<BODY BGPROPERTIES="FIXED" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF"> <head> <title>What Is It?</title> <base href="http://www.bouncingbitmaps.com/"> </HEAD> <BODY bgcolor="#FFFFFF"> <H1><Center>What Is It?</Center></H1> <P> Bouncing Bitmaps! is a 32-Bit screen saver for Windows95. Bouncing Bitmaps! allows you to pick your favorite picture, or company logo, and have it bounce around on the screen. <P> Bouncing Bitmaps! was written using Borland's 32-Bit Delphi Developer 2.0. Bouncing Bitmaps! has full Windows95 support including registry support, multi-threading, and control panel preview window support. <H2>Why Should I Use It?</H2> <P> There are several reasons to use Bouncing Bitmaps!: <UL> <LI>YOU can pick the picture you want to see <LI>It's FREE! <LI>You're tired of staring at the flying windows symbols <LI>It's FREE! <LI>It's Very Fast! <LI>Did I mention that it's ... FREE! </UL> <H2>Why Delphi?</H2> <P> Borland Delphi Developer 2.0, in my opinion, is the best RAD tool on the market today. It has many advantages over Microsoft Visual Basic. <P> The most noticable difference between Delphi and VB is that Delphi uses a native-code compiler, while VB uses a p-code compiler. The difference between native compile and p-code compile is that a natively compiled executable can, in most cases, be distributed by itself. A p-code compiled executable must be distributed with the supporting p-code interpreting libraries. The Windows95 operating system can not directly execute p-code, so it must load several interpreters that read the p-code, and interpret the instructions for the operating system. A p-code compiled application is much bigger as a result of these interpreters that must be used. If I had written Bouncing Bitmaps! using Visual Basic, the diistribution program would be 2-3MB in size and require a separate installation program. <P> Another big difference between Delphi and Visual Basic is the use of CASE tools. The CASE tool most commonly used wth Visual Basic is the .OCX control An .OCX control can not be compiled into the executable, and must be distributed as a separate file. Delphi has the ability to use .OCX controls, but it is often times not necessary. Delphi uses what is called the 'Visual Component Library' for CASE tool implementation. Delphi visual components are written in Delphi and can be compiled into the executable file, and not distributed as a second file. Delphi visual components are much faster than OLE controls due to the fact that they are compiled along with the rest of the application. Delphi visual components are available for free or very inexpensive use on the Internet, and support a very wide range of functionality. <P> The last major advantage of using Delphi developer is that it fully supports object oriented programming and reuse. Microsoft Visual Basic is only object based, and does not fully support object oriented programming. Delphi developer comes integrated with what is known as the 'Object Repository' which is used for object reuse. Objects and even entire applications can be copied to the object repository where they are ready for full reuse. Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise edition does come with a program called Visual Source Safe which can enforce team development security and reuse. <P> For more information about Delphi, visit the Borland website at <A HREF="http://www.borland.com/delphi">http://www.borland.com/delphi</A> <br> <center> <p><a href="noframes/getit.html">Get It!</a> | <a href="noframes/whatisit.html">What Is It?</a> | <a href="noframes/help.html">I Need Help!</a> | <a href="noframes/author.html">Who Wrote It?</a> | <a href="noframes/custom.html">I Want My Own!</a> | <a hre f="http://www.starion.com/bouncingbitmaps">Back Home</A></P> </center>