Is PH dead?

[Lu, David]

I worked with PH before QTP is released.  We had a chance to beta test QTP 1.0 and thought it was the best thing since the slice breads.  It has to be a great tool to carry me for 20+ years of employment, consulting services & partnership.  But time has come for PH, we as developers have to move on to the newer technologies that provide more potential in software development.

I picked up ASP, JavaScript, VB & SQL and discovered the toolset is more flexible than PH to deliver a much easy to use and rich in functionality system.  I feel I am freed from a closed box and running wild in the open.  My next project will be utilizing OOAD with UML, ASP.NET, C# and XML Web Services to deliver Intranet applications. 

One thing missing from the newer technologies is the Data Dictionary that is one of the most important parts of the success of PH.  Another area of lacking is the business-ruled and knowledge-based processing to layer out the business knowledge and policies from the actual coding.  Maybe the rule-based technology is not matured yet for another 3 to 5 years.

Using PH can deliver a system quicker than 3GL, but today's users are looking for browser-based applications with ease of use and seamless integration with other office tools and with potential mobility and wireless solutions.

After 20 years, it is time to move on and I feel I don't have to twist PH any more to do the thing that can be done easily with procedural languages.

Good Luck!

David Lu
Information Services & Technologies
Mary Kay Inc.
972-687-5439 (office)
972-687-1601 (fax)
david.lu@mkcorp.com