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Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

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    Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

    I recently got a new computer with Windows XP Professional version. We currently are running Alpha 5 version 2. I copied all files and have added all dbases in proper places but I keep getting errors when I try to open up my Card stacks. The error says StoreCreate occurred while trying to start application.
    When I try to add a new stack I get this error: The system cannot find the file specified.
    ...c:progra.dbf

    #2
    RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

    Did you see the thread about Alpha 5 ver 2 below. It mentions going to properties and clicking on the compatiability button which might fix you problem.

    Comment


      #3
      RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

      I did that on install. All of my alpha 5 works except for the card stacks and the forms. It says its missing a file, I did a search on this computer and the old one's and couldn't find what it was looking for.

      Comment


        #4
        RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

        Scott, I'm experiencing the same thing using Alpha Five v.3.04 (beta) under XP. I had a system failure, upgraded hardware and OS's (from Win95 to XP). XP is great in that it allows compatibility settings under the properties menu when right-clicking on an application file. But even with this set to Windows 95, I'm experiencing errors. Most disheartening is that very complex forms and reports which I and our firm have used successfully for years are no longer available. I'm getting desperate. Because our versions are different, my guess is upgrading to v.4.5 won't solve the issue either.

        Specifically, when I try to use a form, I get "Warning: Cannot load specified form "{form name}". Using a default form instead." And when I attempt to work on the design, I receive this: "internal error: StoreCreate".

        * * Hey, AlphaSoftware... any help for us loyal guys?!! * *

        Comment


          #5
          RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

          It looks like we both are experiencing the same things.
          I to have been using Alpha 5 for many years, 6 1/2 to be exact. I agree with you David, "Alpha Help". Where is the dedicated service and support that we deserve. We are currently looking at other software that is XP compatable because as a business we must move forward, not wait & wait.

          Comment


            #6
            RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

            Why not ask Microsoft for help? Every time the giant in Washington wants to screw up the market, they bring out a so-called upgrade and force all the little guys to tow the line to make their software and hardware drivers compatible at incredible expense.. In my opinion it's just another way of weilding their monopoly power over the little guy. If A5 were my most critical program and it was working well under 95 and 98 (which it is for me) I would not upgrade to XP notrwould I buy a new computer with XP already installed.

            Sorry guys, I think this is a problem that belongs to Microsoft, not Alphasoftware.

            Comment


              #7
              RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

              I have to disagree. I bought a new computer with XP already installed and could only assume that Alpha 5 would work on it. If you have never experienced XP don't knock it. I think its a great product and if we were to use the mentality that your using we would still be using DOS. XP allows the user to setup older programs as a WIN 95, 98 option. I am not saying that it's not a XP issue I believe it is but if we are going to move forward in an ever changing environment then we have to keep up or businesses will suffocate and die.

              Comment


                #8
                RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

                Scott,
                I think we'll have to agree to disagree. But it seems unfair to expect a software company to go back and redevelop 6 year old software to be compatible with a new operating system. Just as many DOS programs can't be used on Windows systems, older Windows programs are not going to be comptatible with the newest Windows versions. Heck, a lot of recently sold hardware isn't compatible with XP.

                I'd like to point out that you're using the oldest version of A5 with the latest version of Windows. Why not upgrade to Version 4.5 or the upcoming Version 5. You can do much more with it and you have a better chance of it being compatible with XP. There have been a few threads on the Version 4 message board about compatibility and for the most part it's working.
                Regards,
                Ohlen

                Comment


                  #9
                  RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

                  Card stacks are a remnant of Alpha Five version 1, designed for Windows 3.1. The copyright in my version 1 manual is 1994. Alpha continued to support card stacks in their newer versions even as the program was substantially rewritten for newer Windows versions, but they plainly recommended the new capabilities (i.e., forms with buttons to run scripts) be used rather than card stacks.

                  Apparently something Microsoft has done in XP has 'broken' something that allowed card stacks to work. If only Microsoft had included a Win 3.1 compatibility mode in XP you'd probably still be in business.

                  I'm not quite sure why you embrace XP and talk about moving forward in an ever changing environment to keep up and yet have chosen to bypass the updates Alpha has offered that allow it to work better with Microsoft's newer operating systems and enhance its own set of features. Alpha has supported its users by releasing those updates. You have chosen not to move forward.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

                    The first solution I looked at to my problem was to upgrade it. It only makes sense. I looked at the price and read all the details but NO where could I find the answer to my question " Is it compatible with XP". I really hate to spend the money if it isn't even compatible. Would you spend over $100 for something that doesn't work?
                    I was hoping that someone from Alpha Software would have jumped up to the plate and said initially "All you have to do is upgrade" and I would have gladly done it. My boss was looking at other Software options before the problems I have now and even more so now.
                    Do you know of anybody that is currently using XP and a more current version of Alpha 5?

                    Comment


                      #11
                      RE: Upgraded to XP and Stacks won't Work

                      I don't, but if you visit over at the version 4 forum and ask, I'm sure you'll get some sort of reply. Or just do a search on 'XP' and it will probably turn something up.

                      I also remember something about a money-back trial period from Alpha, so that if you bought their software and tried it and it didn't work, you could return the software within the specified period of time for a full refund. You'd have to check to see if that's still in effect.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        RE: Upgraded to XP

                        Let us keep in mind that "moving forward" generally means money... LOTS of it... to keep all licenses honest. The reports and forms I built were originally designed under Alpha Four (DOS) back in the '80's. Alpha Five offered a significant advancement in being able to redesign reports to use a variety of fonts as well as MANY other advancements with real world benefits. We bought into it. I still believe that was a good move.

                        Subsequent upgrades have come along and we elected to "stay current" by buying them. But with each iteration there were tweaks to forms, reports and other operations necessary for using them... not just for improvements, but to use them at all. I don't have a problem with that. After all, we're talking about (essentially) programming. But the question became "Is the time and money spent implementing this upgrade worth the features and benefits it offers?" Frankly, although there have been bells and whistles in each upgrade offered, we decided the benefits to our specific needs and applications were not sufficient to merit the investment. Our upgrade to XP was because our Win 95 system finally died and the new system came with it already loaded. I hated it at first. But I learned its benefits and slowly warmed up to its value.

                        XP is a totally new approach to OS compatibility. AFAIK, it is the only OS which offers ASSIGNABLE backwards compatibility... maybe not perfectly, but at least conceptually. XP was not sprung on AlphaSoftware. MicroSoft makes their development specs available to application developers well in advance of release. In fact, a major part of BEING a software developer is assuring OS compliance. I believe Alpha has simply fallen behind in getting this done and that is why we haven't heard from them on this issue directly.

                        FWIW, after I posted my initial problem, I received a quick reply (that same afternoon) from Alpha's support questioning the accuracy of my statement that I was using A5 version 3.04 beta. I gave them file names and dates to verify it... no word from them since.... just silence.

                        Sorry for the long post.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          RE: Upgraded to XP

                          ...but to be fair, Alpha does make their software compliant with Microsoft's operating systems. Users on the A5v4 forum report using XP without problems. I expect that A5v5 will be fully XP compliant if/when it arrives.

                          Alpha does not expend scarce resources to reprogram older versions of their software, originally designed for and compliant with older versions of Windows that Microsoft no longer supports, to ensure that they'll run on every new release Microsoft decides to produce (We'll ignore A4v7 for the moment). That's why Alpha releases new versions. It's simply not reasonable to expect them to do otherwise. Alpha isn't the root cause of the problem.

                          And Alpha isn't the only software producer whose older wares won't run correctly on XP. Nor are other software producers releasing patches to make older versions work successfully with XP -- they make compliant new releases for which they charge.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            RE: Upgraded to XP

                            I agree that it would be unreasonable for all past releases to be constantly maintained... that wasn't my contention. My "beef" is that Alpha has not (to my knowledge) posted any warning such as "Prior versions of Alpha Five may not function properly under Windows XP" or "Version 5.0 will provide XP compatibility while enabling current users to maintain existing forms and reports in the upgrade." They've simply remained quiet. The only means of assurance seems to be anecdotal evidence from the forum postings.

                            Alpha is missing a tremendous opportunity to get positive market buzz going about their new product (assuming it actually IS fully XP compliant). MOST other companies either issue a formal announcement touting soon-to-be-released versions or they assign a marketing rep to forums such as this to help get the word out informally.

                            Thus far, I'm disappointed by Alpha's silence in this matter.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              RE: Upgraded to XP

                              If you want to see if an upgrade will fix the problem, go to www.alphasoftware.com and download the trial copy. I think you get 30 days. Copy your data first to a new directory and only use that to test on. The new version may make the data unreadable on the old version, or convert it.

                              The error you are getting sounds a lot like the error you get when you try to open a form in A5v4.5 that was made in a later version (A5v5).

                              In any case I think you would be welll advised to spend the money to get A5v5 when it comes out. It will work with xp and you will find it to be a knockout app.

                              Russ

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