Re: Technology preview: IBM i Access Client Solutions

I wasn't terribly impressed.

Many of the graphical features of it's version of iNav just point you over
to System Director. System Director doesn't have some of the
functionality available within iNav. Since iNav comes free and costs
nothing to use what's the incentive to switch over, if I am going to lose
functionality? Getting some of the functionality that System Director
offers? That's not a switch over - that's using two products to perform
one family of operations.

As far as 5250, well, it's not in the Registry. That may appeal to some.
I believe you lose functionality though. For example, you can't say
"don't prompt me for my user id and password - just use what I entered for
Windows". Another issue is that it won't put itself in the Start menu's
anywhere. You have to manually figure that out. Not appearing in
"Add/Remove Programs" may appeal to some - you just blast it's directory
and it's off your system. I'm more of a one stop shopping fan. I'm
looking for programs which may be obsolete I may start with Add/Remove
Programs. Especially if you stick it down in C:\Program Files (x86) a few
directories down (like maybe C:\Program Files (x86)\IBM\System i
Access\Expanded). One may erroneously assume that the proper way to clean
up \Program Files (x86) is with Add/Remove programs. Migration of files
from IBM i Access for Windows is marginal. Much of it will need to be
recreated. Check your keyboard mapping. Much of the defaults from IBM i
Access for Windows has changed. Some of it was an opportune time to
change funky defaults. (Think copy/paste/etc.) But you may want to know
where Sys-Req is now hiding.

So it's all Java. Big whoop. It's not like that now gives you a one stop
shopping product that will also work on a plethora of handheld devices. It
doesn't.


Rob Berendt