RE: COMMON: What to do? -- MIDRANGE-L

Don,

>I think you folks are in DIRE NEED of ideas.  I think COMMON is in DIRE
>NEED of some actions to help it survive in this downturned market.

Wow, you paint a pretty bleak picture.  Were you being extra inflammatory
just to generate discussion on the list?  I don't have any problem
discussing COMMON on the Midrange-L (with our benevolent dictator's
permission :), but I can guess that Janet's reservations stem at least in
part from the fact that every time you bring up the subject of COMMON, you
start yelling that the sky is falling.  For those people who aren't that
familiar with COMMON and don't get the opportunity to attend at least
annually, I can see how some folks could get a negative (and wrong)
impression of the organization.  

You do a pretty thorough job of pointing out the bulk of COMMON's faults
Don, so I hope you don't begrudge me a little equal time to mention just a
few of its strengths.  For the record, COMMON is still the largest AS/400
User Group in the world - by a long-shot.  Even Indianapolis (a small
conference) had over 600 session hours of instructions and labs.  It has the
largest collection of iSeries vendors in one place, so if you're shopping
for iSeries software, there is no better place to visit. In addition, IBM
sends hundreds of people to each conference, and uses the conference to show
off their latest technological developments. Some of the best minds in our
industry present on topics from A to Z. But best of all, COMMON is a place
to meet with other folks who do the same kind of job you do and trade tips,
techniques, and war stories that are as valuable as anything else you can
learn in a session.  So while some people always seem to have some pet peeve
to blast COMMON with, it would be nice if we all took the time to recognize
the positives in the conference.  There must be something you, in
particular, like Don.  You've been to nearly every conference that I have
been to, and you keep coming back.

COMMON does not suffer from a dearth of ideas.  Quite the contrary.  The
entire membership is replete with really bright people who generate lots of
ideas.  And while it's nice to hear from the vocal few who can and do
articulate those ideas, it's not realistic to think that every idea is (A)
capable of being implemented and (B) worth implementing.  Even the very best
idea's need someone to actually execute them.  With all the allegedly good
ideas that we are working on, there just aren't enough arms and legs in the
organization to take on every new notion that comes along.

But even more importantly, I don't think that COMMON is in dire need of new
ideas to work on, what we need is hard data that will prove or disprove the
validity of the ideas that are already on the table.  And I'll take that
validation in any form that I can get it.  If 500 of the other people on
this list respond to your original post with "Yea Don!"  "Right on!" "I
believe everything that you say.", I'd be tickled pink. But absent that kind
of a groundswell, what we are left with just another set of new notions that
yet need to be validated.  

You don't run a $5M organization by gut feel.  You have to prove your
theories before you turn the organizational ship.  Once that validation is
in place, then it still takes a whole bunch of arms and legs to bring these
ideas to fruition.  So yes, ideas are welcome, but once the "idea-egg" is
laid, somebody has to sit on it and hatch it, and then nurture it during its
early stages.  To the extent that you want to generate positive ideas to
stimulate the creative juices, that's great.  But when "idea-eggs" are
lobbed over the wall with demands of near-immediate implementation, don't be
surprised if no-one catches them and they splatter on the ground. 

If we're going to do things right, we're going to spend the time and the
resources necessary to prove our theories before we allow the organization
to be jerked onto and off of it's course.

Humbly Yours, 

jte


--
John Earl | Chief Technology Officer
The PowerTech Group
19426 68th Ave. S
Seattle, WA 98032
(253) 872-7788 ext. 302
john.earl@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.powertech.com 
 

--
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:midrange-l-
> bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Don
> Sent: Thursday, May 22, 2003 6:08 PM
> To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion
> Subject: Re: COMMON: What to do?
> 
> 
> Janet,
> 
> regarding your reply, snipette below, this is THE CORRECT forum for this
> kind of discussion.  David has verified that this morning.
> 
> The items we're discussing here and now and the reasons we're having to
> discuss them here and now, means that something has failed with the
> executive directorship of COMMON both in Chicago and in the CBOD.
> 
> I'm not sure we have the time to wait for you and COMMON.
> 
> I think you folks are in DIRE NEED of ideas.  I think COMMON is in DIRE
> NEED of some actions to help it survive in this downturned market.  I
> think you've got some decent minds on this listserver.  I think you've
> been given some good ideas in the past that you're now seeing the effects
> of not acting on.
> 
> It's frankly up to you folks if we actually have a COMMON in our common
> futures...I would think you'd be much more open to input than attempting
> to manage the ideas on a yet to be rolled out forum.  Do you really think
> we have the time for yet another reinvention of the wheel when this one
> seems to work just fine?   It's alive here and now, use it until you find
> something better.
> 
> Folks, the floor is again open for progressive and futuristic discussion
> and ideas on what can and should be done to keep COMMON in our common
> futures...  We need good ideas and ways to get from here to there.  Leave
> your politics at the the plug, unplugged.  We don't have time for it.
> 
> Let's hear some ideas....
> 
> Don in DC
> 
> ---------
> 
> 
> On Wed, 21 May 2003, Janet Krueger wrote:
> 
> > >> Clearly COMMON needs to regroup.  What I would suggest immediately
> is...
> >
> > As I stated earlier today, this is the WRONG list for this discussion.
> > Within the next week or so, Fred will be opening a discussion forum for
> > discussing issues, suggestions, and dreams with the people running for
> > election to the COMMON Board of Directors in 2003.
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
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