I got up this morning to get ready to drive in to Scotts Valley just as I have for the past twenty-three years and 13 days. As I was driving in, I was thinking about product videos I need to create, trips I have to plan, webinars that I need to schedule, and articles I need to write. As I was making the transition from Highway 1 to Highway 17, it donned on me that this will be my last day as a Borlander. Tomorrow, I will make the same drive up to Scotts Valley as an Embarcadero Technologies employee!
I knew today was coming back on February 6, 2006 when Borland announced that they would sell off the developer business. The whole process became real with the Embarcadero definitive agreement announcement on May 7, 2008. In the past few weeks, while continuing to help drive revenue and awareness, many of us have also been filling out Embarcadero forms for insurance coverage, 401-k retirement fund planning, and other employment forms. Yet, it was surreal to be in the car this morning thinking about technology, products, and work items without thinking about the transition.
For 23 years I have focused on developers, tools, and software engineering. Looking forward, I will continue to focus on developers, tools, and software engineering. The combination of Embarcadero Technologies’ DatabaseGear and CodeGear products will give individuals, consultants, ISVs, SI/VARs, OEMs, small teams, and large teams unique capabilities, from an independent software company, across the database and programming spectrum.
We are focused on moving the state of the art in software engineering forward and continuing to add to tooling that embodies the best practices and knowledge of our craft. Come along with us if you are a software engineer and information engineer who
- cares about independence (even if you are dependent on a platform or stack),
- needs increased productivity and quality (even if you are sometimes forced to use less than productive tools),
- wants to be able to collaborate with other developers, designers, and architects (whether they work on your project or are part of your social network),
- enjoys being an active member of a community (even though you might, most of the time, just be a "heads down" developer trying to get the job done).
Whenever others have left Borland, I have added them to my Borland alumni list. Tomorrow, I will add myself to the list. With CodeGear becoming a part of Embarcadero Technologies, the transition is different. I am not leaving Borland per se, I am joining a company with the same tools heritage, shared mission, and common vision. As for Borland, its employees, partners, and customers, I wish you all the best of everything.
How will I feel tomorrow when I drive in to work? Will something be different? I’ll let you know tomorrow.
{ 15 } Comments
Yes, that must be a strange feeling. However, this is a perfect time to volunteer a prize for the Darwin Race of Languages (http://blogs.sevensteps.com). That will make you feel a lot better in the morning…
I hope the new company won’t destroy Codegear and it’s products.
All the best Davis.You have taken Delphi from a storm to calm waters.I am sure Delphi & other related products will be safe under your guidnace
As a Borland Together for Visual Studio user, I hope your wishes can come true, as they have sunset TVS for me last year (OMG).
Hi david,
thanks for the great time with you in the borland time for so many years.
But now let’s rock the stuff from CodeGear and DataBaseGear on the Embarcadero Area!
Daniel (Magin)
For some years I believed Frank Borland and David I were the same person! I still have the C++ video Frank, err, David made, way back when.
23 years. I think I was just getting into Turbo Pascal 3 then, when TP4 was announced. Long time. Seems like yesterday.
Hi David,
Hope see you here in Brazil again to show us all the good news that Embarcadero and CodeGear are preparing.
Go ahead and let’s make Delphi bigger!
I can only imagine that things will get better with Embarcadero. I have used all the versions of Pascal from Turbo Pascal 1 to Delphi 2006 (except Delphi 7). I just hope our little company doesn’t get priced out of the Delphi market. The prices have escalated a bit since the $50 version. My fear is that now I will have to pay more to get the DatabaseGear added into the CodeGear and it was bad enough already… But congratulations on the 23 years. I had 23 with Occidental and now 10+ with MJW Corporation so I understand and appreciate your long term commitment…
David,
Hey… you scared me with that title…
When I think about DavidI, I remember Borland and Delphi. And then I remember myself back in 1996 doing my first steps using TurboPascal 5.5 and Delphi 1.0.
Hope to see you soon here in Brazil David!
革命尚未成功，同志仍需努力！
Your article was very touching.
I can feel your feelings on my skin.
Moreover, as I was reading, I was thinking: "heh 23 years, really a lot…"
… until I recalled me using TP 3 and TC 1.0.
Old developers, on two sides of a programming tool yet both together in investing a lifetime with it.
I began programing with Turbo Pascal 6.0 in 1993. I was delighted with Borland Delphi. I felt sadness seeing Borland trubles.
I hoped that Borland makes something like Delphi again. Something which can realy changes development technology. But Borland made very strange decision (in my mind).
As for Devid I. he is a person who’s ever associated with Borland, Delphi and Pascal.
P.S. Is there any way to contact Devid? We have something to show him. Perhaps he would be interested.
旧的不去，新的不来。
期待新的惊喜。
期待再度的辉煌
Fri 8/22/2008 11:13 am. Greetings, Intersimone! Long may you sip! … My plea is simple: that Codegear produce a Delphi/Builder product that is price-competitive with VS2008. I have used Delphi since Delphi 2, and actually wrote numerous industrial programs in the 16-bit version; I went into Egghead and asked for the product that "wrote programs itself" and the sales guy and I agreed Delphi would do the trick.
But how times change! Then, Microsoft had the ridiculously over-priced bug-ridden products, and Borland was the sneaky mammal running around the lizard’s legs! … Alas, no more.
I know it’s hopeless, and maybe you guys lobby for this all the time,but when I bought VS2005 "standard" it was less than $250; VS2008 standard is $260 at Amazon (I got the upgrade for for $170). It includes all the little .NET languages and native-code C++, has a million attachments, the usual totally-useless Microsoft help, and all kinds of other puzzling lunacies.
But I’m not paying $1000+ for an IDE suite with one language; I suppose someone does, but it won’t be us programmers in the trenches. … So, give us a product for $275 that includes Delphi and C++Builder, and maybe some .NET nonsense, appropriately crippled and trimmed-down to make it standard — and I *might* buy it.
Like I said, I know it’s hopeless. But,
– good luck, embarcadero Codegear!
j.g. owen * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
web: http://owenlabs.home.att.net/
email: owen_bda4@yahoo.com
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