Cool Si tech from IBM

[Wombat]

Maybe it's b/c this is my line of work, but I think <A HREF=http://www.msnbc.com/news/584407.asp>this</A> is really cool.

[xortam]

Yeah, I read that yesterday but it wasn't IBM's invention and Intel didn't get any results from the technology. We'll see what IBM can deliver. They usually manage to produce some exciting technology; they sure have the resources.

[The Rock]

Sounds very cool. Most PC people don't realize just how smart IBM are. Its only when you get into a mainframe environment that you realize just how sound and dominant IBM can be. Now if only someone could bring OS/390-type stability to the PC platform. What a dream THAT would be.

Bart

[xortam]

As smart as IBM is, Bill still out-foxed them. I think they really dumbed down some of their employee entrance requirements in the '90s but maybe they've tightened up again.

[The Rock]

IBM never made a really "serious" push at Bills market though. They tried, and got out when they realized their strenght was not in that arena. IBM's main source of revenue has always been mainframes and mainframe DASDs, as well as the lucrative service contracts that go with the million-dollar mainframe stuff. At work, we pay thousands and thousands of dollars per month to IBM just to have them on 24-hour call.

Bart
P.S. I apologize to the original poster for dragging this way off-topic.

[xortam]

Yeah, I'm really abusing the side topics the last couple of days but its got great precedence in these forums.

I certainly agree with most of what you say. Myself, I've had a bit of experience with IBM mainframes starting in the early '70s and ending around '91. It was obvious IBM was only probing the PC market when it introduced their first machines in '82 or so. They got a bit more serious when they introduced their MCA PCs but they never pushed them much and they were fairly rejected. I was involved in a Micro-Mainframe company back then where we were emulating 3270 devices on the PC that mostly operated in an SNA environment (main competitor against TAC/DCA IRMA). This was starting right when the PCs and DOS were introduced.

I was more speaking of the embarrassment of the LAN Manager vs. OS/2 contracts and how OS/2 ultimately was even rejected out of IBM development sites. Got to give credit to Bill ... he was a good student: He learned it all from the best ... IBM.