Re: First time buying System i5

["Steve Richter" <stephenrichter@xxxxxxxxx>]

On 10/4/06, albartell <albartell@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Now I am getting closer to a purchase/lease and have some questions about
> what I will need once the box gets to the office.  Note that this is the
> first System i5 we have hosted in our office so that is why the elementary
> questions.
>
>
> Summary:
>  9406 520 0975 7350 600/30 CPW Value Edition with 2G memory
>  2x 35.16GB drives; embedded ethernet; DVD; VXA internal cartridge tape
>  V5.4 with one year Software Maintenance;
>
> Full config:  <http://mowyourlawn.com/temp/Krengel_Technology_Value2_3_.pdf>
> http://mowyourlawn.com/temp/Krengel_Technology_Value2_3_.pdf
>
> Note that ISV's get software "at no addtl charge" so in the end my lease
> price is on the $12,904 number which should put me at $129.04 per month (not
> too shabby!).

Aaron,

the problem with this config is you are locking yourself into 600 CPW
for the next 3 years.  By this time next year quad core will be
establishing itself on the desktop. Servers will be 8 cores. You will
be running something that is 1/8th of one core. You cant run decent
programming languages and runtime frameworks on such limited CPW. Not
good for the long term. Yes, you can afford to have a worse case
scenario $150 a month boat anchor for the next 3 yrs. But your time is
valuable also. IBM mgmt has to show us all that it knows how to run a
computer company.

I am working with AIX lately as a possible exit strategy. Kind of
shocking that there is so little there in terms of value add compared
to Linux. All the software I see on the system p are recompiles of GNU
packages from Linux/Unix. Which leaves other Linux stuff behind and
not runnable on the p. Up to now the rs6000 - system p has done well
because it ran faster than other servers. That is no longer the case.
Since IBM has neglected the software side of the system p and i for so
long a case can be made that they will cut and run from PowerPC
servers. How ironic that the only place where the PowerPC remains will
be the XBox - because of MSFT software.

You are right. The price is right and yours is a good system to get.
Just a note of caution as to staying too close to IBM.

-Steve