RE: will i5/OS get the OS/2 treatment? WAS: Jakarta POI - HWPF forword files

Jerry,
RE: DOS
See: http://www.freedos.org/

-Bob Cozzi
www.iSeriesTV.com
Ask your Manager to watch iSeriesTV.com


-----Original Message-----
From: rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Jerry Adams
Sent: Friday, August 11, 2006 11:17 AM
To: RPG programming on the AS400 / iSeries
Subject: Re: will i5/OS get the OS/2 treatment? WAS: Jakarta POI - HWPF forword
files

History tends to indicate that, even after an OS is no longer enhanced, 
IBM will not release it to open source or whatever.  Their support for 
it will continue for a year or two after the last enhancement (release) 
date.


By "history" I mean what transpired with other midrange operating 
systems: SCP and SSP.  And I still know companies using these.  Their 
systems are still running fine (as in, "as designed"), but they get no 
support from IBM or any third party, as regards the OS.


But this is no different from other vendors.  I doubt that many of them 
would think that it would be in their best interests to do so.  Has M$ 
release *any* DOS version to open source?  Or even any software from any 
vendor that they acquired and then dumped?  Linux is an exception 
because it wasn't initially designed and released by a vendor.  Open 
Office is another exception.


        * Jerry C. Adams
*IBM System i Programmer/Analyst
B&W Wholesale Distributors, Inc.* *
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        615.995.7024
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        jerry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:jerry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>



Steve Richter wrote:

On 8/11/06, Jon Paris <Jon.Paris@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
 

Also just to correct another misconception in this thread - OS/2 continued
to be supported _long_ after IBM stopped marketing it as a desktop
competitor to Windows.  If I recall it was the driving software for many of
the early ATMs long after. There's still quite a lot of it about.
   

the os/2 experience is relevant because we need to know what IBM mgmt
will do when it can no longer make a profit selling i5/os to its
locked in customers. Will it go the os/2 route and continue to
"support" it while keeping it locked up, or will it release it to the
open source community.

-Steve