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Selling Linux to AS/400 Shops?

Posted by Cliff on from the proposing-an-alternative dept.

cgh4be asks: "I work for an IBM business partner and each year we host a technology seminar for our customers, most of which have AS/400 backgrounds. I am the 'Linux guy' at work and have been chosen to give a 1 hour presentation to these IBMers about linux. So, my question to the Slashdot community is, what points and information should I touch on in this presentation to make it effective? I'd like to give some history about it of course, but the goal is to get them to start using it in their businesses."

4 of 68 comments (clear)

  1. some general points by Thackeri · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It would be useful (I think) to focus on how Linux with IBM solutions would compliment their existing AS/400 architecture. It's not generally a great idea to suggest that they scrap their existing applications and move wholesale to another OS or hardware platform.

    The bottom line that they'll want to know is if it can save them money while offering an equivalent or (preferable) better service to themselves or their customers.

    Focus on integration, scalability, flexibility and IBM's commitment to supporting the Linux arena.

    --
    Better the pride that resides in a Citizen of the world, than the pride that divides when a colourful rag is unfurled
  2. Re:What sold you by sphealey · · Score: 3, Insightful
    Not even vaguely - this is a clear generalisation. I have no experience with AS/400. However, in my expierience, there is often a reluctance to move to new technologies, and the justification is often to cite them as "immature" and "unproven", whether this is or it not the fact
    From roughly 1985 to 2000, the personal computer advocates and suppliers very successfully pushed the idea that "new is better" and "wizzier is better than dull". For better or for worse, that's the direction that many organizations took. An implicit assumption grew up in the IT industry (as opposed to Data Processing or Information Systems) that anything "old" (AS/400, S/370, etc.) was automatically obsolete and doomed. Some organizations were very successful with this way of thinking; many were not.

    Now however, for good or for ill, I believe that kind of thinking is going away. Just as one doesn't change out the foundation of a house without very good reason, organizations are going to need to see some demonstrable business benefit from changing out a working, stable IS infrastructure item. The argument that "its a dinosaur" will no longer be an automatic win.

    sPh

  3. Re:Who would you want to use OS/400? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    The create account program is not working.

    Where on earth did you get the idea that commands must be typed in upper case? I've been working with OS/400 since before its announcement 14 yaers ago, and I've never keyed a command in upper case, unless the caps lock key was on. The system doesn't care.

  4. Re:Who would you want to use OS/400? by SteveM · · Score: 3, Insightful

    WRKSYSCTX is "work within the system context"?

    WRK = work

    SYS = system

    CTX = context

    All of the OS/400 commands are like this. Three character 'words' combined in strings of one, two, or three 'words' as in your example.

    There were exceptions. WRKSPLF for example,

    WRK = work

    SPL = spool

    F = file

    Note that WRK is always work. This is true for all of the three character codes. This made the commands easy to learn and remember. Contrast with *nix, where each command name has to be learned separately.

    And it is not in condensed combinations of verbs, it is verb noun modifier.

    As to the all caps requirement, are you sure that wasn't just a convention in the document you were reading to distinguish commands from the other text? OS/400 has no such restriction.

    Steve M