Hi Jing,
Here are answers to your questions based on PowerBuilder 2017 R3.
1. You can still continue to use your workaround. In PB 2018 we will incorporate a special OEM version of TextControl that was previously used by PB 12.6. So once we do this there should be no difference in the RichTextEdit of PB 12.6 and PB 2018, and we will still retain the current implementation because some customers do prefer to use that. Here is the related item on the product roadmap: https://www.appeon.com/developers/roadmap/richtextedit-backwards-compatibility.html
2. DataWindow has had for quite some time the ability to SaveAs to Excel; however it does not preserve the formatting. There are some third-party products like DW2XLS that you may want to evaluate. We have not made any enhancements to this functionality in R3.
3A. Encoding/decoding is used to convert data from one format to another, often times to make it compatible with a server resource. For example, when calling a REST Web API and sending JSON data you cannot transfer binary files or URLs unless you encode them. Then, on the receiving end, you need to decode them to get the binary file or URL back. I would recommend you read this article: https://community.appeon.com/index.php/blogs/recent-blogs/base64-your-new-binary-friend
3B. Encryption/decryption technically is also a form of encoding/decoding, but it is a special process that only authorized parties can decode/decrypt the data. I would recommend you read this article: https://community.appeon.com/index.php/articles-blogs/tutorials-articles/2-powerbuilder/207-encryption-new-feature-in-powerbuilder-2017-r3
4. The NativePDF functionality does not provide the features you listed. The enhancements we made can be generalized as follows:
- In 2017 R2 we added parameters to control the format of the PDF, for example, what format to render images (BMP, JPG, PNG, etc.), ISO conformance level (PDF/A-1, PDF/A-3, etc.)
- In 2017 R3 we added security features for the PDF, for example setting passwords and various restrictions (not printable, non-modifiable, no annotations allowed, non-copiable, etc.)
This article outlines how PB's PDF functionality has evolved over the years, and gives summary of situation that the NativePDF is good for: https://community.appeon.com/index.php/blogs/recent-blogs/powerbuilder-s-pdf-evolution Based on the types of advanced PDF features you are asking for, I think you would be best served by a third-party PDF solution.
Best Regards,
Armeen
Will this control be 64bit compatible or only 32 bit?
The current RTE implementation (not the TextControl) is available in a 64-bit version, and we are planning to integrate that in the product in the future.