employed/annoyed

For work, I am developing a small program for a work application (no instruments involoved in the V.I., or program (The program uses typically more complex programming done for the people it is targeted towards...- multiple dialog windows, loops, arrays, subarays, sql calls, transferring data from the user interface, using that to call from our oracle database, possibly transferring data to spreadsheets and vice versa) . I have gotten the feel for these labview and visual programming from version 6.1, which is an old license i have access to before I was able to justify getting a seat for a license for 7.1.1 (which is the newest version available at this company). I have done some programming (the majority of the real work that will go to the program) in Labview 8.0.1. I have formed the structure of the program around Labview 8.0.1 nodes in the terminals (which I have noticed are slightly different from Labview 6.11), as well as some features that are definitely such as the variant feature, sql manipulation functions, and functions transferring data from between interface, oracle, and excel spreadsheets, and possibly manipulating the data using the statistical functions, working off a friend's copy, who has a legal license he obtained from outside this company. It is likely that the newest license I can have for use from my company is Labview 7.1.1. Since I am not able to look at either 7.11 or Labview 8.0.1, or more importantly, their help files for node inputs and function descriptions, I was wondering if there was a source for a description for these features and the differences between each version of labview, so I can know at least what I could do with each version, and plan the data structuring of the coding in the lead time up to getting an appropriate licesnse. I was also wondering if there was any tips for "programming around" the variant feature when it is not available in any of the older versions. This feature really elimates consideration one has to take for making variables compatible, and would probably affect the structure of the block diagram considerably as far as I understand. If anyone has any ideas, input, or suggestions to actually get this program coded (which license would I need to complete a task using the feautres mentioned above or what features I can plan around in the lead time...etc...)...let me know!!!! Ok, I have looked on the website and saw that there is a Database connectivity tool kit that can be bought for $995 that can be used with versions as early as 6.0. There is a pdf document in one of the other posts called Labview upgrade notes. I haven't gone over been abble to review it completely to figure out the differences from upgrade to upgrade, but if anyone has read the document and/or familiar with the connectivity tool and the best licesnse to go for, please feel free to input. Also, the lab manual sucks, espeically for manipulating between the block diagram and instrument panel, the tools, and where all the features are located, everything has to be learned by trial and error, and then double cheching what u chose with the help file. Is there a source of doing actual programming in lab view????????