RE: MIDRANGE-L Digest V4 #172 -- MIDRANGE-L

I think I was complaining about marketing. And I wish my staff had the
option to leave to go to other AS/400 sites. That ability is quickly being
eliminated as people start ill-fated NT projects to replace their 400s.

Also, if Mercedes equates to an AS/400, then how do you explain the lack of
a Graphical User Interface, native on the AS/400 in the year 2001?

Also, when you go into buy a Corvette (which I have done) you get treated
like a king, (granted the dealer does try to screw you, but they figure if
you can afford a Corvette they won't try quite as hard <g>.

My big problem, however, is that it typically costs you a significant fee
above and beyond the AS/400's cost, just to buy the thing. I'm talking about
administration and legal paperwork fees.

So could you still afford a $40k to $60k Corvette if it cost you another
$10k to $20k in time, money, administration/staff overhead, and legal fees?
I think you'd go buy a Mazda Miata.

The difference is that Corvette deals know their clients. IBM also knows
their clients, but the IBM staff that deals with the customers has little,
if any, knowledge of their clients--they only know quota and the "punch
list".

I don't agree, however, that the AS/400 is a Corvette or a Merc, or Lexus,
or anything else. Today, except for speed and ease of use, all computer
hardware is interchangeable. Only the application of software makes it
different.




From: Lurton Keel <LKeel@unarcorack.com>
Subject: RE: [RPGIV] AS/400 is dead long live iSeries? (fwd)

I guess your point of view is whether your income is related to the
proliferation of 400(iseries) or whether your income is based on working for
a company that owns a 400(iseries).  Consultants, publishers, etc.  fall in
to the former while I fall in to the latter.  I am not really concerned with
whether the iseries is in every computer room in the world, I am only
concerned with the perpetuation of the series.  IBM doesn't have to sell
100,000 per year.  I only need a new one every 5 years and an upgrade every
2 years.  Some of the shops around can run their business applications on
Dell servers and so what if they are down a couple of times a month, they
were cheap to buy and they get to see those sexy Dell advertisements and
commercials.  I don't really want anyone to sell them an iseries (they
wouldn't have anything about which to complain).  I drive a shiny red 2000
Corvette and I don't want everyone to have one.  Chevrolet doesn't market
the 'Vette the way BMW or Mercedez does but that is ok by me.  Chevrolet
sells all the Corvettes they can make.  My 'Vette gets 28 miles to the
gallon, will do 165 mph, does 0-40 in 4.8 seconds is designed to survive 150
mph crashes and the blue-haired ladies in the parking lot can't ding it with
their doors since the body is plastic.  It also costs less than my buddy's
2000 Ford Expedition and I still don't want everyone to have one.
If every time IBM sells an iseries to a new customer, you have a potential
customer, then complain about IBM marketing.
If every time IBM sells an iseries to a new customer and you worry about
losing some of your staff, then don't complain.

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