Code/Tea/Etc...

Duncan Mackenzie has too much time on his hands

Broderbund Software... and C#

This is so cool, even if you might take it as mostly marketing (sorry in advance)...

Having spent many years using a Commodore 64, and owning "Print Shop", "Loderunner"... geez, I even remember "Reader Rabbit", but I think that was for my Mom's school computers... the Broderbund name carries a lot of meaning to me... so when I saw their name on a recent case study for C#, it really jumped out at me...
The Print Shop 20 Uses .NET CLR from MFC to Ease into the .NET Framework
When Riverdeep wanted to write new features for The Print Shop in C#, it didn't want to have to convert the entire 20-year-old C++ code base of The Print Shop forward into managed code at once. The existing 1.4 million lines of code were not structured well enough to turn into COM components or to convert into managed C++. Riverdeep hit on the unorthodox approach of hosting the Microsoft .NET Common Language Runtime inside their MFC-based C++ application, which turned out to work extremely well in practice.
It seems to me that a company that has been building a successful software product for 20 years, and building on the same code base, doesn't make language and technology decisions lightly... so this is a very cool case study.
Published Friday, February 20, 2004 11:34 PM by Duncanma

Comments

 

Code/Tea/Etc... said:

February 21, 2004 2:48 AM
 

Christophe Lauer said:

Funny... The Print Shop is one of the first applications I ran on my Apple ][ ;-)
February 21, 2004 1:01 AM
 

Mario Goebbels said:

Whoa, Print Shop is still being developed? I remember the tons of banners I've been printing on my MPS1230 needle printer using my C64 :P
February 21, 2004 4:00 AM
 

Hans Jergen Ohff said:

Ahh the days of choice and innovation in computers. Oh well, things dont last forever I supose.
February 21, 2004 6:07 AM
 

Richard Tallent said:

Maybe their shift towards .NET will make up for the utter craptaculous quality of the majority of their software. I've seen more crashes, bugs, and obvious lacking features in their products than perhaps any other. I'm still sensitive about how much money wasted on their dismal home design series.
February 21, 2004 10:41 AM
 

1 b3 1337 wid m3 C=64 said:

0000h ph34r m3 b1tch35!!11 1 u53d 4 C=64 w00t w00t! 1337z0r!!!
February 21, 2004 4:21 PM
 

Code/Tea/Etc... said:

February 22, 2004 1:15 AM
 

Justin said:

I have no Idea what RIchard Tallent was talking about, but I didnt even think that broderbund was around anymore. My father used to work there, but the company got bought up by the learning company, and than that got taken over by matell, so I thought that broderbund was dead. My dad said that broderbund was the best company that he ever worked at, haha they used to have wars between the cubicles with nerf guns (How Much Better Does It Get?).
February 25, 2004 5:39 AM
 

Owen Prince said:

I like the 3dhome architict program from broderbund. I wish all drafting programs
worked as well. (I hate autocad) I have never
had a problem with it crashing so Richard must
have a problem with his system and then blames the broderbund program. Old drawing can not be imported into the new program because the new company programs differently. Too bad.

Owen Prince
April 28, 2004 11:36 PM
 

Erna Fife said:

I now have a computer with Windows '97 XP - My 'The Print Shop' floppies were fine in my old computer as it was WIndows 95 - Is there a danger in installing the 4 disks - it just state "Version for Windows'I bought the Programme in 1996/1997. Perhaps there is a better version I could download? Hope you can help me,
Nara@netcon.net.au
May 9, 2004 10:36 PM
 

Erna Fife said:

I now have a computer with Windows '97 XP - My 'The Print Shop' floppies were fine in my old computer as it was WIndows 95 - Is there a danger in installing the 4 disks - it just state "Version for Windows'I bought the Programme in 1996/1997. Perhaps there is a better version I could download? Hope you can help me,
Nara@netcon.net.au
May 9, 2004 10:36 PM
 

Erna Fife said:

I now have a computer with Windows '97 XP - My 'The Print Shop' floppies were fine in my old computer as it was WIndows 95 - Is there a danger in installing the 4 disks - it just state "Version for Windows'I bought the Programme in 1996/1997. Perhaps there is a better version I could download? Hope you can help me,
Nara@netcon.net.au
May 9, 2004 10:36 PM
 

Erna Fife said:

I now have a computer with Windows '97 XP - My 'The Print Shop' floppies were fine in my old computer as it was WIndows 95 - Is there a danger in installing the 4 disks - it just state "Version for Windows'I bought the Programme in 1996/1997. Perhaps there is a better version I could download? Hope you can help me,
Nara@netcon.net.au
May 9, 2004 10:37 PM
 

c.c.brandon said:

I have XP pro. I looking to run print shop on my new computer.
May 16, 2004 7:55 PM
 

Code/Tea/Etc. said:

August 25, 2004 6:16 AM
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