RE: Linux on OS/400

I hate to beat this stuff into the ground (honestly, I do!), but I suppose
the non-tech list is built for it.

I know so many Linux advocates who adore its openness.  I see folks who were
Red Hat junkies until they decided that Suse or Debian were better, and who
would load Linux on old PC's, Playstations, digital watches.  I'd sooner
tell them to delete their Spawn screen savers than make them run Linux on a
mainframe.

Many of these folks were among those disturbed by the restrictiveness of the
AS/400 even before Linus showed them the way and the light.  If you tell
them to run an iSeries or mainframe Linux partition you're restricting their
Linux distributions and restricting their hardware choices.

Granted, this isn't necessarily the real world.  It's one thing to say
you're gonna run Linux and develop your own systems from the ground up using
open source solutions.  The moment you introduce something like Oracle into
the mix you get forced to certain hardware implementations and Linux
distributions.  And application server technologies or application software
solutions will again limit your Linux options.

I think that the coolness factor goes way down for these people when you
tell them what to run and where to run it -- Particularly if they have to
learn the rules for the mainframe or iSeries, or work with the folks who
already know it.

...and yes, it is a broad, rash generalization.  Actual results may vary.

-Jim

-----Original Message-----
From: Bruce Barrett [mailto:bruce.barrett@xxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, March 22, 2004 4:01 PM
To: Non-Technical Discussion about the AS400 / iSeries
Subject: RE: Linux on OS/400


AS/400 parts from eBay?

Bruce Barrett


-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-nontech-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:midrange-nontech-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Jim Damato
Sent: Monday, March 22, 2004 1:51 PM
To: 'Non-Technical Discussion about the AS400 / iSeries'
Subject: RE: Linux on OS/400

building your server from parts bought off of eBay.


-----Original Message-----
From: Wills, Mike N. (TC) [mailto:MNWills@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, March 22, 2004 3:45 PM
To: Non-Technical Discussion about the AS400 / iSeries
Subject: RE: Linux on OS/400


On the contrary. It puts you one up on the geek scale if you are an
admin of
the linux mainframe partition. What can be more cool than that?!?

Mike Wills


-----Original Message-----
From: Jim Damato

It's rash generalization time.  I think that the best way to scare off
Linux
admins is to tell them they get to implement it on an AS/400 or a
mainframe.

-Jim