[Info-vax] [From VSI website] VSI Announces a Strategic Partnership with Sector 7
Simon Clubley
clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
Fri Jan 29 09:07:16 EST 2021
On 2021-01-28, Jan-Erik Söderholm <jan-erik.soderholm at telia.com> wrote:
> Den 2021-01-28 kl. 19:44, skrev Simon Clubley:
>>
>> So that leaves the obvious question, did the people who decided to move
>> away from Rdb even know about the port of Rdb to x86-64 VMS ?
>
> Anyone using Rdb (having a contract) could ask Oracle. And I'm sure that
> everyone where the future of Rdb on x86 really matters has done that.
>
> But then, Oracle are not known to make long time commitments of future
> products until they are ready to ship. But I know that after the regular
> techincal update days, you could book private talks to the Oracle mgr's
> under NDA to ask your important questions.
>
> Anyone evaluating a port off VMS probably have other and larger issues
> than the availability of Rdb on x86. Such as lack of personell knowing
> VMS, one of the largest issues for the place I work at the moment.
> Our VMS boxes runs perfectly well. They get good services from the
> systems with fast respons times. There is a future by the x86 port.
> Our VMS based system has a far lower cost then similar support systems
> using other technologies or commersial offers.
>
> But, it is very hard to get proper personell to work with the systems.
> *That* is THE major issue. Not anything technical. If I would leave the
> whole production support will fall apart after while.
>
So your customer is currently suffering from a bus factor of 1.
Their management should have done something about this before it got
to that stage.
>
>> If they eventually found out about it, was it too late to change course
>> because they had now committed to moving off Rdb (and maybe away from VMS) ?
>>
>> Has the lack of _public_ announcements from VSI given those customers
>> the wrong impression about how likely it is Rdb is coming to x86-64 VMS ?
>> Judging from the comments here, Rdb on x86-64 VMS is a really big deal
>> and VSI's public announcements should have reflected that.
>>
>
> You make it sound like some big thing has happened. Those taking part
> of the regular metings and updates from Oracle have seen and heard this
> already. Nothing major has changed.
>
What's happened is that a port of Rdb is now confirmed public knowledge
and VSI should be pushing that heavily, especially to the non-Rdb users
as a confidence booster in the future of VMS.
>> _This_ is exactly why VSI should be having major marketing campaigns to
>> let everyone know as soon as possible that things like this have been
>> committed to and to build an aura of confidence that these plans will
>> turn into tangible products their potential customers can rely on.
>>
>
> Noone has *commited* to anything, as far as I understrand. Even VSI could
> stop their operation next week and just shut down the whole operation.
>
>
>> It was absolutely pathetic...
>
> You are pathetic in the way you think you know everything. You take
> every chance you get to bash on VSI. It's you right to do so, but
> it is tiresome and pathetic.
>
I don't know everything and when I discover something new as a result
of a discussion, I freely say so instead of trying to bluster through.
However, it is indeed very clear that I am seeing something here that
at least some of you are not:
Everyone is talking about "technology this", or "technical briefings that"
but that's only a small part of the picture.
The main problem here are the managers within companies who make the
final purchasing decisions or make the final way-forward decisions for
the company they work for.
These managers generally don't really care about VMS, they only care
about not getting fired and losing their pension as the result of making
a bad decision. As such, they will go for the safest approach (for their
career) and it is the job of VSI marketing to convince those managers
that staying with VSI _is_ the safest approach for their careers.
If those managers choose to port away from VMS, then that could be the
safer approach for them because there are a lot of ass-covering papers
and studies for them to point to if things go pear-shaped.
Staying with a relatively small company (VSI) is easily the road less
travelled and it is the job of VSI to convince those managers that staying
with VSI _is_ the safest approach for them. Unfortunately, VSI don't
seem to be doing a very good job of that based on the lack of any
public campaigns that managers can use as justification if they do
decide to stay with VSI.
So tell me everyone: how many of you are thinking purely about the
technology and how many of you are thinking in terms of the human factors
that drive the decisions of the managers who make those decisions ?
Once again, there's a reason why I am saying the things I am.
>> How many potential VSI customers, even now, don't even know about the
>> plans for Rdb on x86-64 VMS ?
>>
>
> "Potential VSI customers" Come on...
> Anyone for whom Rdb matters, knows. For those where the existens of
> Rdb on VMS/x86 does not matter, well, they probably don't care...
>
> Are you in charge of any VMS systems where the existance of Rdb on
> VMS/x86 is an important question?
Given how important Rdb clearly is to the future viability of VMS,
you don't have to use it to know that it's critical to the future
viability of VMS.
Simon.
--
Simon Clubley, clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
Walking destinations on a map are further away than they appear.
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