Top 10 reasons why the HMC is a terrible product!

Ok, there hasn't been a good "I hate the HMC" thread for at least a week
or so, so here goes...

We just installed a partitioned i5 a month ago and, as a part of this,
an HMC also.  Here are my rants about this HIDEOUS product.

1. The developers of this product must have never used an iSeries or
Windows as this product, which is so critical to the operation of the
iSeries, doesn't look, act or feel like an iSeries or Windows.  So, they
must have either set out to deliberately p*ss of their customers or are
completely negligent.

2. Yet another password.  The HMC rules didn't allow me to use the
password I have on the iSeries and our Windows domain.  It wanted
something like a number or to have it longer.  I don't exactly remember
because I was getting pretty angry at that time and just made one up.

3. We LOSE functionality with the HMC.  With good old twinax console I
could throw a twinax card into a PC that had pcAnywhere and voila' I
could control the console directly from anywhere in the world.  Yes, the
HMC has this funky Java based HUMUNGOUS program that uses DOS and let's
me do some things from another PC but I can't control the HMC itself.
So, if I've exclusively locked a terminal session at the HMC I must
physically go there to unlock it.

In this day and age, one should never, ever, ever, ever, ever physically
have to attend a computer device.  This is 1970s thinking!

4. Connecting to the HMC remotely requires that I remember an IP
address.  The remote software doesn't remember the number I put in last
time.  And they expect ME to remember it? Yet another number to
remember.  

5. Once I remember that IP address it takes a good 30 seconds before it
asks for my user id and password.  We're talking slooooow.  Add insult
to injury I  gotta remember that password...

6. The remote interface that runs on Windows is just a redux of the
Linux box.  IBM didn't even take the trouble to make it Windows
standard.  They KNOW I'm running it on a Windows box and yet they insult
me by making it act, look and feel like Linux.  I want NOTHING to act,
look and feel like Linux! 

7. I MUST use a mouse to navigate the HMC System Manager.  I can not
drill down and use keystrokes to get to the servers and server
properties.  Try it!  For the world I can't figure out how to open up
the "+" next to "Server-9406-..." in the child window with a keyboard.
This is a big no-no in GUI programming.  A user should ALWAYS be able to
traverse any screen with a failed mouse!

7. I can't automate functions.  It takes a good 10 minutes and a number
of steps that I must do MANUALLY to move a device, such as a tape drive,
from one partition to another.  In other applications I automate this
with either a macro program on my PC or WinBatch.  Neither can be used
because I can't travel down the tree structure in the HMC with
keystrokes, something that macro programs rely upon.

8. The "context" key on my keyboard doesn't pop up a context menu at
appropriate times.  It's just a dead key.

9. For the price of the HMC they could have easily created a small,
scaled down iSeries that could have easily done a better job.  Plus I
could have created CL programs to handle the tasks that the HMC didn't
already do!

10. And worst of all: A critical component of the most reliable computer
in the world is now controlled by a PC!  We've taken a dozen steps
backwards with the invention of the HMC!

Chuck
Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of my employer.