Re: Suggestions for improving the 7.x OnLine Engine installation and configuration

In article <5hdmgn$gut@cssun.mathcs.emory.edu>, Marco Greco <marcog@linux.ctonline.it> writes >Hi guys! > >My impression is that Tim, Nils and David are partly right: > >- yes, something has to be done about the installation process and >configuration tools > Yes. >- yes, vendors of unix based software have always seen nice, flashy (...and >consistent) user interfaces as something professionals didn't need and didn't >want; but, hey, look at Bill, push a flashy GUI and people think you have a >good product. Consistent and comprehesible user interfaces have been >neglected for too much time in the unix arena. > Yes. >- yes, OnLine has to handle different user requirements and on far too many >etherogeneous platforms > Yes. >However, given that the guru has already configured partitions and rebuilt >the kernel with appropriate (or at least approximate) semaphores and shared >memory parameters, I don't see it as impossible to have an installation / >(don't get me wrong! char based) configuration wizard (You know those dialog >boxes with a nice 'next' button on it? Bill is not always wrong :-) that >creates everithing the right way and puts everything in the right place based >on user responses. After that, of course the guru could always resort to >ONCONFIG, if only to feel a better professional than the next guy. > Well at the moment you just run ./installonline then onmonitor select initialise and it takes you through the screens using 4GL forms. Not that hard and quick since you have >50 parmeters to enter. Also the screens that you go through (apart from the first one) are the same when you change the configuration at a later date...consistency of ionterface.. Also with forms I cna easily and quickly cursor to the field I want I do not have to press enter on >10 dialog boxes to get the one I want.. <Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>, <Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>,<Enter>, <Enter>,<Enter> Damn missing it back,back,back ah there it is... a much easier to use interface when you have many parameters (there are >100 in Online) to configure. >As for the installation bit and the TEN business, I don't see it that >difficult to have separate directories for T, E & N, and have each >installation script to check the dates of each common file and install only >those that are more recent than the ones already installed. > >In the unlikely event that the above is too difficult top set up, then, given >Informix prices, the least I would expect from Informix is a *port specific* >installation process. This would probably be easier to maintain than a huge >do-it-all monster. > Too expensive to write and document...Remember the documentation is *** NOT *** port specific except in $INFORMIXDIR/release/... (One text file...). All the user interface documentation is the same across all versions of Informix on UNIX. I can go to virtually any version of UNIX and monitor the health of Online (onstat) and reconfigure Online parameters (Onmonitor) as well as start/stop online (onmonitor again). >As for Informix, Cdi is full of feature requests pertaining to all of T E & N >areas, which Informix has chosen to downright ignore (you don't want me to >name them all, do you? :-). Please - via e-mail... >They instead have concentrated on pushing the IUS (which many of us will >probably never see, given the raise in price...) and to a smaller extent, new >era. To get into object relational databases and the Web - the next big market - they would be crazy to ignore it. Also they are porting Online to NT - they cannot afford to ignore NT. And replacing SE with OWS (get everyone onto the same code stream (see below) Note I just saw a note that Online 7.3 will include IUS. Also note that OWS comes from the same code stream as DSA. i.e. they are mergeing all the engines into one code-stream (excluding XPS but that probably shares the data access [RSAM], network [Message portion of shm] and configuration/utilities code with DSA). This means that - Porting IUS effectively ports all of them - Bug fixing IUS (object part)/DSA(relational part) also bug fixes them all. - Support engineers can forget SE and concentrate on what amount to 2 products (OWS=cut-down Online). Therefore a more stable engine which gets ported to platforms more quickly and is easier to support/learn. Hurrah! >On the other hand, the fact that Informix has moved a step back and decided >to continue distributing char based tools together with the engines (so says >Carlton Doe), is in fact a small step forward. > Hurrah! >Ciao, >Marco > >PS: Ah, Billy, it's not you I was talking about. I wouldn't dream saying that >you are not always wrong :-) > >____________________________________________________________________________ >rem radioterapia, which I immeritately manage, seldom agrees with what I say > >marco greco (Catania, Italy) Work: >marcog@ctonline.it rem radioterapia 39 95 447828 fax 446558 >(was mar.greco@agora.stm.it) Achea 39 95 503117 > > -- David Williams