RE: Planning for an iSeries future

["Graap, Ken" <keg@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I want to thank everyone for all the wonderful discussion on this topic.

I have decided that a 3 year hiatus from a hardware upgrade probably won't
be as bad as I originally alluded too.

I guess one of the issues I need to address with management though is the
adoption of an iSeries platform philosophy...

We have one for the desktop side of the IT house... We regularly upgrade our
hardware based on a schedule - x number of years for displays, x number for
desktop PC's, x number for laptops etc... We also upgrade the desktop OS
"every other" release... Example, we went from Win95 to Win2000 skipping
Win98 and plan on skipping Win2003 ... You see... It is a philosophy of
keeping current in small steps and spreading the cost of this over time. 

I'm trying to suggest that we do the same with our AS/400 - ISeries
investment too. 

The current feedback I'm getting from my manager is "it is different" and
she hasn't been able to quite explain why. Of course her background has
always been the desktop arena and she just recently inherited the AS/400
side of the floor after our last manager retired. I've strongly suggested
that she take some time to learn more about the iSeries but she hasn't
allocated any time yet.

If I could convince her and the CIO that it is in our companies best
interest to have an iSeries upgrade philosophy then most of my current
issues would probably melt away.  Of course as you have probably already
guessed, the philosophy of "wait and see" is not one I want to accept easily
<smile>.

Kenneth

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Kenneth E. Graap
IBM Certified Specialist 
AS/400e Professional System Administrator
NW Natural (Gas Services)
keg@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Phone: 503-226-4211 x5537
FAX:    603-849-0591
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