Re: Rebranding

Folks,

My greatest fear when we first formed the advocacy group has come true.  IBM 
has performed yet another _WORTHLESS_ name change for the sake of changing 
names for market position.  To paraphrase Cartman, "son of a -- gun".  Name 
changes for the sake of changing names have _PROVEN_ themselves to be without 
merit.  I barely learned FSIOP when it became IPCS then became INS, and you 
name it.  Didn't have customers clamoring for that "Hot Integrated Netfinity 
Server".  More like, "I need one of these, what is IBM calling it _THIS_ 
month, and what's the model number?".  PC/Support _really_ took off when it 
changed to "Client Access" -- NOT -- third party products pretty much took 
over after that.  Perhaps the latter had something to do with the fact that 
most screens still read "PC Support" at the top.  No hot prospects wanting 
DB2/400 over DDS or UDB/400 over DB2/400.  Why?  They're the SAME STUPID 
THING.

Am I the only one seeing that nothing but the name has changed here?  The 390 
gets changes, _NOT_ the AS/400.  The "pundits" go on ad nauseum about the 
consolidation of the product line, but I saw none of that in today's 
announcements.  Only a further blurring of the lines, if anything.  IBM's 
insistence on sticking to model numbers have been a peeve of mine for years 
-- can't order system x with y memory and z DASD, you have to order a 
98xx/My/z which may or may not have the memory and DASD you seek.  Who can 
keep up with this stuff?  Why can't you just order what you want?  I don't 
want a 5xxx terminal with mouse, I want an x" diagonal color monitor with 
ethernet connection and a mouse.  I don't want an I/P/Z system, I want an 
AS/400 with 2Gb of memory and 100Gb of DASD.

If IBM wants to simplify things, how about A) dropping the model numbers and 
B) QUIT RENAMING EVERYTHING EVERY YEAR OR SO.  Respect my authoritie...

JMHO,

Dean Asmussen
Enterprise Systems Consulting, Inc.
Fuquay-Varina, NC  USA
E-mail:  DAsmussen@aol.com

"Jimi Hendrix was the first rocker on the Internet.  His modem was a purple 
Hayes..." -- Anonymous
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