[Info-vax] The Doom of VAX VMS Hobbyist Licenses?

[David Goodwin]

On Friday, July 24, 2020 at 11:21:22 AM UTC+12, Rich Jordan wrote:

> If HP is not maintaining the ability for someone to purchase the base license transfer then effectively all remaining VAXen cannot be sold or transferred to another party and used with VMS (other then hobbyist license) or layered products unless HP modifies the license terms. 

Even if you could transfer licenses for everything that ability isn't going to be around forever.

Unless someone can reinstate the VAX hobbyist program or get a non-expiring hobbyist license issued there will come a day when there is no legal way for someone new to run OpenVMS VAX.

Realistically, given the difficulty and cost of transferring licenses for most people that day will come at when the current lot of hobbyist licenses expire. That day will probably be the last time any of my VAXen ever boot the operating system they were built to run.