[Info-vax] VSI OpenVMS Hobbyist Program Announced.

[Stephen Hoffman]

On 2019-07-02 12:56:57 +0000, Gary said:

>> No-one behind a corporate firewall has any business whatsoever> 
>> downloading hobbyist stuff.
> 
> You know, I had never heard of VMS until I started my current job where 
> we use V7.3-2 and are quickly approaching the line where we need to 
> make a decision on whether or not to keep VMS and how best to do all 
> that. Why wouldn't I want to download and poke around in a newer 
> version while on my work network?


Contact VSI sales and ask to discuss your expectations and requirements 
here, and potentially about a loan-of-products or whatnot.

In terms of the 2003-era HPE OpenVMS Alpha V7.3-2 to VSI OpenVMS Alpha 
V8.4-2L1 or preferably to V8.4-2L2 if you're EV6 or later, there are 
incremental differences in a few areas, and secure network connections 
are less problematic.

Most existing apps won't notice the OpenVMS upgrade.  What few apps 
that have had with issues with upgrades are usually around kits and 
changes in kit installations producer names and those are usually 
simple to resolve, and around changes for secure networking.  And 
issues around apps and secure networking also arise with HPE OpenVMS 
upgrades; some of the APIs there have changed incompatibility, as older 
security implementations have been found vulnerable.  There've been a 
few other cases of problems on upgrades, but most of those were due to 
latent bugs in the apps.

As for using the VSI hobbyist distribution for an evaluation?  Ask your 
own corporate legal folks to read through the hobbyist license 
agreement, and then ask them whether they'd think that using the 
hobbyist distribution here is appropriate.

You're correct in what you're probably thinking here, too.  There's no 
entry level OpenVMS offering, no platform suitable for evaluations and 
prototypes, no online license purchases, the software distribution and 
software update processes are antiquated, and the "trial" licenses are 
more difficult to acquire than they should be.  Yes, the whole approach 
is straight out of the 1980s and enterprise sales.  The current VSI 
sales efforts are certainly targeting the existing installed base. 
Which you're part of.   All of which has been discussed before.

Contact the folks in VSI sales.




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