Re: Green Screen access for customers - suggestions?? -- MIDRANGE-L

Hey, I certainly agree there is no contest here on the Mochasoft price at
$250. for a corporate license.  However, my customers (and I am sure many
on this list) typiclly have a longer list of requirements when looking at a
TN5250e client.  How about printers and SQL based file transfer for a
start.  I've seen feature charts up the wazoo on 5250 having specialized in
this area for almost 20 years.  Lots of dots don't matter.....until you
need them.  You wouldn't believe the esoteric stuff that makes or breaks a
TN5250 solution.  The big stoppers are not the basic features found in most
all major clients like WRQ, Attachmate, NetSoft, Wall Data, IBM, and Synapse.

The stuff that most commonly derails a TN5250 solution is if it just don't
work, wrecks havoc in the Windows OS, causes freezing, won't cooperate with
other Windows apps, replaces vital Windows system files, corrupts the
registry, or is hard to intuitively install or learn.  

Printing seems to be a very big item.  Minimum today for industrial
strength TCP/IP software is to support the virtual printer TN5250e spec.
SSL is around the corner.  Synapse and others have the LPR/LPD printer
client but it became more of a stopgap when that was the only way to offer
printing over TCP/IP (until May, 1998).  Most of my customers use the
TN5250e virtual printer session today.

(BTW, to be effective in the LPR/LPD world you have to be able to process
native *SCS strings so you can turn off Host Print Transform on the AS/400
to stop chewing up cycle time xlating printer documents.  What really sank
LPR/LPD in general was the lack of control (like restarting, forms control,
etc.) users had of printer jobs.

Amazingly enough ENPTUI (and *TEXT ASSIST to a lesser extent) has come to
the forfront recently as programmers have incorporated pop up windows in
their AS/400 apps as selection boxes or help text.

Other selected items that come up include display of special AS/400
characters like the dup key, 132 col support, DDE, WinHLLAPI, and network
aware versions.

Most full featured packages also include file transfer which might not be a
requirement for all but, then again......

Lastly, what about availability of tech support?  All major TN5250
companies offer tech support.  Key here is that all vendors offer tech
support via web, email, and phone.  All charge for tech support (typically
15% of license fee) except for Synapse which has free tech support.  Some
of my customers consider tech support a vital issue.  They want to hear me
on the phone to deal with their "emergency" now.  I don't believe that
Mochasoft (a Danish company) has any phone support available at all.

Roger Pence (who can argue with Roger) says that (April 19 issue of his
AS/400 Letter) that the latest Mocha W32 is a "supberb value despite some
warts and hairs" and lack of printing and file transfer.  He says there is
some kind of issue with the logging feature showing userids and passwords
as plain text but maybe that is fixed now.

So, yes, it's a value for some but if you need it all (printers, file xfer,
ENPTUI, phone tech support, etc.) you will probably have to make a modest
investment.

Regards,


Jerry

At 10:48 PM 10/5/1999 -0400, you wrote:
>you still can't beat the Mochasoft client for price v. value for 5250
>emulation.  They also have a new LPD/LPR client for printing.
>Carl Galgano
>EDI Consulting Services, Inc.
>540 Powder Springs Street
>Suite C19
>Marietta, GA  30064
>770-422-2995
>mailto: cgalgano@ediconsulting.com
>http://www.ediconsulting.com
>EDI, Communications and AS400 Technical Consulting
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Jerome Draper <jdraper@wco.com>
>To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com <MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com>
>Date: Tuesday, October 05, 1999 7:21 PM
>Subject: RE: Green Screen access for customers - suggestions??
>
>
>>My understanding is that you need a separate CA/400 license ($275. each)
>>for each AS/400.  So, if you have three AS400's and one PC you have to pay
>>825. to do 5250 emulation.  This makes products like Synapse NetWolf look
>>veeerrrryyyy attractive at $179 each because they look at you as a company
>>'stead of multiple proce$$or$s.
>>
>>Jerry
>>
>>At 08:18 AM 10/5/1999 -0700, you wrote:
>>>I paid $10.00 per seat back when we upgraded from CICS to RICS, (3.2 -
>3.7).
>>>That is when IBM changed it from processor licensing to per seat license
>and
>>>had a special promotion.  We bought the upper limit for our processor, 150
>>>or so for the 510-2143.  3 years latter we are up to 75 PCs.  Now my
>>>question is, If I connect to more than one AS400 with my SINGLE PC, how
>many
>>>licenses do I need?
>>>
>>>Christopher K. Bipes mailto:ChrisB@Cross-Check.com
>>>Sr. Programmer/Analyst mailto:Chris_Bipes@Yahoo.com
>>>CrossCheck, Inc. http://www.cross-check.com
>>>6119 State Farm Drive Phone: 707 586-0551 x 1102
>>>Rohnert Park CA  94928 Fax: 707 586-1884
>>>
>>>*Note to Recruiters
>>>I nor anyone that I know of is interested in any new and/or exciting
>>>positions. Please do not contact me.
>>>
>>>
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: Jim Langston [mailto:jlangston@conexfreight.com]
>>>Sent: Tuesday, October 05, 1999 6:36 AM
>>>To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com
>>>Subject: Re: Green Screen access for customers - suggestions??
>>>
>>>
>>>That may be.  I remember it being $400 a copy a few years ago, they may
>>>of lowered it.
>>>
>>>Regards,
>>>
>>>Jim Langston
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>>>
>>
>>Jerry Draper, Trilobyte Software Systems, since 1976
>>Specializing in connecting PC's, Windows, MAC's, and LAN's to the AS/400
>>Representing Synapse, Apple, IBM, UDS, Nlynx, MI, Perle, Netsoft, etc.
>>(415) 457-3431; (415) 258-1658fax; jdraper@wco.com
>>+---
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>

Jerry Draper, Trilobyte Software Systems, since 1976
Specializing in connecting PC's, Windows, MAC's, and LAN's to the AS/400
Representing Synapse, Apple, IBM, UDS, Nlynx, MI, Perle, Netsoft, etc.
(415) 457-3431; (415) 258-1658fax; jdraper@wco.com
+---
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| To submit a new message, send your mail to MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com.
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