FilePro Programmer Needed

[GCC Consulting]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: filepro-list-bounces at lists.celestial.com 
> [mailto:filepro-list-bounces at lists.celestial.com] On Behalf 
> Of Fairlight
> Sent: Monday, May 29, 2006 4:50 PM
> To: filePro Mailing List
> Subject: Re: FilePro Programmer Needed
> 
> With neither thought nor caution, John Esak blurted:
> > 
> > No, disagree again. Just saying VB ap says it all. If I saw someone 
> > post that he had a "filePro" application that he wanted 
> converted to 
> > something else... I would not have to hear anything other 
> than "filePRo application".
> > Either I know filePro or I don't. Going over what the app 
> does and how 
> > it does it is part of the either paid-for or on-speculation 
> evaluation 
> > that needs to be done before any contract is entered. Just 
> knowing the 
> > source and destination languages is enough to equip anyone 
> to do this evaluation.
> 
> I politely disagree.  There's a large difference between 
> porting "Hello world" or a simple add/view of a flat listing 
> by simple search criterion, and porting something like a 
> multi-person (infinite users) scheduling calendar system with 
> hooks into everything including web, email, and SMS, for 
> example.  Doesn't matter if you know the languages in 
> question.  It's the complexity of the task required combined 
> with the stated deadline that are in question.  We knew one, 
> but were given no clue about the other.
> That's the real problem, in my mind.
> 
> BTW, if one -should- get paid for -looking- at something to 
> eval whether or not they can do it, boy have I been getting 
> screwed royally for over a decade.  I usually don't even have 
> a committment on cent one until I can vouch I can do it.  
> Apparently I'm doing something -way- wrong! :)  I thought the 
> whole point of "quote" and "estimate" was to give them an 
> idea of what they'd need.  And usually you eat that time.  I 
> know if I take my car into the shoppe, they'll eat time 
> looking at it to diagnose it before giving me a quote, and I 
> can take it or walk without it costing me anything.  Of 
> course, the flip side of that is the medical profession, 
> where it's perfectly okay to have $7000 worth of tests run on 
> you, have them find absolutely nothing they can even 
> diagnose, and you end up paying anyway.  Apparently there are 
> two approaches, and I'm not taking the one that would make me 
> more money.

Mark,

I have written a number of contracts with an out clause for me after a fixed
amount has been paid on the contract.  This is usually the first payment
amount on signing the contract.

I have only exercised this option once.  An associate brought me into one of
his clients who was running a very old cobal program.  He needed it
converted to a more up to date language as the version was not handling
running under win NT versions.

There were some very specific pieces that he wanted duplicated in filePro.
And, since I had to analyses all the Cobal code and then figure out if I
could duplicate, as much as possible, the look and feel of the original
program, I insisted on an escape clause.  

After reviewing the code and trying to duplicate the specific functionality
he needed, filePro could not duplicate it.  I exercised the escape clause.
However, before doing so, I researched the availability of software which
could be used to recompile his source code to run in a Windows environment.
I found a number of products which he could use.  I supplied him with the
list and said good bye.  I am still on his e-mail list.

Now, some jobs I will absorb the cost of analyzing the job. But those are
becoming less and less.  My time is valuable and asking me to do a complete
analysis of someone's business process or current software is what I get
paid for.  

Would an accountant or lawyer do a complete analysis of someone's business
before getting them as a client.  I think not. The listen to their comments
or take a cursory look and the problem and then quote a per hour fee before
starting.

Why should we be any different?  

Richard Kreiss
GCC Consulting