Script Limits

[Richard Gaskin]

> Richard, what you suggest are all workabouts.

But the central thing that got lost in this discussion is that using script
space as data storage space is itself a workaround.  This is made even more
ironic by the history of this practice:  today it's desired in order to
provide encryption, but the habit was started with HyperCard and OMO which
provide no encryption for scripts or data at all; it started only because
these products had no other place to store data bound to an object.

That using script space as data storage works (and with Kevin's assurances
will continue to work) is a good thing.  But even better would be to
approach the root issue:

    Could the engine be changed to prevent reading data
    from custom props without a password?

Dar has provided a way to account for that in script, but it might be even
more secure to provide it in the engine.

Anyone care to put that enhancement request into Bugzilla?


> And the fact that this groups is 100% against the change does
> not mean it will not go into effect.

But nor does it mean it will, as we've seen from Kevin's post.

I don't have a crystal ball on these things, just a little management
experience in four industries over two decades:  pissing off your customers
is rarely a smart move.

Both Scott and Kevin are very smart people, so it's unlikely they would ever
implement a change that garners such a reaction from people who will
otherwise keep upgrading without question in perpetuity.

My $500 every year gets me access to what is arguably the best VM in the
business and Scott's hands-down-best-in-the-industry support.  While it's
hard to imagine anyone matching Scott's performance in support, as long as
the support is at least good my $500 is easy to get, year after year, no
fuss no muss.  I don't care about the IDE, I don't care about "market
positioning"; I only care about what my end-users experience, the engine,
which makes my $500 far more profitable than the cost to acquire and support
six new $79 licenses every year (and having dealt with Scott you learn to
submit only disciplined bug reports, usually with isolated examples of the
problem, something newcomers may not yet appreciate the importance of or
have the experience to do).

This is true for most of us MetaCard developers, and it would take an
unusually silly person to pass that up.  I see no evidence that Kevin or
Scott would do anything to disrupt that steady, high-ROI cash flow, as
Kevin's wise judgement on this script limits issue demonstrates.

-- 
 Richard Gaskin 
 Fourth World Media Corporation
 Developer of WebMerge: Publish any database on any Web site
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