[Info-vax] History of DECSET / CMS

[Dave Froble]

On 3/29/2020 8:38 PM, Andrew Shaw wrote:
> On Monday, March 30, 2020 at 10:33:21 AM UTC+11, Andrew Shaw wrote:
>> Hi folks,
>>
>> I need to educate my colleagues behind the history of CMS which is what all our VMS development processes are built around (no surprise there) - because these processes have gradually morphed and matured over a period of some 20+ years, probably a lot longer.
>>
>> I am being asked why we are not using git and as part of my answer I would like to provide some factual background about CMS' robust history.
>>
>> I am guessing it started back in the VAX days, or was it even earlier than that?
>> Was it always part of DECSET?
>
> Thanks guys, that ties in with my understanding as well.
>
> I have some brand new code I am writing in Python for a utility to run on our VMS environment and it is completely stand-alone from the rest of our app code and so that will be going into Git which is the right answer as far as that utility is concerned.
>
> There is also a "desire" to move all our app code from CMS into Git as well, but we have some challenges around that for not really much gain so I'm not sure that will get much traction. We *could* definitely do it, but I'm not sure we gain too much out of it, but it still could happen.
>

I decided to "google" "lateral move".  Most of the talk was about 
careers.  Not really applicable to this discussion, I'd think.

Got to say, through the years I've encountered more than a few people 
who wanted to change things, just because they wanted to.  I'd always 
ask, what are the advantages, the cost, and the disadvantages.  With due 
consideration, not once was there ever any valid reason to do so.  Not 
saying it cannot happen, but for me it never has happened.

It just seems to me that people spend so much time, wasting time and 
effort.  In this example, users would have to learn a new product, 
wasting all the past efforts in learning and using the current product. 
There is a real cost to that.  Then there is the inevitable mistakes and 
loses.  It's going to happen.  Guaranteed.  Ever wonder what real and 
valuable work could be done with the same time and effort?

Ok, I didn't say it, but I've heard a particular response more than once 
when such wasted effort has been advocated.  "Fire that asshole!"

My own opinion of such suggestions is that some people want their 
employers to support their fancies, and/or their supposed career 
enhancement.  Never thought that was what employers were interested in.

-- 
David Froble                       Tel: 724-529-0450
Dave Froble Enterprises, Inc.      E-Mail: davef at tsoft-inc.com
DFE Ultralights, Inc.
170 Grimplin Road
Vanderbilt, PA  15486