From: discar@nosc.mil (Joe Discar)
Subject: Re: Hard future for OS/2 2.0 ....
Organization: Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 15 Sep 1992 20:15:14 GMT

In article <1992Sep14.200058.19970@mksol.dseg.ti.com> mccall@mksol.dseg.ti.com (fred j mccall 575-3539) writes:
>
>>This is about the funniest thing I've EVER heard about IBM.  Anyone from the
>>early seventies around hear?  Do you remember the fear and uncertainty that
>>"It's a Big Mutha" tried to spread regarding the microcomputer?  Or the
>>FUD they tried to spread about clone support in the eighties?  P-uh-lease
>>don't tell me that IBM doesn't "throw around ideas and FUD."
>
>Note the use of a present tense verb, "doesn't"?  The early 70's were
>TWENTY YEARS AGO.  Might one, perhaps, come to the conclusion that
>after 20 years IBM might have learned something/changed something?
>After all, one could go back merely another 5 years or so and the
>response to any question involving 'Microsoft' would be, "Who?".  That
>hardly means they don't exist now, so maybe things HAVE changed in the
>past 20-25 years.

Oh, and the Microchannel fiasco was less than three years ago.  Granted, as
I said earlier, IBM may have changed--but so FAR they have given no
real indication that they have.  So the previous poster stating that IBM
"doesn't throw around ideas and FUD" was making an unfounded statement.


>
>>Back in the seventies, second and third party vendors would snidely point
>>out that IBM tended to blaze a path, point the way--and then vanish while the
>>masses plunged over the cliff hidden around the corner.  Look at what
>>they *tried* to do with Microchannel--it wasn't until they noticed that the
>>public wasn't buying it that they decided to say "oh, well, we'll support
>>ISA again."
>
>Yes, and one would hope that they've learned something from that
>experience.  Now that even IBM can't rely on running the market,
>perhaps they've figured out that the thing to do is to change their
>ways?  Now if only Microsoft would figure that out.
>

Again, how're you sure that IBM has changed?  Maybe they haven't maybe they
have.  Judging from past experience, I wouldn't bet that they've changed--
in fact, I'd wager that as NT draws close to shipping, IBM will spread as
much FUD as it thinks it can get away with.

>>Sure, this was all in the "old days" when IBM had a mainframe mentality. And
>>now they are reorganizing... but NOBODY is certain what this will mean.
>
>Exactly right.  Judge by what is happening TODAY, with perhaps a short
>memory into last week.  That's the only way for customers to get
>vendors to be responsive to THEM rather than to what the vendors want
>to do.
>

Ever heard the story about the little boy who cried "wolf"?  There is no
other way (other than from past history) to judge how a company will
react in any given instance.  This is true for the stock market, for
crime prevention, for psychoanlysis, as it is for multimillion dollar
corporations.  The post I'd responded to stated that IBM did not spread
FUD--past experience decries otherwise.  If they've changed, the Future
will tell.

>After all, back not that much before the early 70's, the answer to the
>question "What is the most advanced operating system in the world?"
>was "Whatever is running in Dennis Ritchie's desk THIS MORNING."
>Brand loyalty and all that are all well and good, but judge by what's
>going on THIS MORNING.  And THIS MORNING, OS/2 is the 'most advanced' OS
>running on a desktop PC.  When Windows/NT or Cairo or anything else
>ships, if it lets me do more without costing me an arm and a leg
>replacing stuff, I'll probably switch.  But all the hype and FUD in
>the world don't do anything to get one second of my work done.  All
>they do is create the impression for the vendor THIS MORNING.

Which is why most of the clients I have will not splurge money on OS/2:
"...All the hype and FUD in the world don't do anything to get one
second" other their work done.  There is no rush to the OS/2 bandwagon...

>Fred.McCall@dseg.ti.com - I don't speak for others and they don't speak for me.

-> My opinions -> Joe 



Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.advocacy