Let's Keep Track

[J.Pluta]

Let's Keep Track

"Now, turn on Websphere Express and I can go to lunch between web pages." This is due entirely to a poorly written web application. With PSC/400, I can handle multiple users with subsecond response time using WebSphere Express on a little model 270. My website, www.plutabrothers.com, runs on that same little model 270 also using WebSphere Express. I may not get 35000 hits a day, but I also have none of the throughput problems you describe. I won't rehash the issues of writing for a dedicated processor like a Wintel box and a multi-purpose business machine like the iSeries, but I guarantee that somebody with decent architecture skills can write web applications for the iSeries that rival the throughput of any server farm, and for a comparable TCO. Joe

[J.Pluta]

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Hey Chuck? Thanks for your input. However, if you're unable to reduce the purposely inflammatory editorial comments, I won't bother responding any more. I know your natural behavior is to bait people, but despite that in recent weeks I've tried to be civil with you and the lack of civility in return is unacceptable to me. I was neither bragging nor complaining, simply stating facts. I realize an apology is too much to ask, but if you are unable to suppress your need for unnecessary impolite commentary, please don't expect any further replies. Joe

Let's Keep Track

Joe, The difficulty with the iSeries is horsepower. Our model 820 when lightly loaded has reasonable response time from the Apache server when a dozen users hit the server. Give it a hundred users and response time is noticeably slow. Add an SQL query and response time is sluggish. Now, turn on Websphere Express and I can go to lunch between web pages. Our 820 is a $150k machine and well adapted to green screen but not at all adapted to serving up web pages. For about 1/3 the cost in hardware I can serve up over 35K users on a Wintel platform. Unfortunately, IBM keeps pushing Websphere and that, eventually, will be their undoing. At COMMON IBM told me flat out that I need about 1000 CPWs to fire up Websmart. Well, our $150k machine is only rated at 1100 CPW. Do you think I'll be using Websmart any time soon? Not a chance. chuck Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of my employer. "Joe Pluta" wrote in message news:6ae8c09e.2@WebX.WawyahGHajS... > "Yes, IBM has pushed Websphere and Java as alternatives, but that is a long time loser strategy in my opinion." > > What is so difficult about JavaServer Pages? If all your web layer is is an interface to your back end processing, you can create web pages almost instantly using WDSC, and you're not locked into Microsoft. > > Joe

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Joe said: "It's my - well, I think prediction is too strong a word, but perhaps my hunch - that we're going to see that some of these combinations of new technology, new methodology and cheap hardware won't quite scale as they might need to." Our e-commerce web site is deployed on Win 2k server using IIS and is developed entirely in .Net. The web server itself is on a 4-CPU Xenon server and currently handles 35,000 unique visitors per day. We've had no response problems due to the server. Where we have problems is bandwidth. Our 6mb pipe is too slow, so we're moving our web site off to SBC in the first quarter. Joe continued: "I was at a local chain retailer of sporting goods apparel, and their entire POS system was down. They were reduced to taking orders by hand with calculators, and they had to turn away credit card customers. It was looking pretty ugly." Sounds like they have an old system. Even our 18 year old POS based upon DOS 5 has redundancy in the stores. The new one we're putting in next quarter will have a mini-SQL Server on each and every register. There will be redundancy down to the register level, including dialup to the credit card company. Joe complained: "And just tonight I was about to buy a 19" LCD monitor for my mom, and the Dell site told me it was too busy to take my order." Well, Dell IS the busiest Internet retailer in the world. On a normal day they take in over $60 million on their web site. I expect that during the Christmas rush it's a lot more. Joe bragged: "Dell lost a hefty sale." Huh? My company buys over $1million per year from Dell and we're not considered a hefty customer. How much did that monitor of yours cost? Was it like the Diamond Vision at Dodger Stadium? Joe complained: "It's the week before Christmas, and you don't have enough horsepower for your online sales site? This strikes me as a pretty major flaw in your infrastructure." I suspect that if Dell ran their site with iSeries model 890s they'd still have trouble keeping up. It's almost impossible to anticipate traffic this time of year. chuck Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of my employer.

[David Abramowitz]

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CDR9003 (whoever that is) wrote: I would expect IBM to change nothing and continue fantasizing about JAVA taking over the world. If I were you I wouldn't be taking any bets on that long term. IBM chose JAVA as a MS killer, due primarily to the portablity that allows applications to run anywhere. Yet you see no more "hamburger" ads since SUN refused to submit JAVA to ANSI for standardization. Without an industry standard, the use of JAVA has many pitfalls, and IBM knows it. It is interesting to note that IBM jumped on the Linux bandwagon only after the SUN refusal. There are many many many things IBM could do with OS/400 if only the faith and interest were there. Dave

[J.Pluta]

Let's Keep Track

"Yes, IBM has pushed Websphere and Java as alternatives, but that is a long time loser strategy in my opinion." What is so difficult about JavaServer Pages? If all your web layer is is an interface to your back end processing, you can create web pages almost instantly using WDSC, and you're not locked into Microsoft. Joe

[David Abramowitz]

Joe, My client is in the process of paying triple (I do have the figures) for "cheaper" servers and software. To add to your comments, I would say that not only is there scalabiltiy concerns, but also software compatibility concerns. Many AS/400 and Iseries systems running today contain portions of S/36 code, or even older. No matter how many times IBM updates OS/400 with a new release, the software continues to run. . . . .WITHOUT EVEN RECOMPILING!!! Try to explain that to developers who just recently migrated from VB 6.0 to VB.NET. Going back further, you had issues with NT to XP, or 3.1 to Win/95, or SQL Server to Oracle or Sybase. Considering the lines of code involved, the costs must be staggering. OTOH if you just farm out the costs and write it off, who cares? Dave