2010/3/7 Björn Helgason <[email protected]>: > I started out using VM and APL close to 40 years ago.
Ditto. And in IBM too. > Since then IBM has more or less used VM and APL internally but tried > to get the customers to use some of their other products. There's a reason for that. As a result of consent decrees meant to prohibit hidden subsidies, IBM has had to price a product to reflect the development cost. Now anything developed in VM, APL or some of the really neat streamlined things IBM has produced in the past, has cost far less to develop than competing product offerings written in PL/S or whatever mainstream language IBM uses nowadays. This is down to the fact that it is very expensive to ship a kludge because of all the debugging it needs. Low cost is a touchstone of good design: having been shipped on-time and within budget. This means less points for the salesman however, who, if he "controls" the account" in IBM jargon, can make sure the customer buys the more expensive offerings. "Integrated" products are a big help here. All IBM's products are listed in BOIS, the software catalog, which has brilliant products to compete with any on the market, including IBM's own. But the customer never gets to see BOIS, let alone shop from it. With the correct arm-lock on the salesman, he will go back to BOIS and pick a cheaper (and often better) product, because fewer points are better than no points at all. Now someone tell me that my information is antiquated and that nothing like that happens these days. Not unconnected with all this, APL has in the past made some pretty bad enemies inside IBM. Their strongest argument has been that APLers are apt to promise more than they are able to deliver. A Japanese IBMer, called Sagusa if memory serves, hit the nail on the head with "APL enables a programmer to undertake projects beyond his competence." Think about it. If he delivers, was it beyond his competence or not? Ian ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
