From: Jordan Henderson [jordan@greenapple.com]
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 1999 10:24 PM
To: Info-VAX@Mvb.Saic.Com
Subject: Re: OpenVMS in .EDU


Rob Young wrote in message <1999Oct28.164045.1@eisner>...
>In article <7va46a$3v4$1@info.service.rug.nl>, helbig@man.ac.uk (Phillip
Helbig) writes:
>> In article <3818796A.278D51E9@advocatehealth.com>, djesys
>> <David.Dachtera@advocatehealth.com> writes:
>
>> date on the fact that Compaq now owns VMS etc.  He had fond memories of
>> VAXen which were `very good in their day'.  The problem is that people
>> compare old VAXen to newer other equipment.  (Hey, at least a comparison
>> CAN be done, as opposed to the other way around, as there are enough old
>> VAXen still running.)  In academia, the fact that VMS a) is very
>> up-to-date and b) runs on alpha is generally not known.  Remember, most
>> academics are not influenced by marketing, good or bad, but by what they
>> come into contact with at college.
>>
>
> Yep.  Good reply.. folks suffer with VAX slowness talk
> about the "VAX" think a VMS cluster is "crap" because the
> cluster is overloaded.  At another site a year after getting
> 8400s into the cluster they were still calling things "VAX".
> The "VAX" is down, can't get to the "VAX", etc.  This kind of
> thing dies hard especially if it is a term that is 10-15 years old.
>
> Sorry to say but "VAX" has bad connotations.  It wasn't always
> that way but a 500 MHz Pentium makes for a way fast box , especially
> when only one person is on it..
>
> Certainly don't want to get folks started on VAXes for VMS.
>

> Hey, if Samsung comes through with low-cost Alphas in UB1000s:
>
>http://www.alpha-processor.com/products/up1000-board.asp
>
> and crippled firmware is no longer an issue, why not open up
> the Hobbyist program for Universities (if it already isn't, sorry
> I don't follow the Hobbyist stuff too closely), etc.

I don't believe the Hobbyist license is now available
for educational use.  This would be a Good Thing
to do.  I would imagine that Compaq doesn't make
_that much_ from education now.  I would distinguish
for Universities making business use (which should
still be licensed traditionally) vs. educational use
(which should be availabe on a hobbyist-like license).

Perhaps Compaq could set aside a budget of
OpenVMS & Alpha Systems that they could donate
as tax-deductable contributions to Universities.  Make
a proviso that they run OpenVMS only for 2 years, but
remind the receiver that these machines are Linux
ready (to smooth over their fears of being 'stuck' with
somethingthey can't use down the line).  Can you set
conditions like "it must run OpenVMS" and it still be a
tax-deductable contribution?

>
> Rob
>

-Jordan Henderson
jordan@greenapple.com