Re: IBM investment in i

Nathan,

Yes I am myopic, but I wear glasses for that. That
enables me to see clearly.

I'm not a detractor. I still fiercely support this
platform, and still see it as a perfectly viable (and
superior) platform for my customers to run their
businesses on. I've not said it's completely going
away. I've stated that its budget for future
development and enhancement is going away. It's being
"functionally stabilized". For many people looking
for a system to run their business on it is still
going to be around for enough years to make it
worthwhile for them to invest in it. I just wouldn't
go as far as to encourage my 11 year old son to choose
a career in "i".

Whoever said I had a conspiracy theory? What I've
stated about the declining budget is plainly obvious
to any who have observed the declining revenue stream,
the stretching of new releases from once a year (back
in V4 days even quicker) to roughly every two years,
and the declining attendance at COMMON conferences.
(Yes, there may be other many reasons that contributed
to the latter, but it is undeniably a contributing
factor).

I sure hope "The future of IBM i will be based largely
on ISVs and IT organizations adopting and adapting Web
technologies" because if it's based largely on IBM's
enthusiastic promotion of it then we're all screwed.

...Neil


--- Nathan Andelin <nandelin@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Trevor,

It's sad that Neil enjoyed a long career with IBM i
and it's
prececessors, but has now joined with detractors,
which generally fall
into two or three myopic camps. One extreme are
die-hard
green-screeners. Another extreme are people who
look to Microsoft as
the ultimate role model.

The future of IBM i will be based largely on ISVs
and IT organizations
adopting and adapting Web technologies. IBM i is in
a solid position to
grow as a Web services platform. But it's beyond
IBM's reach to control
excactly how that's done. That unsettles and
frustrates people who are
at one extreme or another. Unfortunately they fall
back on conspiracy
theories and doom's day rhetoric.

So like you, I suggest that they have a little faith
and DO something
positive that may take them out of their comfort
zone.

Nathan.


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On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 9:53 AM, Trevor Perry wrote:

Nathan,

In defense of Neil, I think his focus is a concern
over the future of
the
IBM i operating system. This is a concern for
everyone who has a stake
here.
However, I don't think Neil has quite the narrow
view that you suggest.

Certainly, he ~presents~ a very narrow view under
the approach that the
emperor has no clothes, and you should tell said
emperor. And some of
his
observations can be lumped under a category of "the
emperor is wearing
clothes I don't like, I better tell him he is
naked". And, from reading
Neil's rants, it ~seems~ like he hates all IBMers
equally and that he
thinks
all IBMers are painted with a brush of ignorance
and/or complicity.

He has shown us a one-sided perspective here, but I
think he is not that
narrow in real life. Of course, it IS hard to read
between the lines on
this
one-dimensional forum, and Neil has certainly been
arguing his "emperor"
case strongly.

Maybe Neil can point out some of the things he LIKES
about IBM, IBMers,
and
IBM i? That might remove the Quixotic tag you have
added to his name?

Trevor
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