Ron writes:

> CSY's position on networked printer support is somewhat more complex
>  than "mumbo jumbo." Dave Wilde, one of the lab section managers in
>  CSY, reminded users at HP World that the free, bundled MPE network
>  printing was supposed to be a low-end solution -- missing some
>  functionality, and not as robust or adept as third party solutions
>  like the one built and sold by RAC Consulting's Rich Corn (which is
>  also resold by Minisoft as NetPrint). Wilde said it wasn't even
>  supposed to have page-level recovery. Apparently now that network
>  printing is running in a lot of the customer base (with the advent of
>  5.5 installs), people want to redefine low-end -- at the expense of
>  third party companies' business.

>  I've listened for years to third party companies complain about how
>  HP used to blow them out of the market with solutions like HP
>  TurboStore True Online, offered when there were several tested and
>  proven backup products available for the 3000. We all know there are
>  things that only CSY can create for the 3000. Network print
>  management isn't one of them. I can think of dozens of other things
>  more important that only HP's engineers can do. Wirt noted that "The
>  problems with the new printers are not fatal. They're just
>  irritating." Keeping CSY focused on fatal problems should be our
>  first choice.
>
>  When enhancement requests for bundled MPE utilities ride roughshod
>  over third-party software companies -- jiggling benefits so there's
>  not enough value to justify purchasing a third party alternative --
>  it makes me sad. Modest-sized companies have provided the 3000
>  marketplace with rich functionality, some with features that HP took
>  years to bundle into the 3000. That's the value third parties provide
>  you.
>
>  Every time you ask HP to pump up something like networked printing,
>  some third party company goes to another platform instead of
>  competing in what they see, rightly, as an unfair playing field.
>  (Just try to sell something against a competitor that is free, if you
>  doubt that.) There is no free lunch. These light snacks of the
>  network printing upgrades might be justified. But I hope 3000
>  customers don't think CSY has reverted to "mumbo jumbo" management.
>  The truth is that CSY just remembers what they promised better than
>  some customers do. As a result of that kind of memory, third party
>  suppliers get a chance to earn a living by offering advanced
>  features. It benefits the 3000 customer base -- and it feels fair,
>  too.

Rubbish.

The current problems with network printing are simply due to the fact that
the HP3000 spooler software has not kept up with changes that some other HP
division has made to PJL. It is simply a software maintenance problem.
Nothing more. Nothing less.

More than that, the current problems with spooling to the newest HP printers
are a profound embarassment to everyone involved. CSY and the HP3000 are only
going to prosper on a foundation of excellence, especially for those
attributes that are user-visible. Mediocrity is a quality that will kill the
HP3000 faster than any other in an intensely competitive environment.

It only takes a few minutes to realize that the argument that third parties
will prosper best when HP is incompetent is the dumbest possible argument.
Unfortunately, that appears to be the argument that Ron is making.

Wirt Atmar