Big Blue OS / Re: Who's Next? (Version 2)

[Clay Phipps]

Many people are assuming that IBM users are a complacent and contented lot,
taking whatever Big Blue gives them as an operating system.
What they don't realize is that there are many parallels 
between VM/370 and UNIX.

OS origin:
UNIX: Developed by Bell Labs, a research organization.
VM:   Developed by IBM Cambridge Scientific Center,
      a research and marketing support organization,
      i.e., not part of IBM's mainstream software development organization.

OS goals:
UNIX: Provide a modest but effective interactive computing environment
      (I'm not quoting anyone; that's just my perception).
VM:   Provide a modest and efficient interactive computing environment;
      in particular, do not attempt to be everything to everybody.

OS network culture:
UNIX: Communication with the world via USENET;
      the largely unrestricted commmunication sometimes drives management crazy.
VM:   Communication with the world (ignoring SNA/SDLC protocols) via VNET
      (actually, I'm not sure if VNET is available yet outside IBM itself);
      the largely unrestricted commmunication drives IBM management crazy.

Host vendor attitude:
UNIX: DEC pushes its customers to use VMX or RSX or ..., not UNIX,
      and hoped that UNIX would just go away some day.
VM:   IBM pushes its customers to use MVS/XA, MVS, SVS, or (long ago) OS/360,
      and hoped that VM would just go away some day.

Customer attitude:
UNIX: Probably the dominant OS for pdp-11s and probably VAXes, too.
VM:   The dominant OS on IBM mainframes (in terms of number of machines).

In the IBM world, including within IBM itself, use of VM/370
is an act of *resistance* against oppression (i.e., MVS), 
rather one than of submission.
There are many otherwise computer-literate people in the IBM world,
sheltered place that it is, who have never heard of UNIX;
if they did have some exposure to it, they might well prefer it.

-- Clay Phipps

-- 
   {allegra,amd70,cbosgd,dsd,floyd,harpo,hollywood,hpda,ihnp4,
    magic,megatest,nsc,oliveb,sri-unix,twg,varian,VisiA,wdl1}
   !fortune!phipps