As a general rule, you always been able to go forward. This is usellay due
to the new version having more features that the previous one did not.
In fact, for about the last 20 years of hte deksotp computer indusry, it
worked this way.
So, you can't open a access 2003 file in a 10 year old version of access 2.
The amount of features, and changes in the product is much too numoery to
metoned...so,
Sure....old --->---> new generally works fine
new-------> old generally does not work...
There is nothing stopping you from writing code with ms-access version 2.0
(what 1994??). In fact we still frequently get questions here about that
version. There is nothing stopping you from writing software using FoxPro
2.6. That is also a dos based "text" system, and is also about 1992.
Microsoft has the best track record in the industry in this regards. You can
still run all that old software.
Apple, and good many of the other vendors out there have forced numerous
upgrades upon their users. For example, all of the old applications for the
old Apple Macintosh (such as Mac-paint etc). DO NOT work on the new
platforms. In other words, just about all of the 1980' applications (and
early 90's code) for the Apple Mac do not work anymore. They WERE FORCED to
upgrade. ALL OF MY windows code from the early 1980's still runs fine on the
newest windows box. Microsoft does not have a policy of "breaking", or not
allowing the old code to run. They have the best track record in the
industry by far in this regard.
So, really, I don't see any problem here. Nothing is stopping you from using
the 1992 version of dos based Reflex is there? (I have some clients still
running that)
If you want, you can jump over to Dan Bricklins site, and download the
ORIGINAL spread sheet for the ibm pc. It still works today! Do any of you
remember VisiCalc? It is only a 27k download for a whole spread sheet!.
Simply amazing. By the way, this spreadsheet is from the original 1981
VisiCalc disk, and it still runs on Windows today! (heck, the average GIF on
a web site is larger!).
Just how old of code are trying to run here? We can't go back before 1981,
since the Pc did not exist. Hence, I can't help you with code before that.
On the other hand, there are good number of Atari, and Apple II sites with
great emulators that let you that lots of code from the 1970's.
Here is the link that for that old spreadsheet...
http://www.bricklin.com/visicalc.htm
But, if you want to run access 1.0, or Visual Basic 3.0...you can...
However, Visi-calc can't run the new version of Excel.....in fact it did not
even supprot, or have a mouse!!!
So, keep this history in mind when working with older software...
