TWI complaining about IBM

[Bob]

Not sure why anyone would want TWI's opinion of IBM, but it's there.

Article: Is iSeries Support Keeping Up with iSeries Complexity?

quote:

---

Michael Quigley, programming section coordinator for The Way International, doesn't criticize the timeliness of IBM's response, but does take issue with its nature. "There seems to be a more and more frequent response expecting us to program around issues rather than IBM putting the support right into the operating system," he says. "For example, when starting TCP servers and services at IPL time, IBM expects us to code our statements in such a way that we start services after TCP has fully started rather than having OS/400 handle the timing for us."

---

[JustThinking]

Did they have to pay for this quote too?

;)-->

[Raf]

Heh heh heh.

I see a trademark infringement suit coming on...

Maybe.

[Much later edit, but I wanted to add this...

I honestly did not know that this guy really was with the TWI we all know and lo--- the TWI we all know. I thought it was a coincidental name similarity. Mea culpa].

Edited January 14, 2005 by Raf

[Jim]

Imagine that. Having to wait to start a TCP service before TCP is running. Guess they shoulda kept Bo around.

When I had to provide TCP services, all I got was a 386 box with 32meg of RAM and a downloaded CD of Slackware. And I was glad to get it.

Edited January 12, 2005 by jim

[Bramble]

Ahh, so sad, to hear the Quigleys are still there.

[Belle]

ROFLMAO!!! :D-->

[Ham]

I wonder. Why in the world do they even need computers anymore? Keep track of the pathetic few 30+ in some of the states? No real professional website either, in my opinion. Email? Maybe for between Donna and Rosie when they are unfortunately separated.. maybe they need it to keep track of all of those new grads of the classes. Cripe, pencil and paper, or even pen on the back of the hand would be cheaper.

[Ham]

Maybe they're planning a takover.. "world domination" of the internet, or some such nonsense..

[Ham]

I think I got it.. they need a vast network of computers to keep track of the lawsuits.

[Belle]

I'm just floored that they are using something that is up to date and/or relevant enough to even be considered for an article. This is the same group that took 5 or 10 years to choose a new phone system????

[DaddyHoundog]

they could go back to pencil and paper, but then like most big business, gotta justify the budget...

for what....less than a big high school of "members"...LOL what a pathetic bunch.

Lianne

[Ham]

Yep.. I still wonder what they really need it for? What are they really doing with it? Have an instant message deal with the warehouse? "send three WAP syllabus to shipping.."

[Ham]

But it is a little funny. Kind of like a tick complaining about the pedigree of the dog it's on..

[Nottawayfer]

quote:

---

I'm just floored that they are using something that is up to date and/or relevant enough to even be considered for an article. This is the same group that took 5 or 10 years to choose a new phone system????

---

When I started working at HQ in Word Processing, they were using the DOS version of WordPerfect. They didn't upgrade until right before Y2K. All other offices were using older software.

So, yes, I am shocked they have updated stuff.

[Seth R.]

Sounds alot like Hitler's complaint to IBM about not being able to start sorting the punch-cards before the machine started. I don't have the exact quote but it was something about getting the people on the trains and how they didn't have eletricity in berlin to power the punch-card sorting machine because of that damn Churchill.

But seriously, a TCP based service needs to connect to a TCP/IP stack and if the network interface isn't up then TCP has nothing to connect to and the service will probly crash due to a buffer overflow or something, invalid memory pointers or somesuch.

And who on god's green marble recommended OS/400? lordy talk about over kill. I guess they are planning some serious e-commerce and data-mining, maybe even multiple web servers via VM or something. What ever it is it's big iron from big blue.

Wait! I know they are building a cluster to design a Dr. Vic simulator, and redo PFAL and they are going to call it iPFAL where people will get to fellowship 1-on-1 with the Virtual Mog or V-MOG™ a.k.a. V-VP™ or V-Doc™.

I can see a whole new branding campaign:

iRock of Ages(SM) "Your virtual First person simulation of the Rock of Ages hosted in the worlds largest virtual tent in the world!"

iWOW™ "Be a virtual word over the world iAmbassador(sm)"

iCorps™ "Be the greatest virtual servant you can be!"

I could go on and on.

Seth

[tomtuttle]

Jee Whiz, I worked on their S3 so maany, maany years ago. Then they went to the S38. Now on an AS/400??

They oughtta go virtual iLOA ... 'cause they're virtually iDOA.

[Ham]

Hey! Maybe they are planning on hosting all of the ex-way sites.

[WordWolf]

Why'd they buy an overpriced, overpowered machine?

Same reason they always spent poorly: incompetence.

Someone convinced them they needed something this powerful,

and nobody there had the brains to know better.

Or, of they did, the powers-that-be aquelched dissent.

So, now they use a mighty cray computer and a t-1 to play

"Solitaire" all day.

:D-->

[Mister P-Mosh]

Heh, they need something capable of reading this site and processing it to check for personal information to identify it. Think of it as a TWI version of Echelon.

(I was just kidding about the above.) Anyway, why was an article written quoting TWI about computers? That's like trying to get a satellite phone endorsement from Usama bin Laden.

[Belle]

There's your abundant sharing at work, lurkers!

[Jim]

I guess I'd be more concerned with the port-scanning and web spidering windows box that's probably on linder's desk than the AS/400. He probably burns a couple CD's a day and carefully locks them away.

While we're on the subject, If anyone gets an email from TWI, I'd like to see the full header text. It would be nice to know what the IP range is that's routed into TWI. I know we could do a whois on twi.org, but I think they use an outside web hosting service for that.

I'm not suggesting that anyone do any evil with the information. It would be useful for checking weblogs to see where they are snooping around.

[Radar OReilly]

Jim,

S * * t YEAH he does!

ror

Hey Jim, hugs to Mrs. Jim and daughter Jim :)-->

[Jim]

Thanks Radar. All is well with the family. Lots of powder snow in the Sierras for the wife. :)-->

[Radar OReilly]

DON'T RUB IT IN!!!

HOWEVER, here on the AZALEA coast of the Carolinas it was a balmy 75 degrees, I ran by Starbucks and had my Americano while enjoying the beautiful Atlantic ocean!

:)--> Radar

[igotout]

I'm no IT specialist but this type of system seems to be overkill for such a small group, half of whom do not even use computers. And isn't this an old server? Not made anymore? Doesn't it use OS2 or some different kind of operating system?

Seems to me they could just use a couple of Dell Servers with Linux or Windows Server 2003 and simple networking concepts to run that tiny little organization.

After all there is no networking or synchronization or VPN with the field. They just use faxes for that and Juno for email cause its so cheap or free.

I know of a $200 program that could serve just fine for this tiny little organizations database. It is similar to ACT. Ha!

Between that and the LATEST Office products, that appears to be all they would need. Maybe an email server and web server if they are going to do a little e-commerce. But really all that can be hosted by others pretty cheap.

I am not sure why an IBM anything is there at all. Sounds like an incompetent mess to me.