[Info-vax] OpenVMS x86-64 and RDB and DB's in general on OpenVMS

[Stephen Hoffman]

On 2015-06-28 15:03:00 +0000, David Froble said:

> What I find amusing is the lack of IMAGINATION displayed by some.  They 
> cannot imagine a situation different than their own. T'was ever thus ...
> 
> :-)

It's tough.  Sometimes a change has to hit you pretty hard, before the 
value becomes clear.  Sometimes not even then.  Sometimes the changes 
have no value, or maybe even negative value.  (I certainly disliked GUI 
IDEs for more than a few years, but have slowly started to come around 
to really, really, really liking what some IDEs can provide.)

Not everybody has code-bases that can or will adapt to changes.  Or 
organizations, for that matter.   For many applications and 
installations and organizations, what's running now will age out.  
It'll be run into the ground with incremental work at most, and then 
(eventually) replaced.  As for the inevitable replacement, whether it's 
tougher to port an application out of a database or port the 
application off of the entire operating system is another matter and 
another discussion.

Whether or not Oracle Rdb or Oracle Classic will or will not be 
available for OpenVMS on x86-64 probably won't be known for a year or 
two.

If VSI does become successful, they are almost inherently and 
inevitably going to be making substantial changes to OpenVMS, 
particularly when they start the work necessary to attract new 
installations and new applications to OpenVMS x86-64.

If VSI and OpenVMS on x86-64 fail, then the existing OpenVMS installed 
base and (for those that use it) Rdb base will be back to pre-VSI: 
facing both an OpenVMS port and an Rdb port.


-- 
Pure Personal Opinion | HoffmanLabs LLC