Lisa Slater Nicholls: She is an Integration Engineer at Acxiom Corporation, which provides a wide spectrum of data-related products and services, including mailing lists, modeling, integration, warehousing, decision support, and analysis. Her work there centers on B2B XML and XSLT transactions, an outgrowth of her constant interest in reporting and output mechanisms in FoxPro.

Lisa has a special interest in the development of peer-to-peer support mechanisms in the programming community. She served as a long-time volunteer and archivist in the CompuServe Fox forums, and maintains a web page devoted to Fox news and tips (FoxSpoken SoftSpoken-Style). She has been a featured speaker at major FoxPro and database conferences throughout the world. She has served as editor of Pinnacle's FoxTalk and as a monthly columnist for Cobb's Inside Visual FoxPro and Databased Advisor magazines.

With Steven E. Arnott, she has written Que's best-selling Using FoxPro 2.x series (see Books section). She was the writer, co-producer, and on-screen talent for Virtual Firmware's FoxPro RAD video training series. She is also the author of the Report Writer volume of Pinnacle's Pros Talk Fox Series One and Series Editor for Pros Talk Fox Series Two. Her favorite among her Fox publications is FoxPro MAChete: Hacking FoxPro for Macintosh, written with Andy Griebel, Randy Brown, and Doc Livingston.

Jordan Powell: Jordan owns Custom Computer Services in Danbury, Connecticut, wich specializes in project and development of custom software. He has been and active contributor with his articles to Data Based Advisor, FoxPro Advisor, FoxTalk and Consulting Insider. Jordan is also a writer of FoxPro books (see Books section).

Besides being a Microsoft Certified Solutions Provider (MCSP), Jordan was one of the speakers in the first FoxPro Developers Conference (DevCon) and is a frequent presenter in FoxPro user groups. Jordan has been writing xBase application since 1983, when he was a mainframe computer programmer. Jordan's interests include man-machine interface, software projects, small companies automation and molecular biology.

Alan Schwartz: Before retiring from Xbase development, Alan Schwartz was a principal at Micromega Systems, Inc., a San Francisco Bay Area consulting, development and training firm specializing in FoxPro and Visual FoxPro. Alan was architect and lead designer of Foxfire!, the premier Fox add-on querying and reporting tool. He has written widely in technical publications, including PC World and DataBased Advisor, and he served as a Contributing Editor to FoxPro Advisor.

Alan has presented at many Fox conferences, on regional, national, and international levels. He has been especially influential in building Fox community in the Bay Area, having founded the FoxPro SIG for the Association of Database Developers in San Francisco and served as its coordinator for seven years.

Alan's skills as a developer and writer are only matched by his ability to communicate in person. He has nurtured both the careers and the souls of the many Fox people with whom he has crossed paths.

Yair Alan Griver: Yair Alan Griver is the Chief Information Officer at GoAmerica Communications and was formerly CIO of Flash Creative Management, a Hackensack, NJ based consulting firm that works with businesses to jointly map their strategies and build the supporting technology and processes to achieve their growth and profit objectives. Flash is a Microsoft Solution Provider at the Partner level and a Microsoft Authorized Technical Education Center.

Alan is responsible for overseeing the development Flash's methods and development frameworks. He has received the Most Valuable Professional award from Microsoft for his expertise in applying Microsoft technology to real world applications and for sharing that knowledge with other software developers.

Alan has written articles that have been published in many leading publications, and has lectured throughout the world on computer systems and software design. In addition to the popular FoxPro CodeBook series, he is co-Author of MCSD Test Success: Visual Basic 6 Distributed Applications, available from Sybex Books.

Ray Kirk: He been programming since 1968. xBase since 1984. Beta for FoxBase MultiNet (dBASE II clone), thru VFP7. Beta team leader (contractor) for dBASE IV 1.1 (the good one).

Wrote the "Shoot out" benchmark for Ashton-Tate that beat FoxPro in the National Software Testing Labs TPC benchmark comparison as reported in DataBased Advisor. No mean feat. Worked with Drew Speedie in the enhancement of client-server functionality in Visual Maxframe Professional 4.0. Beta for Quicksilver, dBXL/Arago, Clipper, dbMAN and other long dead but not forgotten variants.

Experienced with MaxFrame, client-server, OOP, performance optimizations, test harness creation. Guest exhibitor in SBT, Lake Ave. Software, Ashton-Tate, Borland Comdex booths. Wrote numerous articles for various xBase related journals over the years. Founding president of the San Fernando Valley IBM PC user's group in 1983.

Consultant to various clients large and small including Litton Data Systems, TransAmerica, MGM, Universal Studios, Disney, Kern County DA, New Line Cinema, Lion's Gate Studios, Jaguar Software, Lake Avenue Software, SBT, Ashton-Tate, Coldwell Banker, Vons' Markets, Deloitte-Touche, PsycheMedics, Miss Grace Lemon Cakes, California Mart, Purex Corp, Countrywide Home Loans and many others.

Michel Fournier: Michel Fournier started with FoxPro in 1988. He was rapidly involved in several projects re-engineering to benefit of the power of FoxPro. He started to attend major FoxPro events in 1991 with the 3rd Annual Fox Software FoxPro Developer's Conference. In 1993, he created one of the first FoxPro sites on the net. That site rapidly grew up and has been superceeded by the Universal Thread in 1995. Michel has since continued the evolution of the product to what has always been known as the biggest FoxPro site on the net. The Universal Thread makes his power by the benefits of several factors such as the strong support from the Visual FoxPro community.

Michel has always kept up to date with the latest versions of Visual FoxPro. He, among others, in earlier September 2001, upgraded to Visual FoxPro 7 to power the Universal Thread to a soon to be released support for Web Services.

Michel has written several articles since 1993 for various sources such as the FoxPro Developers Journal, various user groups, Inside Visual FoxPro and the Universal Thread Magazine which he is the editor. He also presented for several user groups since 1995. His latest presentation was at the San Diego Visual FoxPro DevCon in September 2001 where he demoed the support of the Universal Thread news to FoxCentral. Michel has also developped several utilities since the last 10 years which have benefit to the community in various ways.

His long time achievement project is certainly the Universal Thread where he and his team keep a permanent evolution of the product. He considers the Universal Thread to still be in some earlier stages where the best is yet to come.

David Elliott Lewis: David received a B.S. degree in Psychology from UCLA in 1980 and a Ph.D. degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology in 1984 from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. His Ph.D. dissertation research focused on variables that motivated creative behavior. He is the author of a jump-start manual about creative thinking titled "Great Ideas on Demand". He is also the developer of a software program named Innovation Works that acts as a personal brainstorming coach for individuals and groups. In the late 1980's he designed and served as an instructor for an executive development seminar named "ProThink" that taught strategic planning and creative thinking to senior managers at NCR Corporation.

Additionally, David is the developer of an award winning Delphi database component and a Microsoft Visual FoxPro add-on named "Query Maker" that enabled novice computer users to find data (run queries) and generate reports against complex databases using plain English terms. He is also the developer of another Microsoft Visual FoxPro add-on component named "Foxspell Checker" that enables data entry operators to spell check their entries into databases. Finally, he is a tireless seeker of knowledge and new experiences as well as an artist who paints in acrylics and watercolors. Since Oct 1985 David Elliott Lewis is Managing Partner in Strategic Edge.

Pete Olympia: He as a columnist in DBMS Magazine around mid-80's, mostly wrote about FoxBase/FoxPro and other Desktop databases. Also IDBug Journal "The Independent Voice of the dBASE Community", a newsletter from the International dBASE Users Group created in 1988 by Pat Adams, Pete Olympia, Russell Freeland, Jordan Powell, John Hoffman and others.

Pete Olympia is Chief Technology Officer at Conquest Systems Inc.

Dr. Olympia is responsible for setting the company's technology direction. He is responsible for identifying new technology, projecting technology opportunities, and orchestrating the company's adoption of selected technologies.

Dr. Olympia has vast experience in software engineering, management, consulting, technology evaluation, and strategic planning. Over a span of 18 years, he has held numerous high-ranking positions. Prior to joining Conquest Systems, Inc., he served as IT Director for one of the dominant insurance companies in the country and was responsible for Enterprise Architecture, Claims Modernization, Imaging/Workflow, and directing the company's EDI initiatives.

As Executive Scientist for Computer Sciences Corporation, Dr. Olympia managed a R&D group and directed multidisciplinary teams on large projects for major federal agencies. He assisted clients with strategic planning and with implementing software development best practices. He also developed interactive systems in operations research, statistical analysis, and linear programming.

Dr. Olympia holds a M.S. in Physical Chemistry from Villanova University; a Ph.D. in Theoretical Chemistry and Physics, from the University of Florida; and completed post-graduate work in Quantum Chemistry and Physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He authored commercial software on DBMS and network security, several books on DBMS and related technologies, and numerous technical articles. He was a featured columnist and contributing editor for two international computer publications, and also authored computer-based training courses in college-level Chemistry and Mathematics.

Savannah Brentnall: Savannah is an independent consultant specializing in object orientation and Lotus Notes. She is the coauthor of The Visual Guide to Visual FoxPro by Ventana Press and is currently working with Flash Creative Management to provide object orientation training to FoxPro developers.

Savannah is a consultant to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and to Countrywide Funding Corporation. She was the editor of Pinnacle Publishing's VO Developer and Reference Clipper newsletters. Her articles have appeared in VO Developer, Reference Clipper, and Data Based Advisor, and she has spoken at conferences and user groups around the world. Savannah was previously CA's Clipper Product Champion and Nantucket's Technical Marketing Manager.

Savannah has been programming since 1985 and has worked with object-oriented languages since 1989. She has been working as a Lotus Notes developer and administrator since the product first entered beta testing in 1989.

Savannah Brentnall was a former US CA-Clipper product Champion at Computer Associates and US Technical Marketing Manager at Nantucket Corporation.

Whil Hentzen: Whil Hentzen, the Editor of FoxTalk, is President of Hentzenwerke Corporation, an 18-year-old firm that specializes in developing strategic database applications for Fortune 2000 firms in the manufacturing, financial, and healthcare industries. The firm has custom applications and products in use throughout the United States and in nearly two dozen foreign countries. Hentzenwerke has hosted the semi-annual Great Lakes Great Database Workshop since 1994.

He also owns Hentzenwerke Publishing, a technical book publisher that specializes in high-end software development topics. Started in 1996, HWP has produced more than a dozen books covering various aspects of Visual FoxPro and software development.

Whil has written and spoken extensively about software development. He has been a Microsoft MVP since 1994, and Editor of FoxTalk since 1996. He is the author of books about Visual Studio (Visual FoxPro 6.0 Fundamentals), Visual FoxPro (Programming Visual FoxPro 3.0), FoxPro (Rapid Application Development with FoxPro 2.6), and custom software development (1999 Software Developer's Guide).

In 1999, Microsoft contracted with Whil to create the Certification Exam for Visual FoxPro 6.0 Distributed Applications. The exam is now live and has been taken by developers world-wide to help them achieve Microsoft Certified Solution Developer status.

Whil has presented more than 50 papers at conferences throughout North America and Europe, including the Microsoft Visual FoxPro DevCon, the German National DevCon, Conference to the Max (the Netherlands), the Spanish National DevCon, Database & Client/Server World, FoxTeach, the FoxPro Users Conference, and the Mid-Atlantic Database Workshop.

Whil has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, named as the United States' top independent engineering school in 1999 by U.S. News & World Report. He spends his spare time with his kids and volunteering for the local school district, and is an avid distance runner, and, pending recovery from a severe injury a few years ago, hopes for one more shot at a sub-15-minute 5,000-meter clocking before age and common sense close the door on that activity.

Whil was the first person to receive the "Lifetime Achievement Award for Visual FoxPro". It happened at Great Lakes Great Databases Workshop 2001 (GLGDW), that took place in Milwaukee, WI, October 28-31, 2001, from Ken Levy, Microsoft VFP product manager.

Doug Hennig: Doug Hennig is a partner with Stonefield Systems Group Inc. He's the author of the award-winning Stonefield Database Toolkit (SDT), co-author (along with Tamar Granor and Kevin McNeish) of What's New in Visual FoxPro 7.0 from Hentzenwerke Publishing, and author of The Visual FoxPro Data Dictionary in Pinnacle Publishing's The Pros Talk Visual FoxPro series. He was the technical editor of The Hacker's Guide to Visual FoxPro 6.0 and The Fundamentals, both from Hentzenwerke Publishing. Doug has spoken at every Microsoft FoxPro Developers Conference (DevCon) since 1997 and at user groups and developer conferences all over North America. He's a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and Certified Professional (MCP).

Andrew Forber: Andrew first worked in digital imaging in 1976, when everything was done on "mini-computers". He got his start in text search and retrieval as a software engineer and then as Director of R&D at NDX Corporation in 1981. A year later his software engineering skills crossed paths with the news industry when he developed production page tracking systems at Muirhead Systems for USA Today and The New York Times.

Andrew was also the architect of what later became the Crosfield NewsLine 2600, the world's first PC-based Electronic Picture Desk in 1983. After several years as senior software engineer at Crosfield, and after a couple of stints as R&D Director and Software Manager of small communications technology companies, Andrew returned to the imaging and news industries in 1994 as MerlinOne's lead software engineer.

Andrew has a (never used) B.Sc. in Physics from the University of Waterloo. (He likes to point out that he took just as much Computer Science as Physics). A self-confessed news junkie, he has also been an avid photographer since his early teens. He and his wife live outside Toronto with their two school-age sons.

Currently Andrew works in MerlinOne, Inc., a leading provider of solutions that manage digital visual assets.

Steven Black: Steven has been a Fox developer since 1986. He markets Steven Black's INTL Toolkit, a multi-lingual framework for FoxPro and Visual FoxPro, which he created in 1993 and continues to refine. He has been a featured speaker at nearly forty FoxPro Devcons and regional conferences, and his contributions occasionally darken the pages of VFP books and magazines. Steven is also the creator and webmaster of the Visual FoxPro Wiki, an innovative VFP community knowledgebase, which is found at http://fox.wikis.com.

His company, SBC, is based in Kingston Ontario, and operates worldwide. He specializes in multi-lingual, multi-site, and other challenging FoxPro projects, including out-of-control project turn-arounds and cleanups. He consults with small developers as well as Fortune 500 companies, national and international government agencies, and software development companies to elevate their development teams.