Free IDS Download

I received the email from IIUG regarding the free IDS version available for download in the IIUG member area. They say: ******************************************************************************************************************* "It is a full IDS 10 product except for replication. There is no time limit and the only limitation is a 5 concurrent session limit." ******************************************************************************************************************* This is NOT correct. I installed and tested the version already and replication (HDR + ER) does definitely work, read more here: http://www.informix-zone.com/node/20 There might be some restrictions regarding ER root/leaf servers, but the basic ER replication works as well as HDR does. It wouldn't make sense to disable those features in this free test version because replication is one of the strong selling points for IDS. That would be counterproductive. It is already counterproductive enough that this free test version is only available thru the IIUG, hidden in the member area. If IBM is really serious about Informix, they should make this test version available on the main IBM Informix site (http://www.ibm.com/informix). Currently the offer is limited to the eyes of the Informix community only. However those people already know Informix. The goal is to inspire new people to work with IDS and you can't achieve this goal if you hide the free IDS version in the member area of the IIUG. Please IBM, think about it and make the download available for all potential customers !! Thank you.

eric@herber-consulting.de wrote: > I received the email from IIUG regarding the free IDS version available > for download in the IIUG member area. > > They say: > > ******************************************************************************************************************* > "It is a full IDS 10 product except for replication. There is no time > limit and the only limitation is a 5 concurrent session limit." > ******************************************************************************************************************* > > This is NOT correct. I installed and tested the version already and > replication (HDR + ER) does definitely work, read more here: > > http://www.informix-zone.com/node/20 > > There might be some restrictions regarding ER root/leaf servers, but > the basic ER replication works as well as HDR does. > > It wouldn't make sense to disable those features in this free test > version because replication is one of the strong selling points for > IDS. That would be counterproductive. > > It is already counterproductive enough that this free test version is > only available thru the IIUG, hidden in the member area. If IBM is > really serious about Informix, they should make this test version > available on the main IBM Informix site (http://www.ibm.com/informix). > Currently the offer is limited to the eyes of the Informix community > only. However those people already know Informix. > > The goal is to inspire new people to work with IDS and you can't > achieve this goal if you hide the free IDS version in the member area > of the IIUG. Please IBM, think about it and make the download available > for all potential customers !! > > Thank you. > Humm, Well ... http://www.ibm.com/informix is actually ... http://www-306.ibm.com/software/data/informix/ Select a product ... let's say IDS ... takes us to ... http://www-306.ibm.com/software/data/informix/ids/ Scroll down and on the right hand side is "Upgrades / Migrations", and in there "Looking for trial software, fixes, patches?" Takes you to ... http://www-306.ibm.com/software/data/informix/downloads.html Click on IDS Enterprise Edition V10.0 Trials takes you to : http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/downloads/im/ids/?S_TACT=105AGX28&S_CMP=DLMAIN Interesting that the following is dominant : Download The evaluation period for this trial is 90 days. So, not really sure what this is compared to the version off the IIUG.

This is exactly the point. The version offered thru IBM is with time bomb and the "education version" offered thru IIUG is without a time bomb. However you don't need to offer an education version to people (IIUG members) who already know Informix. The critical point is to inspire new people to work with IDS. So please make the "education version" without time bomb and without feature restriction (beside the 5 concurrent users limit) available for download from the main IBM/Informix website. This is the only chance to inspire new people to learn Informix, everything else just helps to conserve the existing customer base, not more. > Interesting that the following is dominant : > > Download > The evaluation period for this trial is 90 days. > > So, not really sure what this is compared to the version off the IIUG.

IBM cannot make IDS a free download anywhere in the world as this would contravene US export restrictions regarding some technologies used in the product.

On 7 Nov 2006 06:48:13 -0800, scottishpoet <dryburghj@yahoo.com> wrote: > IBM cannot make IDS a free download anywhere in the world as this would > contravene US export restrictions regarding some technologies used in > the product. > Unlike DB2? Or Oracle? Or ...? Regards, Bogdan BOTEZ.

It may well be that DB2 and Oracle do not use the same technology in their product that causes IDS to requires export approval, or the version made available has had that technology removed

scottishpoet wrote: > IBM cannot make IDS a free download anywhere in the world as this would > contravene US export restrictions regarding some technologies used in > the product. Go to http://otn.oracle.com click on Download Are you saying that Oracle is exempt from US export restrictions? Seems more than a little unlikely. IBM can do what Oracle and Microsoft do if it chooses. If it chooses otherwise ... it is for a reason. -- Daniel A. Morgan University of Washington damorgan@x.washington.edu (replace x with u to respond)

scottishpoet wrote: > It may well be that DB2 and Oracle do not use the same technology in > their product that causes IDS to requires export approval, or the > version made available has had that technology removed But it isn't. -- Daniel A. Morgan University of Washington damorgan@x.washington.edu (replace x with u to respond) Puget Sound Oracle Users Group www.psoug.org