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RE: RE: Letters to the editors >John, >A couple of people must have taken decided to follow through. >On May 11th there was an article by Michael Surkan in PC Week >comparing the Model 170 to a PC server. The authors conclusion was that >the PC server is more flexible because it supports multiple! >processors and came with more memory and disk. Joe Young and Chuck >Ackerman wrote to the editor to explain the apples to oranges comparison >being made. Their response is in the May 25th issue. >David Morris David (Thanks David this is the partisipation we need) As a matter of fact I was thinking of writing a follow-up post to see if anyone actually wrote to any magazine. (Has anyone ? if yes drop me a line). A couple of things have happened. The editor of DB2 magazine has written to me saying that they are doing a bunch of articles(Maybe a column) on the AS/400. DB2 Mag. mostly had articles about DB2 on other platforms. (She also would like me to write an article.) Got a letter from a writer for InformationWeek. I am talking to him. (John Foley). WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. I also visit my favorite web sites, WWW.NEWS.COM and WWW.CMPNET.COM On NEWS.COM I saw an article about the trouble Intel is having with the Merced Chip(Their 64 bit chip). The slant of the article was that it was the only 64 Bit chip around, along with the Dec Alpha(How many companies are running mission critical apps on the Alpha ? was it 1 or 2? I can't remember. I guess you still have to consider it as a Mainstream solution Heh?). Annnnnyway. Not a single word on the AS/400 being a 64 Bit machine. (for 2 years now!!!!) I clicked on the author's name and got his address and wrote the following note to him. (See Below, Micheal's whole article is also below) What impact do you think it would have if these writers were constantly getting Polite, Informative, Feedback on their articles. From THOUSANDS of happy AS/400 users. The AS/400 has reputation of having the "Highest Customer Satisfaction" rating of any computer. Isn't it at least a LITTLE bit our job to inform the Mis-informed ? It deserves at least half the effort as Subfile Sizes or the other topics we discuss. So, Visit CMPNET, Join in its discussion feedback areas (I did on the topic of stable API's, Mentioning the AS/400's Stable interface.) If we want to see the AS/400 in the years to come, WE better take an individual part. You can make a difference. Thank you for your time. SOAPBOX(*OFF) "Every day I bet our business on our AS/400 systems," says Howard Ringoen, NOA's(Nintendo) vice president, information services. John Carr Tip: Start by complementing the author, Then offer advice. ---------------------------------------------------------- Micheal RE: 64 Bit MercedChip I have read and enjoyed many of your articles before and I always liked how you take pains to "Get the story right". That is why I am writing to you. It might supprise you to know that companies like Gateway2000, Nintendo, and even Microsoft have been using Native 64 Bit computing for more than 2 years now. That's full 64 Bits (software taking advantage of all 64 not just 32 of 64 or 16 of 64). How can this be true ?? As a matter of fact 98 % (Literally) of the Fortune Top 100 and 85 % of the Fortune 1000 also have been using 64 Bit technology for the last 2 years !!! Companies like NationsBank, Reynolds Metals, Smith, Kline & Beecham, Planet Hollywood, Circuit City Stores, Enterprise Rental Car, Nabisco, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd , Harrah's Casinos (and nearly every other casino in Vega). The list goes on and on. How can this be???? Because all of the above companies (Yes, believe it or not, even Microsoft) use IBM AS/400 computers to run their business. It's striking to realize that even though companies like Gateway2000, Nintendo, and Microsoft make and sell computers and or software, They actually only trust THEIR Receivables, Payables, Order Entry, General Ledger, Shop Floor, etc (i.e. Mission Critical apps) to an AS/400. See Below Respectfully John Carr 804-739-7689 (A Nightly reader of your web page. I have turned-on everyone I know to your site. It's Great!) Here's a few 64 Bit tidbits; (Read some and see how 64 Bits is REALLY here today.) -------------------------------------------------------------- 64 Bit RISC case studies (From http://as400.rochester.ibm.com) -------------------------------------------------------------- "Nintendo scores big with AS/400" When it comes to combining fun with business success, few companies score Higher than Nintendo of America Inc. (NOA), the U.S. distribution subsidiary of Nintendo Company Ltd. in Kyoto, Japan. The Washington state-based company takes on its competitors with all the skill and wit of Mario himself - one of Nintendo's earliest and most successful video-game heroes. Today, Nintendo is a dominant player in the worldwide video-game market, along with having nearly 50 percent of the U.S. market. In September 1996, NOA released its new 64-bit video game system, Nintendo 64 - and scored one of the most successful video game launches in history. Many elements of planning and production contributed to this achievement. Among the most important was a swift upgrade to AS/400 Advanced System using 64-bit PowerPC technology. "It was critical that we upgrade our AS/400 distribution system at our Automated Distribution Center to handle the Nintendo 64 launch and peak shipping volumes expected," says Howard Ringoen, NOA's vice president, information services. "Our previous upgrade had been four years earlier. We planned, tested and installed the new 64-bit AS/400 hardware and operating system in less than two weeks, with no problems. No other hardware platform can do it that quickly - and ensure that all the applications are fully 64-bit enabled and running, without modifications." NOA shipped more than 350,000 units of Nintendo 64 systems directly to retailers at the launch of the product. Two days later, according to Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) store delivery records, 99 percent of retailers had received the product. "When you ship more than $90 million of new product in one day, with 100 percent shipping accuracy, you had better run your business on a system with high reliability - and one you can trust your mission critical applications to. That is why NOA partners with IBM and its AS/400 technology," says Ringoen. A mission critical partnership NOA has trusted its business application systems to AS/400 technology (and its predecessor, System/38) for the past 14 years. NOA uses AS/400 systems for: call-center and order-entry operations order processing, via EDI automated distribution financials time reporting inhouse application development. According to Ringoen, AS/400 Advanced System has fully demonstrated its ability to support a variety of open standards. The AS/400 Advanced System used in order processing, for example, is connected seamlessly to an IBM RISC System/6000, which serves as a data repository. The AS/400 Advanced System used in NOA's automated warehouse also supports a variety of third-party systems, ensuring a smooth flow of data across the organization. "Every day I bet our business on our AS/400 systems," says Ringoen. "When I think of AS/400 technology - especially the RISC-based systems, many words come to mind: price/performance, leading edge, mission critical, open standards, reliability - and most of all, competitive advantage." <SNIP> --------------------------------------------------- Problems delay Merced chip By Michael Kanellos Staff Writer, CNET NEWS.COM May 29, 1998, 1:15 p.m. PT Merced, the 64-bit processor from Intel, will be delayed about six months, a major blow to workstation and server makers such as Hewlett-Packard that are betting heavily on the chip. The delay appears to be the result of a manufacturing problem, rather than a problem with the chip's design, according to Dean McCarron, principal analyst at Mercury Research. Intel has told people that the company "is trying to get a better handle on the manufacturing process," he said. With the delay, the release of Merced will not occur until 2000. Originally, the chip was scheduled to appear in late 1999. "It's a very complex [chip]. [Intel] sheerly underestimated the complexity of the chip," said an industry source familiar with the setback. The source added that the fundamental design of the chip is complete but that going from "fundamental design to actual product" means there are "hundreds of elements that need to scheduled." These include laying out the circuits and validating software to run on the processor, the source said. The source also confirmed that PC vendors were not pleased. "Nobody likes a slip." The postponement will stall Intel's entry into high-end corporate computing. Merced is Intel's first 64-bit microprocessor and the company's first product that will be incorporated in servers that will be competing directly with comparable systems from Sun Microsystems and Digital Equipment. The impact on PC vendors such as Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, and Dell Computer which had been planning powerful, high-profit-margin 64-bit systems for the end of 1999 is not yet clear. Counterbalancing the Merced setback is the fact that Intel's next-generation Xeon Pentium II chip, due within the next two weeks, will allow Intel to sell high-margin chips and PC vendors to sell powerful, pricey workstations and servers in 1999 and beyond. New versions of the Xeon and other next-generation 32-bit chips should also extend this pricing model. But it could cause companies to slow down their buying plans, which will mean an overall slowdown in the market. "You will see a slowdown in buying in customer anticipation in Merced," said Amir Ahari, server analyst at International Data Corporation. "It will slow down the 'enterprise' market a little bit." Corporate--or so-called "enterprise" market--buying typically slows down on the eve of a major upgrade, Ahari said. Sales of Pentium Pro servers, for instance, have slowed in the past two to three quarters in anticipation of servers based around the upcoming "Slot 2" Xeon processors from Intel. This ordinary lag will thus likely be extended for an additional period of time as a result of the delay, he said. Of the individual vendors, McCarron theorized that HP may stand to lose the most. Not only is it one of the co-designers of Merced, but the company is also basing its server strategy around the chip. Early next year, HP will come out with another version of its PA-RISC processor, which has been the basis of its high-end Unix server strategy, but it does not have a clear roadmap for PA-RISC chips beyond that. "If your entire future product strategy is Merced, it screws you up for a few quarters. If it's incremental, it's not as big a deal," he said. +--- | This is the Midrange System Mailing List! | To submit a new message, send your mail to MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com. | To subscribe to this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-SUB@midrange.com. | To unsubscribe from this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-UNSUB@midrange.com. | Questions should be directed to the list owner/operator: david@midrange.com +---
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