[Info-vax] OT: Elephants Can't Dance

[JF Mezei]

Phillip Helbig---remove CLOTHES to reply wrote:
> The typical Rdb 
> customer on VMS neither wants nor needs bells-and-whistles features 
> which might exist in some other product---he wants something which will 
> do the job.
> 

It also depends on how many customers are actively developping NEW
applications on VMS. If the vast majority are just maintaining existing
apps, then the need for new Rdb features is much less.

My gut tells me that the original goal was to develop Oracle on VMS
sufficiuently to allow easy move from Rdb to Oracle and then end Rdb
development. Makes sense from a business point of view to eliminate
duplicate products.

BUT, when Oracle realised that Digital had no intentions to grow VMS, it
probably realised that it was more cost effective to just keep on
maintaining Rdb for the existing customers and not focus so much on
Oracle for VMS. (hence the Oracle apps went away).