[log in to unmask] ("Rudderow, Evan" ) wrote:
 
>As many of us know, at Interex '94 HP announced that
>they would begin  bundling ARPA services with the 5.0
>push of MPE/iX.  Remembering that the  IMAGE/SQL
>bundling had an increased my software supports costs I
>quite  reasonably supposed that the ARPA bundling might
>also have a similar impact  on software support costs.
>
>However the rumors I've heard in the last couple of
>months seem to suggest  that there will be NO
>additional support cost associated with the ARPA
>bundling; if true, then what a pleasant surprise!  But
>IF true, that raises  a question for those of us who
>have purchased the ARPA products and are  currently
>paying software support for them: When do we get to
>STOP paying  support?
>
>I figure we'll get our reprieve either on our support
>contract renewal date  or when the 5.0 push ships;
>although I think it's more likely that it will  be the
>contract renewal date.  That means that (assuming 5.0
>pushes out on  schedule) I'll wind up still paying
>support fees for the ARPA products for a  few while
>other users (after all, I don't intend to be the first
>on the  block to put up 5.0) are getting both the
>product and support for free.
>
>I'm not real wild about this; I think the solution
>that's fair to those of  us who have been purchasing
>these products and paying the support fees is  for HP
>to drop those fees from our support contracts the day
>that the 5.0  push ships.
>
>I know, not bloodly likely.
>
> -- Evan
>
>These opinions expressed here are DEFINITELY my own.
 
Evan, I read recently that you could drop support as soon as
you got 5.0 with the bundled ARPA. They are NOT going to add
line items for this. Whether they *allow* it or not is not
really an issue in this case. Anyone can drop support for any
product at any time and get an adjusted support contract. I
plan to do this the day after I install 5.0! Granted, the HP
contracts folks can get confused, but they'll get it right
eventually.
 
-- Duane Percox (Quintessential School Systems)
   [log in to unmask]