"Forth - Price is never the issue, *especially* when the decision
makers
are spending OPM (Other People's Money)."
I'd suggest that this can be a big issue. There are people and
companies that live by cost of acquisition. You don't have the cheapest
system you lose. I spend others peoples money and price is always the
issue. However, I would not even suggest that price is the only issue.
"Six - Coca-Cola blundered, and for a while they pursued the "damn
the
torpedoes, full speed ahead" approach to selling the newly formulated
Coke."
I think that while there may be some similarities to New Coke there are
just as many differences. Coca-Cola blundered, but this was the direct
result of competitor activities and very detail testing of their own. I
don't think I would call it a damn the torpedoes attitude.
Not trying to be argumentative, IMHO some of the points may not be
accurate....but thought provoking none the less.
Michael Crump
Manager, Computing Services
Saint-Gobain Containers, Inc.
1509 S. Macedonia Ave.
Muncie, IN 47302
765.741.7696
765.741.7012 f
This email and its attachments may be confidential and are intended
solely for the use of the individual to whom it is addressed. Any views
or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not
necessarily represent those of Saint-Gobain. <redaction>. If you are
not the intended recipient of this email and its attachments, you must
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The easy way is always mined.
-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Booth Martin
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2008 4:32 PM
To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion
Subject: Re: Any comments on Fontecchio's blog?
?? oh?
First - I am, and will remain, an IBM bigot. I make no apologies for
that.
Second - Moore's Law is a factor. A 50% reduction in hardware cost
every 18 months since the 1960s (or before) is *going* to have an
impact!
Third - The IBM Midrange machine is a niche product. That is not going
to change.
Forth - Price is never the issue, *especially* when the decision makers
are spending OPM (Other People's Money).
Fifth - As a niche product, the IBM Midrange machine is, or should be,
outside the IBM mainline just as Saturn and Corvette are not in the
traditional General Motors Chevy-Buick-Pontiac-Oldsmobile-Cadillac
business model.
Six - Coca-Cola blundered, and for a while they pursued the "damn the
torpedoes, full speed ahead" approach to selling the newly formulated
Coke. That strategy didn't work for them, and it won't work for Trevor
or IBM.
Where is the flawed or circular logic, Trevor?
(Just to be really clear on this, I happen to think highly of Trevor
Perry. He does sessions for the Dallas User Group and he does a first
rate job! Plus, I believe he has a first rate mind and is a straight
thinker. Unfortunately, it appears to me that he's gotten into the
kool-aid. :) )
Trevor Perry wrote:
Steve,
Programmers asking questions on Midrange-L tend to be the ones already
on
Midrange-L - they just ask more questions, or engage in ridiculous
name
debates. Reaching new i5/OS resources on midrange-L does not
correspond to a
growth in business. Moot point 1.
We sell lots of small 515 servers where there is no IT staff at all.
No net
new i5/OS employment does not equate to a growth in business. Moot
point 2.
User group attendance has reduced across the entire IT industry. How
do you
equate that to any growth in business? Moot point 3.
Your points have no logic to them. Choose a better equation, or go
talk with
Booth - he understands circular and flawed logic.
Trevor
On 3/7/08 2:19 PM, "Steve Richter" <stephenrichter@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On Thu, Mar 6, 2008 at 7:12 PM, Trevor Perry <trevor@xxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Booth,
Where are you being told that IBM is not selling anything?
Read some of Mark Shearer's words here:
http://blogs.systeminetwork.com/isnblogs/maxedout/
"In my first two and half years in System i, I got an awful lot of
feedback
from clients that they wanted to pay for what they use, that they
wanted
us
to improve the price-to-value ratio . . . and we relaunched our
entire
entry-level product line back in April -- that ultimately drove more
than
25
percent volume growth last year in System i."
would it follow that there has been a 25% increase in programmers
asking
questions on midrange-l? a 25% increase in system i5 employment
across the
board, an equivalent increase in attendance at user's groups and
COMMON
conferences?
-Steve
midrange.com
