President's Message from Don Rima

Greetings ! There are times when I wish I could get tomorrow's Wall Street Journal today. Ever since the days of cards, bread boarding, and 8008's we IS'ers have wondered what new hardware, language, op codes, file structures, and accessing methods await us around the corner. Well on Thursday evening the 26th, we'll get to find out some more of the future! In THIS month's meeting we get to see part of the future of the AS/400 in the announcement meeting on V4R2.

This is THE DC/Baltimore briefing on what the announcement is all about. At the request of the IBM speakers, we're holding this meeting at a special date...same time. The reason for this is that the IBMers giving these presentations will be away attending announcement briefings prior to this date, and we all wanted this presentation to be as complete as possible.

I'm hearing things about a new upgrade MES to help the CISC to RISC migration, new capabilities in the Lotus Notes and Domino arena, new facilities in RPG... Frankly, IBM is having a hard time right now figuring out what to call the meeting as the list of features is expanding every day ... this is a growing announcement!

Also, there will be drawings for door prizes from NEWS/400 and more.

Again, special thanks to IBM, Anne Nelson, and Steven Drew for including us on this announcement. Find Them and all The Southeast regional support here and more at http://as400.rochester.ibm.com/usa/southeast/mgmt.htm

Mark February 26 now as "Announcement Date" and plan to be there for a very full evening. We WILL be starting sharply at six as there is a LOT to go through. I predict that this meeting may run a bit overtime ... but it's time you won't want to spend any place else.

A very special thanks to Paul Lambert for his presentation at the January meeting. Paul's presentation and handout on RPG IV/ILE was very well done and we're looking forward to more from Paul in the future. We're always looking for good presentations on timely topics. So, if you've got an idea for presentation or an idea for a good speaker please contact any board member.

"If it's happening, it's on the web.". That's as true with WAM as with the rest of the cyber-world. Bookmark http://www.wash-midrange.org, our web page. In it you'll find the current and archived newsletters. You'll also find info and email addresses of the board members. We're adding to it all the time so check it (like they vote in Chicago) early and often.

Treasurer's Message from K B Soni

Washington Area Midrange
12023 Blackberry Terrace
North Potomac, Maryland 20878

February Meeting

featuring Steven Drew, IBM Inter-, Intra-, Extra-Net Specialist

It's official! IBM's Version 4.2 of OS/400 has brought enhancements that make AS/400e better and your life simpler. We all know that Notes is going Native with V4.2. Now learn the details of why this is important.

Also, learn more about the built in Java Virtual Machine. Yes, built into V4.2 is the JVM we've all been hearing about. The Internet enhancements keep coming and there's more good news on Net Commerce.

There will be a demonstration with a live AS/400! No smoke and mirrors here, just pure AS/400e Also, hear a tease of what's coming in Version 4.3.

Steve Drew has been with IBM 10 years. He is located in Maryland and specializes in marketing AS/400 Internet, Intranet, and Extranet projects. However, he brings a twist to the marketing game in that he actually can "walk the talk". Now that's a refreshing concept, an IBM marketing guy that can implement and use what he sells. Mr. Drew works with customers and IBM Business Partners answering any AS/400 e-business questions to help move implementations forward.

Thursday February 26, 1998 18:00 Holiday Inn U S Route 1 College Park, Maryland (Parking is FREE !)

Board Meeting Immediately After !

18:00 Buffet - - 19:00 Speaker - - 20:30 Adjournment

Pasta ! With your choice of Marinara or Meat Sauce. -- Garden salad with dressing & beverage.

RSVP (by Monday 02/23) to Peter 703/834-3706 or 1stplace@crosslink.net

Special IBM price $15.00/non-member

1998 WAM Board of Directors

Some 'Not-So-Famous' Words of Wisdom:

- Humor Courtesy of Peter Maher

WAM Membership: To join send your Name, Company, Address, Phone, Fax, E-mail with $100.00 annual dues to our Treasurer:

K B Soni, 12023 Blackberry Terrace, North Potomac, MD 20878.

Home Page Address: You can now reach us on the Internet ! Our home page is located at

http://www.wash-midrange.org. Please feel free to send any suggestions to Peter.

UPCOMING EVENTS - February through April, 1998

The Domino Effect Raises The Bar -- And Some Questions

By Jeffrey Schwartz, Department Editor, InternetWeek

All the hoopla at the annual Lotusphere conference was centered around Domino 5.0, the company's latest generation of its groupware offering. With its support for more Internet standards and Java, the new release will undoubtedly raise the bar for collaborative computing and electronic commerce applications.

So why has so much ink in recent weeks been given to E-mail systems integration and the decision by Lotus parent IBM to focus its SoftSwitch division on migration to Domino? Quite simply, getting from here to there is the biggest issue many large IT shops face. If Domino/Notes is their platform of choice, most organizations will pick the latest version ready for prime time. Today that's Domino 4.6; eventually it promises to be 5.0.

Not to trivialize the functionality that will be added to the new release later this year, many organizations are looking to get a pure messaging infrastructure in place first. Because of the hodgepodge of systems in place today, sending a message with an attachment within the enterprise is still a dream not yet realized for many.

As recently reported, a majority of organizations are choosing Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Domino as their platform-and given the decentralized nature of many large corporations, both could find their way into a good number of the largest shops.

Lotus' decision to redirect its SoftSwitch business from vendor-neutral message switching and integration to Domino migration indeed is a major shift, but a move it had to make. Most analysts agree that Lotus had to do something to counter Microsoft's recent acquisition of Linkage Software, a company that provides migration tools and connectors to different messaging systems. Offering those wares as near giveaways has been a major boon to organizations looking to migrate to Exchange.

With SoftSwitch right under the roof of IBM and Lotus, it was a no-brainer to start tapping its rich base of technology and developers. But, according to analysts, the move will clearly leave Lotus Message Switch (LMS) customers in the cold, particularly ones that are relying on it for migration to Exchange and Netscape Communications' SuiteSpot. According to a recent report by messaging consultancy Rapport Communication, Lotus has a $50 million business with SoftSwitch, whereas it has a $1 billion juggernaut built around Notes that is "growing by leaps and bounds."

As for future business, the report said that SoftSwitch is willing to cede business to Control Data, Isocor or other vendor neutral message switch vendors in exchange for bolstering the value of its Notes/Domino offering.

Indeed, what Lotus is doing makes good business sense and it holds great promise to reduce the barriers to Notes/Domino migration.

We are hearing that Lotus will try to bring its LMS technology to Notes/Domino in an attractive, cost-effective way. We'll reserve judgment until Lotus plays its full hand and executes its plan. Conceptually, though, it sounds good.

But we must advocate that many shops that have already committed to LMS and have other SoftSwitch products, such as its mainframe-based Central switch, also deserve a break. For its part, SoftSwitch said it intends to continue supporting those customers. Many of them have paid handsomely to keep those systems integrated and stuck with SoftSwitch through some tough times.

The SoftSwitch move was perhaps inevitable. Indeed, when Lotus acquired SoftSwitch in 1994, many questioned how long it would be able to operate as a vendor-neutral company. They also questioned how long it would be before Lotus would become absorbed into IBM.

Just a reminder: Mike Zisman, executive vice president for strategy at Lotus, was recently given the same role at IBM.

Stay tuned.

Domino for AS/400 Lands at Lotusphere

If you've been waiting for IBM and Lotus to ship Domino for AS/400, your waiting days are over. Today, on the floor of the Lotusphere user conference, Big Blue unveiled the long-expected product with all the fanfare that the powerhouse product deserves.

I rarely use such glowing terms for a new product, but they're warranted here. Back in December (see Monday Morning AS/400 Update, December 1, 1997), I predicted that Domino for AS/400 would support over 5,000 users; inreality, the largest AS/400 supports over 10,000 Notesbench users, more than any system ever tested. Admittedly, Notesbench only tests Domino's email performance, so companies running more complex groupware applications won't support anywhere near 10,000 users. However, the record indicates the AS/400's overwhelming strength as a Domino platform.

In addition, customers will be able to independently run up to 16 Domino servers, each within its own memory partition, on a single AS/400 (I originally predicted 12 partitions). If a Domino server fails, the customer can restart it by simply varying off the partition, then varying it back on. You can even set the partition to automatically restart the server if it goes down in the middle of the night. Try that on your PC server!

The power and reliability of Domino for AS/400 has excited Lotus executives who, until late last year, were relatively unimpressed by the product. As a result of their excitement, Domino for AS/400 is getting plenty of attention at Lotusphere today. Besides sponsoring the product announcement itself, Lotusphere is running its entire email system on a Domino for AS/400 server. At the same time, many Lotus Business Partners (BPs) are demonstrating their applications on another network of Domino for AS/400 servers.

In addition many vendors have certified their applications on Domino for AS/400 or are in theprocess of porting them to the new platform. To help you learn about them, our Web site http://www.midrangecomputing.com has a complete list of Domino for AS/400 vendors, their applications, contact information, and hyperlinks to their Web sites. I urge you to check it out.

While reading this, you may be thinking, "Hold it. Doesn't Domino for AS/400 only run on OS/400 V4R2? Did IBM announce that as well?" Well...no. Can you expect IBM to announce V4R2 soon? Yes... very soon. When it does, you can be assured this publication and the MC Web site will be the first with complete coverage,

so stay tuned.

Editor's Note: V4R2 will be announced February 10th -- You'll hear all about it at WAM, Thursday, February 26. Don't miss it!

Lotus Notes Domino gets the full treatment at WAM, Tuesday, March 17.

Mark your 1 9 9 8 W A M calendar !

"AS/400e Only Gets Better with Version 4.2!" with Steven Drew

Why should I trade a night of "Must See TV" to go to this February 26th meeting?

This session will be faster paced than an E.R. episode and you'll be with your real Friends. And unlike Seinfeld, this session is actually about something.

So what will I learn at this "Must Attend Presentation/Demonstration"?

• What you want and need to know about AS/400 e-business, Net.Commerce, Native Notes, Java, Web Serving, and Firewall.
• About AS/400e strategic direction, new hardware and new software. (announced February 10th!)
• How the AS/400 can be a Web Server, Mail Server, and Firewall and allow you to lower your cost of computing by leveraging the Internet.
• Why the AS/400 Java Virtual Machine has no Equal!
• Why the natives are getting restless now that Domino/Notes is going native with OS/400 Version 4.2. What the real performance numbers are for Native Domino/Notes to help you size your project.
• How to avoid an extra NT server running DNS (Domain Name Services) or DHCP (Dynamic Host Control Protocol) with Version 4.2 of OS/400. (If you don't know what DNS or DHCP are, come to this meeting to hear an update on the latest alphabet soup and what the letters mean and why they are important to you.)
• How AS/400e can host NT servers.
• Why AS/400e never requires Alt-Ctrl-Delete. The famous "three finger salute"!
• Which one of the following can not be served by an AS/400:
  • NT Applications
  • Novell Applications
  • OS/2 LAN Server
  • UNIX Applications
  • Java Applications Macintosh clients
  • Internet Sites Firewall Security
  • Nintendo 64 (you're getting warm)
• How AS/400e will support Virtual Private Networks, Internet Site Blocking, and Network Address Translation.

Lotus Notes Domino ! with Terry Dimka March 17, 1998

Terry Dimka, a 19 year veteran IBM Specialist, will describe the Lotus Notes Domino product as it applies to the AS/400 Native environment which is available with V4R2. He'll cover the Domino product on a high level with a more detailed description of the integration with the OS/400 native environment. Then Terry will cover AS/400 Native Domino advantages and strengths as well as implementation on the AS/400.

Terry has spent the majority of his career in the S/3x and AS/400 arena. In 1984 he moved to the Washington, DC area as a S/3x Systems Engineer in IBM's Federal Sector. Starting in 1990 Terry spent five years in Baltimore as a Systems Engineer covering General Business commercial accounts. In 1994 he returned to Bethesda in the capacity of AS/400 Marketing Specialist. Terry has continued in that role to the present with an additional focus in 1998 on the AS/400-Lotus Domino Groupware area.

Newsletter Editor: Tom Jones
Web Editor: Peter Maher