RE: giving an iSeries system to each college

We're one!  We have a PIE iSeries on site (model 520) but we also use
iSeries to run the college's main administrative operations (also a 520)
and so had on-site experts to do the setup and configuration of OS/400.
IBM also makes available (for free) any iSeries software they sell for
teaching purposes. 

-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Jim Franz
Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2007 11:27 AM
To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion
Subject: Re: giving an iSeries system to each college

This makes a lot of sense.
Good for IBM.
jim
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mark S. Waterbury" <mark.s.waterbury@xxxxxxx>
To: "Midrange Systems Technical Discussion" <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2007 11:03 AM
Subject: Re: giving an iSeries system to each college(was LPAR - micro 
partitioning an i5-520)

Hi, Aaron:

As part of the System i Academic Initiative, IBM has established a

"hub"

at University of Nebraska in Lincoln, -- a very large model 570 or

595,

and ANY college or university can join the IBM Academic Initiative
(formerly PIE) and gain free access to this hub system -- userIDs and
passwords etc. are all provided (zero administration), with an IP
address to connect to this system via TCP/IP over the Internet.

See:

http://www-304.ibm.com/jct09002c/university/scholars/products/iseries/

then click on the link "Access to System i Environment":

http://www-304.ibm.com/jct09002c/university/scholars/products/iseries/ge
tting_started/equipment/hub.html

The biggest problem with just "giving an AS/400 to each school" is

that

most colleges don't have anyone on staff  with the expertise to set it
up or maintain it, let alone perform routine software tasks such as
installing additional LPPs, or ordering and applying PTFs, etc.  So,
what usually happens is, an IBM business partner or some other

"sponsor"

(usually a local IBM iSeries customer) may volunteer to help the

college

to set it up initially, but from then on, it remains fairly static and
"frozen in time." I know of several colleges who are still running

V4R5

because no one on campus has the necessary knowledge or the time (or
they are afraid) to load a new release of the OS, etc.  And, some
colleges even have older AS/400 systems not capable of running the
newest releases.

Even worse, very often, local college or university "politics"

actually

prohibits the faculty from connecting ANY "unauthorized" hardware to

the

campus network or performing any software maintanance tasks on

"servers"

-- these tasks MUST be performed only by the college's authorized
internal IT support staff, who are usually already overworked, so the
last thing they want is to have to learn all about yet another kind of
system to maintain. These are NOT Windows or Unix/Linux systems, so
their existing skills, knowledge and experience does not help much.

Also, believe it or not, many colleges WILL NOT ACCEPT older "donated"
hardware -- they only want brand new equipment that is under warranty,
supported by the vendor, etc.

So, there you have it. Encourage your local colleges and universities

to

join the IBM System i Academic Initiative -- there is no cost to the
college to join or participate, and faculty and students gain access

to

"the big iron."

Sincerely,

Mark S. Waterbury