(true story alert)
 
Some years ago I was the systems manager at a heavy manufacturing company
(foundry & Metal fab shop). We had installed an HP3000 to run all the
business applications. About once a year the president of the company would
get a case of WeNeedaNewSystem-itis (a sometimes fatal disease..for the
business anyway ) and would tell me to investigate the hot system de jour.
A couple of times that was the AS400. I would call IBM and they would send
out a sales team to pitch a system. When they were done with their "sales"
stuff I would take them for a tour (dirt,noise,heat,smoke,
fire&brimstone)of the plant. We would end up in the computer room which was
located in the foundry building and within feet of a 440v DC crane rail.
Everytime the crane would go by the whole room would shake and, while we
tried to seal it off, foundry sand would sift thru the ceiling. I would
open the access panel on the front of the HP and run my fingers across it.
They would come away black from foundry dirt. I would look the IBM guy
straight in the eye and say "this system has been running for x years with
NO down time. Will you guarantee the same reliability if I put an AS400 in
here?". The IBM guys would not (could not) answer the question... they just
waltzed around the issues for a while and left. There were NO follow-up
calls from them.  :-)
 
(true story alert still on)
 
Back when HP still marketed HP3000s they were using our shop as a sales
reference. One time an I.S. Director from a company using IBMs but
considering an HP3000 called me to talk about the 3000. In the course of
the conversation he asked me what the mean time between failures was on the
3000. I told him I didn't know. He said "what do you mean you don't
know...don't you track that??" I said "sure I track it but I've only had
this HP3000 four years and it hasn't failed yet. If you'd like I'll call
you if it ever fails and give you the MTBF."
 
I'm convinced he thought I was pulling his leg. It was beyond his
comprehension that a system could stay up for months, let alone YEARS.
 
(soapbox on)
 
You see, It's a secret....and unless you've lived it, day-to-day, having
your butt on the line and depending on system performance to keep the
business running and the "wolf away from the door" you just don't know how
good the 3000 is. I think maybe even HP forgot. What a shame!
 
(soapbox off)
 
only my opinion, thanks for the bandwidth...I hope it wasn't a waste.
 
steve