[Info-vax] VMS Features I Wish Linux Had

[David Froble]

Johnny Billquist wrote:
> On 2016-06-12 21:16, Jan-Erik Soderholm wrote:
>> Den 2016-06-12 kl. 21:11, skrev Johnny Billquist:
>>> On 2016-06-12 21:03, Jan-Erik Soderholm wrote:
>>>> Den 2016-06-12 kl. 17:14, skrev Johnny Billquist:
>>>>> Well, here is another thought for you.
>>>>> Who are the ones trying to move off from VMS? I doubt it's the users
>>>>> who
>>>>> don't even know what a file is, much less a command line interface.
>>>>>
>>>>> It's more likely the few persons who actually know what a command line
>>>>> interface is, and who are doing development, who are the ones that
>>>>> want to
>>>>> move to something else...
>>>>
>>>> No, it is those paying the bills and matching the cost against the 
>>>> value
>>>> for the site, and they know aboslutely nothing about VMS. The fact that
>>>> the current systems serves the site very well at a low cost, is the
>>>> reason the systems are still there. The fact that they run VMS doesn't
>>>> matter, as long as that fact doesn't become an issue in itself.
>>>>
>>>> The risk of not beeing able to get competent people to work with the
>>>> systems is a far larger "risk" then missing file name completion.
>>>
>>> I think that was the point I was trying to make. :-)
>>>
>>>> As long as the work and cost to replace the systems is far higher then
>>>> to continuing using them, they'll stay. Byt then, we also have to show
>>>> they we can follow the stream with web interfaces and other integration
>>>> and cooperative features. File name completion is not such an feature.
>>>
>>> No. But if developers do not want to work on the system, you will
>>> never get
>>> the functions, and developers usually use the command line interface.
>>>
>>>     Johnny
>>>
>>
>> Developing is sometimes having three fixed commands (edit, build and run)
>> and swapping between them with up-arrow with no line editing at all... 
>> :-)
>>
>> Anyway, I can not go to my customer and saying that the support fees now
>> has rised becuse we now have got file name completion. That is the issue.
> 
> I don't have any easy answers. But not having developers wanting to work 
> on a system *is* a problem.
> 
>     Johnny
> 

I don't think that you've proven that developers don't want to work on VMS.  Nor 
do I feel that such is or has ever been the case.

Now, what has happened in the past is that some people have thought that they 
have "seen the writing on the wall", and that if they didn't move to a more 
popular environment they might have a problem finding future employment.  That 
doesn't mean that they wanted to switch, but that they thought they HAD to switch.

I've done several environments in the past, including VMS and weendoze.  So far, 
VMS is still my first choice, if available.

And yes, Edit, Compile, Link, and Run gets the job done.