Re: Saving the System i: Fight Rather Than Switch

["Trevor Perry" <tperry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Mark,

The faithful have said that IBM has been missing for a long time. We can 
assume that it is hard to get IBM to do what "we" want. So, let's do 
something ourselves. Stepping up is contributing - to iSociety, for an 
example. Angus (www.angustheitchap.com) is my example of stepping up. And 
you, too, can contribute. Send me something for the marketing site 
(www.i4everyone.com).

As for the name, IBM sells System i - currently, System i5 servers. We do 
not have a choice on the name - it is chosen by the vendor. If we do NOT use 
the same vernacular as IBM, we will soon be out of date and obsolete - 
vernacular will give you away as a dinosaur - vernacular is everything.

Trevor

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "M. Lazarus" <mlazarus@xxxxxxxx>
To: "Midrange Systems Technical Discussion" <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, December 09, 2006 11:05 PM
Subject: Re: Saving the System i: Fight Rather Than Switch


> Trevor,
>
>  I think that we can all agree that the Midrange faithful have been
> trying to get the word out for 15+ years.  What's missing from the
> marketing equation is IBM.  If IBM can't step up the plate and show
> the world that they are proud of this system, then how are we to be
> expected to overcome it?
>
>  You say "step up" - what do you propose?  That we take up a
> collection to tell the world the new name and how great the system
> is?  Yeah, we whine about what IBM should be doing, because we're the
> guys in the field and IBM IS NOT LISTENING TO US!!!
>
>  I have no problem calling the system by any name that gets the
> point across.  But, to think that that is the root cause, or even a
> major cause of the failure to market this box, is to delude ourselves.
>
>  I must disagree about "Vernacular is everything."  As I mentioned
> before, if the major modernization gaps have  not been filled, then
> we can call it by any name, past present or futuristic and it
> wouldn't make one bit of difference.
>
>  -mark
>
>
> At 12/8/06 12:41 PM, you wrote:
> > Mark,
> >
> > What you are referring to - about age and 70s/80s - is OS/400. That has 
> > been
> > renamed to i5/OS. BUT - it is only a small part of what a System i can do.
> > The pillars of a System i include i5/OS (which has more
> > feature/functionality than OS/400), Linux 64-bit native, AIX 5L, Windows 
> > and
> > Linux with ix integration.
> >
> > It IS our responsibility for getting the word out. If we are going to have 
> > a
> > future with this server, we are responsible to market this incredible
> > platform to everyone. We have left it to IBM for a long time, we have 
> > whined
> > about what they have done - and if you want it to have a future, step up. 
> > As
> > has been mentioned, iSociety is a means to that end.
> >
> > Or, we can call it an AS/400 and remain a dinosaur. Your personal choice.
> >
> > On my behalf, I am doing everything I can to promote the brand - which, 
> > btw,
> > is System i. Changing the name is not the ONLY thing we must do in our
> > head - but it is a VERY SIMPLE thing to change. Vernacular is everything.
> >
> > Trevor