RE: AS/400 heritage

L.

You know me better than most, so you know I agree 100% with every single
word you wrote.  I'm not playing devil's advocate, I just choose to
interpret the question in two different ways.

I interpret this post to say that Ms. Hoover, and IBM, wants to learn why we
care so much for the iSeries.  This is the phenomenon that's supposed to be
the driving force behind the iSeries Nation, but I don't think it's well
understood (even within IBM).  That's why I offer my reply to her.  I'll
return to what you said at the end of this.

-----

Ms. Hoover,

I don't know if I have anything useful to offer Mr. Tardy, or not.  Instead,
I'm writing this to you.

You may, or may not, have ever actually used a 38/400/iSeries computer in
your daily work.  I know that most people in the IBM Corp. have not.  Even
if you've used it, it would be extremely hard for you to gain the full
appreciation of it, unless you had operated, programmed, or managed one.
Your position as Editor makes that pretty unlikely; and it puts me at a
disadvantage, in trying to explain the beauty of this machine to you.  In
fact it's impossible... But I'll try my best anyway.

You may know something of the difference between the physical computer and
the operating system.  Maybe not.  That's more of a discussion than I can
get into.  But simply, in every other computer made, they are separate.  You
usually don't even buy them from the same company.  The iSeries is unique in
that they are inseparable.  People normally use the term "integrated" but
that falls a fair bit short in describing the beauty of this machine.

Because of that, the S/38, AS/400, and the iSeries are all the same
computer, just with different names.  It's funny to see the press refer to
the product line as going back to 1988.

That's part of the beauty of this machine.  A company I used to work for is
converting to a Unix box.  But there is still some program code running that
I wrote in 1985.  Some business processes don't change (like you sell a
unit, you subtract one from your inventory).  That doesn't seem too
significant until you look at it this way:

You know how much money the world spent recently, just adding 2 digits to a
year field.  I don't know how much it is, but I know it's astronomical.  But
consider that all those billions and maybe trillions of dollars doesn't
amount to a pimple on a gnat's arse, compared to the money spent maintaining
program code over years and decades.  Most systems on other computers and
operating systems have never lasted a decade.  So those folks probably
couldn't comprehend the money savings involved here.  They probably wouldn't
see the beauty of this unique machine.

I am humbled by the experience of some on this list.  I hesitate to mention
my own personal experience, and I'm sure not trying to wear it like some
badge of honor.  But it illustrates a point here.

In 1981 I heard of a machine that had this unique quality and many more.
The RPG programming language came with ability to access the database, and
interactive screens built-in.  Not as a bunch of complicated stuff added on
top; it was all integrated together.  Other aids made the programming job a
lot easier than it was on other computers.  Error messages were in words,
instead of cryptic digits.  The help key actually provided useful info.  To
be honest, the current iSeries has gotten away from some of it's fundamental
strengths, in some ways.

Anyway, I wanted to work on this unique machine.  By a fluke of nature, I
landed a job with a company that had one.  Back then, it was called the S/38
and the OS was called CPF.  It had less disk storage, and memory (IIRC 4M),
and was no doubt many, many times slower than the PCs that people are
throwing away these days.  <I just read Doug Handy's excellent post.  If you
follow his suggestion, you can see how funny that old S/38 seems by todays
standards.>  But in it's day, it was state-of-the art.  I hope I'm not
breaking any rules to mention this: that S/38 computer, and it's relatives,
ran the Liebert Corporation for several years.

Funny thing about that old relic.  It was more reliable than the vast
majority of todays computers.  Think about that for a while.  I came from a
one-man shop where I worked on a Univac mini.  I'd had so many hardware
problems to deal with, that one quality alone just reeled me in.

And as antiquated as it was, the computers today are still trying to catch
up, in many respects.  The command line interfaces that most programmers use
today is a joke compared to what I used back then, and still use now.
That's one more facet of the beauty.

If I haven't already bored you to tears, I'll tell you one last reason why I
appreciate the beauty of this machine.  Most of what I learned back in the
early 80's still applies now.  Don't get me wrong!  Ten years ago, I could
say I knew most of the essentials of the AS/400.  But these days, the
iSeries has so many powerful capabilities that what I know is dwarfed by the
amount I don't know.  What I know amounts to a pimple... well, you know.
But all these tremendous capabilies have been added on, or more properly
*rolled into* the previous capabilities I was familar with.  The
significance of that is not small, when you consider that the fashion these
days is to throw out all your old systems, and rebuild them, every couple
years when they announce a new paradigm that will save the day.  And like
most fashions, it is an expensive one.

No doubt I went on way too long, but then again, what I've written doesn't
amount...  well, you know.  I don't know if you knew these things, Ms.
Hoover.  If you did, then this has been a collosal waste of your time, and I
apologize.  I hope other people can explain it better than I did.

Thanks for asking this question, Ms. Hoover.  You'll take some flack.  L.
(as always) makes some strong points; but I for one, am glad you did.
Thanks again.

jt

-----

So L.  I guess I overdid myself as is my wont.  I agree with you that it
seems to be pretty funny to be writing about the S/38 when the iSeries is,
in many respects, in such a sad array.  My wife said she saw only 2 want-ads
in the paper.  Been a very long time, since the 80's, that I've seen that
few.  I hope this isn't a case of Nero fiddling while Rome burns, but I'll
allow that you may be right.

But I interpreted the question this way:  I think some people in IBM are
making an honest effort to find out why we cared for those old computers.
In the process, they may find out more about why we care for the iSeries
today, than anything else.

If they could bottle this passion, they could sell more iSeries.  And if you
want to be cynical, it's all just in self-interest.  But I think they're
asking the question to discover the roots of our passion.  I could be hosed.
You and I have argued this point: (and I hope we continue to :)

I think this is the spirit, and even more, the actual mission of the iSeries
Nation.  But what do I know?

IMHO, in both this article and the iSeries Nation, you can't really judge
the thing accurately until you see what comes from it.



-----Original Message-----
From: owner-midrange-l@midrange.com
[mailto:owner-midrange-l@midrange.com]On Behalf Of L. S. Russell
Sent: Wednesday, May 02, 2001 5:01 PM
To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com
Subject: Re: AS/400 heritage


What a waste of ink!  Why not publish some stories telling us why IBM
refuses to effectively market the iSeries to those outside its
established customer base?  Why not accept submissions from those on
this and other lists who have great ideas as to how this can be
accomplished?  Why tell us about the old boxes when we are more
interested in the future of the platform?

Evelyn Hoover wrote:
>
> iSeries Magazine is launching a new feature that will allow readers to
take
> a look back at some early AS/400 boxes and related hardware. And, we'd
like
> some help with this feature, which have called "Heritage." Each month,
> beginning in June, we will publish a photograph of an older computer
> (System/36, System/38 or early AS/400) or peripheral device (e.g., a disk
> drive or storage device). Accompanying the photo will be a description of
> the machine's capabilities -- everything from its speeds and feeds to its
> dimensions and weight.
>
> We've collected the photos, but we need your stories. For example, tell us
> if you used one of the first AS/400s, and what you used it for. What
> features made it so great for the time? What were its limitations? Were
> your loyalties to the System/36 or the System/38, and why?
>
> If you take a couple of minutes to share your memories, you just might
find
> your words in iSeries Magazine (and we'll send you a t-shirt if we publish
> your story). Send your questions, comments, reflections and anecdotes to:
> Neil Tardy, iSeries Magazine senior editor, neiltardy@us.ibm.com.
>
> Evelyn Hoover
> Managing Editor
> iSeries Magazine
> (507) 286-6853 T/L 456-6853
> e-mail: evelynhoover@us.ibm.com
> Web site: http://www.the400resource.com

+---
| This is the Midrange System Mailing List!
| To submit a new message, send your mail to MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com.
| To subscribe to this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-SUB@midrange.com.
| To unsubscribe from this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-UNSUB@midrange.com.
| Questions should be directed to the list owner/operator: david@midrange.com
+---