Re: System i5 equivalent to DB2 Cube Views - morphed into COMMON membership

TO: dkimmel@xxxxxxxxxxx 

You wrote (answers embedded):

Buying an i5 will get you an education voucher which you can use to
attend 
a conference, but I think you still have to buy a membership.

 I think we used that up when we bought the initial box in '95

Individual membership is $125.00 a year. Corporate membership is more.
If 
you're a member of your local users group and your lug is a corporate 
member, you can participate through your lug membership.

 Not a bad price if there is good ROI     I'll check with  PHUN400+

(Phoenix Users Group)

Membership is slowly dwindling, but I don't think we're dying. There
are 
many active members who derive a great deal of benefit from COMMON.

 Besides what you state below, what are the benefits?   I can put in

my requirements directly to IBMers I know in Toronto, Rochester, my IBM
rep, this list or directly to corporate for no cost via email so COMMON
being a requirements gatherer doesn't provide good ROI for the cost of
membership and the cost of COMMON itself.

One of the benefits of membership is the requirements process. As a
group, 
we have a great deal of clout with IBM. IBM has prompted and promoted
this 
method of vetting and presenting user needs and wants. Through the 
requirements process, a requested feature is aired, discussed, revised,

and presented to IBM in a form on which IBM can act directly. Sometimes

that action will be to defer action, but you'll at least get a direct 
answer. PHP being directly supported on the iSeries was the result of
one 
such requirement.

IBM pays attention to this list, as well. I don't want to make COMMON
out 
as the only way to express your needs. However, the COMMON requirements

system is an active and established FORMAL process for users to
initiate 
changes in software and hardware on the iSeries (or whatever they're 
calling it today). <<

Thanks,

Dave