I don't usually put links to my MC Press articles, but I'm going to do so
today because I think the issue the article addresses is pretty important.
I don't' feel bad about posting the link, since MC Press is free, but I will
give a brief synopsis so you can decide whether you want to see take the
time. The article is here:
http://www.mcpressonline.com/mc?.6b4f216b
In it I address from a management standpoint some of the new features in
WDSC 7 that make it more productive and less resource intensive than WDSC 6.
In general, WDSC 7 is smaller, faster, leaner and better. There is little
if anything in WDSC 7 that would cause you not to go there (unless you're
running a 64-bit version of Windows).
However, this crazy unbundling thing has got to be stopped. As Barney Fife
said it so well, "we got to nip it in the bud." I keep pushing forth my
idea of sticking a "tool tax" onto 5722WDS that will entitle a System i shop
to a limited number of seats, with the ability to purchase more as needed.
Nobody, not one person, has given me a reason why this wouldn't work, nor
have they come up with a better alternative than to start carving the tools
up into a la carte pieces.
System i developers and especially System i managers need to explain to IBM
in no uncertain terms that they can't be worried from release to release
about which IBM tool is going to be "unbundled", especially since almost by
definition it's going to be whatever tool is used by the most people.
I know Rational expects tens of thousands of dollars for their tools, but
that market doesn't exist either in the PC or the midrange space. Whoever
told them they could get that sort of money from the System i developers was
way off base, and it will require all of you to tell them so.
Joe
midrange.com
