Re: IBM Extended Hardware Support Question for iSeries

I think you're confusing registration with title. Title is good for life.
Registration is the proof that the plates belong to that vehicle and are
current.

<snip>
The vendor instead insisted on what amounted to several times that amount
and thus lost a customer.
</snip>
Hmm, in my mind a customer is someone who transacts business with you.
Cutting a check is often a good sign of that. No check in 15 years does
not equal a customer. Any check which would come at that time might be a
new sale. Then it gets murky because the lead was open for paying list
price but that was shot down. I'd have probably taken that offer.

I'm assuming that at the numbers implied that legal help was sought and
was determined would be expensive and the outcome very uncertain.

One of the software models often used is free software but you pay
maintenance. Granted, this company was not going quite that way but is
hoping for some maintenance. But this lead has shown in the past that
keeping up with maintenance was not their strong suit. This might be a
reason for the reluctance to accept the list price offer.

Rob Berendt