I still say DBSDK doesn't look very attractive, but that's just me and my situation. I'm sure there are those out there who it would be perfect for, especially DBPro users looking to move into the big boys' world of things with a guided tour instead of a sudden leap (which is better than most have when they start out learning).
DBSDK has one thing, as well, that no other library or engine out there that is a complete development package can boast -- a small (relatively), close knit, long established community of loyal users.
Try going to any site where C++ coders gather to ask a simple question on how to do something. After they make you feel about two inches tall for not being an instant expert, they'll tell you the names of books to buy instead of simply addressing the question.
This is the only -- and I mean the ONLY -- community for programmers at any level I have seen anywhere that you can ask a question in, and *GASP* have it answered in a polite, very helpful manner.
Programmers who begin elsewhere all have the same story... They either went to school, and then adapted a general programming knowledge for game design, or they wasted a quarter of their lives by figuring out cryptic languages through trial and error, as opposed to studying on their own and asking questions when stuck. There is -nothing- wrong with asking for help when you're new to something, and are stuck. As a matter of fact, programming is the -ONLY- profession in which newcomers are regularly scolded for doing what newcomers do.
This is why I'm still a member of the DBPro community. This is why I'll still be coming back here in three more years when I have a dual degree in math and physics, and have moved on to much bigger, proportionally better tools. This is what makes the DBSDK's best selling point.
Imagine a community like this for C++. Anyone interested in coding could learn enough about it to know whether they'd go insane doing it for a living BEFORE they have spent so much time and money that they're locked in.
To be honest, it's about danged time someone took up the reigns with providing a path to knowledge through independant exploration with the support of a community, from the normal no knowledge start, to the dawn of mastery. This is how all long standing traditional professions have survived the ages, and moreso, how they have improved. Were it not for this concept, we wouldn't even have computers to make hostile environment C++ forums on.
I do still think, however, that the learning beginner is the best target demographic for DBPSDK, and that targetting other demographics will be a proposition met with much criticism (and very little of it will be nice, if what I have seen of most development communities holds true in this case). Even if the target demographic were restricted to beginers only, there will still be some hostility from elitists who don't like the idea of just anybody gaining the ability to learn without enduring the traditional masochistic trials most have gone through.
Of course, I would love to be proven wrong here
For me, my opinion is a win/ win situation. If I'm right, then hey, I called it at the begining. If it were a football game, I could have won money. If I'm wrong, though, I'd be much happier.
I would like to point out, as well, that with a good background in programming and an extensive knowledge of mathematics, it would not take a lifetime to make your own libraries. Ten years ago I lived next door to a 15 year old who produced entire 3D rendering and game engines monthly for an advertising outfit, and he made more money at 15 than his parents did in their 40's.
People need to get this fallacy that difficult things are either impossible or take a lifetime out of their heads. I work closely with a double doctorate, Nobel laureate who put this fact into words very well, and very simply, "Anybody can be Einstein. It takes only motivation and tools."
*COUGH*Nicotine*COUGH*
*HACK*Addiction*HACK*
*Wheeze*Sucks*Wheeze*
edit number 100,237,782,129: I am a compulsive post editor. In writing anything, perfection in expressing a viewpoint lies in the process of revision.
You have a memory like trying to catch water in a steel trap. - A friend
