Reader Feedback on AS/400 i Mystery Solved–Again?
April 11, 2011 Timothy Prickett Morgan
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I agree with the conclusion of the article, AS/400 i Mystery Solved–Again? by Pat Botz. It was: So, why is the AS/400 market declining and perceived as old technology? I believe, literally, that because it was so far ahead of its time that many of the shops using it were unable to understand how to integrate the system with the changing environment around it. This led to the misconception of old technology and the need to move on to “newer” more “flexible” systems. The IBM i Manifest is a group of IBM partners, independent software vendors, consultants and customers joined together with three main objectives: 1. To revitalize the IBM i market and increase the customer base.rn2. To assure IBM i customers, resellers, and ISVs that the IBM i will continue to prosper.rn3. To inform the wider technology community of the unique value proposition of IBM i. I think the fourth objective of the IBM i Manifesto should be: 4. To help Unix, Linux, and Microsoft implement iSeries virtual memory in the next 10 to 20 years. –Herman Yes, Pat and Tim, it was just freaking brilliant. I’ve be working with AS/400s since they were System/32s. Compared to PCs, they are and were techno heaven: to manage, to use, to own, to keep using tomorrow. Something Pat did not mention. There’s no such thing as bad press. X86-based servers attract a lot of attention for all the wrong reasons but in doing so, attract a lot of resources constantly fussing over them. The platforms were constantly upgraded just to stay running. That means lots money, minds, and bodies to blaze new trails in the idle moments when not sending out “please sign off, we must reboot” messages. These are the resources the IBM midrange never got. It was so stable that, by the time it needed attention, the machine really was old. Tablespace? You mean, how many for dinner? Tuning a database? Only musical instruments need to be tuned. Mounting a drive? Are you organizing a car rally or waiting for an IBM SE (showing my age) with a screwdriver to expand the DASD? Defragging? Rebuilding a database index? Balancing load across drive spindles? Balancing resources across virtual systems? Ummmm, huh? “We don’t do that on an AS/400 because we don’t have to sometimes became we don’t do that. Mea Culpa. –Tim True statement! –Regards, Frederick [You have to admire the simplicity of that one. –TPM] RELATED STORIES AS/400 i Mystery Solved–Again? Reader Feedback on AS/400 to i Mystery Solved Power Systems i: The Windows Conundrum That Windows-on-Power Rumor Surfaces Again Does Native .NET Support Matter for the System i? Reader Feedback on Native .NET for System i Next Up on the System i: Native .NET
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