Borland folding C++Builder into Delphi

Borland Software in 2005 plans to fold its C++Builder developer tool line into the company’s Delphi IDE tool family for Windows application development, thus answering the question about what the company had planned to do with the technology.

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Built for C++ application development, C++Builder has not had a major upgrade since 2002, according to Borland.

In an open letter this week to the C++Builder “Community,” Borland’s executive management team said it was “pleased to announce the continuation of the VCL [Visual Component Library]-based Borland C++Builder product line. The next version of C++Builder will be part of the Delphi IDE product family, enabling you to take advantage of the latest Delphi VCL and IDE framework and the C++ features you have requested.”

A Borland official acknowledged customers had been wondering about the fate of C++Builder. “There were some customers that wanted to know what we were going to do with the product line. We’ve put out six versions of C++Builder,” said Michael Swindell, director of product management for Borland Delphi.

Moving C++Builder into Delphi unifies the company’s Windows development tools under one product line, Swindell said. An upgrade to C++Builder technology is planned for 2005 and is expected to feature productivity enhancements and integration with Borland’s application life cycle management offerings.

However, the company has not yet decided on packaging for the Delphi variant of C++Builder. The technology, for example, might be a separate release under the Delphi name or a feature set of an overarching Delphi product, according to Swindell.

By including C++Builder as part of Delphi, users get the benefit of synchronized releases of VCL, which had been offered in staggered releases for C++Builder users, said Swindell.  Also, as productivity features are added to Delphi, they can more easily be delivered to C++Builder users, Swindell said. The C++ language, however, has not had the growth that it once had 10 years ago, Swindell acknowledged.

A Borland user group official was pleased with the company’s action on C++Builder.

“There are a lot of developers who have a substantial legacy of C++ VCL code that they want to know they can continue to support. So for them, this is great news,” said Jim McKeeth, senior software engineer at Washington Group International, which provides industrial engineering consulting services. A Delphi user, McKeeth also presides over the Boise Software Developers Group, which is a Borland users group.

“While [developers] can continue to use whatever version of C++Builder they have now, having an updated version provides them access to new features and a brighter future,” McKeeth said.

Borland previously folded its C#Builder technology into Delphi.