/Do-while
    20 LET I=0
    30 LET I=I+1
    40 PRINT I    
    50 IF INT(I/6)*6 <> I THEN 30
    60 END
}
Old_Style 

This language is a tool for testing algorithms for education, and has many programming paradigms, like functional style, and an environment with editor with syntax highlight, console with graphics, user defined Forms, and can connect with external dll, and ActiveX objects, also can use external controls for user forms.
The difference with forms in M2000 is that we make them by code, and in one module we may have several forms, including arrays of forms (and arrays of controls on forms if we like). This is like RC5/6 style, but with the exception of handling events, which we make static functions to serve events.

I am working on Version 12, revision 4, which change a lot the language (in code, but old m2000 code run as is). In this version I use the class RefArray which I introduce here, so this can be used (see the as integer):

dim alfa(-1 to 5, -10 to 10) as integer=100
? alfa(2,2)=100
alfa(2,2)++
? alfa(2,2)=101 

the alfa() array is a mArray class which have a ActualData variant, which can be either an array when used with no type same using as variant, or an object RefArray when we use type (we can use types boolean, integer, long, long long, double, single, currency, decimal, string, object).

So the ++ operator works either with one or other type and the good news for me was that I didn't have to alter the code for that, the same code works for ActualData as object and as Variant Array. Because the refArray has Default properties, with Optional arguments. So VB6 can use the parameter entry list according to what type ActualData is at Run Time. I don't now if that can be done with the Twin Basic and others.

Especially for string, I had to improve Interpreter to accept strings without the $ at the end. So now we can make string like this: s="alfa" or string s="alfa" or variant s="alfa" (variant can change types, but if we don't use it, variables can't change type in M2000, after first assign, or using type information at creation).

So today or tomorrow I put the revision 4 in git, stay tuned.

Excellent job, thank you, georgekar.

[OptionBase1]

Some time ago, the retired commander of the Taiwan Air Force said on a TV program in Taiwan: Taiwan's anti-aircraft missiles have a hit rate of 70%, and if three salvos are fired, they can reach a hit rate of 210%, which is enough to intercept all missiles from the Chinese mainland. The host and other interviewees on the TV show were very satisfied.

The reaction would be much the same here in the USA, unfortunately. High school math requirements are being slashed, advanced math is said to be "racist" by some. The opposite is true, of course. I can't think of any other area of study that has had more contributions from every race and ethnicity over many centuries than the umbrella of mathematics.

Edit to add: Firing 3 missiles that individually have a 70% hit rate at a single target would collectively have a 97.3% "at least 1 hit" hit rate, by my 1990's public high school math education calculations.

[SearchingDataOnly]

The reaction would be much the same here in the USA, unfortunately. High school math requirements are being slashed, advanced math is said to be "racist" by some. The opposite is true, of course. I can't think of any other area of study that has had more contributions from every race and ethnicity over many centuries than the umbrella of mathematics.

In advanced math, the West had made more contributions than any other people, which is a great contribution to all mankind.

[Schmidt]

Firing 3 missiles that individually have a 70% hit rate at a single target
would collectively have a 97.3% "at least 1 hit" hit rate...

Yep, the survival-rate would be 27 per-mille, according to my immediate-window:
?(1-0.7)^3

Olaf

[SearchingDataOnly]

I'm ashamed that although I got a high score in advanced mathematics, they have disappeared from my brain, so I can only estimate the hit rate using the method of elementary school students:

?0.7 + (1-0.7) * 0.7 + (1 - 0.7 - (1-0.7) * 0.7) * 0.7

Actually, I just verbally calculated the hit rate of 3 volleys greater than 0.7 + (1-0.7) * 0.7

Now I can only design my scripting language and IDE with the IQ of elementary school students.

[jpbro]

Well I'm ashamed to admit that I missed one "L" in @Schmidt's calculation, and spent a couple minutes trying to figure out how he calculated that 27 aircraft per mile would survive 3 salvos "Where the heck did @SearchingDataOnly mention how many aircraft were fired against?". Time for bed I guess

[SearchingDataOnly]

Have a wonderful night's sleep, jpbro.

[georgekar]

I love the way of a true VB6 programmer how to do calculation...through " immediate-window". There is no calculator better than this...

[georgekar]

https://github.com/M2000Interpreter/.../tag/Ver12Rev5

This is the Version 12, of M2000. I use the refArray class, to make types of arrays (previous versions have Variant type). Now there is overflow error for the new type of array. Read the info on the release. I have to write the new manual...(for two languages).
GK

[Phill.W]

... I can't really tell you why at all, but my primary client is totally freaked out that my software isn't written in a language that's still under active support by Microsoft.

Elroy,

"Business Continuity" or any Risk of its failure is really, really important to Business People.
Having a company that is "solid" and "dependable" (Hah!) to whom they can run if and when it Hits the Fan, gives them a Warm and Fuzzy Feeling of security.

Consider this: There is absolutely nothing to stop Our Friends in Redmond from putting out some Security Patch or whatever tomorrow that completely deep-sixed VB6.
It's not even on their "radar" of things to think about not breaking any more and hasn't been for two decades, now.
OK, it hasn't happened yet, but if it did, many companies would lose huge swathes of their software base. For a while, they might be able to "pull" that particular update but, eventually, things like CyberEssentials will be kicking down the door demanding that things get patched up properly (or those companies won't be allowed to bid on such and such Business opportunities) and, at that point, hard cash would win out and VB6 would finally go to the wall.

The only Good News in all that would be the sudden, huge demand for Developers who still know VB6 and can re-write it into "Latest-and-Greatest-Thing .Net". Does anybody else remember the heady days of the late Nineties, rapidly hacking COBOL code to make it "Y2K-compliant"?

Regards, Phill W.

[-Corso->]

Don't know what tiff is going on above, but settle children, settle.
Anyway, because the VB forum won't let me upload pictures anymore, I put a big demo/picture description on Reddit RoguelikeDev section in case anyone wants to see the VB6 + Cairo images for the Traditional Roguelike game being made.
And much to the dismay of yereverluvinuncleber, it's FULL of Monstergirls.

And, yes, just like Reddit is fundamentally cancer, I'm already being downvoted. AMAZING!

https://www.reddit.com/r/roguelikede...nstergirl_trl/

[szlamany]

Does anybody else remember the heady days of the late Nineties, rapidly hacking COBOL code to make it "Y2K-compliant"?

Regards, Phill W.

Oh yes - those were some seriously lucrative times! I saved a local "international manufacturer" over $100,000 in developer fees that they had earmarked for some company in Ireland to hand fix tons of COBOL code. I wrote a little "text update" program on a VAX on the network, that would suck in the COBOL source and output source with a boilerplate fix applied. Review each fix location by eye, pass the source along to be compiled and done... Automation reduces errors - win, win. Those were good times!

"Business Continuity" or any Risk of its failure is really, really important to Business People.
Having a company that is "solid" and "dependable" (Hah!) to whom they can run if and when it Hits the Fan, gives them a Warm and Fuzzy Feeling of security.

This is 100% true and unavoidable. For example, if you want to be HIPAA compliant, using code based on unsupported architecture is going to get you no where in the business world.

You become a risk for your clients - for insurance purposes, network protection - the list if ever growing.

[SomeYguy]

Elroy,

"Business Continuity" or any Risk of its failure is really, really important to Business People.
Having a company that is "solid" and "dependable" (Hah!) to whom they can run if and when it Hits the Fan, gives them a Warm and Fuzzy Feeling of security.

Consider this: There is absolutely nothing to stop Our Friends in Redmond from putting out some Security Patch or whatever tomorrow that completely deep-sixed VB6.
It's not even on their "radar" of things to think about not breaking any more and hasn't been for two decades, now.
OK, it hasn't happened yet, but if it did, many companies would lose huge swathes of their software base. For a while, they might be able to "pull" that particular update but, eventually, things like CyberEssentials will be kicking down the door demanding that things get patched up properly (or those companies won't be allowed to bid on such and such Business opportunities) and, at that point, hard cash would win out and VB6 would finally go to the wall.

The only Good News in all that would be the sudden, huge demand for Developers who still know VB6 and can re-write it into "Latest-and-Greatest-Thing .Net". Does anybody else remember the heady days of the late Nineties, rapidly hacking COBOL code to make it "Y2K-compliant"?

Regards, Phill W.

And there would likely be a HUGE protest from many organizations along with a move to earlier operating system versions for those who could get by with that. It really isn't much effort for Microsoft to continue to support the core VB6 runtime and they would be shooting themselves in the foot even now by breaking it. And there are still many who HATE so-called managed code and wnt nothing to do with it due to the JIT compiler, bloated framework, ease of decompiling, etc.....

[PlausiblyDamp]

And there would likely be a HUGE protest from many organizations along with a move to earlier operating system versions for those who could get by with that.

That potentially makes the problem not just an unsupported application environment but now an unsupported application environment on an unsupported OS - this could simply be against the rules if you require certain forms of accreditation regarding security etc.

Running an unsupported OS is rarely a good move these days, the lack of security updates alone can make this a problem for any system connected to the internet.

It really isn't much effort for Microsoft to continue to support the core VB6 runtime and they would be shooting themselves in the foot even now by breaking it.

For anyone outside of Microsoft's OS division we are only guessing at how hard or not supporting the VB6 runtime on a modern OS is, obviously it is currently considered worth the effort as they are still supporting it. Sooner or later though they may need to remove legacy functionality from the OS that the VB6 runtime depends on... 32bit support will eventually go away... There is a finite lifetime for all things in IT and any tool or language we use will eventually stop being supported.

[baka]

yeah. its a problem.
theres no 16bit emulator, instead we need to run it using a virtual machine.
but a 32bit windows can run 16bit applications. and a 64bit windows can run 32bit
when we get 128bit (or whatever next) maybe 32bit will be out or reach.
so until than it will not be a problem to run 32bit.
and the problems will just be some old ocx/dll that are not updated and obsolete.

I have answered this many times in the past.
when VB6 stop working, it will be the day, all 32bit will stop working. and that include everything made in 32bit. all the tools we have, theres TONS of that. its nothing microsoft just want to stop supporting.

I hope by than, TB will be up and running for everybody where we can just update our projects to use 64bit.

[Niya]

I don't think we will see mass adoption of 128 bit processors in our lifetimes, if ever. This is one of these things where you have ever diminishing returns. Moving from 16 bit to 32 bit is far more drastic than moving from 64 bit to 128 bits. I don't think we're anywhere close to exhausting the limits of what a 64 bit processor offers so it will be a while before humanity is thinking about going to 128 bits.

[baka]

yeah. I feel like u Niya. its quite unlikely we move to 128bit soon.
gpu is another thing, so they will just care to increase gpu in the near future further away. are theres limits for gpu as well?
for cpu 64bit is good enough.
hardware advancement is not just bits. its how small they can make the microchips.
new cables, optimizing the voltages, smaller components needs less energy to work,
so its a balance, while the bits its just the addresses. how wide do we really need it to be?

[fafalone]

Soon? Of course not... but in the lifetime of people alive today? I think any prediction of technology 50+ years out runs a big risk of seeming as naive as the ones from 50 years ago.

[Niya]

yeah. I feel like u Niya. its quite unlikely we move to 128bit soon.
gpu is another thing, so they will just care to increase gpu in the near future further away. are theres limits for gpu as well?
for cpu 64bit is good enough.
hardware advancement is not just bits. its how small they can make the microchips.
new cables, optimizing the voltages, smaller components needs less energy to work,
so its a balance, while the bits its just the addresses. how wide do we really need it to be?

Yea, exactly. Also, I get the feeling it's more likely some of the fundamentals of computing will change long before we mass-adopt 128 bit processors. Think quantum computing.

Soon? Of course not... but in the lifetime of people alive today? I think any prediction of technology 50+ years out runs a big risk of seeming as naive as the ones from 50 years ago.

But it is fun to wonder is it not...

[georgekar]

I think the OS in an OS should be work for ever. So an old program can be run in a virtual OS. The problem will be for those applications which need to found and use resources or data from internet, using the old http protocol.

[PlausiblyDamp]

yeah. its a problem.
theres no 16bit emulator, instead we need to run it using a virtual machine.
but a 32bit windows can run 16bit applications. and a 64bit windows can run 32bit
when we get 128bit (or whatever next) maybe 32bit will be out or reach.
so until than it will not be a problem to run 32bit.

At the moment there isn't likely to be a drive beyond 64-bit for a long time, moving from 16-bit to 32-bit was driven by the need to get away from the horrible segmented architecture of 16-bit apps only being able to access memory in 64K blocks (if you have never had to deal with code involving near / far pointers you have no idea how bad this could get)

The move from 32-bit to 64-bit was driven by the need to remove the 4Gb Ram limit (effectively 2G or 3G usable by an app), 64-bit theoretically has a limit of around 16 exabytes (about 16 billion Gigabytes) so this isn't an immediate limit we are likely to hit.

Sooner or later 32-bit will gradually fade away, I remember the initial move to 32-bit, 16-bit compatibility and support was a major consideration; these days it is almost never a consideration outside of some specialist areas. The same will happen to 32-bit software as 64-bit becomes more and more the norm.

[Episcopal]

I think the OS in an OS should be work for ever. So an old program can be run in a virtual OS.

There will always be a way...

[yereverluvinuncleber]

Re: Getting the ball rolling. Which VB6 projects are you working on?

One of the things I am doing is participating in ReactOS, if only in a minor fashion. One of the main perceived uses for ReactOS, it is known to be useful as a future vehicle for legacy apps. You may run your app with a bundled operating system customised to your specific app requirements.

The concept of bundling a windows-alike o/s with your program is an interesting one. It always polarises opinions.



ReactOS running on real metal, in this case a Dell latitude CPi D300XT, Pentium ii MMX,
128mb of ram and a Neomagic 2D accelerator.

[SomeYguy]

That potentially makes the problem not just an unsupported application environment but now an unsupported application environment on an unsupported OS - this could simply be against the rules if you require certain forms of accreditation regarding security etc.

Running an unsupported OS is rarely a good move these days, the lack of security updates alone can make this a problem for any system connected to the internet.


For anyone outside of Microsoft's OS division we are only guessing at how hard or not supporting the VB6 runtime on a modern OS is, obviously it is currently considered worth the effort as they are still supporting it. Sooner or later though they may need to remove legacy functionality from the OS that the VB6 runtime depends on... 32bit support will eventually go away... There is a finite lifetime for all things in IT and any tool or language we use will eventually stop being supported.

True.....but I know of at least one commercial broadcast company (6 stations in total, 4 FM & 2 AM) in which their entire automation and programming systems are still using Windows 2000 and there is no good reason whatsoever for them to upgrade. It works, it is ultra stable, software still functions perfectly, still suits their needs. All of their transmitter monitoring & control software is written in VB6. But said systems are not connected to the internet. They have machines in the offices for that. Ditto for a local sawmill.....most of their operation is still run on embedded Win2K boxes and much of the software was custom written in VB6 and still going strong.

If Microsoft suddenly dropped VB6 runtime support, I'm pretty sure that there would be many, many more such cases.....

[yereverluvinuncleber]

True...but I know of at least one commercial broadcast company ...
If Microsoft suddenly dropped VB6 runtime support, I'm pretty sure that there would be many, many more such cases.

That's partially my business, re-building and migrating legacy VMS apps onto modern hardware. So, the above scenario is fully understood and appreciated. One of my reasons for building on Win7 is because it is stable complete with a known UI, whereas Win11 is just - not. Testing is poor on Win11 and the UI is subject to continual change.

[Shaggy Hiker]

One of the things I am doing is participating in ReactOS, if only in a minor fashion.

I've known people who participated in Bitcoin in a miner fashion, but not in ReactOS. I've paid a modest amount of attention to that OS over the years. It seems like a good idea, in general, though not a particularly publicized idea.

[yereverluvinuncleber]

I've known people who participated in Bitcoin in a miner fashion, but not in ReactOS. I've paid a modest amount of attention to that OS over the years. It seems like a good idea, in general, though not a particularly publicized idea.

I'd agree with that. They are all dedicated developers and almost by nature they distrust anyone trying to manage, promote or market their concept. Stepping into that team with a shiny suit and holding a clipboard is akin to suicide. You can just look here at this forum to see an analogue of a similar developer grouping.

Whether they meant to create this or not, the primary aim of ReactOS at the moment is to create developers that want to learn how to build, analyse, document and investigate Windows itself, creating competent Windows o/s level developers.

As a training tool it serves this purpose. This doesn't help potential users directly but it is a real life use.

Being positive about it, it is growing fast in the number of contributors and the low level interest it garners. If you want to 'use' it then you have lower your expectations.

Being even more positive, if I look back at the o/s and development scene ten years ago I could not imagine how close we'd be to a VB6 or Windows replacement. Both seemed an unrealistic desire.

Amazingly, both are making serious progress.

[Niya]

I'd agree with that. They are all dedicated developers and almost by nature they distrust anyone trying to manage, promote or market their concept. Stepping into that team with a shiny suit and holding a clipboard is akin to suicide. You can just look here at this forum to see an analogue of a similar developer grouping.

Whether they meant to create this or not, the primary aim of ReactOS at the moment is to create developers that want to learn how to build, analyse, document and investigate Windows itself, creating competent Windows o/s level developers.

As a training tool it serves this purpose. This doesn't help potential users directly but it is a real life use.

Being positive about it, it is growing fast in the number of contributors and the low level interest it garners. If you want to 'use' it then you have lower your expectations.

Being even more positive, if I look back at the o/s and development scene ten years ago I could not imagine how close we'd be to a VB6 or Windows replacement. Both seemed an unrealistic desire.

Amazingly, both are making serious progress.

I think all of us are going to be in for a huge surprise when it comes to knowledge and effort intense grunt work related to works like ReactOS and keeping VB6 alive. I'd advise you guys to start paying attention to AIs like ChatGPT. People need to start taking AIs very seriously, especially programmers.

While I don't think they will replace programmers, I do 100% believe what it means to be a programmer will drastically change in the next few years. Being a programmer in the near future will mean only needing to understand the jargon and how things work conceptually so we will know exactly how to talk to AIs when we tell them the kind of programs to build for us.

90% of the reason efforts to keep VB6 alive is still being enthusiastically supported because of the number of large code bases out there in VB6 that are just too cumbersome to port. When AI makes it more widely feasible to reduces a year of work to a mere week, I believe that will kill all these efforts. Why maintain a large VB6 code base when you can have an AI rebuild a modern version of your application using whatever the latest development platform is in just a couple days.

The driving forces behind projects like ReactOS I believe would be affected in similar ways by the advancement of AIs.

I thought us "old school" programmers had more time, but I've been paying close attention to the current AI revolution and now firmly believe we have about 5 years left if so much, before our way of doing things is basically dead. Programmers of the near future won't care about learning how to actually code or inner workings of operating systems. Instead they would be learning how to write AI prompts.

I'm both sad and happy about this at the same time. Sad because now every out there script kiddie would be able to produce works of similar quality to those of an experienced programmer today. It will saturate the market. I'm happy because the massive productivity boost AI will usher in will now make it possible for programmers with big ideas to do it by themselves. It will allow some of us loners to compete with big houses that have the resources to run big teams of developers.

[yereverluvinuncleber]

To keep the ball rolling, what are you doing to prevent this Niya?

[Niya]

To keep the ball rolling, what are you doing to prevent this Niya?

Nothing is going to prevent this. Unless a nuclear war knocks humanity back about 20 years, this is happening and no one can stop it.

More importantly, I don't think we should.

[yereverluvinuncleber]

I am keeping a ZX80 wrapped up in lead in the cellar - just in case.

[Niya]

lmao...

[Eduardo-]

I am keeping a ZX80 wrapped up in lead in the cellar - just in case.

Are you wrapped in lead too?
Who will use the Z-80?

[SomeYguy]

90% of the reason efforts to keep VB6 alive is still being enthusiastically supported because of the number of large code bases out there in VB6 that are just too cumbersome to port. When AI makes it more widely feasible to reduces a year of work to a mere week, I believe that will kill all these efforts. Why maintain a large VB6 code base when you can have an AI rebuild a modern version of your application using whatever the latest development platform is in just a couple days.

Perhaps but not every individual or entity will want nor need to modernize their software. As the old saying goes, newer isn't always better and in many cases it isn't wanted or warranted unless needed new functionality can only be gained that way.

Going to be interesting indeed to see where AI goes with this. And you are quite right I'm sure that truly skilled programmers will be no more. Sad, really.

Along similar lines, what about the billions of lines of code written in VC++ 6.0? What about MFC apps? Same thing, going bye-bye?