Good morning Joe,
Gee, I thought you stated in the past that investors and analysts (the important people in your universe) don't read trade rags, so what's in them doesn't matter much. So you go and quote a big article from a trade rag.
Of course IBM is making a big push for NT-based applications. NT is killing OS/2's market as an application server in areas such as email gateways, Notes hosts, and communication gateways and servers.
My questions are: how are sales of blue box NetWare going? IBM used to be the world's biggest reseller of Novell products, and probably still is. How much NT does IBM sell for enterprise network services, vs. both NT for application servers and NetWare for enterprise network services? How many licenses of NetWare for SAA, MS's SNA Server, and OS/2 Communication Manager (three competing products that IBM sells and supports) are going out the door?
You asked for a few articles from independent sources confirming some of my statements. Not PR, not paid ads, etc. Here's a few.
From VAR Business (aparently one of your favorites): NT VAR's were asked what problems they faced in trying to sell NT.
techweb.cmp.com
TOP CHALLENGES WHEN SELLING NT
Bugs being worked out 60%
Lack of qualified personnel 54%
Complexity/cost of porting software 44%
NetWare has better directory service 37%
Lack of support from Microsoft 34%
Customer resistance 28%
Not robust or scalable to enterprise level 27%
Again from VAR Business
techweb.cmp.com
True, it's not a simple matter of NT or NetWare. Most companies aren't trashing their networks. Rather, they're integrating NT into their existing environments. VARBusiness research conducted a few months ago indicates that VARs install NT as an add-on to an existing network 27 percent of the time, with a whopping 74 percent mentioning NetWare as one of the OSs to which NT is being added. Our research also shows that 47 percent of NT installations are brand new, meaning NT is installed to perform a new function.
Note from Jerry: gee, NT VAR's saying 47% of NT installations are to perform a new function, and not replace anything. 74% mention NetWare as a system to which NT is being ADDED by them as an application server. I think this confirms quite well some of the things I've been saying.
From a Network Computing article, 8/1/97, comparing groupware solutions from IBM, Microsoft, Netscape, and Novell:
GroupWise is a system administrator's dream. It's integrated with Novell Directory Services (NDS) and ManageWise, so you can administer and monitor the network and GroupWise from a single point of reference. No mindless repetition, and no more looking around. With multiplatform support of Windows NT, Unix and IntranetWare on both client and server-as well as the industry's most robust gateway set-GroupWise gives you complete flexibility for Internet and intranet messaging in your organization. According to a 1996 research study by International Data Corp., GroupWise provides returns on investment of up to 334 percent...
Maintaining the simplicity of browser-like access while managing the complexities of multiple data objects within a collaborative setting is just one example of how Novell GroupWise excels. This is why GroupWise continues to gain market approval from a sales and awards perspective.
From Windows Magazine
techweb.com
Many of us-members of the press, software developers, hardware makers and end users alike-have bought into the NT mystique, sometimes to our own detriment. That collective infatuation has hurt us at times, too. I know of three prominent NetWare shops-Aetna Life and Casualty, AlliedSignal and Chevron Information Technology-that wasted precious time formulating a migration plan to Windows NT servers. In the end, each company scaled back its NT initiatives after discovering NetWare was easier to administer across distributed networks.
Don't get me wrong, I'm an unabashed NT zealot. In fact, as editor of WINDOWS Magazine's NT Enterprise Edition, I've staked my career on it. I'm convinced NT is the future of corporate computing. Already, low-cost NT/Intel workstations are banishing UNIX from the desktop. And you just can't beat NT Server as a secure, reliable and fairly inexpensive platform for running client/server applications on departmental networks.
Unfortunately, NT is being hyped for uses that simply aren't practical today. NT as a complete replacement for Novell Directory Services (NDS)? I think not. NT vs. UNIX on very high-end enterprise servers? Not today, but maybe someday (oops, there I go again)
Another from Windows Magazine
techweb.com
Beware the Vendor Agenda -- If you've heard any of these myths, don't believe 'em.
Myth 6: Novell is dog meat. Reports of Novell's death have also been greatly exaggerated. When people see Windows NT Server with three-digit projected growth every year for the foreseeable future, they assume NetWare will lose and die. In fact, there's a huge demand for NetWare as a bona fide network operating system that securely links entire enterprises with its global directory and administration features. Novell expects 8 million servers to be running NetWare by the year 2000, twice the current number.
NT also has a role as a server operating system, dishing out applications and acting as the server for large departments. The two will live side by side and serve different purposes.
Yet another from VAR Business
techweb.com
VARBusiness asked 30 Novell Platinum Council members 10 questions ranging from what in the Novell product portfolio appeals to them most, to what they would do with Novell's troubled marketing department.
All said they are more confident in Novell's ability to compete today than they were one year ago, due, in large part, to the arrival of Eric Schmidt from Sun Microsystems as CEO.
Most report they will do about as much Novell-related business this year as last. They say Novell's gambit to aggressively pursue network services won't reduce the company's fortunes the way a similar decision derailed Banyan Systems Inc. "Novell is more embedded in Corporate America," says Keith James, president of Business Computer Center, Tulsa, Okla.
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That's enough. There's hundred's more examples where those came from.
Jerry |
