RE: FW: Java Vs RPG on iSeries -- JAVA400-L

Joe, the scope of your experience is indisputable.  It's an honor to engage
you in this meaningful dialogue.

On Wednesday, 09/18/2002 at 04:36 EST, "Joe Pluta"
<joepluta@PlutaBrothers.com> wrote:

> Java does NOT play well in that [traditional ERP] space yet.

Consider one highly successful counterexample -- Intentia -- whose iSeries
embodiment rules the performance roost.  While Intentia is obviously a far
cry from the "roll-your-own" type of Java that a small shop might write,
you must admit they *are* playing in the ERP space with Java (and very
well, indeed!)

> So I think we can agree that while SPECjbb2000 numbers are impressive,
they
> don't make much difference to the majority of iSeries customers.  Maybe
I'm
> wrong - if so, I'm sure you'll tell me so <smile>.

Joe, you're wrong.  :-)

I believe that outstanding Java performance is a key factor helping to
ensure the iSeries has *any* future, at all.

Face it: if all we had ever had was RPG and COBOL, we'd probably have been
dead years ago.  When Pascal came into vogue, we did the Pascal thing (sort
of), and it bought us some time.  When C came along as the next big thing,
we tried a couple cuts at it.  Eventually, we had to invent ILE so that C
could perform well enough to be useful, and it bought us some time.  Next,
Java comes along, and its design happens to "fit" our system better than
any language -- maybe even better than RPG -- and its bought us more time.
Java really hits a sweet spot on iSeries, and being sweet helps keep you on
the menu.  ;-)

So, emphatically, YES -- good SPECjbb2000 numbers *do* make a big
difference for all of us, to the extent that they keep us in the business
of making these beauteous boxes.

> While Java makes us think in parallel ways, what difference does that
make
> to someone posting their general ledger? [snip]  These "meat and potato"
> applications are the ones that have pretty much built the midrange
market,
> and are the ones that seem to get shunted aside by the newer
technologies.

If customers choose to dedicate their entire box to meat and taters, in
perpetuity, I guess Java might not make much direct difference to them
(except as noted above).

However, if the next release of that meat and taters box can also readily
and efficiently do asparagus (B2B procurement),  a nice salad (CRM), and
some apple pie (web-serving) -- in "parallel" harmony and without buying a
bunch of new silverware and dishes -- the restaurant may make the Fodor's
Guide after all.

Drat, now I've made myself hungry.  Must....   eat.....

-blair

Blair Wyman -- iSeries JVM -- (507) 253-2891
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"It is a sobering thought that when Mozart was my age,
he had been dead for two years." -- Tom Lehrer