Re: Saying yes to a no-charge IDS!

Posted in 2006

Eric Herber — Sat, 25 Mar 2006 08:54:01 +0100 — source: Usenet: comp.databases.informix

Roy Mercer wrote: > The article from the DB2 Magazine Q1, 2006, Vol 11, Number 1, Page 38. > "Saying yes to a no-charge DB2" > > Nice article, for DB2! > > According to Christine, IBM is focusing on Informix marketing. > > So where is the no charge version of Informix, IDS express-C? > What is IBM waiting on? Why not have a no-charge version of IDS? > Why is it still called DB2 Magazine? > Where is the Informix Magazine? > > FYI Roy, ï¿œ I think that your complaints are legitimate and it is important that you articulate the weak points regarding Informix@IBM. A free IDS community version like the DB2 offer is only one of point on a long list of drawbacks. There are quite a few more as already mentioned in the Informix marketing request list: http://www.herber-consulting.de/cgi-bin/IfxMarkReq.pl ï¿œ It is obviously that Informix is not seen as an emancipated databaseserver product at IBM. Every single week full of new messages about the upcoming DB2 'Viper' release confirms this. As I already wrote before, open news.google.com and search for 'informix' and compare those results with 'oracle', 'db2' or 'sql-server'. It is more than deflating. ï¿œ Even Ingres has now a lot more publicity than Informix. They ï¿œ hired the right people whichs seem to understand the art of product ï¿œ marketing. I'm confident that this company will harvest the fruits of their professional marketing work in the next months. ï¿œ Unfortunately I could not say the same about Informix@IBM. They fixed some twice-overdued things like removing the DB2 graphic from the Informix webpages, but the major steps are still missing. Even those twice-overdued things have not been fixed thoroughly as you can see here: ï¿œ IDS support page: ----------------- http://www.ibm.com/software/data/informix/ids/support/ ï¿œ Informix developer zone: ------------------------ http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/db2/zones/informix/ ï¿œ The DB2 graphic is still there, frustrating (-: ï¿œ It is important that everybody from the Informix community tells ï¿œ IBM as often and clearly as possible that they expect an adequate product marketing for the Informix product line, especially IDS. The best place to do this is certainly when you meet with your IBM sales person: "No vital Informix product marketing results in canceled or delayed investments in Informix software." These are simple arguments which sales people understand. Another good place to articulate the weak points would be the upcoming Informix user conference and info seminars. And don't believe in false promises regarding all those wonderful things planned around Informix. Tell them that you want to see those things happening here and now, not in the foreseeable future -:) Informix time is running out, it is almost twelve o'clock.